AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And I’d put the key on the table needlessly, since I’d left my spare key in the mailbox today. But Magnus looked appropriately annoyed, so checkmate.
I just hoped I remembered to take it back with me, since it was my only other copy.
Kitty said nothing as I eyed the man who must be Magnus up and down speculatively. I had a couple inches on him and a good thirty pounds of muscle but he was whip-lean and scrappy in a way that told me he probably had speed on his side. Behind his specs, his dark eyes were shrewd and the look he aimed my way indicated I was about two levels below pond scum.
“So the book arrived already?” I asked nonchalantly, reaching for the book from Kitty’s boneless fingers.
She made no effort to hold onto it and it took all my concentration to hopefully not flush as red as Kitty was at this moment. Just what had I interrupted?
Couldn’t have been much, since Magnus was still wearing his coat and his bright blue winter hat with plaid flaps over his ears.
“Let me guess. Vet by day, cover model by night? Interesting sideline.” Magnus dropped his bag an inch from my boot.
“I took this photo years ago while I was on a leave of absence.” God, I’d forgotten the eye patch. Yep, I was blushing now. No avoiding it.
“Your…sword is impressive.” Magnus crossed his arms. “How much did you charge?”
“For my pictures?”
He stared at me then glanced at Kitty with a press of his lips. Something wordless passed between them and I found myself fisting my hands.
“Don’t answer that,” Kitty snapped, snatching back the book and clutching it to her chest. “He’s making totally inappropriate insinuations about the nature of our relationship, and you shouldn’t dignify the question with a response.”
“Like what?”
“Like I paid you for sex.”
I lifted a brow and barked out a laugh. “You crazy, man? I’d payher. I mean, I didn’t and I wouldn’t, but if it came to—whatever, no money changed hands.” I shook my head and moved toward her.
Her pupils flared wide and she gave me an almost imperceptible head shake, but I would not be deterred.
Hell, she should consider herself lucky I hadn’t scented the air and peed in a circle around her to mark her as mine.
I leaned in to kiss her softly. “Forgot to say hi the proper way.”
Instead of pushing me away as I feared, she reached up to cup my cheek. “How did the morning go?”
“Seriously?” Magnus huffed out a breath and yanked out his phone. “Just let me make other arrangements since there’s clearly no room for me here.”
“Mag, cripes, he’s been dealing with a hoarding case and you are being so ridiculous right now, it’s like I don’t even know you.”
“Yeah, well, ditto, Kitty. Fucking ditto.” He turned his back on us and hit a button on his phone.
“I’m sorry,” she mouthed as I shook my head.
“Wait. Magnus, is it? You can stay at my place.”
Staying at my place meant he wouldn’t be staying here. And yeah, I didn’t know the dude so I had no clue if I could trust him, but he was someone Kitty cared about. He was clearly jealous over my presence in her life, but I wasn’t going anywhere. Neither was he.
The sooner we could get over this awkwardness, the better for Kitty’s sake since she didn’t have many people she could count on. She had to be feeling awful about all of this, and whether or not Magnus was being a dick, I wanted to do what was best for the woman I—
My woman. Period.
He didn’t look back at me. “I’ll pass.”
Kitty’s mouth dropped open. “What? Where will you go, Clint?”
So I supposed I was going with the peeing thing after all, just in my own way.
