The big furry head nodded, crushing the leather beneath his chin.
“Close your eyes twice.”
He blinked. Twice.
Instant. “Stick out your tongue.”
The black panther’s tongue flopped out of his mouth.
My eyes opened wide on my face. “Oh, my freaking fuckity-fuck.”
The cat huffed a few times, its body vibrating.
Ever so slowly, my head cocked. “Are you laughing at me?”
He nodded again. Still huffing.
I thumped him on his nose. “Not funny. I about peed my pants.”
More huffing and a deep inhale.
My eyes narrowed. “Okay, maybe I wet them a little.”
* * *
With a fresh pair of underwear and pants on, stolen from Poppy’s bedroom, I sat across from Rune in the kitchen. I munched on a meal of a brisket sandwich and fries. Someone had ordered in for the group. They were all here in the house—mansion—but they were giving us privacy and talking quietly amongst themselves on how to handle Godric’s funeral. It was now a reality.
Poppy was nowhere to be seen.
Rune wasn’t eating, but he wasn’t furry anymore, either. “Are you ready to start again?”
I nodded. “What’s a seer?”
“We have one seer. He’s our enforcer and gives mercy deaths when requested. He has special powers that none of us have.” Rune flicked his wrist toward the doorway. “Cassander is our seer.”
This was a lot easier to listen to—and believe, having seen him shift. “And a mate?”
“Mates are a shifter’s one and only. The magic picks them. Shifters can only reproduce with their intended mate. They’re all human, and we find them through intercourse.”
I took another bite of my sandwich, studying him. “I’m your mate, aren’t I?”
His head cocked, and his brows rose. “Why would you think that?”
“Because you don’t act like a playboy around me.”
He chuckled. “I may need to up my game.”
“You didn’t answer me.” I took another bite, calm and collected.
Golden eyes studied mine. “Would you run away if I said yes?”
“So…you’re afraid of my disappearing acts?”
“You are very good at them,” he answered honestly.
I placed my sandwich down on my plate and sat back and crossed my arms. “I won’t run away. But I’m not sure about a relationship. I’ve never really had one. I don’t know how to do them.”
The simple fact was…this man could handle my father. I hadn’t expected that. My father was the only reason why I shied away from getting close to someone.
The hunter was studying me carefully. Golden, intelligent eyes ran over my features.
A few times. Waiting for a crack in my exterior.
He wouldn’t find it. Eventually, he responded slowly, “You are my mate.”
I nodded. “Thought so.”
Rune sat back in his chair, his eyes ever watchful. Ready to pounce.
“Do you even want a mate?” I questioned—blunt and to the point.
“Honestly?”
“Yes.”
“I’m a little like you. I don’t really know how to do relationships.” He shrugged his masculine shoulders, the shirt bunching over his muscles. “But you aren’t what I was expecting. It’s a pleasant surprise.”
“In what way?”
“Well, other than the fact you want to wear a princess dress, you aren’t at all like the typical women I’ve been with. You’re down to earth and funny. You don’t care about silly, frivolous shit.” His eyes roamed my features again, a cocky grin lifting his mouth. “And you’re fucking hot. Even if a little too thin.”
I snorted and shook my head in humored exasperation.
“Really.” He pointed at the food on my plate, only half eaten. “You need to put more sustenence in your body. You eat like a bird.”
“My stomach is still adjusting to actually having food.”
“I know. I was trying to be polite about it.”
I chuckled then. “So, what are the perks of being a mate?”
“Other than you get to be with me?” He winked when I rolled my eyes. “You’re now immortal too. Only the seer or I can kill you. You’ll always come back to life.”
My jaw dropped, and I squealed, “Are you serious?”
“As a coffin.”
With shocked, wide eyes, I held up my right hand to him.
Laughter danced in his golden orbs as he high-fived me.
“Damn. I got a sweet deal,” I murmured.
He ran his fingers through his black hair. “How’s that?”
“Well, I fucked a seriously hot man. Became immortal while having an orgasm. And I get to fuck him anytime I want.” I pointed at myself. “Because you like me, and no man wants to piss off a woman they’ll be connected to for…eternity.”
He blinked. Stared.
I laughed and rubbed greedy hands together. “Does this mean your money is my money too?”
“Fuck.” His chest started shaking, attempting to contain his mirth. “You’re going to be a handful, aren’t you?”
“Maybe.” Innocent eyes.
He chuckled, grabbing at his chest. “Lord, help me.”
Gradually, my eyebrows puckered while his laughter died down. “Really though. How do we do this? Are we going to attempt to date each other?” I cleared my throat and rubbed at my forehead. “I don’t even know where to begin with that.”
His cheeks puffed out with a heady breath, and then he turned around, hollering, “Finn! Get your ass in here. We need some advice.” He turned back around in his chair and hitched his thumb over his shoulder toward the doorway. “He’s mated. He can help us figure this shit out. Because I’m pretty sure a funeral shouldn’t be our first real date, and that’s all I can think of.”
My nose crinkled. “We’re pathetic.”
“Eh, the magic picked well. Neither of us has any expectations.”
