Page 15 of Wilde and Deadly

Davey. Fucking. Wilde.

And right now, he looked ready to tear apart anything—or anyone—that stood between him and what he’d come for.

Benji made a strangled noise, snatched the drive back, and shoved it deep into his hoodie pocket. “You brought a tail.”

She glared at Davey. “Not intentionally.”

Benji was already sliding out of the booth. “Uh, well…this seems like a great time for me to, uh, not be here.”

“Benji—”

“Nope. No, no. That guy looks like he eats people who piss him off, and I like my insides… uh, inside.” He shot her a panicked look. “You should really stop making enemies this big, Rowan.”

“Relax. He’s a…” She hesitated, jaw tightening. Friend wasn’t exactly the word she’d use for Davey—not after tying him up and stealing his dog, and definitely not after drugging him. Butenemywasn’t quite right either when they’d blurred so many lines they barely knew where they stood anymore. He was something far more complicated, more dangerous—a mistake she kept making, a lover she couldn’t quit, and the one man who could blow her entire world apart with a single look.

“Friend?” Benji suggested with a hopeful note in his voice.

“Complication,” she finished tightly.

“Well, your complication doesn’t look all that friendly.”

“He’s harmless,” she lied.

Benji didn’t look convinced, but at least he didn’t bolt immediately.

“Look, just sit tight. I’ll handle him.” Rowan rose from the booth, moving quickly to intercept Davey before he completely scared off her lead. She was acutely aware of the room’s sudden attention, the way conversations stilled as heads turned toward them.

“You put a tracker on me?” she hissed as he reached her. It was the only possible way he’d found her so quickly. The sedative she’d slipped him would’ve knocked him out for a few hours, so even if he’d used all of WSW’s vast resources when he woke up, there was no way he could’ve tracked her down this fast without some kind of device.

“You’re surprised I had a contingency plan?” He laughed, but it was not a happy sound. He grabbed her arm, his grip just shy of bruising. “We need to talk. Now.”

“I’m busy,” she shot back, glancing toward Benji. But the weasel was already slinking away.

“Fuck,” she muttered, watching her only lead disappear into the crowd. Panic clawed up her throat, sharp and desperate. She’d been so close, and now it was all slipping through her fingers. Her gaze whipped back to Davey, fury blazing alongside something deeper—fear. Fear for herself, fear for him. “Do you have any idea what you’ve just done?”

His grip on her arm tightened, his expression granite-hard. “WhatI’vedone? That’s rich coming from you. You drugged me and left me in a goddamn motel room.”

Guilt twisted sharply beneath her ribs. Drugging him hadn’t been personal, hadn’t been about hurting him—but telling him that now would only make this mess worse. “At least I left your dog this time.”

“Yeah, thanks for that. He’s the one who woke me up.”

“Dammit.” Of course it had been Luka. She should’ve known Davey’s dog would never let him stay down long. She cursed herself silently—another miscalculation she couldn’t afford.

“Why’d you do it, Ro?” His voice softened just a fraction, and it cut her deeper than his anger ever could. He was looking for answers, something she could never fully give him.

“I had my reasons.” Reasons she wanted desperately to share, even if just to see that wounded look vanish from his eyes—but she couldn’t. It wasn’t safe. Not for either of them.

“Oh, I’m sure you did.” His voice sharpened again, the brief vulnerability buried beneath bitterness. “Care to share them with the class?”

She swallowed hard, the tension between them crackling like lightning. Too many eyes were watching now, the bar’s other patrons leaning closer, drawn to the drama unfolding between them.

Attention was dangerous.

Attention got people killed.

“Not here.”

“Yes, here.” He stepped even closer, the heat of his body practically searing hers through the thin shield of her clothing. “You’re out of time, Rowan. Whatever game you’re playing, it ends now. I’m taking you home to your father. Let him deal with you.”

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