“And yet,” he echoed softly, a white glade down the back of her neck, making her shiver. “Here I am. I guess that makes you a special case, princess.”
She shivered at the endearment, not expecting his voice to be as close as it was. He had moved right behind her. A perfect position to attack from behind, to put his hand around her throat and squeeze, or garrote her with a rope.Or a perfect position to push you against the counter and fuck you from behind.She breathed hard through her nose pushing the unbidden thought away.
“Special enough to be hustled away. Am I really that big of a threat? What does he need you for? Doesn’t he have enough muscle with all these meatheads around?”
Another ripple of satin up the back of her neck as he chuckled, her stomach swooping and flipping at the sound.
“That was more than one question.”
“Yeah, so? You keeping count or something? Did I exceed my quota?”
Jude had never heard himlaughin truth. It was always a sardonic little chuckle or an amused huff of air, but at that moment, a full-throated laughter spilled from him, the vibration of it buzzing against her skin like static. She was reminded of going down the slide at the playground of her original pack’s elementary school — twisting orange, heavy-duty plastic, the static shocking against her as she lifted her feet to zoom down faster.
“You arenothingbut trouble.”
His voice was right at her ear, a vibration against her. His tone did not sound like someone unhappy to be stuck with her, no matter how much trouble he proclaimed her to be. Jude imagined she might be able to shift her hips back at that moment, pushing into him behind her, her ass grinding into his pelvis.
“Well, let’s start with the easiest one to answer. I don’t work for your erstwhile fiancé. I wouldn’t be able to, no money is worth that aggravation. I technically don’t work for his father, either. Carmine contracts me.”
Jude shivered at the thought.He works for the uncle. No wonder he gives Vin so much attitude.
“I provide a unique service. “You’re right, they have plenty of — what did you call them? meatheads? — around. Loud. Arrogant. They draw attention to themselves, they telegraph their every movement practically minutes before they even make it. They have a disadvantage in every altercation, because their opponent can always see them coming. Sometimes that doesn’t matter because their opponents are exactly the same as they are. More often than not, actually. No one pays attention to the corners, no one likes to look into the shadows. They don’t seemecoming until it’s too late.”
She let out a shuddering breath as he came back around her, leaning against the counter before her once more.
“And then?”
He gave her an elegant little shrug, and another flash of white fang. “It doesn’t matter. It’s too late. I don’t act rashly. Most of the petty altercations that take place between packs don’t involve me at all. I act only when it is necessary. And if it’s necessary, it’s too late. For them.”
“So . . . if you have to hurt someone . . .”
“I never pretended to be a white knight, princess. Wouldn’t be here if I was. Certainly wouldn’t be keeping you here for them.”
“Carmine, Vin’s uncle,” she began haltingly, heart tripping at his words. “He scares me. He seems like the only smart one. That makes him the dangerous one.”
Lux said nothing for a moment, crossing his arms over his chest with a burst of static before shrugging again.
“That is not an instinct I would persuade you to ignore.”
“I get the feeling he wants to drop me in the dumpster every time I see him.”
“And I wouldn’t tell you to ignore that little voice either, princess. If it were up to him, you would have been removed from the equation immediately after that first moon. I believe there was already a plan to do so.”
Her hands flailed, forgetting the shells for a moment as the whole room swayed. She knew it. She knew those first days in the house, that first week at the enclave . . . she knew it all along.
“What changed?” She went back to her task, deliberately keeping her voice light, not looking up from the cheese and spinach.
The crescent moon smile gleamed, and she swayed again. Bright white and gleaming, like the moon itself, and just as calming.
“You went on your little walks. People saw you. They had already blustered over the new wife Vin was bringing home, and they didn’t want the pack to start asking a lot of questions. Then Vin and the old man started using your house for meetings, and instead of keeping you out of sight, he wanted to parade you around like a trophy. So what changed? You being more trouble than they bargained for, mainly. Their own ignorance, but that’s a constant, nothing new. Now you know too much, and the old man can’t make a decision that’s not being fed to him. Carminedoesn’t know who may have said what in the enclave. Getting rid of you isn;t as easy now.”
“Would you have been the one to do it? Why do you even work for them?”
“This may come as a shock, princess, but the job market for incorporeal shadows isn’t as hot as you might think.”
Jude looked up then, meeting the stars of his eyes, wondering if she’d ever seen a constellation in the sky shine as brightly.
“Most of my kind don’t even take form, they don’t make any attempt to live in your world. People are afraid of the dark, that’s something that transcends species. It’s not like I have a lot of options. I already told you, I’m no white knight, little wolf.”