“Amen to that.” I held my hand up again.
He high-fived me once more, then stated, “And as far as your father goes, do you want to kill him or do you want me to do it?”
I blinked. “We really suck—because that’s all I could think of for a first date.”
Rune stared a second before he twisted in his chair again. “Finn, goddammit, get in here!”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The next night, I hesitated outside my apartment door. I was beat from working another double shift—thankfully, not fired for not showing up yesterday—but I wasn’t hesitating because of that. “Are you sure you want to do this tonight?”
Rune rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes closing. “It’ll keep my mind off God and the funeral tomorrow. I need the distraction.”
My brows pulled together. “Our first date is just a distraction for you?”
His eyes snapped open, quickly backtracking. “No, no. I meant the distraction is in duping your father. Not spending time with you.”
“Are you sure Finn knows what he’s doing?” I questioned, glancing at him out of the corner of my eye. “Seriously, he told us we should go out and do what we want to do together. Neither of us has sweet, happy ideas. Don’t people go to movies or something like that?”
“He knows what he’s doing. I trust him.” Rune nabbed my hand and held it gently in his as we strolled side-by-side to the elevator. “And we are going to dinner. I know a lot of people do that.”
“We’re going to a high-end strip club.”
“Where they serve dinner,” he added.
My attention flicked to him. “You know this place is mainly male strippers, right?”
He nodded, his eyes narrowing a smidge. “Not exactly perfect, but it’s where your father will be tonight—if my men told me the correct information.”
I snorted. “Your men?”
His brows rose, and he stared down the tip of his nose. “I’ve had my men fo
llowing you anytime you were alone. Did you even know they were there?”
I jabbed my finger against the elevator button. “You did what?”
“For protection. I didn’t want you getting kidnapped again.”
I waited. My blue eyes blazed with unnerving heat.
He ran his fingers through his hair, grumbling, “I should have had them follow us the whole time.”
The elevator door opened, and I dragged him inside. I pressed the button for the bottom floor. “That’s not really the point. You had people watching me.”
“Would you rather I spy on you?”
“Well, no. But isn’t it the same thing if they’re your men?”
“It was their eyes. Not mine. They only report if there’s an issue.” He shrugged.
I sighed and rested the side of my head against his bicep. “I guess I understand why you did it.”
“Good. That’s something I won’t apologize for—if you had wanted one.”
I snorted. “Anything else you want to tell me?”
He hummed. “I can go invisible.”
My head jerked up, and my eyes found his. “Really?”
He nodded, a pleased smirk stamped on his face. “Yes. The guys and I each have a unique ability since we were born in a fucked up time. My special talent is invisibility.”
I bounced on the balls of my feet. “Show me.”
He glanced at the elevator screen. “Damn, this thing is slow.”
Then he disappeared. Poof. Gone…
Except his warm hand was still holding mine.
I merely couldn’t see it.
“Oh, my goodness!” I shrieked, patting thin air until I found his invisible chest. “That is awesome!”
A snicker came from above me. “It does have its advantages. Like, I’m looking down your top right now, and you don’t even know it.”
I smacked his chest again—a little harder. “Play nice. I’m just immortal.”
His body returned into my vision, tall and muscular. A god-man. With eyes the color of the sun.
My cheeks pinched from smiling so much. “That is really neat.”
“And useful. I’ll probably use it tonight.” He bent and kissed the top of my head, the elevator door finally opening. “It’s amazing what people discuss when they think no one is around.”
Our joined hands swung back and forth between our bodies while we strolled to the glass front door. My eyes were caught on his, and I allowed myself to fall into them—a little. I asked candidly, “Do you have a plan for how you want to take him and his businesses out?”
“I do. I just don’t know the location yet.”
“We’ll figure it out. His boxing rings are all over the city. Just figure out the time and which place, then we’ll tempt him.”
“That’s the idea.” He smiled down at me and opened the front door. “Ladies first.”
I giggled and hopped out onto the sidewalk. I glanced at him over my shoulder, winking and showing my minimal curves to their best advantage. “You’re such the gentleman.”
He growled playfully deep in his throat and lunged toward me.
I shrieked with laughter as he caught me around the waist and lifted me off my feet. I swatted at his shoulders, staring down into his face. “Let me down! Let me down!”
“Megan, is that you?” A voice from my past interrupted.
Rune froze with me in his arms, his impish grin falling from his face like whiplash. He turned his body gradually, and we both peered at the man standing next to us on the street—outside my apartment building. From my lifted height, I could clearly study the bald spot on top of his head that he had forever been trying to hide. My fingers dug into Rune’s shoulders. He wasn’t letting me down. Rune knew who the man was, but he asked with complete casualness, “And you would be?”
“Will Marshall,” he stated, a friendly smile on his face. “Megan’s father.”
The edges of Rune’s eyes crinkled in happiness, and he smiled full out. He lowered me slowly, my body sliding down his until my feet touched the ground. He held his hand out to my father, stating cheerfully, “I’m Rune Mason. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Marshall.”
My dad shook his hand, his blue eyes glinting in the light. “Call me Will.”
