“Wesley’s here.” Nev takes in a depleted breath. “Rina considers Tobie every bit her own.” He gives a wistful shake of the head. “I hope she’s not setting herself up for heartbreak. Rina would be destroyed if he ever took that little girl out of her life. She’d do anything to keep her within arm’s reach.” He takes off for his glowing bride, and suddenly it all makessense.
Coop closes his eyes a moment. “And that’s why she didit.”
Skyla spears both Cooper and Laken with a sharp look. “That makes sense. Ezrina’s body did produce a child—Tobie. But the greater mystery is why in the hell haven’t the two of you killed Wesyet?”
Coop and Laken exchange a quick glance as if an execution were still on thetable.
“Youknow”—Skyla leans in—“rip him a new one. Tear out his jugular.” She shakes her head at the two of them because for the life of her, she doesn’t get their shared silence, and neither do I. “What’s goingon?”
Wes comes over and kills the party per usual, chasing both Coop and Laken into the house, and they take Angel right along withthem.
Wes smiles that eerie Gage Oliver knockoff grin. I glance to the patio and spot Ezrina and Nev bouncing Tobie between them. She’s beautiful, and innocent, and it’s easy for me not to put her in the same category as her demonicfather.
“The Kraggers are inside—just Emerson and Holden—his wife, too,” Wes announces as if this were news we actually wanted tohear.
“That’s nice.” Skyla grunts as Chloe pops up by her side like a pit bull ready to defend its owner from a rogue beast. “How’s Kresley? Was she too tired to come? But then, knowing who she’s been rubbing up against, I bet she’s been coming quitefrequently.”
Chloe belts out a laugh and high-fives her new best friend. “We can always count on you for a solid one-liner.”
Gage groans. “Skyla.” He wraps his arms around his wife as if holding her back from a fight. “Wes, weknow.”
“We know, and we’re confused as hell,” I offer. “Care toexplain?”
Wes hoods those stormy eyes of his in Ezrina’s direction. “There’s nothing to see here. Just an old flame willing to do whatever it takes to make me happy.” He reverts his attention to us and grins. “I suppose true love exists afterall.”
Gage shakes his head. “You don’t have that with Kres. You never will,” he says it tenderly as if talking a distraught man down from the ledge. “You love the deepest part of Laken—not just theshell.”
Skyla’s chest bucks as if she were in tears. “You are killing Laken with all of your perversity. First, demanding that Chloe morph? Then using time travel as a sexual device by taking Laken over and over again?” She gives a hard sniff as if she’s trying to hold it together. “And then bargaining with a desperate woman to transform into the likeness of the only woman you will ever pine for. How very sad for you both.” Skyla takes a step in close to him. “Laken told me all about Ephemeral. About those early days when she pined foryou. I bet you’ve tried a thousand times to go back, to change your own heart. If only you took Laken into your arms when she wanted to be there, how easy this all would have been for you.” A tear falls down her cheek. “You had victory in your grasp, and you didn’t even know it. But you blew it so big. It must kill you each and every day to knowthat.”
“It does.” Wes looks right through Skyla as he answers. Then, just like that, he awakens as if someone shook him. “But today it isn’t about me, is it?” He grins over at Gage as if they’re in on some private joke. “Dominique Winters has slapped the Barricade with a libel suit. She’s taken it to the Justice Alliance. It’s laughable. She’s taken the Retribution League there as well in the event your mother hasn’t filled you in on the news just yet. She says we’ve ruined their good name by having her daughter captured along with the mercenaries working for you. She’s made it clear that the Winters haven’t chosen sides in our little feud as she callsit.”
Skyla flinches, and it’s evident she hasn’t heard. Not shocking, though. Candace isn’t nearly as attentive to Skyla as Demetri is toWes.
Dudley appears as if from thin air and wraps an arm around Skyla, completely dismissing the fact Gage still has her in a lock from behind, and Gage relents. That’s always been my nephew’s problem. He gives in too quickly. It’s the nice guy in him. I don’t know how Demetri ever plans on beating that out ofhim.
“Is there an issue?” Dudley doesn’t bother with the niceties when it comes to Wesley, or anyone else for thatmatter.
“No issue.” Wes steps in toward Skyla, uncomfortably close, showing off the size of his balls to all those around. “I love Laken. She is and always will be mine. I promise you, I will always protecther.”
Skyla spits in his face, leaving a wake of white stretchy phlegm dangling from his eyebrows. “And you will always bed her under the guise of otherpeople.”
“Wrong.” He wipes Skyla’s precipitous affection away like tears. “I will have her again. I’ve had a vision. The Justice Alliance itself has affirmed this to me.” He stalks off toward thehouse.
“What you saw was Kresley doing a poor imitation of her!” she shouts after him. “Bastard.” Skyla shivers from theconfrontation.
“You should go easy on him.” Gage carefully pulls her in, and Skyla all but hauls off and slapshim.
“Go easy on him?” She jumps back just enough to slip out of hisgrasp.
And that’s my cue. “Dudley”—I nod toward the corral in the rear of the property brimming with llamas and horses docile enough to be overgrown house cats—“you mind if I have a word withyou?”
We speed out of Gage and Skyla’s latest conflict and presumably into one of our own. Dudley and I seem to make a pattern out of not getting along. I’d like to end that eventually. Now would benice.
“What’s on your twisted mind?” He picks up a foot-long blade of grass and ties it in a knot before sending it sailing through the air. “Ms. Bishop has alerted me to the fact there’s a distinct possibility the two of you will be in need of my chambers thisevening.”
“Chloe is delusional.” I glance back at the party to find Chloe at Em’s table with a small crowd amassed around her. “And speaking of delusions, it seems I’ve had a few of my own. I keep seeing him.” I shake my head out at the beasts that roam thecorral.
“Keep seeingwhom?”
