Archer's mouth twisted in a grimace. "Yes and no. The guy who made those knives, he only gave them away as gifts. They weren't for sale, and they had to be earned. But he's dead now, so he can't tell us who he gifted with a red blade similar to mine."
My shoulders sank with disappointment. "Who was he, then?"
It seemed like an odd thing to give to people as a gift, and what did Archer mean that they had to be earned?
Archer shot me a quick look. "My grandfather, Percival D'Ath."
He pushed his door open while I sat there a bit shocked, so I scrambled to follow, slamming my door shut behind me.
"Wait up, Archer!" My voice echoed through the silent garage, and he paused. "See, this is exactly what I'm talking about! You drop little fucking crumbs of information like that and then clam up. It's goddamn infuriating, and I've had enough." He turned around to face me just in time to catch a shove from my open palms in the center of his chest.
The mocking tilt to his lips only stoked my anger hotter.
"Oh yeah? What are you going to do about that, Princess Danvers?" he challenged, taking a step closer into my personal space and forcing me to crane my neck to meet his gaze. Fucker had almost a foot on me when I was in flats. I'd need to start wearing heels again just to try and even the playing field a bit.
I narrowed my eyes, but really... What was I going to do? Torture him for information?
"I'm not telling you shit, Madison Kate," he continued, in that low, menacing voice, "because I don't fucking trust you. You're not one of us; you're just a liability."
His words hurt. More than they should have.
But I'd walk over broken glass before I let him know he'd affected me, so I tightened my jaw and lifted my chin to meet his eyes with a little more confidence. Bravado. Whatever.
"Then why were you so fucking desperate to bring me back here, Archer?"
His lips hitched in a sneer. "Because I'm fucking sick of seeing Kody mope around like a kicked puppy. Do me a solid favor, Madison Kate, and go fuck him stupid. Then maybe he can get you out of his system and get back to business."
Ouch. Every word cut like a razor.
Still, I gave a throaty, mocking laugh. "You think it'd be that easy, Archer? You think one fuck and he'd be over me?" I snapped my fingers. "Just like that, huh?"
Archer's handsome face turned colder than I'd even thought possible, and his next words hung in the air long after he was gone.
"It sure worked for Steele."
After collecting all the splintered shards of my emotions from the garage floor, I silently made my way up to my bedroom. I didn't want to run into anyone. Not Kody, not goddamn fucking Archer, and most definitely not Steele.
Had Archer been full of shit? Or was Steele really over me already? I shouldn't care either way. In fact, it'd make my life a hell of a lot easier if he was no longer interested in exploring that crackling, electric attraction between us. It had just been a one night stand. Cool. Happened all the time, right?
So why did my heart ache so much and my stomach tangle into knots?
I made it up to my room without seeing anyone and let myself quietly inside, closing the door softly behind me. Then did a double take.
Had I walked into the wrong room?
The walls were... normal. Just a plain, off-white, flat paint. Not a sparkle in sight. The soft furnishings had all been replaced too. Muted purples, grays, and blues but not a single speck of pink in sight.
I took a couple of steps into the room, looking around and noting a few of my things that confirmed this was, in fact, my room. Just... renovated.
Who would have done this?
I paused at the window, touching my fingertips to the mirror-like film attached to the glass. I'd be willing to bet that blocked anyone seeing in from the outside, even with a telephoto lens.
Taking in all the changes to my bedroom, I stood there a moment feeling all kinds of conflicted. It was a sweet gesture... wasn't it?
There was no way it'd been Archer, though. No fucking way. Despite the fact that he'd tracked me down to the hotel and essentially given me no choice other than to return here, he