In a Badger Way (Honey Badger Chronicles #2) - Shelly Laurenston Page 0,134
Bo looked like—Kyle put his hands together, as if he were praying, and stared at his work.
“So what do you think?” he asked and that’s when Oriana realized he knew she was in the garage with him.
“It’s okay, I guess.”
He glanced at her over his shoulder, eyes like her own rolling. “You are just so jealous.”
“I am hardly jealous of you. Mostly because I’ve managed not to walk into doors . . . unlike you.”
“I always have a lot on my mind. Walking is a distraction,” he dismissed with a wave. “What I’m asking is do you think this is good enough for Kiki Li?”
“Whom you’ll never meet?” she asked, remembering Shen’s reaction to Kyle demanding that the bodyguard arrange an introduction.
“Oh, I’m going to meet her today.”
“Shen said he’d set that up?”
“Oh, no. He didn’t say anything like that. So I stole his phone, cloned it, and when my piece was ready, about an hour ago, I texted her like I was him.”
“You did what?”
* * *
Stevie heard the shower go on upstairs and returned to the kitchen now that Max was gone.
“Did you talk to Shen?” Charlie asked as soon as Stevie stepped into the room.
“No. Why would I talk to Shen?”
“Because you don’t keep anything to yourself. I figured that’s why you went outside.”
“I went outside because Max was covered in pee.”
“Just her face.”
“Speaking of that . . . I should put some tuna out for the cat.”
“You’ve gotta stop feeding that cat.”
“She’s chosen us,” Stevie informed her sister. “Just suck it up.”
Stevie had just pulled a can of tuna out from one of the overhead cabinets and was going to retrieve an opener when the doorbell rang. But before she could answer it, Charlie grabbed her arm, pulled her back.
“Stay behind me,” she warned, her .380 gripped in her hand.
“Is that really nec—”
But her sister was already gone.
Stevie followed Charlie through the house and was behind her when she opened the door.
But Charlie took one look—and a sniff—and let out an annoyed sigh.
“I haven’t made anything bamboo yet. And probably won’t today.”
She slammed the door in the faces of the two females who’d been standing on their porch.
“Damn greedy bears. I don’t even recognize them.”
But Stevie did recognize them, pushing her sister away and ordering her in a whisper, “Hide that damn gun! Now!”
Taking a breath, Stevie opened the door and smiled at the two scowling women.
“Kiki Li,” she said. “It’s so nice to finally meet you.”
“Do I know you?”
“My work. I’m Stevie Stasiuk.”
Kiki raised an eyebrow. “Holy shit. You’ve grown.”
Stevie stepped back, waved her hand. “Why don’t you both come in?”
Shen’s sisters walked into the house. Kiki was wearing all black despite the heat outside. And the heels on her expensive-looking shoes had to be six inches high. How did she possibly walk in those things?
Zhen Li, the middle sister Stevie assumed, was dressed in oil-stained jeans and a T-shirt that had Firestone written across it. Plus big work boots that didn’t seem to fit her small frame. The two sisters couldn’t look more different style-wise.
Kiki seemed a little bit . . . angry, stepping up to Stevie and demanding, “We wanna see our brother.” And she said it as if she thought Stevie would tell her no, which was just weird.
Stevie exchanged glances with Charlie and said, “He’s right outside . . . eating bamboo.”
The Li sisters walked out and Charlie asked, “Kyle did something. . . didn’t he?”
Cringing, Stevie replied, “Yeahhhh, I think he—”
“Kyle!” they heard Shen suddenly bellow from outside.
And now both sisters were cringing.
“You pretended to be me?” Shen demanded, his hand on the back of Kyle’s neck. He had Kyle bent backward and was leaning over him, glaring into his face.
“You wouldn’t introduce me. I had to do something!”
“How did you even get my phone?”
“Telling you that will only upset you more.”
“And you told my sister I was being held as a sex slave?”
“You should be more concerned she believed me. Or you, in this instance.”
Shen popped his jaw and thought about bending the kid so far back that he broke his spine.
“Let him up, Shen.” Kiki tapped Shen’s shoulder. “Look at him. He’s a little kid.”
“I’m a prodigy,” Kyle insisted, still bent over. “And I’d love to show you my work.”
“I am not rewarding bad behavior.”
“Shen,” Kiki pushed. “Let him up.”
Shen released Kyle. By now the MacKilligan sisters were outside, too, watching.
“Thank you,” Kyle sneered at Shen before facing Kiki. “Some of my work is right in the garage.”