Page 100 of Moonlit Nights & Northern Lights
“I know,” I said. “I suppose they could have immediately run the plates on my mother’s car, and then linked her to me, if they have access to that level of resources, which they probably do. But as for the telepathy…”
“If I thought Terrier would actually follow the instruction, I’d order you both home. I don’t like this, Teddy. I don’t like this at all.”
“Me neither.”
“Keep me informed, and your phone off silent.”
“Yes, boss,” I said jokingly, as I never called him that, even though the others did.
He made a sound that might have been a laugh. “And Terrier hasn’t sent you grey yet?”
“Oh, he’s sent me completely grey. I’ve aged about fifty years.”
After a chuckle, Seb hung up.
“We’re in!” yelled Felix, and the sound of Rory’s footsteps bounding down the stairs quickly followed.
We gathered around Felix’s laptop like pigeons fighting over a chip, jostling for space in the small cottage living room. Rory ended up smushed into me, his breath hot across my collarbone as he leaned forward to see better. The bright fabric of his shirt pressed against my arm, causing gooseflesh and making it nearly impossible to focus. My mind quickly wandered to last night—his mouth on me, the softness of his hair between my fingers—and heat rose to my cheeks.Not now, for god’s sake.
A fragment of anxious thought drifted into my consciousness:
…too close, everyone’s too close, I can’t think properly when they do this…
I glanced at Felix, noting the tension in his shoulders and the way his hands had stilled over the keyboard.
“We should give Felix some breathing room whilst he works his magic.” I stepped back and gave Rory and Priya a meaningful look.
The other two budged back by approximately five centimeters. I continued to glare at them until they finally gave him space. Felix’s shoulders immediately relaxed, and I caught the grateful look he threw my way.
“Right, then.” I cleared my throat. “What have we got, Felix?”
“He’s got a million missed calls. From Rory, but also someone named Sakshi.”
“That’s his alpha,” said Rory.
“I’ll open his texts.” Felix tapped the screen, bringing up a cascade of Dev’s message threads.
“Jesus,” I muttered, scanning the names. “He’s been busy.”
Dozens of different contacts populated the list—all names I didn’t recognize, but the breadth of Dev’s communications was staggering.
“Oh! Click on Ezra,” Rory instructed. “His new boyfriend. Look, he hasn’t opened the last message.”
Felix obliged, and the screen filled with their conversation. At the top sat the same photo we’d seen at Ezra’s flat—Dev standing with Bradley and Brody outside a building. Beneath it, Ezra’s final message glowed accusingly:
Ezra
Really, Dev? You chose these two to mess around with, out of all people? And to think, I almost believed that lie about your sick mother. Don’t bother coming to my flat. If you want your stuff back, I suggest you look in the bins outside my building. It’s where you belong.
Beside me, Rory let out a snigger, his shoulder shaking against mine.
I turned to him. “Is that appropriate right now?”
“What?” Rory’s eyes widened innocently. “Come on, this is exactly what I’d expect from Ezra. He’s so dramatic.” Rory shrugged. “Besides, I’m sure Ezra and Dev will merrily get back together after we deliver Dev safely back to London.” The bitterness I expected from that statement was glaringly missing.Interesting.Was he finally getting over Dev?
Felix scrolled further up through the conversation, revealing a nauseating parade of selfies—Dev and Ezra sending kissy faces, heart emojis, and…intimatephotos back and forth.
Rory made an exaggerated retching sound. “Oh my god, make it stop.”
