Page 40 of Gluttony
Of course they did. “Here to check up on me?”
He’d meant it as a joke, but she hesitated. “It’s time to go home, Tony.”
“Why? So you or Parker can lecture me about what happened?” Because he knew, without a doubt, that word had already reached them. If it wasn’t Bailey who’d told Max, it would have been Liza who’d heard about the incident at the sobriety house through law enforcement channels. It could even be all over social media. Didn’t really matter. It wouldn’t change the fact he’d stuffed up. “Or because you don’t think I can handle my power and I’m going to blow up in front of these poor people.”
“Come on, get in,” Liza growled. “I’ll take you home.”
There was no point in arguing, so Tony threw his almost empty slushie cup into a trash can and let himself into the front passenger side of Liza’s car. He adjusted the seat back to accommodate his long legs and then helped himself to a stick of gum from the console. He started poking the buttons on her cop computer dashboard while she entered her side.
“Touch another button, and you die,” she warned as she removed her magnetic siren light from the car roof and put it on the dash.
“Jeez. Touchy. Someone needs to get laid.”
Brown eyes hot as the sun burned into him. “Are you fucking kidding me right now?”
“What?”
“You left the scene of a crime. I had to cover for you,again.” And there it was. She’d been called out to Hudson House and disapproved of the way he’d handled things. She continued, “I had to talk your woman down from the ledge.”
His ears perked up. “What do you mean?”
“I mean”—Liza planted her foot on the accelerator and launched them forward—“that your mate was in all sorts of twists worried about you.”
“Worried?” That wasn’t right. The woman had snapped his head off.
“God, you’re such an idiot. All men are.”
“What did she say?”
“She left immediately after giving her statement.” Liza’s jaw ticked, but she wouldn’t take her eyes off the road. “You need to go to her and explain the truth. She’s already been hounding Max and Sloan. That woman does not give up.”
A small smile tilted Tony’s lips. She was a strong woman. A sneaky sense of pride puffed in his chest, and he looked away in case Liza noticed.
She was worried about him.
Bailey.
He conjured his memory of the morning, about to indulge in nostalgia, but the moment he thought of his mate, his body reacted viscerally. His hormones skyrocketed. His hands heated with the promise of power, a constant reminder that he had no choice in this life. Damn it. Every time his hormones went into turmoil, he couldn’t control himself. Heat prickled his skin, and then he felt a little off. No doubt, his body didn’t like him stifling his powers, but he didn’t enjoy being forced into a situation.
“Tony. I said you need to go after her, did you hear me?”
“I’m not the guy who goes after the woman,” he stated. The very thought of putting himself out there, open to rejection, made his stomach twist into knots.
The car screeched to a stop.
He barely avoided hitting his head on the dash. “What the—”
“Are you kidding me?” Liza screeched, furious. Livid. It was so out of character that Tony could do nothing but stare. Cars beeped behind them, but she only rolled down her window, snapped her siren back on top, and then gave their tooters the finger. Back at Tony, she lowered her brows. “Youhavea woman, Tony. Whether you or she admits it, you already belong together. Your biology has done half the job. The only way you can fuck this up is if you keep saying shit like that...OOoh. I’m not the guy who goes after women,” she mocked. “Get your head out of your ass.”
Tony squirmed. “Chill out.”
Hell broke loose on Liza’s features and she punched Tony in the arm.
Both of them went still, shocked.
She blinked.
He blinked. She’d really punched him. It hurt.
