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Over the course of our training, I’d gathered Sloan was more than just a gentle companion. At first, I was fooled. He totally came across as a sweet little kitty-cat. But really, the dude was all tiger.
There was a fire in the man that didn’t immediately ignite—not unless it was in the presence of the right person—and I’d seen the flash of a beastly Hunter far too many times during our training sessions to be unsure about it now. The dude was hiding a seriously feisty side, and though considerate and genuine, it was easy to see he had more to say than just some generic compliment. It may have taken a minute at first to adjust to what it meant for Sloan to be all predator, but after considering his job and level within the Organization, it made more sense for him to be more tiger than kitty-cat anyway.
So, in that moment, I knew he was holding back his fire.
“You really are something,” the Hunter mused softly, leaning back. “I picked up on the thing between you and Phillip, and I expect it’s still fairly unresolved whatever you two argued about?”
Called it.
Really, I shouldn’t be surprised Sloan figured it out. The dude was perceptive as fuck, and it was really only a matter of time before he connected the dots. Still, it hit me with the force of intense shame and shock, so it took a few seconds to get my thoughts together. “I guess there’s no point to me saying otherwise, huh?”
Sloan’s look was apologetic. “No, but it’s understandable if you don’t feel comfortable talking about it.”
“It’s not really that,” I started, biting my lower lip. “I’m just not sure what I can really say about it. I don’t even know where to start. It started complicated and all over the place, and now it’s all fucked up.”
Sloan hummed low in his throat and eyed the door. “If it helps, I doubt you’re the only one who feels that way.”
Sighing, I moistened my lips and finally relaxed. “The jerk has a funny way of showing it.”
The gorgeous Brit next to me chuckled lightly to himself. “He’s got his reasons. We all do.” Clearing his throat, Sloan tossed me a serious glance. “I didn’t come in here to preach to you. Doubt you’d listen if I did, anyway.”
“Hey—”
“You’re a clever girl. I’m not going to say anything you haven’t already thought about yourself. But maybe I could offer a little insight to who Phillip really is. If you’d let me.”
It felt a little wrong to hear about Phillip from Sloan. Unfortunately, I hadn’t gotten much out of the Austrian myself. And with Eros’s arrival imminent, I couldn’t help but want to know everything that could give me the edge in an argument with the other Hunter.
I stole a glance at Sloan. “Spill.”
With another soft smile, the Brit nodded. “I imagine you argued about the future of your relationship.”
“If you could call it that,” I remarked bitterly. “Honestly, I haven’t a clue what Phillip wants. He said he was starting to fall for me, but then he immediately followed it up with ‘But it’s a bad idea’ and I...I just saw red,” I finished with a little huff. “Who even says that? What the fuck does that even mean?”
Scratching along his jaw, Sloan took a minute to ponder what I divulged to him. “Phillip said he was falling for you?”
My eyes dropped to the floor, and it was suddenly difficult to speak. “He did.”
Sloan appeared the most taken aback by that notion. I stared at him, hoping for some insight, but the beautiful bastard didn’t speak for several minutes. Instead, Sloan stared at the door as if Phillip would materialize inside it at any moment. We both knew he wouldn’t. The plan was to stay as far from him as possible because Eros would expect I’d be with Phillip and not Sloan. Any detected barrier failure would give us the necessary time to fly into action, so it was just a matter of waiting. Still, neither of us stopped looking at the door.
“Thatispretty complicated,” he agreed after the uncomfortable pause. “And what do you want?”
Not expecting to be asked, I froze. “Me?”
“Yes, you. What do you want from him?”
Sloan’s look wasn’t accusatory. It came across more as curiosity, and I couldn’t be angry about it the way I wanted to be. It was a fair question.
And for a long pause, I struggled to form an answer to such a simple, straight-forward inquiry. “I...I don’t know,” I finally managed, albeit slowly. “I guess I’d like him to give everything a real chance instead of this hazy in between.”
Sloan nodded and grazed his fingers across my cheek, catching me totally off guard. “Have you said as much?”
“I think I might have?” I answered to his eternal amusement.
“And how did he react?”
I offered him a sardonic stare. “Like I’m a kid who doesn’t know what I want.”
“Ah, that does sound like him,” Sloan said with a laugh. “Does he often make you feel like a child?”
