Page 42 of Into the Woods

It was a thing people had always given me shit for as a kid. I had this annoying habit of zoning out into a lengthy internal monologue that would’ve made Shakespeare concerned. My parents had called me flighty. Madelaine had called it Becca-land.

But Court… Court had never judged me. Just smiled and reeled me back in with a touch or a word.

“Why are you here?” I asked, my tone soft and resigned.

As if sensing the shift in my mood, Court finally stepped back and gave me space to breathe. “Phoenix.”

My head snapped up, my spine going straight. That one word was enough explanation.

“But… here?” I frowned. Aubergine wasn’t exactly a hotbed of criminal activity, unless you counted a shrimp cocktail that cost eighty-five euros.

He gave me a terse nod and folded his massive arms over that wide, muscular chest. “How much do you know about the guy you came here with?”

Surprise ignited in my blood, my brows shooting up. “Eric?” I laughed. “He’s… He’s a nice guy.”

His jaw tightened. “No, he isn’t. We’ve been—”

“We?” I cut him off. “Who else is here?”

“Rook and Bishop,” he admitted. “We’ve been watching the group of guys you and your boyfriend came here to meet.” He looked like he’d sucked on a lemon. “They’re part of why we’re in Paris. Why we’ve been here for a week.”

My heart sank. He’d been here for a week, and no one had mentioned it? Did Maddie know?

“Maddie doesn’t know where we are,” Court told me, his tone soft as he read my mind.

I gave a slow nod, grateful for that. “I’ve only known Eric for a week, but he seems like a good person.”

His features went hard. “You really think I’d be here if he was? You think we’d make that kind of mistake?”

“Maybe?” Probably not, but I wasn’t ready to admit that. “We came here because Eric wanted to have dinner with his friends. One of them just lost his grandfather.”

“Franklin Barnes?”

I shifted my weight on my feet. “That’s Geoffry’s last name, but—”

“Franklin Barnes was found dead in his flat last week.” Court stared at me.

I shrugged. “Okay?”

“He was shot three times. Twice in the chest, once in the head. He was executed.” His head tilted, his dark eyes gleaming. “Still think we have the wrong guys?”

I swallowed hard. “Just because one of his friends is into some dark stuff doesn’t mean Eric is.”

Court blew out a hard breath and tipped his head back for a second before his gaze returned to mine. “Eric isn’t here to see his friends—they came here to see him.”

“So what? That doesn’t make him a bad guy. Eric’s nice and sweet and…”

His brows lifted. “And?”

My cheeks heated as I lowered my gaze. “Boring.”

To his credit, Court didn’t give me shit for that last part. “Sweetheart, I know you’re determined to see the good in people, but you’re wrong.”

“They were just talking about some charity auction,” I started, thinking back. How could a group of guys planning an event to help people in need be evil?

Court’s eyes went wide. “Wait—they mentioned the auction to you? What’d they say?”

I frowned in confusion. “Not much, really.”

---