Page 63 of Rule the Night (Blackwell Butchers #1)

MAEVE

I parked next to the Spider and took a minute to collect myself. I’d been shaking when I pulled away from Ethan Todd’s new house, the prospect of being so close to him with no one around enough to set my mind spinning.

I needed to think, figure out the best way to get to him now that he was back in Blackwell Falls, and I still wanted to find out what had happened to him after high school. Where had he gone? And why had he come back here of all the places in the world his money might have taken him?

I pushed the questions aside and started for the loft. Poe had a way of reading my face, knowing when something was up. I needed to be calm when I went inside.

I climbed the stairs from the ground floor, schooling my expression to look as innocent as possible, but when I got to the second floor, the loft was dark and quiet.

I checked my phone, wondering if it was later than I’d thought, but even with the detour to the mountain, it was just after 10 p.m. Weird. Normally the Butchers would be in the living room, or maybe Poe would be in his studio downstairs while Remy and Bram were in the living room.

The Hummer, the Spider, and Poe’s bike were all in the lot, although it was possible they’d walked somewhere.

I set down my bag and tried to ignore the fact that I felt…

disappointed. Subconsciously, I’d looked forward to seeing them when I got home, especially after their rescue of Bailey and me the night before.

I told myself I was just getting soft on my birthday, but yeah, I’d expected to see sparks of light from Poe’s torch in the studio, to find Remy playing video games while Bram worked on his computer because Bram never allowed himself to have any fun.

They must have gone to bed early.

I stifled a sudden rush of sadness. I could hardly be mad at the Butchers for not knowing it was my birthday.

Then, on my way to the fridge for a bottle of water, I spotted a box on the dining-room table.

A tiny black jewelry box tied with a glossy scarlet ribbon and sitting on top a scrap of folded red paper.

I looked around, half expecting someone to stop me, then pulled it out.

It had my name on it, jagged letters written in black ink. When I unfolded it, three simple words, scrawled in the same black ink, stared back at me from the piece of red paper.

Happy birthday, Maeve.

I stared at it for at least a minute. The Butchers had known it was my birthday after all, probably because of the background check they’d done on me when I’d first moved in.

Had it been six weeks already? Crazy.

I set down the note, untied the ribbon from the velvet box, and set it aside. When I opened the box, I found a delicate gold necklace strung with a red enamel apple pendant.

My cheeks heated as images flashed through my memory: the picnic, Poe’s head between my thighs, Remy looking down at me as he teased my lips with the head of his dick, Bram watching us, his eyes so cold they burned.

I looked around, half expecting the Butchers to appear.

But the loft stayed silent, and I was glad. I hardly knew how to do something normal like celebrate a birthday with Bailey or my family. I wasn’t sure I’d have been able to get my head around doing it with the Butchers, three men who’d been strangers just a few weeks before and who were now… what?

Lovers? I couldn’t think of them like that, but friends didn’t feel right either.

What did you call it when someone knew what you wanted even when you didn’t? What did you call it when they knew you well enough to know that you wanted some kind of gesture on your birthday but not a fussy one?

I closed the box without removing the necklace, picked up the note, and headed for my room, the bottle of water forgotten.

A flush spread through my chest, my body warm while my mind whirled.

I tried not to think about the necklace while I got ready for bed. It was too confusing the way my chest felt all soft and squishy while my mind screamed, What the fuck are you doing?!

Get a grip, M. It’s a present. Enjoy it.

Easy for you to say. Things are simple for you. You’re dead.

She didn’t answer right away, and I thought maybe I’d pissed her off, but when I crawled into bed and turned out the light, I heard her voice again.

You’re right, I am dead. But you’re not.