A littleReadpopped up next to the message the moment he sent it, but that was typical of Michael – he was almost never unplugged unless he was asleep, and clearly it was late enough for him to be up and about. Quokkaswerenocturnal after all, but Rhys got the feeling Michael would have stayed up all night regardless of that.
“Okay,” Rhys said. “We can head up.”
“Uh, forgive me for being alittlesuspicious, but is it a good idea for me to go into the house of someone I’ve never met, with a man I’vebarelymet?” Maisie asked, but she was already getting out of the car.
Rhys blinked.
Why would she be apprehensive about going somewhere with her mate?his griffin asked, as if it couldn’t understand the question.Doesn’t she know we would protect her to the ends ofthe earth? There is no harm that could possibly come to her if we are by her side!
But Rhys knew Maisie was right. She’d already trusted himfarmore than he could reasonably expect. She, after all, didn’t know anything about what the mate bond meant.
“You can stay here, if you prefer,” he told her, though the idea of letting her out of his sight while he was still so uneasy and confused about what was happening sent a spike of pain lancing through his chest. “And if you get a bad feeling about anything, you can just drive away.”
He could see Maisie thinking it over, a series of conflicting emotions chasing each other across her face.
“No,” she said after a long moment. “No, if it means I get some answers, then I’m coming inside.”
Well, hopefully Michael actually read and comprehended my text, rather than just glancing at it and then going back to doing… whatever it is he even does. Typing? But fast?
Still, Rhys took his time leading Maisie up to the front door – he could see her looking around with a faintly impressed expression on her face. Itwasa pretty nice house, after all, even if it was clear just by looking that Michael was a little less than interested in gardening.
Rhys knocked on the door – the paint was flaking, so it was pretty clear Michael wasn’t that interested in home beautification, either.
There was no answer, and after a moment Rhys knocked again. Still, no answer.
Frowning, he tried the handle and found the door unlocked. He opened it, and peered into the darkened house.
“Should we just be going inside?” Maisie whispered, though she was following him readily enough. “What if he’s not home?”
“Oh, he’ll be home,” Rhys said – it waswaytoo early for Michael to be out and about –it was still only about seven p.m.If anything, Rhys wasn’t sure if he’d even be fully awake yet. “Hello? Michael?”
“Upstairs.”
A voice rang out from some distant room that Rhys had to assume was, given the direction, upstairs. At least the fact that Michael had answered him meant he wasn’t currently hopping around in quokka form – Rhys knew he’d have to explain everything to Maisie sooner or later, but that seemed a bit too much like a crash course in the existence of shifters.
Though it could have been a convenient introduction, too,Rhys mused. But really, it was probably better this way.
“Come on,” he said to Maisie. “Let’s go meet Michael.”
“So… who is this Michael?” Maisie asked him as they climbed the stairs together. “This is all kind of mysterious.”
“He’s… a friend of mine,” Rhys said. “Maybe friend is pushing it a bit – he’s… a colleague. He gets information for me when I need it.”
“That’s really not making anything sound any less mysterious,” Maisie said flatly. “What kind of information?”
“He’s a hacker,” Rhys clarified. He supposed he was so used to talking around certain subjects that it had become second nature to him these days, even with someone who he knew he could trust to the depths of his soul, like his mate. “And I have some things I’d like to him hack into for me.”
“Uh-huh.” Maisie’s voice didn’t get any less flat. “Like… what, exactly? Credit card information? State secrets? Taylor Swift’s private jet’s flight path? Am I going to regret this?”
“No, nothing like that,” Rhys said – though he mainly meant the credit card information and the private jet flight path. And what he wanted Michael to look into wasn’ttechnicallya state secret either. “It’s just… things to do with what you saw today. I just think there’s more to it than what either of us have been told.”
“Well, considering I’ve been toldnothing, that’s not very difficult to imagine,” Maisie pointed out. “I came here for answers, though, so it you have any, I’m all ears.”
Rhys nodded. He realized he’dreallyneed to start being more open with Maisie – and quickly. “Right. It’s just hard to know where to start.”
“Try the beginning?” Maisie suggested, raising an eyebrow. “Because right now, whatever you have to tell me can’tpossiblybe any crazier than the fanfiction I’m writing in my head about you.”
Rhys wasn’t sure he liked the sound of that, but before he could say anything about it, a silhouette appeared at the top of the stairs.
