Blaze (Dark in You 2)

Knox tilted his head. “A part of you finds it amusing that I have to deal with her complaints, doesn’t it?”

Harper put a hand on her chest. “I would never be so selfish as to not share with you the wonder that is Belinda.”

Tanner snickered. “She’s right. Mates should share everything.”

Harper’s chuckle faded as she caught sight of none other than Carla approaching, arm in arm with Bray. Well, wonderful. Her inner demon tensed, baring its teeth.

“What’s she doing here?” asked Devon.

“We’ll soon find out,” said Harper. Tanner sidled up to her protectively so that she was flanked by him and Knox.

Moments later, the couple came to a stop in front of them. The guards at their back nodded respectfully at both Harper and Knox. Bray stiffly inclined his head, and Carla… well, for a while, she and Harper just stared at each other. The moment stretched until it was painfully awkward.

Finally, Harper greeted, “Carla, Bray.”

Carla glanced through the window. “The place looks good. Even better than your old studio.” Which would suggest she’d actually seen the old studio, but that could be a lie. “I’m sure it will do well.” Her eyes slid back to Harper. “I just wanted you to know that I don’t blame you for anything Crow did. He’s responsible for his own actions.” She gave a humorless chuckle. “Well, considering he’s far from sane, it might be fair to say we can’t really hold him responsible. In any case, I don’t blame you.”

And if Carla hadn’t said the latter like it made her considerate and merciful and she deserved some praise, Harper’s inner demon might not have wanted to pop her right in the face.

Face hard, Raini said, “Of course it’s not Harper’s fault. No one should ever think otherwise.”

“I hear you’re treating Crow with drugs,” Bray said to Knox, a note of anger in his voice.

“I know you probably want him dead,” said Knox. “It’s perfectly understandable.”

“Surely you want him dead after what he did to your mate.” Bray’s gaze cut to Harper. “You should want him dead too. He deserves to be punished.”

“Yes, he does,” Knox easily agreed. “But to punish him while he believes I’m evil incarnate would only feed his fantasy and make him a martyr in his own mind. Then it wouldn’t be a punishment, would it?”

Bray swallowed. “Well, I suppose that’s true.” Movement on their right seemed to catch his attention. His eyes hardened. Following his gaze, Harper saw Delia standing with a small group of women, looking pale and harried.

“She thinks Crow can be helped,” said Bray sharply.

“It’s natural that she doesn’t want to give up on him,” said Harper. “No one can judge her for that.”

“I damn well can,” snapped Bray. “She’s supposed to be Carla’s friend.”

“I’m sure Delia is, but she’s also Crow’s partner,” Harper pointed out. “I wouldn’t want to give up on Knox, and I’d imagine you wouldn’t want to give up on Carla, so how can we be mad at her for standing by him?”

Bray’s eyes narrowed. “You weren’t so understanding when it came to Roan.”

Knox stiffened. “Be very cautious about what you say next, Bray.”

Harper almost shivered at the silken menace in his voice. Her demon hissed at Bray, backing up its mate.

Carla spoke. “Roan didn’t mean the things he said. He was angry and scared for me. He’s always been an emotional boy. If he does or says anything else, please bear that in mind.”

“If he steps wrong again,” began Knox, “he’ll be punished again. Nothing will get him a free pass, Carla.” His eyes cut to Bray. “And you should seriously rethink ever using that sharp tone with my mate again.”

Bray’s Adam’s apple bobbed and he lowered his eyes submissively.

“There’s plenty of food, feel free to grab some,” said Devon. It was a subtle attempt to make them move along. It worked. They nodded and headed for the grill with their guards.

“As much as I feel bad for her after what she went through, I could happily slap her right now,” said Raini. “I can’t believe she said she doesn’t blame you for what Crow did like that made her a good and kindhearted person. I mean she genuinely seemed to be expecting gratitude from you for it.”

Devon nodded. “Not holding you responsible for Crow’s actions should be natural, not a kindness. That woman is not, and has never been, kind. She’s just…”

“She’s just Carla,” Harper finished, having long ago realized that her birth mother simply wasn’t normal. “And she’s not important right now. This day is about the studio, nothing and no one can spoil it.”

Raini gave a curt nod. “Right. It really has been a productive day. I took a lot of bookings. Some were from people who wanted us to fix badly-done tattoos they got from the other places round here. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Our local competition tried to recruit me.”

Harper gaped. “You’re kidding!”

Devon hissed. “Motherfucker. Who exactly was it?”

“A tall guy with dreadlocks and lots of piercings,” replied Raini, smiling. “He said he owns the Sleepy Hollow Parlor and he wanted me to come work for him. Can you believe that?”