Chapter 21 #2
My eyes darted between them. Bas? Well, damn. People did call him by that nickname. I liked the sound of it.
Bastian let out a dismissive snort. “I stopped drinking that shit centuries ago, Eaden, and you know it.” Eaden’s eyes darted between us, curious. Bastian shrugged. “She knows what I am,” he added. His words were lazy, unconcerned.
“Huh. Guess that explains why you were asking about Micky and some of the shit that’s been going down?” Eaden clarified.
“Micky?” I perked up. “What happened to her? You said you weren’t sure if she was okay. Does it have something to do with the weird sleeping coma thing?”
Eaden scrubbed a hand over his face, then turned to the cabinet and poured three drinks. He brought them over.
I left mine on the table. “Probably a good idea,” Bastian said, noticing my intention to ignore it.
“I don’t want to barf if we have to teleport back,” I snapped.
“So… This is your personal business, then?“ Eaden lifted his brows. Though his eyes softened the longer they rested on me, releasing some of the wariness brought on by Bastian’s presence.
“Long story,” I said.
“Not very long,” Bastian amended, staring at Eaden. “She was attacked outside your club in the alley the other night.”
Eaden winced. “Yes. I saw the footage on the cameras after she disappeared. Just didn’t realize it was you who’d picked her up on that death trap.
Didn’t put the pieces together ‘till just now. Should have known.” He turned to me.
“Rose, what the fuck were you thinking going out there in the middle of—?”
“Don’t you dare,” Bastian warned, his voice a low growl as he leaned forward.
Eaden flinched. He hesitated. “She’s my employee and I—”
“Don’t say another word about it,” Bastian warned again, a lingering threat in his words.
Eaden’s jaw tightened, but he nodded. I got the impression that no matter how powerful a shifter, he wouldn’t dare cross Bastian. That created so, so many questions. I glanced between them. “How the hell do you two know each other?”
“Long fucking story, sugar. Let’s discuss what we came to discuss.”
I sighed. “Fine. Eaden, you said to come in and discuss Micky with you in person.”
“Hmm…” Eaden hesitated, then looked at Bastian.
“I take it you’re looking into this officially?
” Bastian nodded. “Right. Well then, I probably don’t have much of a choice.
A few of my shifters dropped into wakeless sleep earlier this week.
And it’s been happening since. One or two here and there.
It’s like they’re in some kind of coma—I like that word for it, Rose.
Hadn’t thought of it that way. Micky is one of them. ”
“That’s why she didn’t show up to her shift the other night,” I mused, a sick realization sinking in.
“My people didn’t find her until yesterday morning. Thought she was passed out at home.” Eaden scrubbed a hand over his face. Bastian sighed, leaning back. He kept ahold of my hand. “You going to tell me what fuck is going on?”
“Don’t know much,” Bastian said. “If Aramis was the only one having issues, I’d keep it quiet. But since you’re having issues too—”
“Aramis is having issues?”
“He’s the one who pulled me in.”
“Fuck—should have known.” Eaden shook his head. He’d relaxed a little, but not completely. I suspected it had something to do with having another powerful supernatural male in his space. “If one of our SC reps is involved, then it’s more serious than I thought.”
“Believe me, it’s worse.” Bastian stretched out his other arm, resting it along the sofa. He looked perfectly at ease, unlike the shifter. “Several of Aramis’s sleepers were seen at the gala last night, their faces are the ones in the sketches.”
Eaden swore. “You’re sure?”
“You asking if I’m mistaken?”
Eaden huffed and shook his head. He let out a long, defeated exhale. “I need to make a few calls, make sure I got our people at a secure location.”
“Won’t matter. Aramis’s people are.”
“Then how’d they get out?”
“They didn’t,” I said, jumping in. “They were in two places at once. Somehow.”
“How is that possible?” Eaden frowned, glancing between us and his phone, as he began sending off a series of quick texts.
“That’s what we’re trying to figure out,” I added. Bastian glanced at me, lifting an eyebrow. At the we part. Probably reminding me that this was his case, not mine. I was just along to bounce ideas off of.
“You might want to talk with Caden about it,” Bastian advised.
“Yes, just set up a meeting with him.” Eaden sent off another text.
“Who is Caden?” I asked, letting my curiosity get the better of me.
“Shifter SC rep,” Bastian said at the same time Eaden said, “My older brother.”
“Huh.” I tangled my fingers in a pink curl, wrapping it around my pointer finger. “Didn’t realize you had a brother, Eaden.”
“Got two. I’m the middle child.”
“And they’re both wolf shifters?”
“About that,” Eaden said, setting his phone on his thigh, crossing his arms and leaning back to regard me. “Sounds like you’ve got some explaining to do.”
“About what?” I lifted my chin.
“About the fact that you are human, but you clearly know more than you should. How long have you known? Since you started working for me? And how did you find out? Did one of my people run their mouth? They know better.”
Bastian released a long, audible sigh. I threw him a searing glare to shut the fuck up, turning to Eaden. “I’ve known all along. And I found out because I can see through glamor—”
“Humans don’t have such an ability.”
Bastian tensed. I glanced at him in warning before saying, “Trade secret.” Then I grinned.
“Fine. Whatever. Keep your secrets.” Eaden’s gaze darted between us. “Didn’t realize you and the fae enforcer were a thing. How long have you two—?”
“We’re not,” we said at the same time, then glanced at each other before looking away, like freaking teenagers.
Heat flooded my cheeks. The denial stung more than it should have, and I couldn’t ignore the hot disappointment that dripped into my stomach.
Saying it didn’t sound so bad, but coming from Bastian’s mouth?
That was a denial I didn’t want to hear.
I had no right to be upset. He didn’t do relationships, especially not with humans.
He’d made that clear. Me? I hadn’t been in one since Luke, and since I didn’t do casual sex, we weren’t exactly compatible.
Despite that, I found myself desperate to make an exception.
When I looked at Bastian, I wanted him in whatever way I could get him, and then I wanted him ten times more than that, a thousand times more than that.
It scared the living daylights out of me.
But it was also thrilling and unexpected in a way that made me feel like I was waking up after a long slumber.
Like I was seeing my life clearly for the first time in two years.
I swallowed, clearing my throat.
“I think that’s all we needed,” Bastian said, standing and pulling me to my feet.
“So, just to be clear,” Eaden said, looking at me, “I’ll be filling your shifts for the next several days? So that you can deal with…?” He waved a hand.
“Yes, please. I can’t work right now.”
“Did you not hear about her apartment?” Bastian asked, voice pitching low. As if that was explanation enough.
“I did. If there’s anything I can do—”
“Don’t worry about it,” Bastian said, cutting him off. “I already got her taken care of. She’ll let you know when she’s ready to come back.”
I bit my tongue, letting them hash it out. Better to pick my battles.
Eaden swallowed, then took a step back, probably to avoid the aggression pouring off Bastian. “Of course, Bas. Not a problem.” Eaden and Bastian held each other’s gazes for a long moment. Then they shook hands as we said our goodbyes.
As I walked out, Eaden looked at me, a warning in his expression. “Be careful, Rose.”
I nodded, then followed Bastian out of the room. As we made our way down the hall, fingers still twined, I couldn’t decide what Eaden’s warning meant. Was he warning me about the stuff we’d gotten tangled up in? Or was he warning me away from Bastian? Either way, it felt ominous.