Page 90 of Fly's Path

Cause it’s Vex we’re talking about, and that man isn’t anywhere near rational.

I hop out of the SUV I chose for tonight’s activities. Even though I wanted to take her out on my bike for the first time, anighttime ride in the middle of winter might not be the best time to introduce her to the joys of riding.

But it would have felt amazing to ride with her arms around me and her body pressed against mine…

That might not be the right thing to think about before I walk into a date.

Vex’s house is so completely normal it’s freakish. The brownstone isn’t quite large enough to be considered a mansion, but it’s large enough to be a solid family home. That’s exactly what it looks like with the soft light of the windows highlighting the floral curtains hanging inside.

Vex living here makes no sense at all.

Not one drop of it. I knock on the door, which opens immediately.

Vex yanks the door open. “Took you long enough.”

He was watching me. “I like to collect my thoughts—”

“Yeah, right. Are you scared of me or her?”

“Mostly you.”

Vex nods. “Good. Because they won’t find a single scrap of your DNA when I’m done with you, if you don’t treat that woman right. Do you understand me?”

Loud and clear. I nod.

“Good. Want a drink? They’ll probably be a minute. Dahlia is never ready on time, and there are at least a dozen of them up there making sure she’s ready.”

“A drink sounds good. Thanks.”

Vex nods and walks toward the kitchen.

I’m going to take that as an invitation to follow him, even though I’m not sure it was meant as one.

“So, you and Sheridan.” He walks over to the fridge and takes out a bottle of beer and a bottle of water.

“Yeah.”

“That new?”

“Yeah.”

“What are your plans?”

Did Vex just ask me what my intentions are? Because that sure sounds like it. Is this prep for him if he might ever have a kid? The world isn’t ready for that.

“I don’t ask questions twice.” He holds out the water bottle and leaves the warning hanging.

I take it, hoping my hand isn’t shaking as much as I think it is. “We’re going to the movies.”

“Don’t care. Answer the question.”

He did. Vex asked me what my intentions were. “I don’t know…Sheri, she’s so bluntly honest. I want a woman like that forever. But this is our first date.”

“You need to figure it out, and fast. These women won’t wait around for you to figure out. Worse, because of who they are, another guy will see what you have and want it. Now I don’t have a problem getting rid of that threat, but Dahlia seems to think that I can’t kill any man who smiles at her.”

Did I inadvertently smile at her? Is this him explaining to me why I’m about to die, or is this him warning me that—“Sheri isn’t dating anyone else, is she?”

Vex grins. “Not that I know of. But the men around here won’t hesitate when they meet a woman of value. You do know where I live, don’t you?”