She gripped her coffee cup and stared at his profile. Black jeans again, black shirt and a black leather jacket. His tattooed hand held the phone and his other brought his coffee cup up to his perfect mouth. He had a beard, too. Not as long as Foxy Boy – the ginger who had held the door for her earlier – but Bishop’s was a sandy brown, clipped tight, and his nose piercing caught the sunlight. Not many guys could rock a piercing like that. This man had a pointed, sharp nose that was just straight up sexy. How the fuck was a nose sexy?
He turned and slipped his cell back into his pocket. His eyes sailed to her and he smiled. She didn’t know what to do, so she said fuck it and sort of yelled out, “Wanna sit with me?”
If he rejected her, she wouldn’t blame him. Not after what happened last night. But God, she hoped he would say yes. Bishop stared at her for a heartbeat and took a sip of his coffee, then he nodded once and came over.
“Look, I’m so sorry about last night.”
“Don’t apologize,” he shrugged off his coat and she got a good look at his ink again. There were skulls and morbid things all over his forearms. Three fingers on his left hand had silver rings, and there were four on his right. Also, there was a black leather cuff around his wrist and a watch on the other.
This man was trouble. Tilly’s mouth watered. Trouble looked fucking delicious.
“You had your reasons,” he said, “I just hope I didn’t do anything that upset you.”
“It wasn’t you, it was me.”
Bishop groaned and buried his head in his hands, “God damn, that’s the worst phrase in all the world.”
She reached out and touched his arm. “I mean it. I was going through something and… well, I’m sorry. I really am.” Then she backed off a little and grabbed her coffee cup.
He raised his head out of his hands, the left side of his mouth turning upwards. Oh his steely blue eyes were light and mischievous. What was it with all the pretty blue eyes lately? Tilly’s mother once said that blue eyes were the sign of the devil. Tilly never believed in that shit, but… with the bad boy outfit, ink, and piercings, Tilly almost believed it right now. God Almighty, Bishop was sexy as hell. Only the Devil would be so good looking.
“Sorry enough to let me take you to dinner?”
Tilly paused with her hand in her paper bag. Then she pulled out the two donuts, “How about breakfast?”
“First,” Bishop grinned, “and then dinner. My treat.” He took another sip of his coffee and kept his gaze pinned on her. “Say yes to me Tilly.”
“You want me to let you take me out to dinner to say I’m sorry for kicking you out of my apartment for mysterious reasons?”
“Sounds accurate.”
She wiggled the toasted coconut donut at him, “How about you eat my favorite donut and we call it even.”
He took the donut from her, but didn’t take a bite. “How about you let me feed you your favorite donut and we’ll call it a start to what will undoubtedly end up in a wonderful evening.”
Tilly accepted Bishop’s offer and took her first bite.
As Bishop watched Tilly chomp down on the donut in his hand, every bit of him grew hard as motherfucking stone. It was no coincidence that he’d shown up here. The coincidence was that Valor had first and recognized her.
He’d sent Bishop in to finish what was started.
No part of Bishop felt guilty for what he was doing, either. He had no intentions of tricking or using Tilly. He genuinely wanted to get to know her better. Touch her. Taste her.
When the timing was right, he’d ask about the book. Talking magic with humans wasn’t always easy, but if she was already into it, he’d be able to approach the subject gracefully and hoped things would progress from there. Maybe he could borrow the book? Maybe he could buy it off her. He wasn’t going to steal the damned thing, that wouldn’t be right. Regardless, his goal right now had nothing to do with the book and everything to do with the vixen sitting across the table from him.
Rare were the women who have come into Bishop’s life and captured his attentions so fiercely. And never before had he been so enthralled with a woman like he was with this one.
The gorgeous creature was in a long, form-fitting dress. And with the curves she was rocking, it did a job on his sex drive just watching her sit and eat her donut. He waggled the pastry in front of her again and growled, “Take another bite, Tilly.”
