Page 5 of Redemption in the Dark (The Righteous 5)
“You think you can eat all that,” he asked and leaned against the edge of the booth.
She was tempted to say yes, just to show off. She had this strange feeling that she was being judged, which always had her inner demons wanting to stand up and act out. Unfortunately, she really couldn’t afford all this, and practicality won out.
“No, probably not,” she said. “Why, are you hungry?”
“Yeah, I didn’t know this place would be so…” He looked around and gave a half-hearted shrug. “Barren.”
“I get that. Did you want to take some to your booth? Just grab some of everything.”
He lingered a little, looked toward the bar, and then back down at her. “How about I get us a couple more drinks and join you? No pressure if you don’t want to, though.”
This guy was dripping in everything nice. She wiggled a little in her seat and knew what Morry would say. She’d tell her not to succumb to temptation, but those damn eyes were warming all the right places.
“Sure, take a seat. What’s your name?”
He slipped into the seat before answering. “Wolf. What’s yours?”
“Wolf, like the animal?”
“Yes, just like the animal.”
“Huh.” She stuffed some fries into her mouth and moaned at the taste.
Real food, how long had it been? Vegas had been a steady diet of alcohol and come. No matter what any guy said, that shit might taste good, but it can’t sustain you.
“My name is….” She paused a heartbeat and swallowed down her real name. “Annie.” She wiped her hand on her jeans and held out her hand for Wolf to shake.
“Nice to meet you. You sure that’s your name? You seem a little uncertain.” He cocked a brow as he tossed a fry into his mouth.
“Yeah, of course, I just was ready to answer a different question, was all.” She smiled and looked away from his keen eyes.
“So, what brings you to a nowhere town like this?”
She ate a few more random pieces of fried food before lifting her head and searching his face for any sign of a creepy stalker. Still, he didn’t have the vibe, but that didn’t mean anything these days.
“Just heading to visit family. What about you?” She took a sip of her drink.
“Work, pretty boring, really.” Wolf held up his hand, and the waitress sashayed over. And it was a damn good sashay. The woman certainly had her attention with that sway.
“Can I get a beer and…” He looked over, and her heart sped up a little more as the image of having both the hot waitress and this guy in bed with her at the same time flashed across her mind. “Whatever she’s wanting.”
Again, she reminded herself that it really wasn’t a great idea to mix alcohol and tempting hotness in front of her, but people kept offering her drinks tonight. It must be a sign. Thank god there was nothing much to do around here if she did get drunk because that was how she’d ended up in the Vegas hole of sequins, foam, and dicks in the dark.
“Can I get a shot of tequila,” she said.
“Make it a whole bottle and a dish of lemons,” he said and picked up one of the sticky wings.
She had no idea if the waitress had walked away or not. Her soul-focus was on how he put the whole wing in his mouth and pulled it out clean before licking his fingers. Damn, she’d never wanted to be a piece of food so bad in her entire life.
She’d made a pact with herself that she wouldn’t touch anyone else until she got back home, but for a taste of this man—she may have to revisit that promise.
Wolf watched his target, and no matter how he approached her with questions, she responded the same. She reminded him of a wounded animal, a little skittish and wary, but with this undercurrent of sexuality. Whether she realized it or not, she’d eyed up almost every single person in this place like they were part of the meal she was eating. He didn’t exactly see what she was searching for, but she’d start at their face before her eyes stripped them naked.
The one thing she most certainly didn’t seem to be was a cold-blooded cop killer. He’d chased enough people down to know the look in someone’s eye when they were a murderer, and she didn’t have that look. But she was a convicted felon, so it didn’t matter what he thought. His job was to apprehend or kill her, which was exactly what he planned on doing. The Righteous’s order seemed like an overkill request, and the secret organization may have its own code, but he worked for two agencies. The Marshal’s apprehend order came in first, so that was what he would do.
She also hadn’t been as hard to find as he thought a murderer on the run would be. He’d found her at a strange nightclub in Vegas where no one wore clothes, and everyone acted like it was a group bubble bath as they danced and rubbed up against one another inside a glob of glittering, colorful suds. It didn’t matter that people arrived with clothes on. Once they were there for a little while, they all ended up in their birthday suits.
Maeve had drawn the attention of every person in that place, and the same thing was happening here. She was sexy and alluring. There was no denying that. Her stunning features, sexy curves, and midnight black hair with the faded purple ends stood out in a place like this, but it was her aura that stood out the most. Maeve had this sexual charge around her. It was like her body was calling people to her without even trying.
