Chapter 15

Sloane looked up from her book for the fifth time in as many minutes. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. If it weren’t for the fact that she was safer inside the coffee shop than out, she might have decided to go back to the apartment to get away from whoever was emitting the stalker vibes.

She glanced at her phone on the table in front of her. Six thirty. Wendy’s shift was almost over, and Mateo would be waltzing through that door at any minute. She breathed a little easier knowing he’d be there when it was time to head out.

“Good book, right?” Wendy asked a little while later as she sat in the chair facing her.

“So good,” she said as she closed it and smiled at her friend. “You done early?”

Wendy tore a chunk off the top of the muffin she’d brought over with her and slid the rest in her direction. Up until then, too engrossed in a good story, she hadn’t realized she was hungry. “Yep. It was so busy that I missed two of my breaks. Rather than pay me overtime, they’re letting me out early.”

Sloane closed her eyes as she popped a piece of muffin into her mouth, loving the sweet and tart flavors of the cranberry treat. “We still have to wait for Mateo and Rory, though.”

Wendy sank down into her chair and rolled her eyes. “Fine. But they better not expect me to cook for everyone once we get home,” Wendy said with a pout.

Sloane tried to stifle her laughter, but just the thought of Wendy cooking anything at all was a joke. She couldn’t manage to bake frozen cookie dough without it turning into an incident where the fire department came in, and the fire chief reprimanded her for going into the kitchen—again. The woman. Could. Not. Cook.

“You’re not poisoning us with anything that comes out of your kitchen,” she finally managed between giggles.

Wendy grinned back at her. She had no delusions about her cooking abilities. “Great. So, takeout it is. I’m in the mood for Chinese.”

“Why do I feel like I’ve just been played?” She shook her head as she teased her friend. The door to the café opened, bringing with it the scent of spice, dragon, and sexy male. Mateo. Her dragon perked up, sniffing the air to get more of the delicious aroma.

“Look at you all lovey-dovey-eyed. Anything more, and you’d melt right into the floor,” Wendy said as she craned her neck to see Mateo walk toward them, Rory only a few steps behind.

“I can’t help it. Mateo smells amazing, even from here.”

“Oh, you’ve got it bad.”

Sloane nibbled on her lip rather than comment. Why deny it?

As Mateo drew closer, she noticed something else. He was tense. Real tense. His posture didn’t bend, and although his eyes softened when she met his gaze, he looked sad—beaten.

She was up before he reached the table and had her arms around his neck the moment he was within reach. “You okay?”

He held her close, buried his nose in her neck, and took a long, deep breath. “Yeah. We can talk about it later. Let’s get out of here.”

She gave him one last squeeze, then stepped out of his embrace, plastering a smile on for Wendy’s sake. With one look at her friend, she knew she needn’t have bothered. Her eyes hadn’t left the blond hovering next to her.

“I’m starving. How do you guys feel about Chinese?” she asked as she gathered her things, hoping to ease a bit of the tension.

“You know I’m down for it,” Wendy needlessly piped in, following her lead.

“Whatever you want is fine. We’ll get you ladies settled, then run out for the food,” Mateo said as they exited onto the sidewalk.

What’s to settle?

She didn’t have time to question him about the fact he was ushering them into a different vehicle than the one they’d rode in the day before. As soon as he opened the door to the back, she spotted their things—all of them—and more stuff that they hadn’t brought with them to Wendy’s apartment. She climbed in and scooted across the soft leather.

“That’s my seat, big guy,” Wendy said as she squeezed past Mateo to take the spot next to her. “You’re at the front.”

No one said a word for a few blocks until Wendy finally sighed. “Okay, spill. Why is my shit in the back of your car? And how the hell did you get into my apartment without my key?”

Rory kept driving as though he hadn’t heard a thing, but his hands tightened on the wheel, and a muscle ticked in his jaw.

“We’re relocating for a few nights. We didn’t break anything going in, and other than grabbing a few essentials, we didn’t touch anything that shouldn’t be touched,” Mateo responded.

Her eyes narrowed as she glared at Rory through the rearview mirror. “You went through my things.”

“Only to get them into your suitcase, sweetheart,” Rory finally added, his tone calm—unaffected.

Wendy opened her mouth to respond, but Sloane beat her to it. If she wanted answers, she had to nip the bickering in the bud. “What happened? Why aren’t we staying at Wendy’s?”

