Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 120031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
He kissed her shoulder. “My dad was hard on us, but not in a shitty way. He was just all about tough love. He taught us that second best didn’t count, which might be why I hate not winning.”
“I’m sorry that you lost him.” Casey slid her hand over the intricate, tribal tattoo that not only spanned the left side of his chest but also covered his left arm. There was another tattoo on his right bicep; the face of an old, mechanical clock blended with a chess board on which a few pieces sat. Casey swiped her finger over the small numbers that had been tattooed just beneath the clock. “The date and time of your dad’s death?”
“Yeah. He was a master chess player. And if it looked like you might just manage to beat him at it, he’d swipe the board.”
She chuckled. “Miles used to love playing chess when he was a kid.”
Able to feel her pain as if it were his own, Eli kissed her, wishing he could take it away. He could feel sympathy for Miles, despite that he couldn’t condone the mink’s way of coping with his pain. But he really didn’t like that her brother had lumbered her with his baggage. Well, she’d no longer be dealing with the Ignacio situation alone.
Just the bastard’s name was enough to make his wolf snarl and pace. It had recognized the powerful predator in Ignacio; had seen that said predator had locked its sights on Casey, and he wanted to hunt the cougar down.
“How much does your brother owe Ignacio?” he asked. Her expression shuttered. “How much, Casey? I can’t help if you don’t talk to me.”
“I can handle this myself. Really.”
Yeah, he’d figured she’d say that. “You have no idea how dangerous that cougar is. You lost him money tonight. He’ll add that to your brother’s debt, and he’s not going to give you the option of paying it off a little at a time. You embarrassed him. You defied him. And then you put his own blade to his throat.”
“I know, I was there.”
Smart ass. “He’s going to want his pound of flesh.” Eli was surprised that Ignacio had let things get that far outside The Den. Eli had waited in the shadows, ready to intervene if the cougar moved to harm her or ordered his cats to do so for him. But the Alpha had seemed content to merely toy with her, which made absolutely no sense to Eli … unless the cougar had simply been drawing the whole thing out for his own amusement.
“I appreciate you wanting to help, but it’s my issue to deal with.”
“You’re not dealing with it alone, and that’s that.” Eli tensed as her eyes briefly flashed mink and he saw the animal’s annoyance. He really didn’t want to tangle with her mink. For one thing, he had a sentimental attachment to his nose and fingers. Minks would bite right down to the bone, and they weren’t always keen to let go. Two, trying to pin it down would work about as well as trying to baptize a cat.
Still, he wasn’t prepared to drop this matter. He rubbed Casey’s arm. “I know you think you’re protecting your brother by paying his debts, Casey, but you’re not really helping him. If he doesn’t have to face up to his mistakes, he’ll keep on making them.”
“Would you leave the fate of someone you cared for to Ignacio?”
Hell, no. He sighed. “Tell me how much Miles owes him.”
Casey didn’t know how, but his voice … it seemed to reach inside her, pull at her, compel her to obey. She didn’t think he even realized it. No, she got the sense that it was just part of the sheer force of his personality—a personality so big and powerful that it was almost like a weight, and it battered at her defenses.
He might not be a born alpha, but he was close enough for it to count. Going toe-to-toe with him would be truly like coming up against a brick wall. Good thing for her that she’d never been a pushover.
He nipped her chin. “Tell me.”
“You’re used to getting your own way, aren’t you?”
“My mom always said I had a one-track mind. When I want something, nothing will distract me from going after it.”
“Oh, I see. You live in Eli’s World. A place where it’s always sunny and warm and everything goes how you want it to go. Awesome.” Hell, Casey herself was somewhat single-minded—she owned that. But it seemed that Eli had her beat by a landslide.
She got the feeling that he’d be ten times more demanding than any of her exes were. This wolf was someone who would take and take and take, leaving a girl feeling wrung dry, unless she could somehow make herself stand up to be counted.