“Kraft.” Riley swore as they turned onto a side street off the main road. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
“Hey, that wasn’t me. That was Paz.” He glared at the demon, who glared back.
Then Kraft said, “Yeah, yeah.”
Paz gave a dainty shrug and to Riley apologized.I’m sorry. I had a nightmare and jumped. That sometimes happens since I took this form. The kitten has a fear of brooms and feet. I fear his brother was kicked and batted about often by the sorceress who once owned him. No worries. She’s dead now. But man, what a monster. And I don’t mean that as a compliment.
“Sorry to hear that.” She stroked Paz, who settled down in her lap. Just as she feared they’d be too late and Kraft would erupt into flame, the phone alerted them to turn into a driveway she’d been down before. They pulled into a full six-car garage and parked the car.
Everyone sat in stillness for a moment before Kraft cracked his jaw on a yawn. “Oh yeah, I’m about to drop. Let’s get inside and get you settled.”
Paz insisted on walking himself inside, and Riley and Max trailed Kraft into the house.
Max shivered. “The last time I was here, things weren’t so great.”
She elbowed him and grinned. “Sure they were. You were holding on for dear life while I outran that pathetic wolf in front of us.”
“I can hear you, female.” Kraft muttered in German.
“I love when he does that.” She couldn’t contain a giddy sense of reunion. Coming back to Kraft’s house felt like coming home.
That or she missed that magic refrigerator that could create hot bacon and warm blueberry pancakes in a snap. Her stomach rumbled. “I’m hungry.”
“Huh. Me too.” Max apologized when Kraft paused to wait for them. “Sorry. Lycan metabolism. We need to eat soon.”
“I could do with sustenance as well.” Kraft looked at Riley’s neck longer than he should have.
Max scowled. “Are you two...?”
“Nothing,” Riley blurted, not needing a forbidden romance to come to light while dealing with a mating at home she didn’t want. And she for sure didn’t want her cousin mixed up in her love life.
“Nope,” Kraft said. “Totally not hitting that smokin’ hot lycan. Not at allllll.” He chuckled and flipped off the large vryko they passed.
The vampire, Orion. He stopped and smiled widely. “Smoky! I mean, Shadow, I missed you!”
The kitten took one look at him and bolted with Orion running after him.
The three of them continued to the kitchen.
“I thought his name was Shadow,” Riley said.
Kraft answered, “It is, well, now. When Orion first found him, he named him after a cartoon animal. Don’t ask. Then the vryko started calling him Smoky. But Paz likes to screw with Orion. And in a bid for autonomy, because the thing claims no one can name or own him, he insisted we start calling him Shadow, which actually fits because the kitten form was always just a shadow of the real cat, Nightmare, which is Macy’s familiar.” He glanced around. “He’s around here, somewhere.”
Riley sighed. “I’m so confused.”
“Thing?” Max asked.
“Demon, kitten, whatever.” Kraft yawned again.
Max paused in step. “Did you say demon?” He nodded. “That makes a lot of sense, actually.”
“That you can say that and mean it tells me we are seriously in the middle of a mess.” Riley remained vigilant, keeping a watch out for Khent and Varu, neither of whom she wanted to see anytime soon.
“Tell me about it.” Max stopped in the kitchen and looked at her. “Thanks for defending me with Antonia.”
“Sure. Nobody messes with my family.”
“Same.” Max gave Kraft a hard stare. “And no matter what rumors and stories tell us, I know vampires aren’t invulnerable.”
