Page 47 of Property of Azrael

“Is it a bad time to tell you I’m vegan?”

I blink, and so does O. She ate ham on her gross fucking Hawaiian pizza the other night. When the fuck did she become a vegan?

“Kidding,” she chirps. “You should see your faces.” She sips some of her water with a devilish grin on her lips. “Well done.”

He continues staring at her with the tongs from the indoor grill still in his hand. “You’re shitting me, right? You want me to burn a perfectly magnificent piece of beef?”

“Yup. I like mine with ketchup.”

O grabs his chest like he’s having a heart attack. “Blasphemy. Burnt steak and ketchup. I’m not so sure about her, Az.”

“Leave her alone,” I retort.

She sticks out her lip and pouts. “I can’t help what I like.”

“Have you ever had a medium rare steak?”

She shakes her head. “My mom can’t stand any pink in her steaks, so we always had them well done.”

I peer over at O, a scheme forming in my head. I think it’s time for a challenge. A tit for tat for that monstrosity of a pizza she made me try.

“How about a bet?”

“Oh, no,” she fires back. “The last bet I made with you is the reason I’m here. I’m not sure I can survive if you win again.”

“She has a point, Az,” Fox points out, joining us at the island. “At least you learned your lesson, Hallie. You’re stuck with him for the rest of the week.” He angles his head toward me, but directs his statement to her. “You could always come stay with me.”

Annoyance flutters in my veins at his constant need to flirt with her. Fox knows better than to cross that line, but the fucker will continue to skirt it just to piss me off. Having Hallie with me gives him more ammo in his arsenal, and he knows where to hit me to get the reaction he’s looking for.

“Ew, no.” Hallie recoils. “You literally screwed my best friend in the bed next to mine, while I was sleeping in it, and in our shared shower. I’m not into sloppy seconds.”

“That hurts, Hallie. I thought we were friends. Friends share everything, right?”

“I don’t think sharing genitals is in the friendship handbook. Plus,” she snorts, flinging her thumb in my direction, “I’m pretty sure he would kill you.”

“Damn right. I know just where I’d hide your body, too.” A dark ravine where even his ancestors can’t find him… or maybe even a pig farm. We have plenty of those back home. Even though I know it’s a joke, the idea of one of my brother’s touching her, or anyone else, churns my stomach. Hallie may be mine for a short time, but as long as she’s with me, any man who comes near her will end up in a body bag. That’s a promise I can keep. “Is your will up to date?”

“Jesus, Az. I’m just messing with you both.” He throws his hands up in surrender. “I may be a puss hound, but I know when not to cross a line.”

“Good to know.”

Fox pulls his phone out of his pocket and starts to type.

“Eden?” Hallie asks.

“Yeah,” Fox huffs. “By the time we got here, I had a ton of texts from her and a couple of missed calls. She’s not like nuts, is she?”

“She’s her own person. She’s kind of hard to explain,” I tease him. “Though, fair warning. If you take too long to answer a text, be prepared for inappropriate GIFs and memes.”

“Sounds like this Eden girl is right up your alley, Fox,” O shares over his shoulder. “She’ll give you a run for your money.”

“That’s the last thing I need, being chased around by a female version of me.”

“You slept with her.” Hallie shrugs. “It’s the consequences of your own actions.”

“What is?” Van asks from the hallway, Asher trailing behind him, a sour look on his face. He stares at Hallie as she laughs at something Fox whispers to her.

“Dinner’s ready,” O calls out, pulling a few plates from the cabinet. Hallie shoves out of her chair to help him, the two of them working in tandem, plating the meat and vegetables he’d made on each plate. As he finishes, she passes them out to us, based on the cook of the steak. When she hands Asher his, he scowls at her before snatching from her hand and heading back down the hallway to his room.

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