Page 47 of Deadly Little Games
“Eva Nix,” he said.
I nodded. “I shortened it when I was older. I thought it had a nice ring to it.”
He smiled, and it was such a rare, warm expression from him that I smiled too.
“Thank you for telling me.”
I squeezed his arm, then stepped away from him just as Warrick sauntered into the tavern with two of his friends. He spotted me almost immediately, diverging from his two friends as they headed toward the bar.
He threw an arm around me, swarming my senses with werewolf power and the slight smell of wet dog. “How about that beer?”
“I don’t owe you any beers. The treebroke.” I looked back, giving Gabriel an apologetic smile before allowing Warrick to lead me toward the bar.
“The bet was that I could make it to the top. I did.”
I laughed. “Fine. One beer.” I really shouldn’t be spending the money since I hadn’t been taking on any new jobs, but I was also starting to think I could fire some of my private investigators. I was pretty sure at this point that if anyone was going to find my mom, it was going to be me.
“That’s my girl.”
Spotting us, Crispin hopped up from the table, meeting us at the bar. “I offered to buy the next round,” he told us with a grin. “Am I an expert at werewolf culture, or what?”
Warrick lifted a brow. “Don’t get out very often?”
Crispin shrugged. “Well I only came to this realm fifty some odd years ago, and much of that time has been consumed by my research. You see, werewolves are not native to my realm.”
“Oookay,” I cut him off. “Enough realm talk. Do you even have any money?”
He held up a credit card slipped between two of his fingers. “It pays to escort a princess.”
Warrick finally removed his arm from around me, but it was only so he could face both of us. “What’s this about a princess?”
An evil idea crossed my mind. “Anelfprincess,” I emphasized. “She’s right over there.”
“You’re a good friend, Eva.” Warrick clapped me on the arm. “Consider your debt repaid.” He turned away from the bar, heading straight for the table.
A smile slowly formed on Crispin’s lips. “My, you’re a bit wicked, aren’t you?”
I laughed. “He’s harmless, and it will be fun to see just how red Elena’s cheeks can get.”
He ordered the next round of drinks, then turned back to me. “I think you’re the perfect friend for her. She deserves to have some fun.”
I rolled my eyes toward him. “It seems likeyou’dbe the perfect friend for her. Do you ever take anything seriously?”
He shrugged. “Some things.”
“How did you know to find me at the diner?”
He seemed taken aback. “You mean you don’t know?”
I waited expectantly.
“You have the protection of our king, Eva. How would it look to have you killed out somewhere in the city?”
My jaw fell open. That meant— “You mean he had me followed?”
“Of course. As soon as our sentries noticed the fairies following you, Elena and I came right away.” He rolled his eyes. “Oh don’t look at me like that. You can’t be perfectly fine with goblins following you around, only to scoff when elves do it too.”
I shut my mouth. Everyone at the table would be wanting their drinks, but… Had the king really spared so many people to protect me, just because his daughter asked him? Or was there more to it? “Does Elena really believe her father knows nothing about the…mythical object?” Crispin’s expression sobered considerably. “I’ve been wondering about that, actually. Elena was the first to bring news of the bounty, but when she told her father, he told her the blade did not exist. It was all some sort of scam.”