He answered on the first ring. “You got the blood?”
Guess we weren’t beating around the bush.
“Yeah. Thank you.” Thanking him seemed necessary if I wanted any chance of him continuing to give me more blood after the bites he left on my skin healed.
“Have you healed yet?”
“I’m sure I will in the next few hours.” It wasn’t a complete lie.
I’d feed at the gathering, and I would heal afterward.
I glanced in my mirror again and saw the blonde woman’s car parked directly behind mine. She wasn’t even trying to be sneaky about following me. “Why did you ask my chauffer to stalk me?”
“Ah. That.”
“Yeah, that.”
“Well, if you’re going to be bait, you’ll need protection. I’m not actually risking your life.”
“I think I’d rather risk my life than have a pair of werewolves tailing me all the time. I’m trying to go to a family thing right now, and I obviously can’t bring them.”
“Why can’t you?”
I glared at the mirror. “Take a guess, Maverick.”
“They’re not going to kill anyone or report anything about your family. They’re only there to protect you.”
“I’m sure you can imagine how well that would go over with my family.”
“My enforcers are going to keep you safe and make sure no one touches you,” he said bluntly. “End of the discussion.”
Looked like I was right. This was about possessiveness.
Did he think he was the only one who could be stubborn here?
“Let me put it this way, then. If your enforcers leave this gas station while I’m at my family thing, I will find a way to touch every man and woman in the building.”
“Are youthreateningme?” Maverick sounded amused.
I imagined it wasn’t something many people tried with him, and there was a definite chance it could backfire.
“No. I’m just letting you know.”
He chuckled. “Alright, Sugar. Go alone, but if anyone touches you, they die.”
“Sugar? No. Absolutely not. Youcannotcall me that. If you want to give me a nickname, you can call me… Mosquito. Or Parasite. Something related to vampires. Also, what the hell is an enforcer? And how do you plan to know who, if anyone, has touched me?”
“Enforcers enforce. They’re basically my assistants, but more violent. And last I checked, my nose is just as good as yours. Maybe better.”
“If that was true, you would’ve known that I didn’t kill Steven the moment you caught a whiff of me.”
“Your scent caught me off guard. The whole fucking floor smelled like cherries.”
“I don’t smell likecherries.”
“You do. You taste like them, too. They’re sweet. Like you.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Please tell me you’re not trying to flirt with me.”