Mateo glanced at her over his shoulder and ran his fingers through his hair. “We found a body. The hunters are killing right here in the city. We can’t risk them finding your connection to Wendy and coming after either of you to get to us.”

Her heart pounded as she mentally ran through the list of people she’d called. “William?” she guessed.

His expression shuttered, but then he nodded once.

She blinked back the moisture rimming her eyelids and took a steadying breath. “I have to speak with his wife. She’s trying to find him.”

“We’ve been to see her. She knows. She’s with family now.”

Wendy, who was never quiet—ever—reached over and squeezed her hand and kept her thoughts to herself the rest of the way.

***

Austin had found another dragon-friendly hotel and sent the coordinates. As far as they could tell, that one remained safe. It wasn’t as luxurious as the one downtown had been, but it was clean, and with the wide, well-lit hallways, it was easily defendable if the need arose.

Mateo sat with Sloane next to him on the couch. Wendy and Rory were doing everything they could to keep from staring at one another, and no one spoke. The heavy silence didn’t bother him. It gave him some time to think—to figure out a way to get his mate out of the city. He didn’t want to piss her off, and she’d made it clear that she didn’t want to be apart from him, but finding Bradley’s body had cemented one thing—no one was safe. If he had to choose between her being hurt and her being angry, the latter would win every damned time.

Sloane sighed as she dug more chow mein from the cardboard box sitting on the table in front of them. The soft sound curled around him, making him want to wrap her in his arms and never let go. She took another mouthful, chewed slowly, swallowed, then sighed again. Whatever she was stewing about, she wasn’t happy.

“When’s the last time we went on vacation, Wendy?” she asked, surprising everyone with the suddenness of her question.

“Uh…never?” The girl looked at her as though she’d lost her mind.

“Exactly. We deserve one. I mean, with all this going on, maybe we should get away for a few days.”

Mateo paused with his food halfway to his mouth, then set it down again. If she thought they’d be able to go off on holidays without protection, she really had lost it. Not happening.

Wendy rolled her eyes and shook her head. “You know I can’t afford to take time off work.”

Sloane shrugged. “Isn’t this your weekend off? I’ll foot the bill. It’ll be fun.”

Wendy’s gaze bounced to him, then back to Sloane. “What did you have in mind?”

“I thought I’d like to check out Glen Farley. That’s where Mateo’s clan is. I was hoping we could visit to see if I’d like to live there once this blows over. And I imagine we’d be safer there. It would give the men the time they need to figure this stuff out. Right?” She directed the last at him.

“Definitely. Much safer,” Mateo agreed almost sedately when he wanted to shout, “Hell yes!” More than that, he wanted to grab her and kiss her. Time and again, she proved she was his perfect partner. She assessed the situation, gave it some thought, and came up with a solution that made sense. So fucking sexy.

“You know I’d do anything for you, girlie, but I can’t afford it. Even if I miss just one day of work, I won’t make rent.”

Rory dropped his chopsticks into the carton he’d been holding and growled. It wasn’t soft, nor was it angry. It was the sound of a male determined. Without a word, he rose and went to the backpack he always carried. He grabbed something from its depths and strode back to Wendy, then dropped what looked like a big roll of cash onto the table right next to her hand.

“Your rent is covered, and so are any shifts you might miss,” he said before turning his back on her.

Wendy’s mouth gaped open. She spluttered once, then finally grabbed the roll. She shook her head, then chucked the money at Rory’s retreating back. “I can’t take this. I won’t,” she shouted.

“Wen, it’s not like that,” Sloane said quickly. If the worried look Sloane cast his way was any indication, Rory had screwed up. “He’s just trying to help.”

Mateo placed his hand on Sloane’s knee. “I think it’s time we go.”

“I won’t owe anyone. Ever again,” Wendy said, her gaze dropping to her lap where she twisted her fingers in a show of nervousness he’d not witnessed from her before.

Rory picked up the roll of cash. His eyes never strayed from the girl. “You don’t owe me anything. This isn’t a loan. It’s yours, free and clear.”

Wendy snorted. “They always want something in return.”

Okay, time to go. Whatever Wendy and Rory needed to work out, they didn’t need witnesses. “Come on, babe. Let’s let them deal with this,” he suggested as he took Sloane’s hand and helped her to her feet.

“But…”

“We’ll be right across the hall,” he assured, saying it loud enough that both women heard.

Before she could protest again, he ushered her out the door.