Sierra grabbed four laminated menus and rolled her eyes. “He’s worse in a different way. He wants everything to be perfect, but he’s super nice. Luna demands all the attention. She’s had her sights set on Griffin since she was a kid.” “That long?” I could kind of see it.
“Yes, that long.” She waved for us to follow her. “Where are you from? I haven’t seen you around.”
“Oh, that’s because I’m new.” I had no clue what else to say. I didn’t want to tell her how I got here, and I couldn’t lie, mainly because she’d know. “Killian found me, and the rest is history.”
“He tries to be a player like Griffin, but he could never quite pull it off.” She stopped at a booth and turned to Killian, squishing his cheeks. “And now he has a girlfriend. My little buddy is growing up.”
“You two act like brother and sister.” I slid into the booth and scooted over to the wall.
Killian got in beside me and took my hand, placing it on the table. “We pretty much are. She was my sister’s best friend. Sierra is my age, but she clicked with my younger sister because they had the same maturity level.”
“Yup, Olive was way more mature than Killian.” Sierra jutted her hip. “If she was here, she’d be kicking his ass into gear. Maybe you could do that job since he won’t listen to anyone else.” “Olive had a way,” Killian said with longing.
The tug pulled at me once again, and my attention went to the front door as it opened and Luna and Griffin marched inside. They radiated tension and avoided looking in each other’s direction.
A man entered and walked around them, taking a seat at the end of the bar near a small hallway that had an exit sign.
Sierra frowned and blew out a breath. “I still miss her so much.”
“Oh, God.” Luna sighed as she slid into the booth on the opposite side. “Every time Sierra serves us, we have to talk about Olive. She’s dead; it sucks. We’ve got to move on.”
“So, when you die, you want your friends or family to never think of you?” I stared the entitled brat down. “We should roll our eyes and tell everyone to move on?”
One side of Griffin’s lips tugged upward until Killian wrapped an arm around my shoulders. The smile slipped from Griffin’s face, and he glared at us.
“I will take every opportunity to talk about my sister and celebrate her life and her friends.” Killian wrinkled his nose. “If that bothers you, you can go sit at a different table.”
“You are kind of being a bitch,” Griffin said as he slid in next to her. “Don’t take out your anger at me on them.”
“Fine.” Luna crossed her arms, her body language making it clear she wouldn’t be apologizing. The tension grew thick between us.
The image of my pack members, bloody and dying, popped into my mind. My eyes burned with unshed tears, and I choked back a sob. I cleared my throat, desperate for my words to sound normal. “I need to run to the bathroom.” I nudged Killian’s arm, making sure he heard me.
“Oh, yeah.” Killian stood.
I slid out and glanced around the room, looking for a restroom sign.
“It’s over there before the back exit.” Sierra pointed toward the small hallway I’d noticed earlier.
“There’s a men’s and women’s bathroom on either side of the hall.”
“Thanks.” I hurried in that direction, desperate for some time alone to compose myself. I didn’t want to break down in front of Griffin and definitely not Luna. I didn’t want either one of them to think I was weak.
“Is she okay?” Sierra asked the table.
Killian cleared his throat. “I’m sure she’s fine.”
The hallway was dark, not that it mattered with my wolf eyes, and longer than it looked. The women’s bathroom was the door on the right. A few tears spilled over and trailed down my cheeks.
Dammit. My numbness was wearing off fast. Focused on getting into the bathroom to hide my imminent breakdown, I pushed the door open.
A calloused hand grabbed my arm and yanked. Another arm snaked around my neck and placed a knife against my throat.
“One sound, and I’ll slit your throat,” a deep voice hissed.
CHAPTER EIGHT
H
e nudged the knife deeper into my skin. Warm liquid trickled down my neck as the copper scent of blood hit my nose. This prick was enjoying himself.
“What do you want?” I asked, trying to keep my fear at bay, hoping to learn something-anything -about why I was such a target.
“Absolutely nothing.” He chuckled darkly, “Other than you need to move to the exit now.” He pushed me forward, and I stumbled, causing the knife to dig a little deeper.
Asshole.
I’d rather die right there than leave. With a knife to my neck, there was only one way this could go.
Keeping my arms close to my body, I raised my hands toward his knife arm and relaxed my body into his chest. He loosened his hold, and I grabbed his wrist with both of my hands and pulled down and away from my neck.
“What-” He hissed.
His hold slackened and I slipped under his arm, keeping my grip firm on his wrist. When I broke free, I shoved the hand holding the knife back at him so the blade cut into his side.
“You stupid bitch,” he yelled as he tried to recapture me with his free arm. Using his slumped angle to my advantage, I kicked his face and twisted his wrist, manipulating a pressure point by his thumb to make him release the hold on the knife. He stumbled back, and I kicked the knife away. “Dove!” Killian yelled, but I didn’t have time to answer him.