Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 128812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
"Honestly?" I ask, looking at the man again over Zayne's shoulder. "I think he's going to hate any place he has to go. I think he's going to be given a very short leash until Kincaid can trust he'll act the way he's expected, and that's going to irritate the hell out of him."
"Makes me wonder why he didn't quit," Zayne says, smiling as he lifts his beer to someone behind me.
"I don't think that it's Cerberus that's the wrong choice for him. I just think that Tennessee isn't the right place for him," I explain.
"You might be right. I hope he figures himself out in New Mexico."
I take one more look in the man's direction, only to find him gone from where he had been standing. My eyes search the room.
"Nyx knows exactly who he is," I argue. "It's finding the place that's right for him that's going to change things."
My eyes find him, and I'm shocked.
What we thought was the only smile the man was capable of doesn't even compare to the wide grin on his face as he talks to Emmalyn, Kincaid’s wife.
"Holy shit," I mutter, my eyes drawn to their interaction, incapable of looking away.
Zayne turns around, his healing proof in how fast he moves.
He's too stunned to speak as he watches the two of them interact.
"He looks fifteen years younger," I whisper.
"He's handsome," Zayne says absently, smiling when I growl, but he keeps his eyes locked in their direction. "She just has that way about her."
"One of the kindest women I've ever met, but I didn't know she could tame dragons."
"I think that New Mexico was a good choice. Kincaid really knows what he's doing."
"The man is a wizard in his own right," Zayne adds. "Have you noticed Lark?"
I take a second longer to stare at Nyx and Emmalyn, surprised to see that when she reaches out and places her hand on his arm, he doesn't flinch or anything. I can't pull anything from memory of someone ever touching him before, but I know enough about him to know he wouldn't welcome it from just anyone.
"Lark?" I ask, once again letting my eyes travel around the room.
"My seven, your two."
I look to the right. "He just can't control it."
"Been watching her since she stepped into the room," Zayne says.
He doesn't even have to look in the man's direction to know he's tracking Zero's every move.
"It's sort of creepy," I whisper, watching Lark’s face transform with every movement Zero makes.
"More than a little creepy, but I think with the way he's been throwing back those drinks, he's trying to muster the courage to go talk to her."
"He hasn't spoken to her yet?" I ask, a little shocked at his restraint.
When Lark pushes off the wall and doesn't head toward the bar, I know shit is about to get real.
"He's moving," I tell Zayne, waiting for him to shift again so he can watch whatever is about to unfold.
"I feel like we need to step in," Zayne mutters. "She's going to tear him to shreds."
I consider his words, not one to go out of my way to watch drama, but also maybe her cutting him off at the knees is exactly what it's going to take for him to snap out of this fucking trance every time he sees her.
"He's an adult," I say.
"I don't want him to make her feel awkward," Zayne says, shifting gears.
"She can handle herself," I assure him.
Lark walks slowly, not much different from a lion hunting its prey, and I see from the corner of my eye that Kincaid is also paying attention to this unfolding.
If he isn't going to interfere, then neither am I.
Lark waits until Zero is done talking to Jericho and Aspen before he makes his move.
They're five feet away, and I don't know if we're too close or not close enough.
"You don't smile much. I could fix that," Lark says to her.
I watch her eyes skate down him as if she's assessing him with a robotic mind.
Surprisingly, something in her eyes shifts. They soften in a sad way, making me think I got it all wrong about the two of them.
But she takes a step back, putting some distance between the two of them.
"Men like you don't survive women like me."
She walks away before he can argue her statement.
"Burned," Zayne whispers.
Instead of watching Lark, I follow Zero from the room and witness the pain on her face. She meant every word, and although I may not know how Nyx became the man he is, I know something terrible has happened in her past to make her believe it.
They weren't just words of rejection. They came from a very dark place, a place of tragedy.
"Zero," Hemlock says, catching her before she can leave the room.
She turns to face him, making no attempt to wipe away the single tear rolling down her cheek.