Cowl
He decided to remain in the basement.
Andria needed some space to breathe, recover, and probably overthink what had just happened between them. To him it was simple. As mates they had taken the next step toward being bound to one another for the rest of their long lives. While he wished that they could move faster, there was something powerful about helping Andria rediscover this side of herself.
Cowl was starting to figure out what was going on, more so via process of elimination than anything else, but he believed it to be something to do with her previous relationship and their sex life. It angered him to think of others touching his mate, and the fact that she had had relations with others.
You aren’t a virgin yourself.
It was just one of those facts of life that he knew he had to accept. Truthfully he didn’t expect this mate to be celibate until he found her. That was unreasonable. He did however, expect any lovers she took to be respectful and chivalrous. If Cowl ever found out who had done this to her, they were going to learn an entirely new definition of the words pain and agony before he was through with them. Rarely had something made him so furious.
Unfortunately, he still didn’t know what had happened, or even who had done it. His first guess was Jake, but that just didn’t sit right. Andria was scared of him, terrified even, but that was because of what she knew he might do. Not what he had done. It was a subtle difference, but Cowl had seen a lot of scenarios play out before he and his brothers had been buried in the avalanche. He’d learned to know the difference.
There was no doubt Jake was involved though. Jake knew who it was, and he knew what had happened. The easiest scenario seemed to be waiting until he showed his scruffy, drug-addicted face again, and beat the answers out of him. Not only would Cowl get the knowledge he sought, but the image of his fist connecting with Jake’s face was a pleasant one. Very pleasant. So pleasant that he rather wanted to see it happen more than once. Like, half a dozen times. Maybe ten. Better yet, why put a limit on it?
If he thought that plan would work, he would have tracked the asshole down already and delivered the beating. The downside, however, was that it would put him at odds with Andria. She wasn’t ready to tell him, and no matter how much he wanted to know, going elsewhere for the information just wasn’t an option. Not if he wanted to respect her privacy.
Cowl wished he could tell her that no matter what it was, it wasn’t going to change his perspective of her. That as his mate he would always look at her the same way. That would never change. He had eyes only for her, and her gorgeous, soft body. The largess of her breasts and the curve of her rear drew him in, wishing he could spend all day luxuriating in the deliciousness that was her body.
Upstairs he heard footsteps moving around as Andria helped whoever had come in. Judging by their location, whoever it was had chosen to sit at the bar, meaning it wasn’t a large party.
He occupied himself with organizing the increasing boxes of empty bottles by color and even brand. It was amazing; for a bar that never seemed to get all that busy, they certainly went through a lot of beer.
This didn’t take nearly as much time as he’d hoped, and in a few minutes he was once again finished and looking for another task. The only thing that came to mind was sweeping the floor, and he really didn’t feel like doing that right then. He glanced at the stairs. Had enough time passed for him to head on up?
He decided it had. Besides, there was a customer up there, and Andria could distract herself by chatting with them if she so wished. He would start cleaning the tables and putting the chairs up. They did close in an hour. It was a bit premature, but not that much, and it would allow him to stay in close proximity to Andria without being on top of her.
Satisfied that he’d thought it all through and that his reasons were valid, he clomped up the stairs, making a little extra noise so that she would know he was coming. His eyes flicked over the bar as he ducked his head to avoid the lower-than-average door frame. There was only one person in the place, an old man at the bar, talking to Andria in hushed tones. He was older, with white hair and glasses. Not a threat.
Her back was to him, but he thought she looked a little tense. Perhaps he’d pushed it by coming up so early. Maybe she needed more time. He quickly grabbed a broom and headed out into the bar, giving her some space, hoping that would calm her down. Was he really that intimidating to her? He didn’t want to be. Cowl wanted nothing more than to have Andria feel safe with him around, confident that with him by her side, things would always be okay in the end.
Making his way around the tables and tossing chairs up onto them, he eventually finished half the bar, pausing at the main entrance/exit. With time still to go he wasn’t about to put the rest of the chairs up. Who knew when a larger group might enter and need them. They wanted the business, so they would have to appear at least somewhat inviting.
Movement outside the window caught his attention.
A silver four-door sedan with sleek lines was parked out front on the side of the street. It wasn’t the car that caught his attention however, but the two men in leather jackets and dark clothing lounging on either side of it.
Cowl looked back at the bar and the old man. Then at the obvious bodyguards, waiting outside for their boss. Who the hell was the old man? Focusing on the mirror behind the bar he tried to get a better glimpse of the man’s features, but he stopped when he realized he was staring right into a pair of eyes made hard by a life of struggling for power. The old man was looking at him, even as he talked to Andria.
Trying not to frown, Cowl let his gaze move on, but he opened his senses to let his dragon hearing bring the words to him. He wanted to know what was going on.
