“Do you want a slice of cake before bed?”
He wrinkled his nose.“Too sweet.I came up for some fruit.Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and get a taste for it.”
I put a banana in his hand.“You’ll be moving back upstairs soon.Do you want your old bedroom or the other one?I can even set up your bed in the dining area.”
He cackled.“So where would we eat?The bathtub?I’ll take my old bed back.Yes, I will.”
“Come on, funny man.”
I walked him to the elevator, and after he went down, I grabbed the trash bag and opened the door to the garage.When I flipped on the light, I stared in shock at a red Jeep next to my Mercedes.
I dropped the bag and sprinted through the house to the living room.When I pulled back the curtain to look outside, the front door opened.
Spinning around, I knocked over a lamp, ready to shift and defend my home.
Chapter16
Afigure loomed in the doorway, the security light outside creating a silhouette.
I breathed a sigh of relief.“Lucian.You scared me half to death.”
He shut the door and locked it.
I clutched my chest to slow my racing heart.“What are you doing here?”
“Your alarm went off.”
I closed the distance between us as we met in front of the dark hallway.“I was just coming home from a date.We must have triggered whatever you’ve got set up.”
He took out his phone and turned it on.“No, this is different.”Lucian played a video of someone walking by a tree.“This is on the outer perimeter.I think he’s waiting for you to shift so he can attack your animal.”
That put a chill down my spine.“Maybe I should go and see.”
Lucian headed into the kitchen, and I followed.“I already searched the property.He’s gone.”With his back to me, Lucian opened the fridge and reached for a soda.
I hated getting spooked in my own home.Deacon’s offer was starting to look a lot more appealing.
“You installed cameras around the property?”
He cracked open the can and guzzled.After three swallows, he sighed.Lucian faced me while holding the can against his eye.“I’m still working out the kinks and trying to pick the best locations and angles.You might need more.I’ll have to watch them for a little while to make sure they’re capturing everything.”
“Did you see…” I wondered if he had seen Deacon and me kissing.“Are there cameras out front?”
“I’m not done with everything, but you can bring your father up sooner than we planned.The new polycarbonate windows are coming on Thursday along with the guy who installs them.”
“Are you sure they’ll work?”
He frowned.“I hate seeing you like this.It pisses me off.When I get done with this house, you’ll never have to worry about your safety again.”
I stared at him for a beat.“What’s wrong with your eye?”
When Lucian moved the can away, I gasped.“What happened?”
He hesitated before answering.“I ran into an old friend.”
I grabbed a dish towel and opened the freezer.“Some friend.”After putting ice cubes into the towel, I twisted it closed and held it to his swollen eye.“Does it hurt?”
“It’s no big deal.We have accelerated healing.Wounds close pretty fast, but sometimes bruises take longer since technically it’s just blood leakage.”
