Head Hunter (City Shifters the Pack #3) - Layla Nash Page 0,98

forward to a bank of elevators, nodding to the people at the concierge desk and what could have been security guards across the lobby. She bent her head closer to mine as she went on. “We can talk more upstairs. This is all covered, you don’t have to worry about paying for it.”

“You’ve got to be shitting me,” I said, far louder than I intended because I definitely got politely curious looks from the building’s employees. I lowered my voice as the four of us got into one of the sleek, pristine elevators that arrived silently and whooshed back up just as quietly. I leaned against the wall of the elevator, even though I felt self-conscious about leaving smudges and fingerprints all over the stainless, spotless interior. “This is... What the hell is this? I don’t get it. I really don’t get it. I can’t afford this, and I sure as hell am not going to sit around while someone else pays for it. That’s not who I am. I pay my own way. I’m not going to... I can’t stay here.”

Todd kept his attention on the door, his hands shoved in his pockets. “Your old apartment still has a lot of bloodstains in it, and there was a lot of damage to the door and some of the walls. The management wasn’t particularly open to welcoming you back, since they didn’t seem interested in having more police on their property.”

My blood ran cold when he mentioned the bloodstains. Of course. When that awful man shot Dodge... I swallowed the knot in my throat and pushed away the uncomfortable memories. “Still, though, surely there’s a more affordable...”

“This is already paid for,” Deirdre said smoothly as the doors whooshed open with a pleasant ding and a soft voice that said “twenty-two.” The witch nudged me forward into a surprisingly short hall with only half a dozen doors in it. She went all the way to the right to a door with an A on it, in the corner, and stepped inside without another word.

Mercy beamed at me and hustled me forward, Todd following both of us silently, and dragged me into the biggest, fanciest apartment I’d ever seen in real life. It belonged in a movie or a magazine. The walls were a pleasant off-white and covered in neutral, soothing artwork – mostly seascapes and a few with horse herds racing through fields. The enormous great-room that included a living room, foyer, kitchen, and dining room had new furniture that didn’t look in the least familiar, although my old couch sat in the corner and looked sad and shabby in comparison. I stumbled to a halt just inside the door, leaning against the butcherblock countertop on the kitchen island as I tried to take in the magnificence around me.

And then several men stood up from the beautiful new couches and my heart seized up once again. I froze, close enough to the door that I considered bolting for the elevator.

No one else moved and the men remained where they were. One was Deirdre’s husband; Evershaw held his hands out and took a single step forward. “Easy, Percy. Just take a deep breath. You’re safe. These are all friends.”

I didn’t know if I could believe him. Todd remained on my side of the room but didn’t get closer to me, though he gestured for Mercy to remain in the kitchen next to me. Todd nodded at the strangers. “We mentioned in the car that this building is the lions’ territory, right? These are two of the Chase brothers – Edgar, the second-in-command and security chief, and Benedict, a capital A asshole and lawyer.”

The thinner of the two strangers, though he wasn’t skinny by any means, scowled at Todd. “Look, Evershaw, there’s no call...”

The burly lion, with darker blonde hair and a few creases near his eyes, elbowed the younger one out of the way so he could ease from around the couch and into the open space in front of me. “I’m Edgar, Miss Lawson. We’re pleased to meet you, and even more pleased that you’re up and about.”

I blinked and tried to process what was going on. “Uh... thank you?”

The corner of his mouth twitched. His tone remained gentle despite his brother fuming and muttering about rude mutts and calling the dog-catcher. Edgar took a business card out of a small case he took from the inside pocket of his jacket, and slid it onto the end table next to the