She kicked her legs and smacked his cheek. Crush laughed.
How could an alpha like a baby this much? When she wasn’t even his?
Killian’s insides melted into goop; he was going to become a puddle. “If you get too close, she might chew your ear off.”
“With her four teeth?” Crush grinned. “They’re such cute little teeth, too.”
He stuck his finger out, only for Naddie to grab it and try to gnaw his skin off.
“Naddie,” Killian squeaked, stepping back. But Naddie held on tight like a barnacle, intent on biting a hole through Crush.
“That was my fault,” Crush admitted dryly. “I did offer my finger.” Then he winced. “Kiddo, you have some strong teeth.”
Killian panicked. “I’m sorry!”
“No, don’t worry about it. I’ll heal.” Crush tugged gently on his finger, only for Naddie to give a squawk of protest.
Crush sighed. “Guess we’re shopping one-handed, then.”
“I’m sure you’re good at one-handing a lot of things,” Killian blurted.
A slow smile curved Crush’s lips. “Oh?”
Killian whimpered. “Why do all these terrible things keep falling out of my mouth? We should just wrap up and leave.”
“I agree.” Crush walked more quickly down the aisles; as quickly as hecould,anyway, with Naddie still trying to carve out his fingertip with her teeth. He dropped things into the cart with less care than before—trays of beef, some frozen berries andfrozen meals, several boxes of cookies, two gallons of milk, and a few boxes of cereal.
“Are you eating all of that cereal?” Killian asked.
“Yes. You can have some if you want. Or grab a box that you like better.”
“I didn’t know alphas eat cereal for breakfast. You must need a lot of it.”
Crush laughed. “Hey, I eat other things, too.”
He added some canned food, jarred sauces, and pasta to the cart. After some deliberation, Killian picked up a jar of raspberry preserves, and crackers to go along with it. In the produce section, Crush helped to hold open Killian’s plastic bags so he could fill them with fruits and vegetables. With one hand. Naddie was intent on never releasing his finger.
Crush steered them toward the checkout stand, where a friendly old man rang them up.
“She’s got you wrapped around her finger,” the cashier said delightedly.
“Yeah, but the other way around,” Crush replied with a hint of pride.
“Would you do anything she asked?” Killian asked curiously.
“Yup!” Crush had no hesitation in his tone.
When they had everything bagged up, Crush led them back to the car.
Killian’s danger sense kicked up, a low hum at the back of his mind. He gripped Crush’s sleeve. “We gotta get out of here.”
Crush’s relaxed posture grew tight. “Gotcha.”
He tugged his finger out of Naddie’s grip and began throwing bags of food into the trunk. “Get in the back seat. No time to put Naddie in the car seat right now.”
Killian ducked into the car, his heart thumping. He didn’t wait for Crush to get in, though. Instead, he began rummaging through Uriel’s supply bag for the other envelopes. Uriel had some generic spells that he had prewritten and sold plenty of; Killian had asked for a variety of blood-activated ones that could be deployed immediately.
He found one to suppress their presence—maybe the spell on Crush’s car wasn’t enough? Killian pressed it to the center console and reopened the wound on his thumb, swiping his blood across the runes.
