Page 32 of Caretaker

“I don’t know,” I answered. “There’s nothing in those woods but sick vampires. No place to stash a human woman.” And with her blood all over the trunk of a tree, the vampires would have gone nuts. They’d have gobbled her right up.

“They couldn’t have known she was a clean human before they took her,” he said.

“No,” I agreed. “I mean, they could have, but I doubt they did. I don’t think that’s why she was taken.”

Two young women, a blonde and a redhead, walked out of the store, laughing, then glanced over and did a double take when they saw us standing there.

I sighed when they started toward us. They’d probably recognized me.

“You’re still here,” the blonde squealed, then grabbed Shane’s arm. “And you still have that very, very large…shotgun.”

He smiled down at her like she’d said the cleverest thing he’d ever heard, and that was just wrong. Shane was rude, angry, and a complete hardass. He didn’t smile at bubbly, flirty girls who made stupid innuendos about his shotgun.

“We have to go,” I said, but it was like I wasn’t even there.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t like to go for that drink?” the redhead asked him, walking her fingers up his chest.

“Come on,” the blonde said. “Please? Pretty please? One little bitty drink.”

They were being rude. For all they knew, Shane was mine. I didn’t want to put my hands on them, because that would have caused a whole thing, but they were getting perilously close to making me lose my temper.

As was Shane.

He winked at the redhead, then patted the blonde’s hand. “I’m working.” Finally, he glanced at me. “Right, boss?”

Boss.I clenched my fists. “I am.” I turned on my heel and jogged away. “Asshole.”

And two minutes later, he was at my side. He took my arm. “Slow down, baby hunter. You’re wearing me out.”

I jerked away from him and jogged a little faster.

“Why are you mad?” he asked.

“I’m not mad.”

“Really? Because you seem a little pissed off to me.”

“You’re mistaken.”

But I was pissed off. I didn’t like what I’d seen back there. I didn’t like those girls touching him. I didn’t like it at all.

But I had absolutely no right to my possessiveness or my jealousy.

“So did you get their phone numbers?” I asked, nastily. “Did you line up a date?”

“Yeah,” he said. “I did.”

I stopped and when he stopped with me, I poked him in the chest with a stiff finger. “You were just now trying to get me into bed.”

He frowned. “I was?”

I gaped. “The dinner you cooked for me. You offered yourself for dessert!”

He put his fist to his lips, and I realized he was trying not to laugh at me.

“You’re an asshole,” I said, flatly, then walked away. “Do what you want.”

“There isn’t a man alive who believes he should do what he wants when a woman tells him to.” His arm brushed mine as we walked, and I shivered.