"He did what?" Kingston asked, head whipping back, eyes narrowed. And, somehow, I knew that Rush was going to be getting a big-brother-little-brother talking to in his near future. Not that it would do him any good. If a man his age didn't know not to chase people with an eight-legged incarnation of Lucifer, well, then he was never going to learn.
"Anyway, I waited until they ducked in to go grab coffee, and rushed on down here to demand some answers myself. Oh, speak of the devils," she said as the beep started again, but this time was hastily shut back off.
"Brought everyone coffee," Rush's voice called.
"What, did you fucking sprint here?" Nixon asked, shaking his head at his sister as he pulled a drink for her out of the cardboard carrying tray. A coffee he had gotten for her because he knew there was no way she wasn't going to charge into the office and demand explanations.
"Thank you. Now, how about you guys hang here with Savvy," she suggested, moving out of the office with King at her heel, me following slowly after, my legs feeling more weighted than usual. Like if we left his office, everything that had happened within it was going to disappear. "King and I will take the beasts for a nice long walk while we chat."
"Better you than me," Nixon mumbled as he handed his brother his coffee before moving toward me, holding out mine.
"You alright?" he asked, brows drawing low. "You look flushed," he added. And, well, if Nixon was showing that kind of concern, I must have looked positively feverish.
Kingston turned back, but Scotti was already pressing a leash into his hand as she guided him toward the door with her.
"I hope you like company," Rush declared, dropping down on the sofa in the sitting area. "You're probably going to be seeing every Mallick clan member for now until this whole thing gets resolved."
I loved the Mallicks.
But somehow, the idea of more people barging in filled me with dread.
Partly because I felt I was disrupting enough lives as it was.
But also because it might mean that Kingston and I, well, we would never have the time to explore what we had just started.
My eyes landed on the door, inwardly wondering how long this walk and chat could be, if things would be weird when he came back. If he would want to talk about it. Or pretend it never happened.
Both ideas somehow managed to fill me with a bit of anxiety.
"Relax," Nixon said, drawing my attention back to him, finding him watching me with those eagle eyes of his. "He'll be back to snatch you up in a minute. Need some ice to sit on until then?" he asked, voice low down by my ear so that not even Rush could overhear. I could feel my eyes widen, my cheeks heat further. "Christ, you have the worst poker face in the world," he declared, moving away from me with a lingering chuckle at my expense.
My gaze shifted to Rush.
Who was either blithely unaware. Or simply too considerate to mention it. And, well, let's face it. My money was on the former.
My eyes went to the door again, wondering if Scotti knew, if it would be a topic of conversation at Sunday dinner.
If I could even go to Sunday dinner while I was in hiding, that is.
But if I couldn't go, then neither could one of the Rivers who would need to sit around and babysit me.
A deep sigh rushed out of me as I raised my coffee to take a sip.
My life had been so normal just a few days ago. Stressful in its own way. But painfully average.
And now everything about it was on its head. The animals weren't getting the attention they needed. My job security went from moderate to low. Oh, and, yeah, some scary guys wanted to use me to get back at my boss I had seen them beating the heck out of.
And yet...
And yet.
All I could seem to think about was when Kingston was going to come through that door again.FIVEKingston"Stop," I demanded, pausing while Padfoot took a long sniff of a lamppost.
"Stop what? I'm not doing anything," Scotti declared, voice hitched up an octave like it always did even when she was young when accused of something she was totally guilty of, but didn't want to admit to.
"You're staring at me."
"Arrogant, much?" she asked, her whole body jolting when Hannibal sprang into a trot. No one would ever accuse him of being a well-mannered dog. Which was likely what Peyton loved most about him.
"Switch," I offered, pressing Paddy's leash into her hand as I reached for Hannibal's lead, giving him a little tug to get him back to my side. "Say it," I told her, wanting to get it over with. I'd already gotten it from Nixon and Rush. I was sure to get it from Atlas when he resurfaced. And then all of the Mallicks once this trickled back. Which I had no doubt that it would even if I asked Scotti to keep it between us. Things weren't like they had once been, she had mixed loyalties now. To us, to the family we had always been, but also to her husband Mark, and his family, the Mallicks. She wouldn't keep this from him. And he wouldn't keep it from them.