Page 14 of Touch Of Fate

“Six years,” I answer, almost grateful for his presence. Who knows what I would do without witnesses?

“Have you been here six years?” Rome asks.

“No. We just opened a few months ago. Lace had a place in another state for a while, but it was trashed,” I explain.

“How?” he frowns.

I lick my lips. “A coyote shifter destroyed everything.” I pause, not sure I want to explain further.

“Why?” Archer asks.

“He was looking for her friend and found Lace instead.” I cross my arms.

“Did he hurt her?” Rome asks, walking toward me.

“He hit her.” I drop my arms when he’s in front of me.

“Did he get away?”

“No. He was killed by a vampire.” I stare at his lips. The bottom one is fuller than the top.

“Vampire,” Archer hisses.

“He’s a good one,” I say quickly. Micah is an ancient vampire, and is mate to Daisy, Lace’s friend. I haven’t met him personally, but I’ve heard good things about him. Lace keeps in touch with her friend.

“A good one,” Archer snorts.

“He’s not a fan,” Rome says dryly. “He’s had too many bad experiences with vampires.”

“There are bad people of every species,” I say.

“Like coyotes,” Archer says with disdain.

“He’s not their fan either. Another bad experience,” Rome says.

“What about you?” I ask.

“I try to decide their worth from their actions,” he says, tracing the edge of the neck of my shirt. “Most of the time, I agree about the coyotes. They cause trouble.”

“Vampires are alright?” I ask, smiling slightly.

“Depends. I’d rather not be around them. They move too fast. It’s not natural,” he says.

“But we are natural,” I tease, and he slides his finger under my bra strap. He caresses back and forth.

“Rome likes to be the most powerful in the room,” Archer says dryly.

“True.” Rome grins charmingly. Between that and the motion of his hand, I’ve lost total concentration. “I guess I’ve had some bad experiences, too.”

“Sorry,” Lace says, rushing through the door. “Don’t touch that.” Rome and I turn to see Archer playing with her tattoo gun.

“Shit, sorry.” Archer backs away with his hands in the air. Rome takes away his touch, and I miss it.

“No. That was too harsh.” Lace shakes her head. “My tools are spelled. Mara can’t touch them either. Her magic messes them up. I have to have them exactly right to mark shifters.” She smiles and moves toward him.

“I didn’t realize,” Archer mumbles.

“I know,” Lace replies, picking it up and sliding it into a drawer. “I’ll fix it later.” She folds her arms across her stomach. Her makeup is a bit smudged, but otherwise, you can’t tell she was upset. Lace hides her emotions well. “Are we doing this?”