“I know Jake’s methods can be a bit rough, Miss Chalmers. But trust me when I say it’s best for you if you stay away. We wouldn’t want any…unpleasantness to occur.”
“Are you threatening me?” Andria’s voice quavered.
Cowl went into high alert, the hackles on the back of his neck rising. What the fuck was it with people and threatening his mate? Broom still in hand, he casually walked back over to the bar until he was standing right behind the stranger.
“How’s everything going here?” His voice was cold and as hard as the old man’s eyes.
“Just fine, thank you, young man.” The voice that came back was fragile, pleasant, like an elderly grandfather almost, and completely at odds with the look he’d seen a moment before. Even the man’s features softened until Cowl barely recognized him as the same person. “We’re all right though, I promise you.” He smiled up at the much taller dragon shifter.
“Good. I wouldn’t any unpleasantness.” He put emphasis on the final word, making it clear he wasn’t about to get played like a fool.
Something…respect, perhaps, flickered deep in the recesses of the brown eyes. “Oh of course not. Wouldn’t dream of it, would we, Andria?”
Cowl’s fingers gripped the broom tighter, the wooden shaft shaking. How dare he talk to Andria like this, to his mate? The disrespect being shown was staggering. Who did this man think he was?
“Of course not, Richard.” Her voice was stronger, more confident with Cowl around. But she was still saying exactly what he wanted to hear.
“Now that we’ve got that settled, why don’t you go back to doing something more important? I think you were cleaning, weren’t you? Let us continue our chat in private. It really doesn’t concern you, I promise.”
Cowl recognized a dismissal when he heard one. What galled him was that the old man was so used to being obeyed that he actually turned his back on him. If he knew what Cowl really was, he wouldn’t have done that. The insults just kept coming. The broom handle finally shattered in his hand, bits of it flying everywhere as the two pieces clattered to the ground.
Did he really think Cowl was little more than a glorified janitor? A garbage boy? Frost started to form over his knuckles as he shook with rage.
Behind him the door opened. In the mirror behind the bar he saw the two flunkies come in. Both of them had their hands in their jackets, as if ready to pull something out. Andria backed away from the bar, her eyes wide, filled with more fear than he’d seen yet.
“I think you need to leave,” Cowl growled, reining in his temper, but barely. Only the presence of Andria kept him from dealing with the situation in his own, much more unique—and violent—way.
“You do?”
The bar was still, everyone holding their breath it seemed, waiting for the outcome.
Cowl nodded, calling his power, letting it lie just below the surface of his back. He could summon his armor in a heartbeat, protecting him from whatever the two men had within their jackets. “I don’t like the way you’re talking to Andria.”
The old man glanced over his shoulder as he regarded the bartender, then back at Cowl. “And what’s it to you?”
“She’s with me, and you need to leave her alone.”
The old man’s eyes narrowed, suspicion filling them in a way that made Cowl wonder if he’d just made a mistake. Why did this old has-been suddenly seem like he’d just gleaned an important bit of information from that statement? What was Cowl missing?
Abruptly the old man rose, moving with a swiftness that didn’t quite fit. To Cowl’s surprise he was a good bit taller than expected, falling only an inch or two shorter than his own height.
“Well, I suppose I shall respect that claim. After all, as we stated, we don’t want unpleasantness. To achieve that, one must respect another. Agreed?” He looked between Cowl and Andria.
Cowl just growled. In the mirror the two men tightened their grips on whatever they were hiding. “Get out.”
The standoff continued for several more heartbeats, each man evaluating the other, seeing who would blink first. Cowl won.
Moving with a surety of his stride, the elderly male exited the bar, taking his two glaring thugs with him. Cowl just smiled at them. They weren’t the threat. Their boss was.
The door closed and he walked over to it, throwing the latch and turning off the “Open” sign. He didn’t care that there was still most of an hour left. They were closed for the night.
“Who the hell was that?”
Andria was already scrubbing the bar furiously, pretending like she’d not heard him.
He walked over to her, reaching out to take her hand, but she snatched it away. Cowl was stunned to see tears running down her face.
“Andria.” He was pleading now. “Let me in. Please. Tell me what is going on so that I can help.”
She shook her head, teardrops falling free from her cheeks at the motion.
Frustration finally boiled over in Cowl. “Tell me what’s going on! I know something is, it’s obvious. But I can’t protect you from it if you don’t tell me!” He slammed his hands onto the bar, irritated by her refusal.
Andria looked up at that, fire in her eyes. Cowl knew right away he’d made a mistake in losing his temper. “I was handling it just fine before you arrived. It’s none. Of. Your. Business. I don’t need a protector.”
Gritting his teeth, he swallowed his instinctive response. It was obvious that she was in some sort of trouble. Multiple people had come to the bar to threaten her. How could she not realize this? Why was she so adamant about keeping him in the dark?
“Fine. If you don’t need a protector, how about a friend?”