Page 15 of Waltzing With Witches

“My first duty is to Ever’s safety, above anything else.” He spins me to face him, his expression guarded. It’s like he’s pulled a carefully curated mask down over his face. I can’t read what I see there. He’s as neutral as ever.

“Noted,” I deadpan, calling on Wren’s composure because I really, really want to shout at him to be real with me for once. To tell me why he’s always so cold. The dominant side of my personality rears its ugly head and takes over. Twisting my hand out of his grasp, I yank it to my side and give him a withering look.

His now-empty hand falls to his side. He curls and straightens the fingers as if working out a kink. Standing in this room surrounded by blinking lights and constant chimes, he looks like an internet hacker about to take down the whole web. Big shoulders roll as if he’s working out a kink, his eyes narrowing as tapered nostrils flare.

Is he…?

I throw a hand up, palm facing him. “Dude. Tell me you’re not fucking smelling me right now.”

His pale lips curl into a devious smile that transforms his face. He’s always been handsome, but that smile combined with the haughty arch of both eyebrows? That’s goddamn devastating.

“Don’t worry, Morgan,” he croons. “I won’t bite.”

“Oh, you’d better not,” I bark back. “I have two very capable monster brothers-in-law. Shepherd would pop your head like a grape.”

The Keeper’s smile grows impossibly large, revealing every single shiny white tooth. He looks genuinely joyous at the prospect of getting massacred by Thea’s gargoyle mate. “You think Shepherd could take me in a fight?”

I nod. I’ve got loyalty for days. “Damn straight. Ohken too. He’s big as fuck.”

The Keeper moves fast, too fast for me to even follow, crossing the room and crowding into my space. I back up until I hit the wall. He cocks his head to the side, red eyes trailing down my face to my mouth. His lips are so close to mine, long fangs indenting his skin. How can he even close his mouth with those things?

I gulp but lift my chin. “Get out of my face, Keeper,” I snarl.

He chuckles, a low, heady sound that sends an unfortunate zing straight to my clit. “There’s a reason I don’t fight, Morgan. Want to know what it is?”

“Pfft.” I cross my arms, but he doesn’t move.

He shifts closer, warm breath tickling my mouth. “I don’t fight because it would be a massacre, Morgan. I don’t fight because it wouldn’t even be fair.”

“Is that right?” I croon back. “Big ole Keeper can’t help kicking everybody’s ass? Gosh, it must be so hard to keep that badassness locked up all the time.”

He laughs again. “You have no idea what I’m capable of.”

A sudden sense of moroseness steals over me, chilling my skin and setting my teeth to chattering. “I might, if you told me,” I whisper.

Why the everloving fuck did I say that? It sounds like I care. And I don’t; I can’t. He’s been too callous. And it doesn’t matter if he’s been nice once or twice. It doesn’t make up for poor behavior otherwise.

His smirk falls, and he takes a step back, the mask slipping back over his features, erasing the playfulness that was there a moment ago.

A small chime sounds, and he turns his head to look in the direction of it. I get the perfect view of his elegant long nose and the jagged scar that pulls his upper lip.

“Someone’s here,” he says simply. “I assume Lou, based on your heads-up. You’re welcome anywhere in the castle.”

“Right.” I edge toward the door. “Cool. I’ll just be going, then.”

He says nothing as he watches me. The moment I’m outside the command center, I break into a run toward the front door.

I need backup, and I need it stat.

CHAPTER SIX

MORGAN

The double front doors slam open, and Lou rushes through them with a furious look on her face. She runs to me and throws both arms around my neck, yanking me into a thoroughly aggressive hug.

“Morgan Anne, what in the hells is going on? The Annabelle kicked you out? We had words, but she wouldn’t answer me. Tell me everything!”

Lou lets go of my neck and takes a step back, crossing both thin arms as she starts to tap her foot. “I am hopping mad!” she shouts, glancing behind me. “Can he hear me, wherever he is? I hope he plans to do something about this.”

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