Page 187 of Menace in Vegas

She’s in the middle of reading aloud when Daltyn stiffens, his gaze locked on the window.

His chair scrapes back sharply as he bolts upright, eyes locked on something outside.

“Daltyn?” I ask.

He shoves away from the table, knocking his chair sideways.

A waiter jumps aside as he barrels toward the door like he’s chasing a ghost.

Connor is up in an instant. “Stay here.”

“Wait. What?”

“Peyton,” he snaps, already running. “She’s across the street.”

I whip around, and there she is. Standing outside a coffee shop, clutching a drink, glancing over her shoulder like she’s being followed.

And she is.

Not far behind her, hood up, sunglasses on, stands the man behind all of this.

Landon. The unhinged hockey player Daltyn fought earlier today.

The blood drains from my face.

I watch as Connor and Daltyn push into the crowd, weaving through people, zeroing in on him.

Landon glances up and spots them. Then slips into the throng like smoke, gone before they reach him.

I’m already on my feet, frozen by the window, hands clenched at my sides.

Beside me, Gram sighs, loud and dramatic. “Well. That was rude.”

I slowly turn.

She snaps her erotica book shut, posture stiff and lips pursed like someone just interrupted Shakespeare. “I was halfway through chapter six. The humidity was just getting untamed.”

“You were describing collarbone licking and paddleboat bondage,” I mutter.

“And now we’ll never know how that scene ends. Tragic.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose.

Of course, this is how tonight went. Dinner. Stalking. Erotic poetry. And a chase scene.

Just your typical Tuesday.

88

CONNOR

By the time I hit the street, Daltyn’s already halfway across it, slicing through a group of tourists like a heat-seeking missile.

Across the way, I spot Peyton standing frozen on the sidewalk outside the coffee shop. She’s holding a drink in one hand, the other clutched to her chest like she’s bracing for impact. She’s pale, her fingers trembling so badly coffee sloshes over the lid.

Ten feet behind her stands Landon.

But now, he’s gone.

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