“Just make her life hell,” I say. “Push it as far as we can, and she will run away.”
When we walk into the kitchen, Ari is at the counter beside the stove, looking at her laptop. Her long, dark blonde hair is down today, falling in curls down her back. She has loose-fitting shorts and a simple black tank top on. We watch her for a second. Elijah drops his phone on the island, and she yelps as she nearly jumps out of her skin. That panicked look in her eyes makes me smile. What better way to get rid of the bitch than to scare her away?
“No one eats turkey bacon,” I say, nodding to the stove.
“Then starve,” she snaps and turns around.
“Well, maybe you’re not a morning person.” I laugh. As I’m watching her type, I cock my head to the side when I notice she’s missing her pinky finger. What level of hell do you go to for making fun of someone for the sake of getting them the fuckout of your house? I walk up behind her, and her entire body stiffens, and she stops typing.
“Jovi,” I say, reaching past her to point at her screen. “I go by Jovi.”
“Good to know,” she says simply. “I assume Eli?” I heard Kip call him that yesterday.
“Yep,” Elijah says.
“A smart puck bunny. How rare,” I say, running my fingers through a curl. She spins around just to stare at me, and if looks could kill, I would be six feet under right now.
“Will you back the fuck up?” she scolds. I narrow my eyes at her before leaning in closer. Her breath catches beautifully in her throat when I reach up to open the cabinet behind her. I take my time grabbing a coffee cup for Elijah and me before shutting it back and stepping away.
“You’re awfully jumpy,” I say.
“Are you always an asshole?” she asks.
“Are you always so defensive?” I counter. “You come into our house, and suddenly you think you belong here? You are a fucking Titan.”
“I do belong here because it’s my fucking job.” She stands her ground and props her hands on her hips.
“Not for long,” Elijah says.
“Maybe that head injury of yours made you forget a few things, but Titans don’t make it for very long around here,” I say, my tone laced with venom.
“Did you just threaten me?” she asks.
“And if I did?” I ask. “Not like you are in any condition to fight back.” Fear flashes in her eyes, and I chuckle. This is going to be easier than I thought.
“Morning!” Kip says happily as he walks into the kitchen. “Why the frown?”
“Just not a morning person,” she says with a meek voice. I smirk at Elijah, and he chuckles to himself as he shakes his head at me.
“Is that turkey bacon?” Hunter asks.
“Yeah,” she says. “I can make something else if y’all don’t…”
“Nah. It’s okay,” Hunter says. “Thank you.”
“No problem. Thank you, guys, for helping me. Even though I didn’tneedthe help.”
“You did, but that’s okay,” Mateo laughs.
“Help with what?” I ask.
“Unpacking,” she says simply.
“If you needed help unpacking, how the fuck are you supposed to do your job?” Elijah asks.
“You’ve known her for all of twenty-four hours, and you are already being an asshole,” Connor says. “Can you at least try not to be mean?”
“It’s fine,” Ari says as she takes the pan off the stove and picks up her laptop. “I’m going to go back upstairs. Everything is on a tray in the oven.”
