“One guess,” Mar snorts.
As we round the corner, Kai’s mess of black hair pops into view. He has the pretty barmaid from earlier pinned against the wall—her thigh hoisted on his hip, skirts splayed around her shapely legs. She writhes against him, arching off the wall as his mouth devours hers.
“Kai!” Dover shouts, pulling him off the female. He clings to her lips as her leg slides down the length of his thigh.
“As you can see, Dover, I am indisposed.” He wrenches free of his friend’s hold and dives back into the kiss. A loud explosionsounds from down the hall as the tattooed cronies spill out after us.
“We’ve got company,” Zadyn warns.
Kai’s neck cranes, and his eyes widen before he turns his attention back to the female before him.
“I’ll be back for you.” He nuzzles her nose with his own before releasing his grip on her voluminous hair.
“You’d better be.” She bites her lip as she watches him with feline hunger. He manages to squeeze in a kiss on her hand before Dover drags him away by the collar. Kai leads us to a small door hidden beneath the stairs, and we squeeze inside the tiny supply closet, packed like sardines. The door closes, and we are bathed in darkness.
“Do you have to make enemies of every pirate you come across?” Dover gruffs breathlessly to Kai.
“Oh,please, it was one game. Besides, those pirates are richer than me, the thieves.”
“Well, then, next time, you can deal with them.”
“How did you know this was here?” Mar pants.
“I’m a frequent visitor of this particular closet.”
“Gross,” she chimes, and I can’t help but laugh as the exhilaration of the chase settles in me. I’m wedged between two hard bodies. Zadyn at my chest, Jace at my back. The sound of pounding boots shakes the ceiling above us as the mob of pirates careens down the stairs.
We give it a few minutes before we crack open the door and discreetly slip out the back, giggling at our narrow escape.
When we’ve all snuck safely back to our rooms, Jace slips through my door. Zadyn is already there, a tense look shadowing his forehead as I give him the details of the attack.
“You didn’t see who it was?” Zadyn asks. I shake my head as he pushes off my vanity and approaches Jace, his arms crossed. “You should have followed him.”
Jace gives him a sardonic smile, stepping up to him.
“That would have required ditching the witch, and since she can’t be left alone for two minutes and you were distracted by a certain head of blonde hair, I didn’t have much of a choice. Did you even notice she was missing, or were you looking for her in Cece’s eyes?”
Zadyn huffs a humorless laugh.
“Unlike some, I can protect her without smothering her. I’ve been doing it a lot longer than you.”
“You failed to prove that point tonight.”
Zadyn snarls in his face, and I wedge myself between them.
“I can manage just fine without the two of you going all alpha male on me.”
Both their eyes dart to me.
“This finger-pointing is senseless.” I push them farther apart. “I’m here in one piece.”
The tension seems to ease just a tiny bit. Easing back from them, I say, “I didn’t see his face, but I have a sneaking suspicion that my attacker was no petty thief.”
I lean against the bedpost to kick off my boots.
“Neither do I. Rumor must be spreading about you,” Zadyn points out, resuming his previous position leaning on the vanity. “It has to be someone in your inner circle.” He nods at Jace, whose face is tight.
“The only ones that know are the small council, Gnorr, Mal, Max, and Warryn. They are all sworn to secrecy. Besides, I’ve known them all my life. They can be trusted.”
