“Chloe,” Skyla reprimands the witch. Of course, she’s going to snitch. That’s what Chloe doesbest.
“Logan.” Chloe winks over at me. “Relax, would you? It’s one of the many perks of working with my new bestie. Skyla and I are a team, and if you don’t like it, you can suck your owndick.”
“Chloe,” Skyla moans, deep and guttural, and my dick ticks to life. In my defense, Chloe roused its attention in a roundabout way. “Keep your lips zipped. It’s nobody’s business what we dotogether.”
“You’re my new bestie.” Chloe lands an arm around Skyla’s shoulders, and I cringe at how close to Barron she is. “You validate me, Skyla.” Chloe’s lips twitch as if she were about to cut her. “And I validate you.” She turns to snicker at me. “We may not like where life has landed us, but we work surprisingly well together when we have a common goal.” Her eyes flit to the left, and I track her gaze to none other than Gage. Figures. Gage is the nexus that has fused Chloe and Skyla together. But why? And how the hell does this ever makesense?
“So, you keep an eye on Wes—and Skyla gives you your walking papers?” At least I can say I took a stab atit.
“Warm.” Chloe looks bored while returning her attention to her new aforementioned bestie. “Anyway, I want to tell Laken myself. Now that I’ll be resurfacing soon, I’ll need allies and friends, and believe it or not, I happen to admireher.”
“Because she had the fortitude not to sleep with Wes?” Skyla looks disbelieving at the demon beforeher.
“That, and the fact she shoots from the hip. Not in a bumble headed way like Brielle. She’s sane. I like a girl with a good head on hershoulders.”
“Save it.” Skyla pulls Barron out from under her blouse, and he smiles dreamily at me with a line of milk on his lips. “Laken won’t be signing up to join the Bitch Squad any time soon. And I’m pretty sure you’re the last person she’ll give half a chance to. You slept with Wes. Worse yet, you pretended tobeher while sleeping withWes.”
“It’s not my fault my husband has a fetish.” She shudders. “Anyway, he’s abandoned the marriage bed. It’s been a couple of weeks since he’s wagged his penis my way. Whoever that chick is, she’s taking the heat fornow.”
Skyla’s eyes fill with rage as she drifts to some unknowable place in her mind. “Go home, Chloe. Keep a close eye on your new best friend, whoever it is that’s warming your husband’s bed. Don’t let her out of your sight. I’ll be down there soon enough to deal withher.”
“I’ll be joining you.” I let Barron take my finger and squeeze the shit out of it. “And so will Cooper and most likely Lakenherself.”
Chloe gags on a wicked laugh. “In the meantime, I will gather everything you ever needed to know about Wesley’s new little whore.” She gives me the finger before melting into the crowd, and a plume of fog rises to the ceiling as she’s whisked back to theTransfer.
“Skyla.”
“Don’t start,” she cuts meoff.
I step in close in clear defiance because a part of me doesn’t care. Skyla is endangering herself, and God knows I’ll do anything to protect Skyla even if it’s from herself. “What else have you promisedher?”
Her eyes meet with mine, and the moment grows serious. Rage pours from her like fumes. “All Chloe has ever wanted is power, Logan. And that’s exactly what I’m going to give her.” She stalks off and meets up with Gage. He’s quick to embrace his wife. Quick to kissher.
For the first time ever, it feels as if Skyla needs to be supervised. And I’m volunteering. It’s one thing to have Gage off the rails, but an entirely other to have Skyla skip thetracks.
One thing is for sure—there is no getting off this crazy train without certain disaster. It’s coming. I can feel the three of us barreling ever so close. It’s going to be big. And something tells me it will be final,too.
* * *
Late the next afternoon,when the sky is pissing out its affection over Paragon like a golden shower, I head down to the Gas Lab where Gage and I are meeting up withCoop.
Poor Coop. It’s a given he’s going to be pissed—hell, I’m pissed. But Wes is relentless. His obsession with Coop’s wife isn’t going away anytime soon. This latest despicable move is only one in a long line of despicable moves. No sooner do I step inside the Gas Lab than I see both Skyla and Laken talking to Ezrina behind the counter. Ezrina’s belly is showing, a nice clean bump that indicates all things are in order as far as the baby is concerned, at least in outward appearance. I spot Coop and Gage sitting near the back and make a beelineover.
“What’s up?” I slap both Coop and Gage over the shoulder as I take a seat betweenthem.
“You’re up.” Coop’s brows knit in a slight V the way mine are prone to do, and I can’t help but smile. More often than not looking at Coop is like looking in a mirror. Which is exactly why what I’m about to divulge feels as much as a sucker punch for me as it will for him. I glance over to Skyla, and she locks eyes with me a moment before saying something to both Ezrina and Laken, and the three of them burst out into laughter. Less than a second later, the three of them are headed thisway.
“I think we might need Nev for this little meet and greet.” I call him over with the flick of the finger. The girls take a seat at the table just as Nev showsup.
“What a fine looking group.” He lands his arm around Ezrina. “What can we start you offwith?”
“The truth.” Gage glares at Ezrina a moment. “Take a seat. Both ofyou.”
Ezrina’s face grows pale, but those dark eyes of hers fill with something just this side of rage. “No.”
Coop and Laken exchange a quick glance. “What’s going on?” Coop is pissed before we ever get offgo.
I wipe my face down with my palm, and a flashback of the beating that mystery girl doled out comes back to me. She was strong. Strong as shit. Strong as aNephilim. A dull laugh pumps through me. Of course. She’s one ofus.
