Surely not. He was my friend, and he hadn't even been in Shadow Grove until a week ago. Not to mention he was way too young to have been stalking my mom.
I heaved a sigh. My paranoia was making me jump at shadows, but there was no chance for respite. I turned back to face the guys and spread my arms wide.
"Are we done here?" I asked in a sharp voice. "I'd like to question this fuck who shot at me, now."
Kody frowned in concern as Scott's car screeched down the road, but Archer just gave me a feral, bloodthirsty smile.
"Your wish is my command, wifey."
I snorted a surprised laugh and rolled my eyes. "If only that were true."
14
Nicky managed to grab us for a few more shots before we got changed—but after letting me wipe the blood from my face—swearing that her client would be over the moon with the images she'd gotten. My irritation toward Archer had faded to make room for worry about Scott, so I just went with it.
It was a full hour later that we finally piled back into Archer's car and left the converted warehouse.
We drove in silence for some time, then the strangest fucking thing happened.
"Thank you, Madison Kate," Archer muttered, shooting a quick look at me as his hands tightened on the steering wheel.
I was in the passenger seat beside him, so there was no way I could just pretend I hadn't heard him. Or rather, no polite way. Then again, I wasn’t a polite girl, so I just flat out ignored him and admired the passing scenery.
“Did you hear me?” Archer demanded after it became clear I wasn’t going to reply.
Raising a brow, I turned back to him with a blank stare. "Did you say something?"
He shot me a confused glare. "Yes," he replied, vexed, "I said thank you."
I cocked my head to the side, frowning. "Sorry, what was that? I didn't quite hear you. Maybe you should speak up a little."
Kody snickered a laugh from the backseat, not even trying to hide it.
Archer's knuckles turned white on the steering wheel, and his jaw clenched hard enough that his teeth ground together.
"Don't fucking push it, Princess," he growled.
I scoffed and rolled my eyes, turning my face back to the window. Because seriously? I shouldn’t push it? I wasn't the one in the shit here. That was all him. If anyone was pushing anything—
"I said thank you," Archer repeated, shocking the hell out of me. "That was a favor to a very important friend, so I appreciate you not being difficult about it."
My lips parted, but no sound came out. Holy shit, he'd just rendered me speechless. Was that... had he just...
"Did you hit your fucking head or something?" I blurted out, frowning at him in suspicious confusion.
He shot me a quick look, flicking his eyes back to the road. "What? Why?"
I wrinkled my nose. "Well, you either took a head injury, or you've been body snatched. Either way, you're freaking me the fuck out. Stop it."
Archer shot me another quick look, this time with his brow furrowed in just as much confusion as I was feeling. Then, it was like the Matrix just kept fucking glitching.
He started laughing.
"What the fuck is happening right now?" I asked, shaking my head in disbelief as his broad shoulders shook with mirth.
Kody reached out and smacked him in the side of the head, cutting Archer's chuckles off quickly. "Quit it," Kody snapped. "You're freaking MK out. And me too, to be honest. Did you get laid last night or something?"
The amusement slipped from Archer's face like I'd imagined the whole thing, and he glared back at the road ahead of us.
"Or something," he grunted, his hands tightening on the steering wheel again. His sleeves were pushed up a bit, and I couldn't help staring at the way the muscles in his forearm flexed under his inked skin. Damn him for being so gorgeous. "I guess photo shoots just put me in a good mood."
I froze, carefully not looking at him. But I couldn't help the rush of warmth from remembering the way he'd kissed me during the photo shoot earlier.
Kody snorted a laugh. "Since fucking when? You hate doing that shit."
Archer didn't reply. He just reached out and turned the stereo on, cranking the volume up to end any conversation. But his whole vibe was different, and it was weirding me out big time.