“And you can call me Rune.” He snapped my father’s shoulder with excitement. His arm slid around my waist and pulled me against his side. Rune glanced down at me, admonishing, “You didn’t tell me your father was coming by for a visit.”
“It must have slipped my mind.” My lips barely moved. The heart inside my chest was beating in a frantic rhythm, all my senses screaming at me to run. Fear and anxiety made my hands shake, and I quickly crossed my arms across my chest so my father wouldn’t see it. My blue eyes, identical to his, turned to stare him down. “What was the reason for your visit again?”
This man… This horrible man ruined everything. He was always one step ahead.
“I’m taking you to dinner. Don’t you remember, hon?” My father motioned to the private train a block down the street. “I’m sure your friend can come with us too.”
Rune’s brows rose. “Where did you have in mind? I’m sure it beats where we were headed. The scenery there is appalling.”
I shut my mouth and attempted to calm my nerves. Rune was rolling with this change in plans, obviously eager to see what kind of scheme my father was up to. I needed to do the same.
But, damn, it was so hard when he had always won.
It was a kick to the vagina every time.
You think you know what you’re doing?
Kick.
You think you can run away?
Kick.
You think you can battle the man?
Kick.
My father smirked. “We were going to have dinner at a little pizza shop across town. Dormi’s Pizza & Coffee. Megan loves the service there.” He glanced at me, still grinning. “Don’t you, hon?”
I wanted to rip each tooth out of his mouth with brutal delight. “Yeah. I do.”
“Pizza sounds fantastic.” Rune chuckled. “And I have eaten at Dormi’s before. Megan and I ate there the other day. Their food is amazing.”
“Let’s go then.” My father motioned to his train. “They’re closed now, but the new manager is a friend of mine. He’s keeping the doors open for us.”
“Wonderful,” I mumbled, trudging along beside Rune. “I can’t wait.”
This was not our first date. I would never count this catastrophe as anything other than a nightmare, one more to add to the list my father has given me. But I was onboard with Rune, my protector keeping me close to his side. I just hoped I wouldn’t have to rescue him if he fell down into my father’s long line of beaten foes.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The previous manager was dead. This was a new guy. I knew him too.
“Megan!” Kenny opened his arms wide for me. “It’s great to see you again.”
My knees wobbled as I hugged the killer. He killed merely for sport—kids and old people since they were easy prey. I quickly stepped back under Rune’s waiting arm. Not kidding, I muttered, “There won’t be anything special in the red sauce, right?”
The last thing I wanted to do was eat someone else’s blood just because Kenny thought it would be funny. He was ever so caring like that. Even when I’d been five years old. The younger, the better for him.
Kenny snorted, his long silver hair swaying out behind him. “Don’t tell me you’re still sore about the pig’s head?”
“No. Of course not. Waking up to a pig’s head on my pillow was super fun.” I ground my teeth together, my jaw muscles flexing. “But I’m still pissed about waking up next to my dead grandmother.”
Rune’s fingers rubbed against my bicep. “I’m sure he didn’t do that, beautiful. You were probably dreaming.”
“Nightmares,” my father explained, his tone hushed. He watched Kenny’s back as he walked away into the backroom. “She had a lot of nightma
res as a kid. She slept light, and the barest creak on a stair would wake her up. I had to rush into her room to calm her down every other night.”
“Her mother didn’t help?”
“Oh, no. She abandoned us shortly after Megan was born and fled to somewhere in the King Western Province.” His blue eyes found mine, full of perfectly played sympathy. “I told her many times it wasn’t her fault. That her mother was merely a coward, but I don’t think my daughter ever believed me.”
That was because my mother was dead. She hung herself right after I was born.
My father had dumped her body somewhere in the King Western Province.
It amazed me that he still didn’t think I knew that. All it took was a little cash from his safe, and I had plucked the details from one of his men. They weren’t all loyal to him—the only way I was able to run away so often.
I cleared my throat. “Which table do you want to sit at?”
“Why don’t you decide, hon.” His eyes pinched at the corners in anticipation.
I swallowed and started evaluating each table. Nothing appeared wrong with them. But he was too happy right now for there not to be. I pointed at the booth Rune and I had sat at before. “That one?”
My father nodded. “Good choice. I love curved booths. It’s very intimate.”
“Perfect.” My nostrils flared. I’d walked right into that one. All of the booths were curved. There had been no wrong answer there. They were all to his demented liking. I questioned bluntly, “Are you paying for this meal or am I?”
My father walked in front of us, shaking his head. “I invited you out. I’ll pay.”
That was a first.
I reached down to my right leg, my hand on the hilt of my knife.
His back was to me. It would be so damn easy to slit his throat.
But Rune grabbed my hand and held it tightly, intertwining our fingers together. He spoke to the back of my father’s head, “Will, tell me a little about yourself.”
Father turned and slid into the booth, fluid for a middle-aged man. “I’m fairly boring, really. I have a few businesses on the outskirts of New City—the rent’s cheap there—and I live a bachelor’s life. I like my work. It’s stimulating, but I’m an adrenaline junky. I love to skydive in my free time.”
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