“You don’t have any shoes on,” I say gruffly, not meeting her eye.
“Put me down. You are going to drop me, I’m too big to be—”
I catch the panic in her wide eyes. Pausing my stride, I face her. She doesn’t know I’m a were and that picking her up poses no problem for me.
“I will not drop you.” I pack the words with as much intensity as I can. Something about my delivery has her mouth snapping shut. She believes me. Afterall, I’m halfway to her house and I'm not losing my grip or even a little out of breath. Not like when she wrapped those pretty fingers around my—
“Good girl,” I say as I continue toward her house. A flush turns her cheeks pink. Focusing past the enjoyment of having her hands grip my shoulders, I secretly rail against being able to have a normal morning with the aggravating, gorgeous girl of my dreams.
I set her on the welcome mat to her place. The porch needs some serious sanding and some new boards in places.
When she whips her front door open, I realize it wasn’t even locked.For crying out loud.
Though I guess if she really is sleepwalking, she must be unlocking it to walk to my house.
I still can’t believe she’s breaking in. Because of Eli, I have extra security and locks on my house.
The sound of a revving engine and gravel flying pulls my attention away from Goldie.
A black SUV drives up between our properties before coming to a screeching halt.
Oh, faefucks on a waterslide.
“Go inside, blondie,” I order, stepping off the porch.
“What?” Goldie asks, but I’m already striding toward the cars. Three men get out of the vehicle.
Two of them are thugs wearing tight sports tees. One of them has muscles on top of his muscles and a greenish tint to his scaly skin—a dracanoid. He’s fae, like me. Usually, fae stick to their own kind and keep away from the human world, but with only a couple drops of dragon blood, this guy likely didn’t have many places to go. And the dracanoid has ended up collecting debts for a low-life thug.
He’s the epitome of what I worry will happen to my brothers.
Then again, that would at least mean Eli was gainfully employed. . .
A third man steps out from the SUV, white snakeskin boots crunching on the gravel. The powerful scent of shoe oil and musky cologne combines into a disgusting patina in my mouth. Dressed in all black, the sleeves of his button down rolled up. An expensive diamond clip is clamped to a turquoise tie. The trees reflect in his aviator sunglasses, making him look even more important and impressive somehow.
Against the smell of earth, pine and wildflowers, a sickening scent spreads over my tongue. Expensive brown liquor, old cigars, and the tanginess of other people’s fear.
He’s the leader
“This is private property,” I growl, positioning between them and my cabin.
The thin-faced man removes his glasses, revealing cold, cruel eyes. In a south Boston accent dripping with insincere cordiality, he says, “We’re looking for your brother. We have reason to believe he’s here.” His eyes flit over to where Eli’s beat-up Jeep is parked next to my truck.
I sigh. “How much?”
The thin-faced scumbag toys with his sunglasses a moment, a smirk pulling at his lips. “Ten grand.”
“For fucks sake,” I curse, running a hand through my hair. “You know he has a problem. Why do you keep letting him place bets?”
The man in black shrugs with a lopsided smile that makes me want to punch it right off. “We give people a chance to change. Few in this world are so generous to those who wish to prove themselves.”
Generous, my ass.
The man’s brows lift as his attention catches on something in the other direction. “Hey there, sweetheart.”
Fucking fuck fuck.
Chapter21
