I stopped fighting instantly at his words, my muscles utterly spent from taking shots at him. My head lolled back so that I could stare into his golden eyes, my body still suspended in the air by his unrelenting grip. Without the hostility thrown my way, his eyes were arresting as he peered down at me. I knew a deadly predator lay in wait inside him, but they looked so…nice?
There was seriously something wrong with me.
And did I really think it was sexy that he said I smelled like pine needles and sweet dreams? That was really an odd mixture, not manyyumsin there, only a bunch of ouches and snoozes.
Yet, yeah, I still thought it was sensual coming from him.
I sucked oxygen into my struggling lungs. “Really? You’re letting me go?”
Poppy choked on air. “Oh…fuck.”
Theron rubbed at his forehead and scowled at the ground. “This is a problem, Wolfe. She doesn’t give a shit about us.”
“So I’ve noticed.” Wolfe’s lush lips twisted into a sneer, his gentle gaze turning into something ugly. All aimed at me. His heartbeat thundered underneath my right palm pressed against his chest. “Tell us where Joshua is going to be?”
I snarled right back at him. “You’ll let me leave right now like you said a minute before?”
“You have my word.”
“He wants to meet with Poppy and me at my burned apartment in a day’s time. He said it was imperative that we not miss that date. Something about Poppy would hate to miss the meeting.”
The redhead popped up from her chair, growling, “Did he saywhyhe wanted me there?”
I still only had eyes for the golden orbs staring down at me. “No, he only said that you would regret not being there. Or something to that effect.”
“Damn it.” Poppy huffed.
My brows furrowed with an errant memory. “Does anyone know who the puppet master is? He said the puppet master wasn’t happy with his actions, and I think he was in pain somehow from it. It sure looked like the devil was hurting. Not that I minded that part, but it did make me curious.”
Theron was still glaring at the floor with hands now on his hips. “We’ve heard him mention it before. I’ve come to the conclusion he either means his mind or the magic that resides in all shifters and mates.”
“Oh.” I blinked out of the spell that those golden eyes had on me enough to pat my hands on his hard pecs. “We had a deal. Let me down.”
“A deal’s a deal.” Wolfe practically dropped me on my ass, but at the last minute, he grabbed my shoulders to steady my wobbling, tired bones. Those strong hands gripped my shoulders tightly, holding me in place, seeming lost in thought. Then his sharp features pinched up, as if he were in pain with what he was about to say, and pushed words through his teeth, “Do you have a place to stay in New City since your apartment is ruined?”
“I can get a place. I’m not poor.”
“I know that already.” Damn hacker…that wasmyjob. “But do you have a safe place you can stay?”
I dipped and pulled out of his hold and took a step backward out past the doorway and into the hallway. He didn’t try to stop me. Perhaps he was a man of his word. I stated honestly, “I’ll probably book a room at a hotel close to my old apartment. I’m comfortable with that area. Most of those hotels have security.”
The muscles on the sides of his cheeks stood out in sharp relief as he ran his fingers on his left hand back through his gray hair, pulling it away from his face. I barely kept my jaw from dropping. The man was even more beautiful when his face wasn’t half covered by his dangling hair.
Theron muttered a curse under his breath, as Wolfe and I stood utterly still and eyed one another—a little friendly, a little foe.
Wolfe’s fingers continued to yank back on his hair like he wanted to pull whatever he was thinking out of his brain. He spat out, “Is there any way you can forget about me choking the breath out of you? I know it’s a lot to ask, but I’d like you to try.”
Poppy slapped her hand over her mouth and swiftly turned toward a window, her shoulders shaking in her silent and contained mirth.
Theron groaned under his breath like Wolfe was hurting his soul, shaking his head and staring at the back of Wolfe’s head like he wanted to smack him.
I cleared my throat and took another step back, almost to the stairs. “Not likely, Wolfe.”
“I figured as much,” he muttered so quietly I almost didn’t hear him. The wolf-man straightened his shoulders and released his hair, and spoke more loudly this time. “I need to say this much then. I apologize, Noelle. I won’t hurt you again, not intentionally anyway. I give you my word.”
I nodded in confusion. I think I had missed something important for this man to apologize to me. “And if I decide to publish any articles related to shifters or mates?”
This time, Theron looked like he wanted to slap me. “Wolfe, fix this shit before it becomes even more of an issue.”
