The stranger, who looked to be close to Dewi’s age and had long, naturally red hair pulled back in a slightly messy braid, held her hands up as she backed away from Dewi.
“Whoa whoa whoa, Dewi, listen! I don’t wanna hurt—”
Dewi let out an enraged howl and charged her again but the woman, who wasn’t pregnant and who wore jeans instead of a bathrobe that was getting in her way, managed to dart away from Dewi again.
“Justlistena minute, would ye? I’m—”
Ken thundered into the kitchen at that moment, naked, a 9mm in his hand. “What thefuck?”
Dewi grabbed the gun from him and aimed it at the woman. “Down on the fucking floor!Now!”
“Listen to me!” the woman said. “I’m—”
“DEWI,STOP!” a man’s voice roared, and she didn’t even have time to process who it was before she felt the force of the Prime order stop her in her tracks. Then a hand grabbed the gun, shoving it down, toward the floor.
Peyton.
“What thefuck? What the fuck are you doing here? Who the fuck is she?”
The woman had backed up, hands up. “I tried to tell her—”
“SHUTUP!” Peyton roared, pointing at the woman.
Dewi was then aware of Badger, Duncan, and—
“Who the fuck areyou?” Dewi screamed at the strange man. She tried to turn but Peyton wouldn’t let go of the gun.
“Dewi,freeze!” Peyton ordered. He finally wrested the gun from her, hit the safety, and ejected the magazine and chambered round in what looked like almost one smooth movement. He gentled his tone. “They’re friendlies. Stand down.” He touched her shoulder. “Please!”
She felt him release her from his Prime hold. “What the fuck is going on?”
Peyton turned to the woman. “Please just stand there for a minute and let me tell her, okay?”
The stranger blew a stray strand of hair out of her face. “You’re not the one she almost shot over a feckin coffee mug! I’ve heard of wakin’ up grouchy but that’s just daft! Guess they’re right about Florida people being gun nuts.”
“What the hell’s going on?” Ken asked.
That’s when Dewi finally processed Ken was naked.
Apparently, the strange woman did, too. She smiled and perked up. “Oi, you’re a tasty snack, ain’tcha?” She grinned. “Bet yer a real ride!”
The growl erupted from Dewi’s throat and as she turned to launch herself at the stranger, Peyton grabbed her arm. “Dewi!No!”
“That’s myfucking mate, you cunt!” Dewi screamed at the woman.
She held up a hand. “Ah, sorry. My bad. Apologies. Didn’t see the rings at first, just the nice pecker.” She had an accent, maybe Irish?
But Dewi was too busy trying to break free of Peyton’s latest Prime order so she could disembowel her and play in her entrails to devote brain cells to identify her accent.
“Badger, Da, a little help here, please?” Peyton called. Then he pointed at the woman. “You are not helping.”
The woman started to answer and apparently thought better of it and instead shrugged.
Badger and Duncan stepped around the strange man and helped ease Dewi away from the strange woman.
“Short version,” Peyton said, “is Dewi, this is Aisling Walsh.” He tensed like he didn’t even want to say the next four words. “She’s your new Enforcer.”
Thatgot her attention. “My newwhatthefuck? My newEnforcer? What in the actualshit, Peyton? Did I ask for another Enforcer? No. I most certainly did not.” She managed to point in Aisling’s direction but Badger and Duncan weren’t going to let her charge her again. “And Idamnedsure don’t want a woman who stole my coffee mug and is ogling my mate to be one of my Enforcers!”
