Page 39 of Wicked Little Tricks
The waitress reached us, and he ordered black coffee, no creamor sugar. Figured.
Once the waitress walked away, I shook my head. “Not very much. She just told me to stay away from the angelics.” I eyed him suspiciously. “Angelics who never cared about me until I metyou.”
He shrugged, leaning back against the vinyl cushion of the booth. “I have nothing to do with their interest in you.”
“Maybe not, but you do know something about it.”
He shrugged again. “Where did you stay while you were in the Bogs?”
That was right, as soon as I was out of sight of the gates, he would’ve had no idea what I was doing. “I slept on a hill with Ringo. Thanks a lot for your help last night, by the way.”
He lifted those dark eyes to my face. “I did not know what happened until after you were in the Bogs.”
I sincerely doubted it with the way he could easily pop up. He wouldn’t have just trusted me to do his bidding blindly. “Well either way, I did your job. Pay me and get out.”
We fell silent as the waitress returned with his coffee. He picked up the mug, cradling it in his hands. “But you didn’t learn anything.”
“Yeah, and I almost got killed for my efforts. You may have saved my life once, but endangering it repeatedly kind of cancels it out.”
He had been about to take a sip of his coffee, but he lowered it from his lips instead. “You cannot escape our bargain so easily.”
I waved him off. “Yeah, yeah. I guess I’ll see you next time you want to get me killed.”
He finally sipped his coffee, drawing out the moment. Steam curled around his face, then he lowered the mug. “I have need of you now.”
My brows knit together. I looked down at my clothing. “It’s going to have to wait until I’ve had a shower and a nap. And you still have to pay me for last night. A deal is a deal.”
He smiled. “Then it’s a deal. And you have plenty of time to ready yourself. We won’t go out until nightfall.”
I studied him, curious. The money was nice, but I needed to figure out what in the hells was going on. That, far more than the money, convinced me to cooperate with him. I would do whatever this next job was, then go from there.
I lifted a finger to summon the waitress. “Fine, but you’re also buying dessert.”
16
“Doyou really need to stay here while I shower?”
Sebastian leaned against the wall near the bathroom, looking bored. “Are you not worried for your life anymore?” He tilted his head. “Youdoforget quickly.”
“It’s daylight. The vampires aren’t coming for me.”
One corner of his mouth curled. “And what about the angelics?”
I crossed my arms, mirroring his stance. “Yeah, what about them?” I gave him a pointed look.
He lifted one hand, examining his nail beds.
“Fine,” I huffed.
At least I was getting a shower. The bath last night had been nice, but I needed proper hair products and a blowdryer.
Wherever Sebastian wanted to take me, we weren’t going until nightfall. Which was a whole other worry. Maybe he was just handing me over to the vampires.
I looked at Ringo perched on the arm of the sofa. “Keep an eye on him.”
Instead of cowering, Ringo sat up a little straighter and gave me a tiny, curt nod.
I couldn’t help my grin as I went into the bathroom and slammed the door behind me. But as soon as I was in, I realized I had forgotten to grab clean clothing, and I sure wasn’t going back out there now. I peeled off my stained camisole and black jeans, leaving them in a heap on the bathroom floor, then started the water.