Page 53 of Marked By Night

I shrug. “Apparently, the dog is mine.”

He looks it over with scrutiny before passing it to Dante, who also searches for more answers that don’t appear.

“What does it mean?”

“My neighbor, the one I found tied to a chair in my room, told me she would send for me when it was safe. I’m assuming this is her way of sending for me, and I have to admit I kind of like it. Other than the close call, of course.”

“Only you.” Elian’s dark voice skates over my skin like a violent caress. “We’re not taking in a mutt. End of story.”

I count to five in my head, so I don’t say something I regret. “Fuck you, Elian.” So much for that. “He’s mine now and he’s coming with whether you like it or not.”

“We don’t have time for this,” Elian says impatiently, his hard emerald eyes snagging on mine and staying there. His nostrils flare when my eyes don’t leave his, but I’m not about to let him win a silent power grab. Or anything for that matter. Especially not my heart. Nope. Off-limits to him.

Kaos steps between us, cutting off our battle of wills. “This is something Sadie cares about, Elian.” Ever the placating one it seems. “Not to mention there’s a note stating the dog belongs to her.”

My eyes bounce between the two as they argue back and forth, completely ignoring my presence. Screw it. I’m not standing around while they fight like I’m not here. I ignore the rest of their conversation and head back to the car to rummage around. Honestly, I don’t even think they realize I left, judging by their harsh tones and all the chest-puffing going on.

After digging around in my backpack, I find the blanket stashed for emergencies. Now, I just need to convince Kaos to let me transport the pup in his vehicle that probably costs more than every single thing I’ve ever owned in my entire life combined. No pressure.

Waltzing back over to them, I clear my throat, interrupting their argument. Kaos’s eyes swing to mine. I gesture toward the dog and the blanket in my arms. Kaos quirks an eyebrow with a smirk. He totally knows what I’m going to ask, but he wants to watch me squirm. Fucker. “Can he... rideinthemaseratiwithus?” I say hastily and it comes out sounding more like one word.

“Please?” I add for good measure when he doesn’t initially speak. It hurts my pride a little to beg, but I felt an instant connection with the dog, and I’m not letting him slip through my fingers. I’m not completely heartless.

His eyes soften, and he sighs, running a hand through his hair. “Yeah. Go put the blanket across the back and I’ll help him get inside.”

I throw my arms around his neck and kiss him, showing him my gratitude with my mouth instead of with words. His lips meld against mine like we were made for each other. Maybe we were. I haven’t made up my mind about this whole ‘fated mate’ thing yet. Perhaps when I have a moment to myself to think through everything that’s been thrown my way, I’ll be able to do so.

Dante coughs behind us, breaking the moment. Kaos smiles against my lips, lingering for a moment longer, then he says, “We can rescue animals all the time if this is the reaction I get.”

“I’m holding you to that,” I respond cryptically, making his brow dip in confusion. Boy, did he just open a can of worms and he doesn’t even know it. Never tell a woman who loves animals she can rescue them. She’ll be dragging in strays all the time. Although, that’s how I like most things. A little scruffy, but still beautiful. “By the way, I want a raincheck on earlier,” I call over my shoulder as I walk away.

He chuckles. “You’ve got a deal, my Little Flame.”

And he knows exactly what I’m referring to.

23

Sadie

Somehow, we manage to maneuver the Golden Retriever into the tiny backseat of the crazy expensive Maserati, but the pup is so big his head almost touches the roof. It reminds me of a show I used to watch as a kid,Clifford the Big Red Dog. Fitting too, considering the reddish brown coloring of the pup.

“Ugh, guess I’m still on asshole duty?” Ash whines when we’re getting ready to load up and leave. I nod my head vigorously making her roll her eyes and exaggeratedly hop back into the Jeep with Dante and Asshole—I mean Elian.

As Kaos is shutting his door, Elian swerves around the Maserati. The only warning we get is the rumble of the engine as it passes us nearly swiping the door off.

“What the hell is his problem?”

Kaos sighs. “He doesn’t like when things don’t go his way. You’ve thrown a wrench into his very existence and he hasn’t come to terms with it yet.”

I take a few deep breaths to calm my anger as I gaze outside. “Uh, I may not be the best with maps, but shouldn’t we be following Bedi’s instructions?” Actually, that’s an understatement. I’m terrible with maps and that’s something I should probably correct.

“Hell no.” Kaos shoots me an incredulous look. “She could be one of the enemies for all we know.”

There’s a gnawing feeling in my gut telling me to follow her directions that I can’t seem to shake. “Bedi has never done anything to hurt me, Kaos.”

“That may be, but the answer is still no, Sadie. I’m not risking your life for some vague instructions from a crazed woman we’ve never met.”

To keep myself from showing him exactly what the wordnodoes to me, I rip open my backpack, find one of the small bags of jerky I have stashed in case of emergency and give some to the dog. He lets out a little yip, wagging his tail excitedly. I laugh as I help him finish the rest and it helps my foul mood a tiny bit.

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