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And what will Nathan do to Aden if he finds me with him?
An image of Simon’s dead body flashes in my mind.
I stop in the foyer, the double doors ahead revealing a black and rich, indigo blue interior.
“You’re safe here,” Aden says as if he can feel my panic—my need to run.
“Nowhere is safe,” I whisper because I know he won’t hear me over the pounding bass from inside.
“Here is.”
I jerk my head to face him, my heart lurching hard in my chest.
He shouldn’t have been able to hear me. Not with how quiet my voice was.Ibarely heard myself.
Maybe he’s a shifter after all.
I back up because suddenly the space between us isn’t enough space at all. This is a trap. He brought me here to keep me until Rylan gets here. And when he does…
“How did you know what I said?” I search and search his eyes, but there’s no wolf in them, no… anything that’s threatening. He’s just an attractive blond man who gazes at me with a gentle smile.
“I work in a bar,” he says as if that explains everything.
I shake my head to show I don’t understand.
His lip quirks. “Have you ever tried to have an important conversation with someone in a loud bar? Eventually, you learn to read lips if you want to understand a word anyone is telling you, like if the bar staff need change in the tills, the DJ has a problem with the sound system, or a million and one other things that can go wrong in a night.”
Relief surges through me.
He’s human. Just a regular human.
I swallow. “Must be a handy skill.”
“It can be. Now, come on. I’ll introduce you to the hounds.” Turning, he stalks into the bar before I can tell him I’m not interested in being introduced to anyone, least of all the owners of a bar.
"Are there three hounds, then? Because of the three heads?” I ask, trailing him.
He hasn’t gone far. Just a few steps inside. As I study him, I realize he wasn’t listening. I raised my voice enough that he should have heard, but something must have caught his attention.
I follow his gaze to find out what it was. My eyes skate over the black leather booths that line one wall, the tables and chairs clumped in a small seating area beside a dancefloor, mostly empty since I guess people don’t hit clubs until later than whatever the time is now. Two girls in short dresses are spending more time whispering in each other’s ears than dancing as they hold fruity-looking cocktails.
And in one corner of the bar, a topless woman in a black thong and nothing else gyrates on a low table in front of a black couch.
With her constant motion and the long blond hair she whips back and forth, it’s impossible to see who she’s dancing for. All I can make out is a guy’s hand gripping a tumbler of amber liquid. Whiskey or scotch maybe.
He’s cloaked in shadows, but that doesn’t mean I can’t feel his attention.
My breathing slows, turning breathless in a way it hasn’t before.
Who are you?
I can’t see his face, but I know he’s looking at me, which makes no sense. My gaze returns to the woman. She’s beautiful. And she’s half-naked. Why would he be looking at me instead of her?
“Hey?”
I drag my attention from the lapdance to find Aden standing empty-handed a few feet away. I don’t even realize I’ve backed away from him until his expression shifts enough that I know he didn’t miss my retreat. Just over his shoulder, I glimpse a black-shirted man behind a stainless steel and mirrored bar, tipping the bag of limes into a large metal sink.
“Yeah?” I ask, feigning a casualness I don’t feel.
