Page 44 of Venomous as a Snake

I don’t let go, though. I don’t trust him to not fake it and try to run away.

“Is that his real name, or did you give him that name?”

“Yep,” is all I can say back.

My arms and chest are burning from the exertion by the time I finally let Cliff go. He tips to the side, head-butting the corner of my island before toppling onto the floor.

“Did—”

“In a minute,” I cut Walker off, holding my hand up as I stand up straight and suck in deep breaths. “Hooker. Release.”

“She just called that dog Hooker,” Walker’s friend tells him.

“That’s really his name,” he informs the stunned onlooker… who just watched me murder a man. “What else would she call him?”

I open the fridge and toss Hooker a crown of broccoli. He snatches it from the air, trotting off to make a mess in the living room.

“Are you okay?” Walker’s friend asks me.

“This is Collin,” my mate fills in. “He’s one of my roommates.”

I nod my head, bending to pick up my waffle maker. It’s covered in batter, thanks to Pimp, but it looks to still be in good condition. I plug it into the outlet, waiting for the light to pop on…

It doesn’t.

“Damn,” I hiss, glaring at Cliff the Cleft. “He fucked up my waffle maker.”

“What did he do?” Collin inquires.

I unplug the waffle maker, throwing it in the trash with a frown. Now that I’m out from behind the island, they get a full view of me…

Beaten and battered.

Literally.

I’ve got a few bruises blossoming on my arms, but my legs have waffle batter all over them.

Walker rubs his hand over his mouth, his amber eyes sparkling with amusement. “Did Cliff do that?”

“No. Pimp did.”

“The bruises or the batter? I’m so confused,” Collin confesses, concern in his tone. “Was that your pimp?”

I snort as my cat struts back into the kitchen, a drawn out meow falling from his evil little mouth as he hops onto the counter. He leaves footprints of batter along the surface before he sits down to judge us.

“That psycho is Pimp,” I tell Collin, and maybe Walker, as I straighten my ponytail. “The cat is a demon. I’m pretty sure I summoned him while I was drunk one night.”

Walker chuckles, and I don’t know why, but it pisses me off.

“What do you want?”

He smirks at my question, his gaze raking over me like a fiery brand.

I contemplate choking him, too.

And I know he sees the decision float through my wild blue eyes when he holds his hands up.

“I’d like a shot of something,” Collin mutters. “I wasn’t prepared to witness a murder when we come in.”