Archer knocked his arm away and shouldered past him. “You think that scares me?” he asked while putting on his T-shirt.
“It should.”
“I’m going to work out.”
Krys blocked him, one hand on his chest. His crystal-blue eyes bored into him like a warning. “Don’t do anything stupid. I mean it,” he ground out. “You already lost one arm for someone who didn’t matter. You were lucky it wasn’t your head they took. Maybe you haven’t fully dealt with your shit, so now you think you’ve gotta save people. Don’t. People aren’t worth it.” Then he gripped the back of his neck. “Think of where you were then and where you are now. Never look back. You hear me? Fuckingneverlook back, or that pain will swallow you up like quicksand.”
“You’ve watched too many movies. You can’t die in quicksand.”
“Stop trying to bluff everyone when you have the devil’s hand. It’s time to fold and get the hell out of this game you’re playing. I’m just looking out for you, cousin.”
Krys made a valid point, but as Archer headed down to the gym, he couldn’t scrape the image out of his head of Noah and all those women. He wasn’t eventryingto hide his infidelity. Why would he throw away a relationship with such an amazing woman?
Luckily the gym was empty, so he worked on biceps and triceps. He hadn’t brought his prosthetic, and since he couldn’t use the equipment he wanted, he did crunches and squats for the remainder of the time.
When the door clicked open, he glanced in the mirror at Noah striding in.
“Figured you might be working out.” Noah sat on the weightbench. While tying his hair back, he asked, “How long have you been in here?”
Archer glanced at the clock. “An hour.”
“That’s commitment, something I need to work on if I want to get buff.” After stripping off his shirt, he swung his leg over the bench and lay on his back. “How much weight should I start with?”
“The bar. Give me ten and see how it feels.”
While Noah lifted, Archer instructed him on how to breathe and keep his chest up. After three more reps, Noah complained about it being too easy, so Archer reluctantly added twenty pounds.
“Keep your grip,” he ordered while standing behind his head. “And put it down when you get tired. I’ve only got one hand to grab it, so if you feel it slipping, better move your ass.”
Archer could grab that weight easy with one arm, but one of his peeves was inexperienced men who didn’t take this seriously.
Noah took his time, showing off. “The girls said you didn’t hit on them last night. If it’s because of the arm, they don’t give a shit. As long as you put money in their panties, they’ll pretend anything you want. Or are women not your thing?”
“I like women just fine. Those women weren’t my type.”
“Sexy isn’t your thing?” Noah lifted the bar, the veins on his forehead bulging.
Yeah, he was definitely out of shape.
Holding the bar above his head, he asked, “What do you think of Cecilia?”
Archer swallowed hard, afraid that Noah had found them out.
Noah lowered the bar to his chest and held it. “She’s not exactly a knockout, but she hasotherdesirable qualities.”
A brief fantasy flickered in Archer’s mind of crushing that bar against Noah’s chest until his ribs cracked.
“I get it,” Noah continued, pushing the weights up again. “A man has needs. It can’t be easy for a tripod to get free pussy. Maybe you just like the quiet ones. That’s your kink, isn’t it? Am I right? There’s no shame in that.” He set the bar on the rack and blew out a breath. After he sat up and swung his leg over, he flexed his hands. “I’ve seen the way you look at Cecilia. I bet it’s hard to get a decent lay from a real woman with that defect of yours. Tell you what”—he wiped his face on his shirt—“I’ll let you have one night with her. For a price.”
Archer stood in stunned silence while Noah put his sweaty T-shirt on and flipped his long hair out.
What the actual fuck?
Noah flashed a wicked grin. “Can’t share my girl without getting something in return. But I promise if you like good girls, she’ll be worth every penny. We’re leaving town soon, so this’ll be your last chance.” He drew closer. “She’s real submissive. That’s what you wolves like, isn’t it? Predators think alike. She just lies there and lets you do…whatever. I wouldn’t offer this to anyone else.”
Archer bristled, and a deep, inaudible growl tore through his being when his wolf exploded from his skin. It took a second for his animal to get his bearings, and by then, Noah had jumped behind the elliptical.
“What the fuck? Shift back!” he shouted.
