A Very Venom Christmas - Kristine Allen Page 0,39
looking at me like that for? Do I have a booger in my nose? Snot smeared across my face?” The anxiety of Decker being injured was amping me up, though I knew I needed to calm down.
“Hey, darling, it’s okay. We’re gonna get him fixed up,” the man with serious salt-and-pepper hair said as he laid a hand on my neck. He had a leather vest on that read HAWK.
Wow. I thought Decker was a silver fox, but he truly isn’t old enough. But this guy? Yeah, this guy is the definition of a silver fox.
Everyone chuckled, and Decker was scowling at me. Initially confused, I suddenly realized I’d said that out loud. But I was honestly so relaxed and chill that I didn’t care.
“You want me to show you where your room is so you can take a nap? It must’ve been a long trip and an exhausting experience for you yesterday.” The man named Hawk still had his hand on me, and I blissfully nodded.
“You make Decker better so he can come snuggle with me. Okay? I really like snuggling with him, you know. Who would’ve thought that a grumpy ol’ guy like him would like to snuggle, huh?” As I carelessly ran off at the mouth, the men in the room tried to hide their laughter and smiles, but Decker looked mad as hell.
“Why you mad? It’s sexy when you’re mad, but you need to turn that frown upside down,” I said with a sleepy grin.
“Jesus, show her to the room,” Decker muttered, then said to me, “I’ll be in to check on you in a bit.”
“And snuggles. Don’t forget snuggles,” I was compelled to remind him as I happily went with Hawk into a short back hall, then turned and went to the other end.
He opened a door for me, and I shuffled to the bed before tumbling in and curling up in a ball.
I vaguely remembered someone slipping my shoes off and putting a blanket over me.
Then I drifted off to sleep, where I dreamed about doing really bad things to the man who’d gotten me pregnant.
“Mourning Star”—Gemini Syndrome
“What the fuck?” I questioned as I watched Hawk use his abilities on Loralei. Abilities that were much the same as mine, yet I hadn’t accomplished diddly shit with her when I tried. Then I shouted “Ow!” as Angel removed the dressing from over the wound Apollo had carefully stitched.
“A little warning would’ve been nice!” I grumbled at him.
“Sorry about that,” he said as he studied the wound and tried to hide his grin. “Thought you heard me, but you must’ve been too distracted by the chick.”
I glared at him and silently dared him to keep running his mouth. Wisely, he buttoned his trap, but his twisted lips betrayed his barely contained humor at my expense.
That’s when I addressed the visitor in the room. “Jigsaw,” I said as I gave him a chin lift. “What brings you here?”
“Well, you know, the weather here’s a fucking dream.” He suppressed a smirk.
“Maybe more like a nightmare,” Ghost grumbles. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. He was forever bitching in the winter.
“Everything okay? We didn’t know you’d be passing through.” Jigsaw was a nomad but held some ties to the Tonopah Chapter in Nevada.
“Well, I didn’t plan on it, but I’m heading back to the Crossroads, and this beautiful weather you have slowed me down a little. Then I heard rumor you ran in to a bit of trouble up north and figured I’d see if you needed my help. Since I’m here and all.” The tall nomad tipped his head, and his sandy hair fell over one insanely blue eye as he stared, waiting to see what I had to say.
“I’d never turn down an extra hand when we don’t know what’s headed our way. Hopefully nothing, but I’m not sure. I didn’t want to worry Loralei, but whoever this guy is, he’d been watching her. There’s no way he doesn’t know she’s here now.” At my reply, he gave me a slight nod.
“I’m here. Might as well make use of me.” The grin he gave me was dark, and if I dared say, hopeful that he’d be needed. If it was Loralei’s ex like Snow thought, I could use him and Voodoo to make sure the guy was finished. If Hannibal had been here it would be even better, but beggars couldn’t be choosy and all that.
Hawk returned from the back and pulled up a chair