“You’reweird.”
“Says the only female in herpack.”
“That makes me unique. Notweird.”
She went back tosmirking.
A light came on in a sleek, wood-paneled cabin at the end of a short dirt drive. I caught movement in the floor-to-ceiling windows that boxed in one end of the house. Liam’s place wasn’t oversized like his father’s but looked priceynonetheless.
The click of the car doors unlocking made mejump.
Sarah squinted at the shifting, shadowy shape. “You seriously not tappingthat?”
“I’m seriously not tapping that,” I said, pumping my door handle. “Thanks for theride.”
“Yeah. Whatevs.” She flicked her hand. Gold rings set with cut stones glinted on two of her fingers. “Ciao.”
I got out and startedwalking.
“If you ever get bored”—Sarah’s voice made me spin around—“or have questions about being a she-wolf, you can find me at The Den. Thursdays andSaturdays.”
I gave a short nod. That was…kind. Sadly, kindness made me suspicious. This was the reason behind my detour. I wanted confirmation that Aidan Michaelshadshot my father and an explanation as to why there hadn’t been any retaliation. I twisted back toward the rectangle of glass and wood, moonlit dust blooming around my heels as I approached Liam’shouse.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Iwas aboutto knock when the door opened. Liam had probably smelled me, like I’d whiffed his distinctive musky scent halfway down thedrive.
He stood there, a towel riding low on his waist, his dark hair dripping water from a recent shower. Even though he basked in shadows, I noticed that his nose and a large part of his jaw were bruised. The blood was gone,though.
I looked away from his face, focusing on the sharp-lined furniture arranged at ninety-degree angles on a cowhide rug. Liam shifted, his body filling the doorway, surely to block out the sight of his home from my pryingeyes.
He crossed his arms. Sinews moved beneath his smooth, golden skin like mooring lines. “What do youwant?”
I inched my gaze back up to his face. “Did Aidan Michaels kill myfather?”
His expression emptied of its hostility. Clearly, he had not been expectingthatquestion.
“So? Didhe?”
Frowning, he said, “I thought youknew.”
“I wouldn’t be asking if Iknew.”
Liam’s eyes raked the darkness behind me, which had me twirling around. Was Sarah still there? Before I could turn back to face him, he yanked me inside then released me and shut hisdoor.
“What were you doing at Robbie’s engagement party,Ness?”
My gaze dipped to his glistening, muscled torso before sliding to something safer, something inanimate—a lamp speared into a block of black marble that bowed over the couch’sarmrest.
“I repeat, what were you doing at a Pine gathering,Ness?”
I looked back up into his stern face. “How did you even find out I wasthere?”
“Frank sensed you were in their territory. And then I caught a picture of you on one of their Instagram feeds. The Pines are social media whores.” His voice was as sharp and stark as hishouse.
For some reason, that last part made me snort. “You haveInstagram?”
“What. The fuck. Were you. Doingthere?”
