Chapter 4
Chapter Four
RAJ
I blink at Bryn, not sure how to respond to his clear lack of remorse. If anything, there’s a hint of pride in the way he holds himself.
Part of me wants to ask him how he managed it—fae are incredibly resilient and hard to injure—but I can’t respond as Raj, former SAS soldier. I have to react as Dhiren, my affable, easy-going counterpart.
‘What happened?’ I ask, careful not to show any judgement.
‘It’s not important.’ He reaches for his beer, gulping the rest of it before standing and rinsing the bottle out in my sink.
The dismissal is intriguing, considering he didn’t hesitate to tell me what he’d done, but it’s a mystery for another day.
Right now I’m more interested in the fact that Bryn spent his lunch break in the canteen sitting with the wolf shifters who’ve been released from Wargate in the last few months, so he might have known Valerie.
Not that I can ask him directly, of course. Undercover work is about the long game.
I get up and cross to the kitchen, touching his bicep lightly to get his attention. ‘Sorry, I’m sure you don’t want to talk about that.’
His lips tilt into a smirk. ‘You’re right; I’d much rather talk about you. Get to know you.’
Oh, he’s made that obvious. The scent of arousal and the prominent bulge in his jeans only lessened once we started talking about the fae. That and the way he keeps looking me over leaves no doubt that he didn’t knock on my door to get to know me as a friend.
He’s out of luck, though. He might be insanely hot with those cheekbones sharp enough to cut glass, tattoo sleeves I want to explore with my tongue, and confidence for days, but I never get involved with someone while I’m working undercover pretending to be someone I’m not.
That rule has kept things simple for years, and I’m not about to break it now.
Not to mention, I’m not sure he’d be a good candidate for my first time with a man. I’m looking for forever love, not a wild night between the sheets. Or bent over the table. Or up against the wall.
Fine, maybe that wouldn’t be the worst idea ever, but it can’t happen.
‘Not much to tell,’ I sign slowly. My BSL is so rusty it’s embarrassing, but I will absolutely be brushing up on it.
‘Moved up here from London for this girl I was seeing. Four months in, she dumps me. But I can’t move out of this place until the summer, and when I got made redundant, I took the first job I could get. ’
I have to fingerspell ‘redundant,’ but he doesn’t seem to mind. My chest is oddly tight as I tell him the backstory Kit and I came up with for Dhiren this time.
My tiger nudges me to get closer, ready to shift and lick Bryn all over, because my tiger is the most instinctive part of me and doesn’t care about things like criminal records or Bryn not knowing my real name.
Bryn leans against the kitchen counter. ‘So are you straight? Or do I have a chance with you?’
His directness surprises me enough that I tell him the truth before I can think through the best reply for Dhiren.
‘I don’t date people I work with,’ I sign emphatically.
His brow furrows for a moment before his expression smooths out, a gleam appearing in his eyes. ‘But you do date men.’
‘You’d be the first.’ My cheeks heat and my eyes widen. Good grief, I did not just tell him that. I glance at my glass of wine, but nope, I’ve barely touched it. Can’t blame it on alcohol. ‘Oh, look at the time. It’s late.’
A smirk plays on his lips as he straightens. ‘I’m going to give you my number. If you change your mind and decide to let me take you on a date, you know where to find me.’
When he reaches for my hip I suck in a sharp breath, inadvertently inhaling his campfire scent, and let him slide my phone out of my pocket.
I can’t refuse anything that would help the investigation, and it’s the phone I have specifically for Dhiren so he won’t find anything incriminating on there if he decides to dig around.
He holds it up to my face to unlock it, and when he hands it back it’s open at a new contact with his number entered and the name set as Sexy Neighbour. I snort, then find myself sending him a message so he has my number as well.
In case us chatting helps the investigation. No other reason.
He heads down the hall so I follow at a distance, and once he’s shoved his trainers on his feet, he leaves with nothing more than a wink and a wave goodbye.
I lock the door behind him and will my heart to calm down.
Sexy Neighbour
Morning, gorgeous. Want a lift to work?
Thanks, but I need my car after work.
Tomorrow, then? Dragon rides are a much more fun way to travel.
Um… I didn’t realise that’s what you meant.
So, what do you say? Arrive in style?
Tempting, but it’ll take more than one conversation before I ride you.
Challenge accepted.
Pretend I didn’t say that!
