Page 92 of Fire Fight

Wrapping my fingers around the taser in my pocket, I prowled down the hall from the mudroom, pausing to peek around the corner into the kitchen.

I found Trey at the stove, humming softly to himself while he stirred a pot of something bubbling, steam wafting into the air around him and scenting the room with a deliciousness I couldn’t name.

“What the fuck,” I breathed.

Trey whirled on me, grin on his face. “Nice walk?”

“How did you—” I cut myself off, mentally smacking myself in the head. “The cameras.”

He nodded. “They’re placed sporadically around the property to keep an eye on things.”

“Someone should’ve told me.”

“Where would the fun be in that?”

I grumbled in response, then withdrew my phone to call Crew.

“Hey, little phoenix,” he said in greeting, and the nickname had warmth blooming in my chest.

“Why is your brother here?”

“I asked him to come check on you.”

“So now I’m a captiveandI need a babysitter?”

“You just took an unsupervised walk on my property,” he reminded me. “You’re hardly being held captive.”

I snorted. “Unsupervisedmy ass. You had eyes on me the entire time.”

In the background on his end, an alarm blared, and Crew cursed under his breath.

“I have to go, but we’ll talk later.”

“Don’t bother,” I said, hanging up.

All the peace I’d found on my walk evaporated in an instant, replaced by a fury so consuming, I was genuinely shocked smoke didn’t pour from my ears.

I whirled on Trey, about to tell him to get the fuck out, but he held up a hand.

“I’m not leaving, so you can give up on that little crusade right now. I made you dinner, so you can sit down and eat with me like a good girl, andmaybeI’ll leave you alone afterward.”

“Fuck you.”

“Only if you ask nicely.”

Groaning, I clenched my fists at my sides, pressing my nailsinto my palms until the sting grounded me. Otherwise I’d do something insane like take a swing at him.

“Really, I don’t need you here. Your fancy security system will keep me safe until Crew gets home in the morning.”

“No can do, little one.” He pointed the wooden spoon, stained red from the sauce he’d been stirring, at one of the island stools. “You might as well sit and enjoy the meal.”

Knowing there was no way I was getting rid of him, I reluctantly slid onto the seat. “I’ll eat because I have to, but I can assure you I won’t enjoy anything about this.”

Trey tipped his head back and laughed. “I like you.”

“The feeling is not mutual.”

With a grin, he returned to the stove, and I texted Crew.