Sunglasses at Night (Claws Clause 3)

He loved how she used humor to cut through tension, a quick wit and a smart mouth to smooth over any awkward moments. But she could also be serious, too, and when her brow furrowed, he knew there was more going on in that pretty head of hers than what she’d ever admit to.

“Well?”

“Well, what?”

“I’m not going to push you to tell me how you feel if you don’t want to,” he said first, “but you said you went out there to think. Did you… did you get to do that?”

One swallow. That’s all it took. One swallow, the lump running down the throat stil

l baring his last bite mark, and he knew. She busied herself with grabbing a piece of gum from the never-ending supply in her jeans pocket. Tossing the wrapper on the floor, he ignored it as he watched her molars go to town.

She was going to lie to him, wasn’t she?

He spoke up again before she could. “If you can’t answer me honestly, that’s okay. I’d rather you tell me to shut the fuck up than lie to me, Tab. Okay?”

“There was a slayer outside,” she blurted out.

Adam blinked.

Well, that wasn’t what he thought she was going to say.

“Are you kidding me?”

Tabby shook her head, her hair swaying and settling on her shoulders with the quick motion. “I wish I was. I know the guy. I couldn’t let him inside… obviously… but that’s what took me so long to come back. He had a message for me.” She looked up at him helplessly. “For us, really.”

Adam felt the pit in his stomach only grow larger. “What was it?”

When Tabby started to tell him how a mysterious female—who she suspected to be a Nightwalker rather than a witch—had contacted the Society with word that she had an elixir for Tabitha Winslow, Adam felt his jaw tighten. It only got worse as she explained that she gave a fake name to Holly but, somehow, her true identity got out—and now the Society knew about it.

At first, Adam didn’t know how to react. While he was thrilled to hear that he had another chance to get a bottle of the life-altering elixir, he hated hearing that his slayer was compromised.

Even worse, it bothered him that the female hadn’t reached out to Tabby to set up the meet, but straight to the Society. It was like they wanted her to be caught, though why they would go to the trouble of that only to invite her along to the meeting in a week made no sense to him.

Unless—

“It’s a trap,” he said gruffly.

Tabby blew a bubble with her gum before popping it with the edge of her teeth.

“Oh, yeah,” she agreed, humor seeping back into her tone. “It’s most definitely a trap.”

He raised his eyebrows. She doubted it had anything to do with the impressive bubble. “You knew that?”

Tabby reached up, rubbing him on the shoulder, snapping her gum while she grinned up at him. “You’re so cute. Of course I knew that. A mysterious chick just so happens to come up with a vial of elixir right after it gets out that a slayer’s looking for one? I don’t like that she tagged the Society, but even that makes sense if she wants to make sure we both show up. I’m just not sure if the trap’s being set for you or me. Could be both. A two-fer, maybe?”

Adam’s answer—a softly muttered, “Woodbridge again? Why Woodbridge?”—didn’t quite answer her question, but it told Tabby that he was probably thinking along the same lines as she was even so.

“I’m lucky that it hasn’t gotten to Boone yet,” she told him, and she couldn’t have been more honest when she admitted that. “Though it might be an idea to fill him in. He can help us get the elixir—”

“No.”

“Adam?”

“It’s okay. I know it’s a trap. You know it’s a trap. Doesn’t mean we both have to fall for it. Just me. I’m gonna go, but I’m going alone.”

He had to be kidding.

“Excuse me?”