Page 63 of Fangs and Fudge

“Who was that guy?” I asked.

“His name is Vivian Di Rossi,” Cross said.

“What did he mean by, ‘You’re choosing the wrong side’?” Vena asked from the back seat.

“Who said that?” I asked, realizing I’d missed something.

Cross sighed. “He meant that I was siding with the werewolves over my own kind. Why were you there, Everly?”

I looked out the window, unwilling to admit my stupidity had almost gotten me killed again.

“It was the meetup for that text I messaged you about. The one from someone saying they would exchange information on Anchor for information on you,” Vena said. “We weren’t going to tell them anything about you, though, Cross. I promise.”

He gave a dry laugh.

“They already learned what they needed.”

I turned my head to look at him.

“What did they need?”

“Proof of how important you are to me, Everly. And now they know.”

“That’s all they wanted to know?” Vena asked. “They said it was an exchange.”

“Are you surprised?” Cross asked. “You’re dealing with vampires.”

“We didn’t know they were vampires until we got there,” I said.

“You should have told me you were going tonight,” Cross said. “At the very least, I could have scouted the location for you.” He didn’t yell or look mad. Well, maybe just a little.

He reached over, taking my hand and bringing it to his lips. “What would have happened if I was too late? Had they been after your blood and not information, I wouldn’t have gotten to you in time.”

I glanced back at Vena, who shrank in her seat.

“But you got there in time,” Vena said.

I felt the curl of Cross’ lips as he kissed the back of my hand again.

“Why did I beat the wolves there?” he asked. “I thought they were tracking you.”

“We turned off the tracking,” I mumbled, hoping he wouldn’t lecture me, too. I already knew I was going to get an earful from Shepard.

Cross’ grip tightened on my hand but not enough to hurt, just enough to know that he was upset.

“I’m sorry,” I said.

With a sigh, he gave my hand one last kiss and then released it. Pulling over to the side of the road before we reached the house, Cross looked at me. “Promise me that you’ll inform me when you do things like this. I’m not here to stop you. I’m here to protect you. I can’t do that if you don’t tell me anything.”

When I nodded, he glanced down at my cleavage. “Is the cut healed? You still have the faint scent of blood.”

I glanced down and shifted my girls to get a better view. “Looks okay. Just a spot on my bra.”

“Wasted,” he muttered and then opened the car door. “Don’t go anywhere alone. Stay with me or the pack. Never alone. Understand?”

I nodded again.

Cross leaned over, his hand wrapping around the back of my neck as he pulled me into a kiss that had Vena scolding. I only heard a little of it as Cross did his best to make me forget about the dead bodies in the club.

---