Like she knew how to play the seduction game, Tilly leaned in slowly, opened that pretty pink mouth of hers, and chomped down like a tiger would a hunk of meat. The air left his lungs when she ripped her mouth away and chewed. Never in his life had he wanted to be a donut before. He could only imagine what it would feel like to have her mouth on him. Biting him. Sucking him.
Swallowing him.
To stifle his next growl, Bishop brought his coffee to his lips and took a long sip. Tilly took the donut out of his hand and held it up to him, “Your turn, Hound dog.”
Hound dog. She’d called him that before. Ohhh if only she knew how accurate that title was.
Bishop grabbed her wrist, held her in place and wasn’t shy about eating out of her hand. One bite, two, he held her wrist with a firm grip while he chewed that goddamn donut and when he was down to the last bite, he made sure to lick her fingers clean. Wouldn’t want to waste any of the sweet stuff now would we?
Her pupils dilated when he sucked on her digits, one by one. If the café was packed, he couldn’t tell. Not now. Not with her staring at him like that. He was pretty sure the world fell away the minute he sat down with her and had shrunk smaller and smaller since then. Nothing else existed except Bishop and Tilly. And how crazy was that?
He released her wrist with a smile, but she didn’t move. Tilly’s chest rose up and down with her heavy breathing. Then she smiled wickedly and pulled out a second motherfucking donut to feed him.
Bishop laughed so loud he swore the walls shook around them.
Or maybe the earth had just moved.
Chapter 13
After eating out of Tilly’s hand, there was no way Bishop was leaving her side. They ended up spending the next hour doing the whole get-to-know-you-better thing. Turned out she was a horror movie junky, loved music, and – this was fantastic, by the way – she was a believer in the “can’t be explained” stuff like supernatural shit.
They walked down the street, side-by-side. Bishop didn’t have a clue where they were going, he just followed her and liked it. “I mean, if anyone can make you a believer, Dean Winchester can, am I right?” Her easy smile was contagious.
Bishop had never watched an episode of the show she was gushing over, but made a note to check it out later. Right now wasn’t the time to binge watch TV. Not with the twins still missing. Speaking of which, Bishop pulled out his phone to check his texts. Maybe Valor had a new lead. Doubtful considering it had only been three hours since they’d spoken, but still, you never know. He looked down at his screen. Nope. Nothing. Damn.
Guilt and intrigue battled for space in his head. He should be hunting malanum, questioning each evil fuckface he caught before sending them back to Hell. But if his alpha said to stick with Tilly and get that book, then he needed to obey orders.
Besides, hunting malanum wasn’t as imperative as it had been. Something about the balance of good and evil getting a little out of whack or some shit. Lucifer put a revised limit on malanum hunts, not just for Valor’s pack, but for all districts. It was weird, going from one extreme to the other, but Bishop welcomed the break. It meant he could focus more on finding Drake and Sebastian. Fuck, now his heart hurt.
“Bishop?”
“Huh?”
“You didn’t hear a thing I said, did you?”
Shit, shit, shit. “Sorry,” he frowned, “I got a little lost in my head for a second. What did you say?” He wanted to punch himself in the nuts for having lost his focus on her.
“I asked where did you want to go for dinner?”
Bishop’s smile went
wide across his face. “Wherever you want,” he didn’t care what he ate. This wasn’t about him anyway, it was all about her. “There’s a good sushi restaurant on the south side of the city. Or we could go into Little Italy. Or, shit, I have a friend who owns a killer Mexican restaurant just outside of the city.”
“Oh I love tacos. Let’s do that.”
He nodded and continued to walk down the street with her. She stopped, abruptly. It took him a second to realize they were in front of her building. Holy shit, he was seriously having a lack of focus today. He needed to be more aware of his surroundings. The fact that he had blindly followed Tilly home didn’t speak well for his Hound skills at all today.
“May I walk you up?”
“Sure,” she shrugged.
God, was she always such a go-with-the-flow kind of woman? He had a feeling the answer was yes. The wind picked up and she shivered while grabbing her keys from her coat pocket. Bishop, though he loved her outfit choice, didn’t like that it wasn’t the best clothing for as cold as it was outside today.
