“Do you know someone named Charlie?” I ask.
“No,” he says slowly.
“She went on a date with him. He showed up and grabbed her arm,” I snarl, and he taps his cane and glares at the crowd below. “I’ll find him.”
“To do what?” He narrows his eyes.
I lift a shoulder. “If I find out he isn’t a good guy, I’ll make him disappear.” He studies my face. “I nicked his throat, so it won’t be hard to follow his scent.”
“You cut him?” His lip tips up.
“Just a little.”
“Hmm…” I can tell he wants to dislike me, yet he also approves of me.
“I won’t hurt her,” I say softly. “She told me how much you mean to her. I give you my respect, but I won’t leave her.”
“She’s been through immense pain,” he growls.
“I can tell. She will tell me when she’s ready. I won’t force her into anything. There is no doubt that she is my mate, and I trust the universe knew what it was doing pairing us together. I won’t ask for your permission. I will treat her with respect and go at her pace. She loves you, so I hope we can get along.” I lean against the rail. “Would you let someone stop you from being with your mate?”
“Shit,” he grits out. “You are brave.” He glares at me. “I don’t know if I like you. Tread carefully with her. You don’t know the extent of her trauma, and although she has worked through most of it, there are lingering issues.” He exhales harshly. “I admire your profession. My gut is telling me to trust you, yet it’s difficult to hand her safety to another man, mate or not. I’ve killed for her, and would do it again. Her strength is outmatched. She hides plenty, and my hope is that she has someone good enough to open up to. Don’t fuck it up.”
“I will be that man,” I say firmly. “I hide plenty of my own, and a minefield of rage is deep inside for what she went through, even though I don’t know what it was.”
“Good.” He rolls his shoulders. “I will be watching.”
“Months from now, we’ll be the best of friends,” I smirk, and he hums.
“We’ll see.” He moves forward across the balcony, and I allow him to lead and get the last word.
Shaking my head, I follow behind. I may appear easygoing, and in most cases, my temper rarely flares. Yet, if anyone tries to come between my mate and me, they will be on the end of my blade.
“See, they’re both alive,” Sally exclaims.
“I don’t see any blood,” Micah mutters.
I feel the years of power flowing from the ancient vampire. His easy smile is a mask for the beast he holds inside. I’m not afraid of much, but he would make anyone pause.
“Ezra,” Rylee says, standing. Something warm unfurls in my chest, her husky voice saying my name and not Heath’s.
“It’s fine.” I stop beside her. “Sit.” She stares at me, but eases onto the couch.
“Your sister is talented,” she says, and I join her.
“Yeah. She does it for fun, but she has the attention of record labels. Her band are shifters, too, so they know at some point they’ll have to fade into the background. The world would have questions when they don’t age.” I lean back and slide my arm behind her. I want to smile when she leans against me.
Progress.
“She’s having fun while she can,” Haven says.
“It’s a shame because I think she could have a long, fulfilling career if they didn’t have to stop. Humans aren’t ready to know about us just for some music.” Issy knows the risks and when she needs to stop. She is able to shift features on her face, but not tothe extent that I can. Her band members are a handful of various shifters who don’t have the ability.
“She would be welcome to play here,” Ryker offers, and I meet his gaze. He hasn’t said a word to me, and if I weren’t me, I would be nervous. He’s not much younger in power than Micah.
“I’ll let her know. I’m sure she would love that,” I say.
“We’ll have another night out,” Sally says, and many of the men groan. They may complain, but they would do anything to make their mates happy. Including Bash, who I shared a loaded look with, his presence at the club was not a surprise when I saw his mate snuggled against him.
