Page 59 of Stealthy as a Wolf

“We have three days before we need to head for the Summit.” Grady peered at each of us, his expression severe. “We need somewhere we can lie low and out of sight. Any ideas?”

It was an impossible mission.

Silence filled the cab for only a heartbeat, then Maggie tipped her head to the side, like she could hear something that we couldn’t. She lifted up her finger, and the most beautiful smile broke across her face. “I think I might know a place. Give me the phone.”

She wiggled impatient fingers in Matty’s direction, and the kid immediately handed it over, stars practically shining in his eyes.

Instead of dialing a number, she typed away on the thing, blithely unaware of Burke watching her every move with a narrowed gaze. She no more than lowered the phone after hitting send than it beeped in her hand, and her gorgeous smile lit up her face again.

“I have a friend who owns a cabin a few hours away. It’s even on the way to the Summit. If we leave now, we should arrive by morning.” Even before she finished speaking, she pulled up a map on the phone, then tipped the screen toward Grady. “We should be safe here.”

Grady glanced at the map, then peered up at her from under his brows. “Friend?”

I could tell that he was trying to be open and friendly, but there was no way to disguise the little growl in his words, jealousy getting the best of him despite his best intentions.

Maggie wasours!

She might not have known it yet, but we had every intention of making her aware of the fact over the next three days. We would have her alone and all to ourselves. I tipped my head from side to side, my neck cracking. By the time the Summit began, she would be thoroughly claimed, if I had anything to say about it.

Maggie shot Grady a confused frown, but answered him anyway. “Audrey and I became best friends on the first day of school—two misfits no one wanted. While I was raised by prey animals, she was a koala born among predators. She was the only one who stuck with me after I went through my reveal. Frankly, I suspected it was just too much work for her to get new friends, and she decided to keep me. Anyway, she owns a cabin in the middle of nowhere. It’s very remote. We should be safe.”

While Maggie was distracted, Burke leaned forward and sniffed her hair like a creep, and I could only shake my head at the idiot. When my twin caught me looking, he stiffened and shot me a glare that promised excruciating pain if I so much as opened my mouth, his upper lip curling as he flashed me his very human fangs.

The poor schlep was a goner, and he didn’t even know it.

When Maggie leaned back and resumed her seat, she unconsciously leaned against him again and his eyes widened slightly. He stilled, and I doubted the poor fucker even dared to breathe. When Maggie snuggled even closer, he gazed down at her, and damned if his face didn’t soften in wonder.

“Then you guys can finally tell me the full story of why people are trying to kill us.” Her voice was sweet and innocent—belying the flinty look in her eyes.

It was too late to go back, too late for secrets.

One way or another, we were in this together.

We either survived together or died.

Chapter Seventeen

MAGGIE

The only sound in the vehicle was the hum of the tires on the road. Grady focused on driving, but I could tell by the way he tipped his head that he was curious too. Boone was gazing at Burke, the two of them doing their silent communication thing.

Burke stiffened behind me, and I loved how just being near me rattled his composure. It was almost too easy to play with him. Maybe I should’ve felt bad about it, but then I remembered what a big dick he was when we first met. At the time, I thought for sure I would end up buried in a ditch somewhere, the smug asshole standing over my grave with a satisfied grin. He deserved a little bit of torture for that alone.

When I first leaned against him, I expected him to lurch away from the unwelcome touch, and I would end up dumped on the floor. Instead, he froze like a rabbit, as if afraid to scare me away.

That was when I knew he was a big fraud.

He liked me!

Or at the very least, I suspected I was growing on him.

Either way, I’d take it.

Ignoring the twins, I glanced at Matty. He sat slouched in the front seat, nearly swallowed by the shadows. He probably did it automatically, something he picked up while in prison to avoid drawing attention to himself.

It was obvious that he wasn’t used to being around others. I could commiserate. People were a little like vampires at times—just being near them sucked the life out of you. Oh, sure, peopleclaimedvampires weren’t real, but I thought they just hadn’t met the right individuals.

Being trapped in his animal form for a year no doubt exacerbated Matty’s problem. Dealing with people could be overwhelming at times.

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