She unlocked the door and he immediately reached over her shoulder to push it open and hold it for her to go inside first. Her studio apartment was on the top floor. Nice view, but a killer climb. Unable to stand any silence, especially in a tight stairwell, Bishop asked about the building and how she liked living there.
“It’s a nice piece of property,” she said, “It’ll bring in a decent amount of money, even for being in a shittier part of town.”
“Wait, you own this place?”
“Yeah, for now.”
They reached her floor and something didn’t feel right. Bishop went on high alert, scouring the hall before going to her door.
Tilly frowned, like she sensed it too as she put her hand on her doorknob. She jerked away like it burned her and she grabbed Bishop’s arm and yanked. “Run. Now!” She tried to take off down the steps and Bishop chased after her.
“Whoa! What the fuck!” God damn the woman was agile. She skidded down the steps as fast as she could and dropped her keys in the process. Bishop snatched them and caught up with her on the second floor. “Hey, hold up. What the hell is going on?”
Wild eyes and flushed cheeks made her look ten kinds of terrified. She tried to break through the barrier he made with his body, but he wouldn’t let her pass. No matter what she was scared of, there was nothing more vicious or dangerous than Bishop, so he wasn’t worried at all.
“I can’t… I gotta get out of here… let me go!” She punched him in the gut, and probably just hurt her hand on his abs. “Bishop! Move!”
“Tell me what the fuck you are so scared of, Tilly.” He grabbed her shoulders and shook her, “Look at me. Look at my face.”
She was trembling so much, he grabbed her tighter and pulled her in. “Tell me what the hell is going on, Sweetness.”
“Someone’s been in my apartment.”
He hadn’t heard a damned thing in there and her door wasn’t damaged. There was no sign of a break in, just a weird feeling in the hallway. Bishop wasn’t going to argue with her about it though. Either she was sensitive to energies, a paranoid lunatic, or could see through walls, he didn’t fucking know, but he learned a long time ago how powerful intuition was.
“Do you know who it could be?”
“I… yes… maybe,” she tried to escape him but Bishop held her too tight for that shit. With a growl, she cocked her fist back and swung at him. The woman wasn’t going to give up her fight to get free. Bishop took the hit and still didn’t let go. “God Damnit! Bishop let me go!”
Bishop backed her up against the wall and spoke in low tones, “Call 9-1-1 and go down to the corner of the street and into the market. I’ll meet you there.”
He turned to head up the steps and Tilly caught his arm. “I can’t. And you can’t go up there!”
“Yes you can and yes I fucking will.” He pulled his gun out of its holster and checked it quick. Tilly sucked in a breath when she saw it. “I’ll explain later, but do what I say. Call 9-1-1 and wait for me.”
“I can’t let you go up there,” she hissed, “and I can’t fucking call 9-1-1 about this.”
The hair on the back of Bishop’s neck stood on end. “Why not?”
Her hands shook as she continued holding onto his arm. For having just tried to fight her way out of his hold a minute ago, now her feet were firmly planted on the ground and she wasn’t letting him budge.
“I can’t let you go up there, Bishop. We need to leave. Together.”
“Not happening, so either you tell me what I’m about to walk into, or I find out on my own. Either way, you’re scared and in danger and neither of those things is something I’ll tolerate. If there is someone up in your place right now –” A growl slipped out of his mouth, all animal and inhuman. He tried to suck it back in, but it was a no-go. His instincts were roaring to protect this woman and kill whatever was threatening her.
“We go together then.”
“Not happening, woman.”
She glared at him and he literally watched her eyes turn dark with resolve. “You go, I go. Up or down, doesn’t fucking matter, Bishop.”
Oh what the fuck? He didn’t want her up in that apartment. He also didn’t really want her out of his sight right now, either. Damnit, how was he going to do this?
Maybe he should call Valor. No. His alpha had enough on his plate right now. Bishop would do this on his own. He opted for safety first - the hunt and chase could come later.
