Page 6 of Fated to the Hunter
“I can say the same about you.”
“We brought the map, if you wanna look at it.”
“You did?” I mentally chastised myself. Of course he did. This was what the market was for! “What do you want for it? I mean token-wise.”
We had a system where everyone priced their wares by tokens. One small coffee was one token. A large coffee was worth two. As a result, we had people on the forum trying to figure out how many coffees things were worth. Yes, on post-apocalyptic Earth, coffee was the default currency measurement.
He shook his head. “We’re not selling it. I’m after something else.”
I raised my brow. “Yeah? What?”
“Fame and fortune?” He cocked a brow at me. “An entry in the history books. If you end up finding the hard drives, we want to be known as the brothers who hunted down the map. Oh, and a mention on your website, of course.”
“That’s doable. But I’m not sure if we’ll find anything.” Despite my excitement, I knew that I could be chasing a ghost that never existed. “It could all be a scam.”
“Yeah, it could. That’s why we’re not charging anything. But it’s not doing us any good just sitting there. We ain’t going to go look for it; we mostly trade in medicines. So might as well give it to someone who would.”
Oops! He thought I planned on searching for the goodies. I hadn’t thought past getting my hands on the map.
“There’s no guarantee I’m looking for the hard drives,” I said honestly.
He gave a little shrug, a crooked half-smile flickering over his lips. “That’s fine by me. If you don’t mind, maybe instead of a pile of tokens, how about dinner? You, me, and a meal. No pressure. Call it a fair exchange for the map.”
I hesitated, a little surprised by the offer. Today was turning out to be strange indeed. I’d spent years hiding from anything that might be confused for intimacy, and now this. Well, maybe it was time for me to step out of my comfort zone. Jordan was a nomad, and that meant he’d leave after the market was over, and I might not see him for a while. He was perfect for some commitment-free itch-scratching.
But before I could reply, a loud growl vibrated the air around us, and there was suddenly a big wall of purple muscle wedged between Jordan and the information booth. Bael’k was back. Without warning, he grabbed one of the market maps and then shoved it into Jordan’s hand.
“You have your information. Go!”
I wasn’t sure if Bael’k was baring his fangs on purpose to intimidate Jordan or if that was just his angry face. Jordanbacked away, looking wary but amused. His brother, Jeff, was immediately beside him, his hand on the knife strapped to his thigh. Jordan put a out hand, stopping his brother from drawing the weapon.
“Taken, I see. Ah, well.”
“Actually, I’m not,” I managed to spit out. “I just met him today.”
Bael’k stood there menacingly, chest puffed out like he was protecting me from certain danger. The low, primal growl rumbling from him sent an unexpected shiver through my body. Okay, so he was kind of hot when he got all jealous and protective. And look at those wide shoulders and thick, drool-worthy arms.
Ugh! What the hell was wrong with me? He was an alien. And he was scaring away the very person who actually had what I wanted.
I tried to shove him out of the way, but he stood there all majestic horns and rippling shoulders. All I managed to do was trigger that telltale purring sound that made it undeniable that he found me attractive.
This was when I noticed that Bael’k had returned with Roger, who was munching on a generously-sized kebab, and watching the exchange like the latest episode of his favorite show. Melissa, his wife, was here as well, to relieve me of booth duty.
There were also several people around the booth now, watching with barely-concealed curiosity and looking rather amused. Great. This was going to be all over the settlement by tomorrow.
“Well, in that case, my offer still stands. Come find me when you’re free.” Jordan tipped his hat, and sent me one last playful grin before turning away.
“Bye. See you later,” Jeff called out, waving before following his brother through the market stalls.
I turned on the hunter who’d just sabotaged my nearly nonexistent game. “What the actual fuck!”
“He got his map. He can go.”
“But I haven’t gottenmymap!”
Bael’k frowned, then picked up one of the compostable market maps and held it out to me.
I rolled my eyes. “Not that map!”
