Taking him in, I don't miss the patch on his jacket. Vice President. This guy's pretty important, and upsetting him feels like I'd be hurting my chances of getting help, so I shake his hand. He's cold to the touch, and I can't help but shiver.
Casper grins, easily seeing my discomfort. Pulling back, he finishes his last bite before dusting off the crumbs. "Guess that's my cue to leave, then. I'll get out of your hair."
Once he's up, I'm setting Leliah on one of the stools and settling next to her. Watching the VP pass Ace and murmur something under his breath, I watch the younger male laugh before shoving him away, encouraging him to leave.
As the smell of food heating hits my nose, I'm left fighting between watching the door and looking to see what Ace is cooking up. Instead of wondering if he's doing anything to it, I'm more curious about how much longer I'll have to wait before I'll have something hot sitting in front of me.
My guard is lowering by the minute, and I don’t have the strength to build it back up.
"That guy was an interesting-looking character," I start up, trying to avoid the silence. "Does he already know why I'm here, or is he that chatty with every person he gets near?"
Amused, he chuckles and follows my gaze toward the door before popping out what smells like cheese from the microwave.
"Casper's really cool, actually." He looks toward the door before glancing back in front of him. "Friendliest member you'll meet, probably. He’s sincere. I've only seen him lose his cool a handful of times, so I don't think you have to worry about him."
Drifting over to us, he sets down a tray of what looks like alfredo before going back to the freezer.
"Sadly, I can't cook to save my life, so I hope you don't mind. Most of us don't bother with throwing anything together, anyway." He glances at Leliah. "Chicken nuggets cool for the little lady, or...?"
Leliah gasps, her legs suddenly kicking back and forth. He must hear the thumps, because his smile is softening as he keeps moving. Soon, he's setting some down in front of her, watching amazed as she shoves one into her mouth.
From looking at her to me, his eyes linger on me much longer. "She's not much of a talker, huh?"
My skin warms as I shake my head between bites. "We've been working on it, but she's slowly getting there." Reaching toward her, I stroke her hair. "You're winning points with her already, though. Those are her favorites. Chicken nuggets and french fries."
He hums in satisfaction at that before tapping the surface lightly near my near-empty food tray, thankfully not teasing me for how quickly I scarfed down what I had. "What's it going to take to win some points with you, then?"
Caught off guard by his question, I'm stirring in my seat from the cock of his brow. Is he being serious? He couldn't possibly be flirting with me right now. Yet, from the way he's purposely leaning toward me and using a tone that definitely gets him whatever he wants, I can't help myself wanting to fall for it.
He realizes he's trying to make a move on a runaway mother with a lot of baggage, right? And I'm only falling for it because I haven't had attention put my way in a long time.
Seeing the amusement dancing around his eyes at my sputter, he pulls back and rocks on his heels. "Actually, never mind. It'll be more fun figuring it out on my own."
Is this going to be some kind of game to him? Maybe he likes a challenge and wants some form of entertainment. Yeah, that has to be it. There's no way a guy like him, a young guy with a charming smile, could be showing any interest in a woman with bags under her eyes and sores on her feet from running away from all of her problems.
What I need is a topic change. Something that doesn't make me want to hide my face, and the blush that's trying to form.
"So, um, what's going to happen to us? Are we just going to spend time here until those guys forget about us, or..."
Ace purses his lips as if he's considering his options. "Well, as great as this place is, it's not a great place to crash. I'm going to let you hang out at my place in the meantime." Rolling hisshoulder like what he's offering isn't much, his eyes drift to the side. "Speaking of which, we need to know what you want us to do."
Leliah chooses that exact moment to yawn—wide, dramatic, her little fists stretching over her head.
Ace's attention shifts to her immediately, and something in his expression softens. "She's crashing."
"Yeah," I breathe, grateful for the interruption. "She usually goes down pretty early."
He nods once, then reaches over and gently picks a crumb off the corner of Leliah's mouth with his thumb. She doesn't even flinch. Just blinks up at him like he's always been there.
My chest does something complicated because she’s always so shy with strangers. I ignore it, pretending this isn’t some kind of sign.
Unsure of what he means by what I want, I don't miss the way his smile lessens when he returns his gaze to me.
"Well, we're either going to make those guys really upset, or we're going to give them what they want." Starting slowly, he jerks when I suddenly stiffen. "Oh, no. Not you. I'm not giving you to anyone."
My stomach tightens at the certainty behind his words, and I have to pretend what I'm feeling isn't tingling.
"I'm talking about the guy who got you in this situation in the first place. If he's still in the state, our hacker can find him using her resources. So, do you want us to find and give him to that club, or do you want us to send a message that you're under our protection?"