Too late…
Sexy Neighbour
Why was that leopard shifter touching you so much today?
Careful, your jealousy is showing.
I don’t care. I thought you didn’t date people you work with.
I don’t. Felicia’s just tactile.
With you.
With everyone, especially her girlfriend.
She’s allowed to live.
Sexy Neighbour
Do you identify as bi or straight?
Bi, why?
Wondering if I should be more subtle with the flirty looks at work. Are you out?
You wouldn’t know subtle if it smacked you in the face. And yes, I’m out, but people who don’t know me well assume I’m straight because I recently dated a woman.
I’ll ramp up the flirting, then. Can’t have anyone else getting any ideas about having a chance with you.
No one else is interested, and you shouldn’t be either. I don’t date people I work with, remember?
A five-month-long seduction is fine by me.
Why do you take every message as encouragement?
Why wouldn’t I? I saw you checking me out this morning.
Shit.
Why does your wolf friend keep glaring at me?
Sexy Neighbour
Harley? He doesn’t like cat shifters. It’s a thing in Birchester. The cats and wolves hate each other.
I’ve noticed. Weird AF.
But why me, specifically? He doesn’t glare at Felicia or the others.
Because he knows I have a giant crush on you.
He’s into you?
That’s hilarious. Definitely not.
We tried hooking up once but it was like kissing my brother. Bleugh.
He was my cellmate. I think he’s feeling protective.
Okay, that’s cute.
Don’t tell Harley you think he’s acting cute. He’ll gut you like a fish, and I like all your body parts exactly the way they are.
You say the sweetest things.
Do you know what’s up with all the overtime? They didn’t mention it when I started.
Sexy Neighbour
Not sure. Rush orders, maybe? H says they’ve not done it before that he knows of.
Are rush orders for books and clothes even a thing at this time of year?
Oh, my sweet treasure. You don’t think that’s actually what’s in the boxes, do you?
***
I’m not being funny, but you don’t put magical containment fields on boxes of clothes.
What’s in them, then?
Idk. I asked H in my first week. He’s got no clue either.
Could you please ask Milo to turn his music down? I couldn’t hear myself think when I came home.
Sexy Neighbour
That’s me, treasure. I play bass guitar by feeling the vibrations. The higher the volume, the more I can feel.
As cool as that is, the neighbours hate you.
You think I care about random humans?
You care about what I think though, right?
Playing on my crush—so devious. But it won’t work, treasure. Your ward blocks all the vibrations from my music.
…
How do you know that?
I can see magic.
WTF?! Dragons can see magic?!
No, just me.
‘Remember to practice the new signs before Tuesday.’ Olivia, my BSL teacher, dismisses the class, already packing up her laptop.
I’ve been taking in-person classes twice a week since I met Bryn.
With extensive online tutoring as well, I’m definitely improving.
Unfortunately Olivia and the rest of the class attendees are human, so it’s been difficult to refresh my knowledge of signs specific to the supernatural community.
Given that Bryn and I aren’t allowed to communicate at work and have been mostly messaging outside of it, I’ve not yet asked him if he’s willing to help me with those.
Everyone hurries to their cars, and I don’t blame them. Snow is coming down thickly, blanketing the poorly lit car park of the small community centre in a layer of white.
I turn my engine on and clear my car windows slowly, making sure Olivia is safe as she locks up and that everyone gets away without any problems. Once the humans are out of the car park I get going as well, wondering if maybe I should make more of an effort to get to know the other class participants.
After so many years in the armed forces, I’m used to interacting with humans and keeping necessary secrets, but everyone in the class, while friendly enough, is always in a rush to leave afterwards.
Truthfully, as I drive home on almost deserted roads, I know the ache inside is because I miss my pack. I’ve done long undercover operations before, of course, but I’m finding it a lot harder to be apart from them this time.
Which is irritating. Tiger shifters are mostly solitary. I shouldn’t need my packmates as much as I do.
By the time I park outside my building I’m ready to reheat dinner, pour a glass of wine, and collapse in front of the TV. Except instead of entering a warm flat, the chill seeping into every nook and cranny of Birchester has pervaded my home as well. Bugger.
I check the boiler, which is stone cold with no lights on.
I try the button to reignite the pilot light, but nothing happens.
Turning it off and on again, then retrying to ignite the pilot light doesn’t work either.
The agency I rent through won’t be open until morning, but I email them anyway and mark it as urgent.