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A lot of them were women, but there were also men who stared daggers at him.
“I have a feeling you’ve got a fan club,” Sanjay said.
Jake shrugged. “I don’t pay attention to them. You’re the only one who matters to me.”
Talk about making Sanjay feel special. “You could have your pick of whoever you wanted in here.”
Jake stopped and stared down at him. “First, you’re the most gorgeous person in here. Second, imagine this scenario. You own a bar. You decide to take a patron home to have sex with. You make it clear that it isn’t going beyond sex. The person gets clingy. You own a bar.”
“You already said that.”
Jake held up his hand and picked up where he left off. “You own a bar. The public can come in. Mr. Clingy shows up, sits at the counter all night and watches you, getting an attitude whenever you talk to someone. Not flirting, just talking.”
“It sounds like you’ve experienced this.”
Jake gave Sanjay a look that said he had, and he wasn’t trying to have a repeat.
He clung to Jake’s hand as they made their way outside into the warm night. Sanjay stumbled a little, worried that he might have a concussion, but his shift would heal any problems he had.
“Hey, wait.” Jake stopped. “Are you sure you can walk to my car? Do I need to carry you?”
“Don’t even think about it.” Sanjay narrowed his eyes. “My feet are still working just fine.”
“But your equilibrium is out of whack, hon. If I see you falling, I’m carrying you.”
Just as long as Sanjay could play with Jake’s beard. He was dying to run his fingers through it, but he didn’t want Jake to think that was a signal that Sanjay wanted more.
“I’m walking like I’m drunk,” Sanjay said as he tried to put one foot in front of the other. “My head is swimming.”
“That’s it.” Jake pulled Sanjay into his arms so fast that Sanjay didn’t have time to react. Jake cradled Sanjay to his strong chest, walking toward the parking lot on the side of the bar.
Thankfully no one was outside to see them. A lot of people in Midnight Falls knew Sanjay, and he didn’t want to get razzed about needing to be carried around.
It would be good-natured teasing but teasing, nonetheless.
As soon as Sanjay gave in to the need to rest his head on Jake’s chest, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Chapter Four
An hour after getting Sanjay to his house and coaxing the human side of his mate to shift into his gazelle, Jake was seated on his couch, his booted feet on his coffee table, trying to watch something on television.
He couldn’t concentrate on anything except for the gazelle laid out on his living room floor. He’d wanted to give Sanjay enough space, and Jake’s bedroom didn’t have enough room for a shift.
Jake sighed and leaned back into the cushions, rubbing his tired eyes. It had been a long day, and he couldn’t help but worry about Sanjay. His mate had tried to play down his injury, but Jake had witnessed how the head trauma had affected him.
It was still early evening. Jake pulled out his phone and called Deputy Cannon Lowery. He wasn’t sure if the lion shifter was on duty, but Jake wanted information, and hopefully, Cannon had it.
“Jake,” Cannon said when he answered. “I’m not at the station.”
“This doesn’t have anything to do with the bar.” A few times Jake had had to call the cops on drunken, disorderly human customers. He could normally keep the peace himself, but when the human was belligerent, instead of killing the son of a bitch, Jake called the station.
“Okay,” Cannon said slowly. “Then what’s this about?”
He told Cannon about Sanjay, how he’d found his mate, and what Trenton had done. “My mate’s asleep in his animal form on my living room floor. I need to know if you have any idea who this Trenton guy is.”
Cannon sighed. “Unfortunately, I know exactly who you’re talking about.”
“I need the info,” Jake said with a snarl.