“Come on.” He grabbed her arm and steered her down the stairwell and out of the building. She was crying by the time they got outside and it made him feel sick inside. He escorted her down the street and into the marketplace where it was busy and he snatched a chair from an empty table and gave it to her. When she plopped down into the damn thing, Bishop squatted in front of her, “I need to know what the fuck is going on, Sweetness.”
Her lips were a thin line.
“Look,” he sighed, “I get it. You’re scared, you don’t know me… I fucking get it. But I’m in this now, alright? I’m not the kind of guy that sees someone in distress and not get involved. So tell me what the hell is happening so I can help you.”
Her expression said a million things, all of which made him melt and harden at the same time. But it was her words that ripped the rug out from under him.
“I’m going to die.”
Chapter 14
Soooo, yeah. Tilly just blurted out, “I’m going to die.” Shit, what was she thinking? This day of reckoning was a long time coming and she should have known better than to get comfortable.
Bishop stiffened. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Tilly’s heart hammered in her chest. Best get it out with now and save them both the trouble of parting ways later. It pissed her off a little. She was really looking forward to getting to know this guy, but in the end, she knew it wasn’t going to last long. Her life was too short for relationships. It’s why she didn’t have any.
She was in deep shit and now had Bishop involved. Fuck this was bad. Tilly’s gut twisted. She was furious, but her fear of what would happen to her outweighed her wrath at the moment. Vivian was in the clear, though. Tilly had made sure to keep her sister out of the equation in case something like this ended up happening one day. No matter if it was for the two of them or not, Tilly would pay the price alone. No sense in them both going to Hell, right?
Whatever. Too late now anyways. What’s done was done.
“The fuck you talking about?” Bishop practically hissed, “What do you mean you’re going to die?”
God, why did he have to look like he actually cared? She hated that look on him. Bishop didn’t know her. She was nothing to him. And he was nothing to her but a promise of a good time. A temporary distraction.
Fuck it. He wanted the truth, here it was, and if he didn’t choke on it, he could run away and she’d wave too-da-loo. “I’m cursed.”
He didn’t snort a laugh or r
oll his eyes. “I’m listening.”
“I’m going to die soon. Very soon. And I’ve been trying to find a way to break my family’s curse.”
“What kind of curse is it?” he asked with a gravelly voice. “Wiccan? Hoodoo?”
She jerked back, flabbergasted. Was he being serious here? “Are you seriously asking me this?”
“You bet your sweet ass I am. I need to know what kind of magic it was so I can get it lifted.”
The air whooshed out of her on that note. She didn’t know what to say, mainly because she was floored he actually seemed to believe her, and also because she didn’t know the answer to his question. “I’m not sure.”
“How long?”
“What?”
“How long do you have to live?”
“I’m not sure of that either. But,” she slumped in her seat and exhaled, “no woman has lived past their twenty-eighth birthday for over five hundred years.”
She watched his throat bob as he swallowed. “And… how old are you now, Tilly?”
“Twenty-seven,” she whispered, “and two months.”
Bishop’s head dropped.
Why would he act upset? It wasn’t him dying and he didn’t know her long enough to give a shit about her. Maybe he was just a dude with a bleeding heart for the helpless.
“Look, I stole something to try to lift my curse. The owner probably wanted it back.” That was all Tilly was willing to say.
Bishop stood and held his hand out for her to take, “Come on.”
“Where are we going?”
He began leading her out of the marketplace. “I’m taking you back to my place and then I’ll make some calls and see what can be done for you.”
“You believe me?”
“Of course I believe you. Why would you lie about something like that?”
“I…” she didn’t have an answer because he’d made a good point. No one in their right mind said shit like that and expected to be taken seriously. “I don’t understand this.” She ripped her hand out of his and stopped following him. “I just told you I’m cursed and going to die, and there is probably someone really bad waiting in my apartment right now and I can’t get the cops involved, and you’re just going to play along with this whole thing?”
Hard to Find (Hell Hounds Harem Book 4) Page 9
