Page 5 of Lycan and Lark
Aria’s eyes drifted over his muscled arms and sprawling mass of ink. Yeah…she had a thing for tattoos. Peyton was hotter than hot, and though those shimmery eyes gazed down at her as she looked him up and down, he would never make a move. Being the Alpha’s little sister pretty much ensured you never got any dick. Everyone in the complex avoided romantic relationships with Aria like she had the plague.
She sighed, then got to the task at hand. “Why do you sleep in your office when you have a perfectly good apartment upstairs?” Aria peered around him at the faint glowing lights of his arsenal of equipment. Peyton was a hacker—one of the best. Gideon employed him for all sorts of jobs. He had recently moved back into the complex, but more often than not he stayed in his tiny office, by choice.
“Working late.” He shrugged and sniffed the air. “Donuts?”
“I brought gifts.” Aria held up the bag and his silver eyes lit up. “I was hoping you could help me with something…”
Peyton took the coffee and donuts and moved aside for Aria to enter. She stepped over the throngs of tiny electronic tools and bundles of cables to make her way to the computer monitors set up on the far end of the office. She passed the couch where a rumpled blanket and small pillow lay.
“What can I do for you?” Peyton asked between mouthfuls of donut.
“You can start by putting on some pants.” Aria’s eyes went to his boxers and back up again as Peyton’s tongue slid out to sweep some frosting off his lip. He grinned and pulled on a pair of sweatpants. “And then you can give me an update on the Collector situation,” Aria said.
Frowning, Peyton dropped into his chair. His ink-covered fingers began to type. “Unfortunately there haven’t been many updates since the incident in the caves.” Nova had used her newly discovered Celestial fire powers to destroy Creedin’s followers. But when the smoke cleared they had realized Creedin and Lark were not among the charred bodies. The relief Aria had felt when she heard the news made her very nervous.
“Have there been any more missing girls similar to the ones Creedin took?” Aria asked, though she already knew the answer. She was nosy enough to keep up with everything on her own.
“Nope. We’ve got some other shady magical shit happening—disappearances and shadowy sightings—but it doesn’t look like Creedin’s doing.”
Aria chewed her lip as her nerves grew. “And Lark?” She tried to sound casual. She didn’t want Peyton scenting her anxiety.
“The henchman? Nada. We’ve been scouring the camera feeds. According to Nova he should be a pretty recognizable guy between the white hair, spooky eyes, and scar. Wherever he’s hiding, he’s doing a damn good job.” Peyton pulled up a sketch of Lark and Aria bit back a gasp. They had done a decent job but the eyes didn’t hold a fraction of his mesmerizing allure and the lips were all wrong.
“Any chance I could persuade you to tell me first if you get a hit on him? Before Gideon?” She steadied her breathing but her heart thumped hard.
Peyton stilled, then slowly swiveled his chair toward her. “Any particular reason I should tell you before the Alpha?” His tone remained casual but his silver eyes studied her intently.
“I have my reasons.” Aria stared back at him, attempting to use a brain that was suddenly short-circuiting under his scrutiny. She decided her best bet was to cut and run before she made more of a fool of herself. “Well, keep me posted. Later, Peyton!” She darted out of his office and back into the hallway.
That was a disaster. Her goal was to get information without anyone realizing she was interested in Lark. When the time came she had just blurted it out. This birthday wasn’t off to a very good start. She strode quickly down the hallway and away from that embarrassment. Bolting around the corner, she slammed into someone.
“Well well well, if it isn’t the birthday girl herself.” She knew who it was before she saw him. There was no denying the Southern lilt that belonged to Aaron. He steadied her shoulders with his hands then took a step back. Aria took the playful lycan in. He looked disheveled, his curly brown hair was a mess and his clothes were wrinkled and looked suspiciously similar to the outfit he had gone out in the night before. “I’d offer you some birthday spankings but I’m pretty sure your brother would let his wolf bite off my hands and possibly rip out my throat if I did.”
“It looks like you’ve been doing plenty of spanking on your own time. Doing the walk of shame, are we?” She raised an eyebrow at him and he grinned.
“It was a busy night. There was a bachelorette party at Luna + Lupine and one thing led to another.” His maple eyes sparkled.
“You’re a pig.” Aria gave him a shove and he stumbled back, chuckling.
“I wouldn’t touch him if I were you,” Lucas said, striding over to them. “Don’t want to catch anything on your birthday, do you, little wolf?” Lucas’s warm Australian accent was so unique among the Georgia wolves. His green eyes lit up and he punched Aaron on the shoulder then dragged Aria into a hug. “Happy birthday, love.”
“Thank you!” Aria pulled away and tossed Aaron a smirk. “You’re right. We don’t know where he’s been.” She looked him up and down and he frowned at her.
“Darlin’, you’re just jealous. Maybe if you took that stick out of your pretty little ass and had a little fun every once in a while, you’d stop hating on my lifestyle.” Aaron gave her a playful push but his words bristled her fur.
“I don’t have a stick up my ass.” She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at him.
He ran his hands through his messy curls. “I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just…you haven’t exactly been the same since everything happened. You’ve barely seemed like the wild and carefree Aria we know. Gideon’s worried about you. We all are.”
Aria swallowed the lump forming in her throat. Aaron was right. She’d withdrawn from everyone the day Lark took her. She couldn’t banish the lonely ache and longing in her heart and she couldn’t tell anyone about it. It was a recipe for isolation and misery.
Gideon had been pressuring her to talk about that day. It was just a matter of time before the period of understanding wore off and he started taking things more seriously. She needed to shake it off, or at least make it seem like she had.
Pasting a mischievous grin on her face, she tiptoed a finger up Aaron’s chest. “Are you coming to my birthday party tonight?”
“You bet your ass.” Aaron’s smile widened.
“Then I’m sure you’ll bring me a present, right?” Aria gave him her sweetest smile.
