I smile at her. She’s a little dizzy, but it’s in an endearing way. “No.”
She lets out a long breath. “Yeah, I kind of figured you’d say that. I’m assuming that if I try to run off, you’ll sendhimafter me,” she says, tipping her chin at Seamus.
“Why would you think that?” I ask.
“Because he’s the most dangerous.”
Seamus slowly turns to look at me, no longer smiling. “You’ve vetted her? She seems to know an awful fuckin’ lot, mate.”
She does, indeed. My suspicion is starting to grow.
“I wasn’t sent here by anyone, I promise. I’m literally just here to see my pack. Wrong place, wrong time.”
Seamus takes a step forward, folding thick forearms over his broad chest. “Then what makes you think I’m the most dangerous one?”
She lifts her left shoulder. “I don’t know. A feeling, I guess. I get them a lot. They usually aren’t wrong.”
“That’s not gonna do it, love,” Seamus says, taking another step. “What do you mean, afeeling?”
“You really want the whole breakdown of how my thoughts get from point A to point B?” she asks doubtfully. “It’ll take a while. I usually have a hard time keeping track of them.”
“Mira,” I say lowly. “If you were sent by someone, now’s the time to admit it. I can protect you, but only if you tell the truth.”
“Jesus, I wasn’t sent by anyone, okay?” She waves at Seamus. “It’s the smile, the demeanor, the eyes. His senses are better honed than yours or Flashlight Guy’s—he walks like a predator. He’s obviously trained in some form of combat. He also has this easygoing air, and he can give a fake smile where even hiseyesdon’t betray him, but his energy stays the same. Stalking, watching, lurking. Not in a pervert way; in a fuckingwolfway.That’show I know he’s the most dangerous. Flashlight Dude wears his danger on his sleeve, not masking it. He doesn’t have a moral compass. I don’t think he has feelings.You,” she nods to me, “have a moral compass that you can reprogram, and you have feelings that you know how to ignore. Not push down like most people do, but genuinelydisregard. That makes you more dangerous than Flashlight Dude, but not as dangerous as the Brit.” She looks to the sky, letting out a long breath. “Are we done now? We good? Have I convinced you I wasn’tsentby anyone? If you’re going to kill me, please get it over with now. Don’t string me along.”
My lips part as I stare at her. She says she doesn’t remember me, and I believe her. Yet, she managed to nail me within thirty seconds. She managed to getSeamusin thirty seconds. He takes a step back from her, retreating from a girl for possibly the first time in his life. He gazes at her with open shock, as do I.
“Oh shit, I just got myself killed, didn’t I?” she asks. “I didn’t mean any of it; I was totally bullshitting and pulling all of that out of my ass. The brit is the easy going, non-dangerous one—in fact, none of you are dangerous.” She grimaces as she looks down at her arm. “Can I go home now?”
I try to unfuck my brain long enough to say, “No.”
She nods sagely. “Yeah, okay. Can I have my phone back?” she nods at the backpack. “And my backpack?”
My eyebrows furrow. “Why?”
“I need music. Phone for my playlist, backpack for my headphones. Both of you are a lot to handle, like bundles of chaos and violence. It’s overwhelming. I’m kind of starting towantyou to kill me.”
Seamus takes a step forward, nudging my shoulder with his. “I gathered you called dibs on her. What would it take to give me a go? This one’s fuckingfascinating.”
“More than you have,” I growl.
Meanwhile, Mira gives a slightly hysterical sounding cackle. “You can’t afford me, Brit.” He opens his mouth to dispute; she cuts him off. “I don’t mean your wallet—you’ve got the look of wealth. I mean yoursanity.I can barely hold my own sanity most of the time. None of you could handle my brand of crazy.” Her throat clicks with a swallow. “So… about my phone?”
My eyes briefly flutter shut as I shake my head. “No phone.” I clear my throat, inhale a deep breath, and relax. Try to ignore how attractive and confounding Mira is. “Okay, here’s what’s going to happen. First thing, you need your shoulder fixed. I don’t want you in pain longer than necessary; the sooner it’s back in place, the sooner it can heal.”
“I can handle the pain,” she assures me. “I would like use of my arm, though.”
I incline my head. “Right.” As much as I detest the idea of allowing Seamus to touch her, especially now that he’s expressed interest in her, I don’t know how to put a shoulder back in place. He does. “Seamus?”
He nods, also composing himself. “Yeah, I’ll get it done. Come here, love, we’ll get you all fixed up.” He doesn’t bother giving her the charming smile that often makes the sum total of the female population swoon. He gazes at Mira with a mixture of wariness and vibrant intrigue.
“You gonna kill me for getting your number?” she asks him.
Her question pulls a smile from him. “Nah, love. You’re too pretty, tooinnocentto kill. Come on, we’ll get it over with quick.”
“Then, we’ll go back to our place,” I say, staring at Mira. “And figure out next steps.”
Chapter Three
