Chapter 72

 

A knock on the door had me spinning with my raptor in my hand before I could take another breath. Careful to avoid the floor boards that groaned and would give away that I was here, I made my way to the door and looked out the peep-hole. My heart beat settled when I saw Quinton on the other side, looking very pissed off.

Slipping the blade back in the holster, I sighed and unlocked the door. He came in without so much as a word and closed the door behind him. When he looked around, I could see the shell-shocked look as he appraised my home.

“Yeah, it’s not Alterealm,” I said quietly trying to lighten the tension that seemed to vibrate off him.

“Did Chase come to see you?” He stepped further into the room.

“Yeah.” I moved past him and sat on the couch.

“Did he apologize?”

I sighed. “Yeah.” He still stood there radiating pure anger. “He didn’t do anything wrong, really, I was just…”

“Repulsed?”

I considered that word. “Unprepared,” I said quietly.

With a loud sigh, he came over and sat down on the arm of the chair across from me. His eyes moved over my face. “Are you coming back?”

Inside my head I was saying no, but my conscience wasn’t going to let me take the coward’s way out of this. “In a few days.”

He nodded and then sat there silently for a lot longer than I was comfortable with. “I want to say it’s not what it seemed like and tell you that you jumped to the wrong conclusion, but I can’t lie to you.” Rubbing the back of his neck, he finally looked back at me. “He was just feeding off her, Daxx.”

I nodded. “I know.”

“But you also know that’s how he rolls isn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

He stood up again and looked around. “This is…”

“Worse than the wasteland?” I offered up.

“Yeah,” he shook his head. “What is that smell?”

I sniffed the air and then shrugged. “Normal for here.” I was pretty sure he was smelling the mix of my multinational neighbors and their preferred seasonings. It took a strong stomach to get used to the scent of Asian and Mexican cuisines mixing on the same floor.

“It’s horrible.” Tucking his hands in his pockets, he looked back at the door and then to me, a look of hesitation was on his face. “Uh, I didn’t come alone.”

Straightening, I glared at him and then looked at the door. “Who came?”

He cleared his throat. “Troy.” I must have looked like I wanted to bolt for the window because he raised his hand and shook his head. “He just wanted to make sure you were alright.” Rubbing the back of his neck again, he squinted at me. “Can he come in for a minute before he gives me a migraine?”

I’d forgotten about the way the brothers could nag one another from a distance. “I suppose.”

When he turned to open the door, I got up and put as much space between me and it.

Quinton held the door for Troy to come in. With a small smile, he looked back at me. “I’ll be back in a little bit.” He left and closed the door before I could object and ask him to stay.

Troy stood there in the shadows, but I could still feel his eyes on me.

“There’s no need for you to check up on me, I’m okay.” In any other reality, I could hope that would be enough and he’d agree and leave, but I wasn’t in the land of make believe tonight.

“Maybe I was just in the neighborhood and wanted to drop by and say hello.”

I came close to doing a double take at his quip. Troy was the last brother I would have thought would try to make light of the situation. “I didn’t realize you liked to slum.”

“Mmm, it’s a first for me.” He stepped softly in my direction.

“How do you like it?” His steps were careful, like he was afraid I’d bolt in the other direction. It wasn’t a bad idea, come to think of it.

“It’s a unique experience thus far.”

He was only a foot away now and I was still undecided whether I should move or hold my ground. Crossing my arms over my chest, I leaned back against the window frame. My nerves were humming.

“I’d like to apologize for my brother’s actions, but it would be insincere, I cannot make excuses for something that has been his way for so long.”

He stopped when he was close enough I could smell him. It was one of those smells that make you want to sigh, it was that good. “It’s fine, really.” I studied a dark spot on the floor.

“No, little queen, it is not fine.” Reaching over he placed one finger under my chin and tipped my head back so I had no choice but to maintain eye contact. “Chase should have discussed things with you. I thought he had actually with the way you were together, with the way he was behaving.”

“Well, even if he’d wanted to, our time was a little hectic with near death experiences and battles.”

A light came into his eyes. “Yet, here you are rock steady and strong.”

“For the most part.” I swallowed the lump in my throat.

With a soft look on his face as his eyes explored mine he smiled. “I can’t speak for all of my brothers, but I am filled with a great pride in knowing you, and seeing how you handle everything so confidently.”

I raised my eyebrows, wondering at what point I’d been confident in anything I’d done recently, but I kept that to myself.

“I would like to ask you to come back but I don’t think that’s what you need right now.”

If his voice became any softer, I thought for sure I was going to melt into a puddle at his feet. “I just need a little space for now.”

“Of course.” With a light caress to my cheek, he lowered his hand and stood there looking down at me. “Truthfully, are you alright?”