Page 23 of Butcher

Groans and snickers burst out of the women. Butcher had barely given me time to finish peeing, let alone wash my hands or face. So I was stuck with whatever was on my face for a while.

“Why am I not surprised the hellions were here first?” Seek quipped.

“Those kids belong to you?” I asked, amazed. She had this soft, kind look to her. And those girls...well...they definitely had a mischievous side.

“They do,” Jenny said with a happy sigh. She licked her thumb and descended on me.

“No! No, don’t-” I broke off with a grimace as she scrubbed her thumb over the sticky spot on my cheek. Yeah, she was a mom alright.

I’d been fucked to within an inch of my life, terrorized by children, snapped at by dogs, and now I was spit covered. This is not how a professional assassin conducted her business.

“How did you meet Butcher?” Jordan asked. None of them seemed the least bit concerned that Jenny had cleaned me off like I was one of her unruly children.

“She was in the Bunker last night,” Kit responded before I had a chance. “Butcher couldn’t take his eyes off her.”

Dani let out a loud, happy sigh. “That’s so romantic.”

I thought about the fact that he’d fucked me on the floor not two feet from where they were standing. I wouldn’t have exactly called him romantic. “I’m tied up,” I pointed out to her.

She waved a hand and made a tsking sound. “That’s just Butcher. He always does things...differently. It’s romantic,” she insisted. “Seriously, he’s never liked a girl enough to keep her.”

“Keep me?” I echoed.

The other women seemed to consider her words. “The fact that you’re still here makes me think he may be smitten,” Gwen said with a pretty smile.

They’re insane. All of them. You walk into The Bunker and you leave reality at the door.

And they were all staring at me. Waiting for me to speak.

“He’s. Holding. Me. Hostage,” I replied, trying again to appeal to any kind of rational thinking.

“True,” Seek said, “but if you knew Butcher better you’d understand. He doesn’t show interest in women.”

“Other than for a night. But he usually kicks them out long before morning comes,” Kit added.

“Unless they’ve both passed out from the drinking,” Jordan said, amending the previous statement.

I gave them all looks of disbelief. “And you think this guy is capable of being smitten?” I asked, hating to even use that word. One,it was a dumb word. It just sounded stupid. Two, I didn’t want anyone to be smitten with me. Especially not the guy I was supposed to be killing.

“That’s the thing,” Kit said, “up until this morning we would have said no.”

“Iknew he was capable of it,” Gwen argued. “He just hadn’t found the right one yet. Same with Toxic,” she added, sounding very sure of herself.

“Toxic loves women a littletoomuch,” Jordan said with a chuckle.

“But when the right one comes along, he’s going to fall hard,” Sloane predicted as she came back in through the door. “You wait and see.”

Eva was right on her heels, carrying a tray with a couple glasses of water, two sandwiches, and a bag of chips. She set it on the bed, then frowned at me. “Should we untie her so she can eat?”

“Yes,” I answered.

“No,” Seek said at the same time. “Butcher gave direct orders not to let her loose.”

One of the dogs growled and took a step toward me. All of the women’s jaws dropped while Seek put a comforting hand on his head. “It’s okay, Auron. Isla’s a friend.” Another, deeper, longer growl. Seek looked up from her dog and her eyes met mine. There was a spark of suspicion in her gaze now.

“I’m more of a cat person,” I told her. My weak smile didn’t seem to convince her.

“How’s she going to eat if she isn’t untied?” Dani asked.

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