Vicious Rebel (82 Street Vandals #2) - Heather Long Page 0,30

other one. I hurried after him and tempted fate since it might piss him off. “What changed?”

“Hmm?” He slowed his longer strides until I was keeping pace with him easily. The warm scent combination of his soap and something with more leathery undertones filled my nostrils, and I took a deep breath.

“You were all cool stares and ‘grr.’” For lack of a better example, I hooked my fingers like they were claws and bared my teeth at him.

Kestrel eyed me for a beat, then deadpanned, “I was a T-Rex?”

“That’s not a T-rex,” I retorted.

“That’s definitely a T-rex,” he confirmed with a wink before leading the way down the stairs. Most so-called gentlemen would let a lady go first. But Kestrel always went ahead of me, and he always descended at my pace as though wanting to be in range. I had zero doubt that if I missed a step, he’d catch me.

That sent a balloon of warmth to fill me. It was ridiculous, and I should put a pin in it right now and pop it, but…

“Never mind,” I muttered, and Kestrel turned as he passed the last step and caught me with his hands on my hips and lifted me up and then down.

“Don’t be like that Sparrow, I’ll try not to growl. Besides, T-Rex can’t reach much with their hands, and I promise you, mine can reach everywhere they need.” Then he gave me a very deliberate wink as the hands in question rested on my hips for a few seconds longer than necessary. And all too soon, he let me go before he walked away and left me to stare after him.

Heat swept through me, igniting brain cells along the way. Kestrel was flirting with me.

I hadn’t imagined that.

A throat clearing behind me sent my pulse rabbiting, and I glanced back to find Rome studying me from above on the steps. Questions lingered in his eyes, and he tilted his head. With a flick of a look past me, he lifted his chin and then waited.

“We’re going to have breakfast before I go to the shop with Kestrel,” I explained. “Want to join us?”

He snorted, but it lacked any real derision. With deliberate slowness, he descended the steps until he stood next to me and I had to tilt my head up. It was the first time I’d really been alone with Rome since he took me out painting.

Since…

“Can I ask you a question?”

Eyebrows quirked, he waited.

I licked my lips. “Liam told me I got you stabbed.”

The eyebrows descended, and his eyes narrowed.

“Are you all right?”

“You didn’t get me stabbed,” he said rather than answer the question. “Liam was being a jerk. Ignore him. I do.”

“Sparrow, get that ass in here if you want to eat.” The lure of coffee scenting the air accompanied Kestrel’s call. Despite the statement about if, I rather suspected we wouldn’t leave until I’d eaten something.

He’d done the same thing the day before when lunchtime rolled around. I hadn’t been all that keen on the greasy diner we’d gone to, but I’d finally chosen something on the menu after some prodding. I made a face, and Rome curled his fingers and held out his hand.

“You can go with me,” Rome offered. “If Kestrel is bothering you.”

“Hey,” Kestrel called, and I half jumped as if I’d been caught, guilty of something. “I’m not bothering her.”

“No?” Rome asked him. “Move that ass?”

The question was almost innocent. And I said almost, because something flickered in Rome’s expression that had been present the night on the playground.

“Don’t be a jackass,” Kestrel drawled. “She has a nice ass, and I was teasing her. We’re becoming friends.”

That announcement surprised me, and I wasn’t alone. Rome took a step forward as though to put himself between me and Kestrel. I stopped him with a hand to his arm. “He wasn’t being a jackass,” I informed Kestrel. “I was asking him about something Liam said and your yelling kind of interrupted that.”

“What the hell is Liam doing talking to you?” The silky smooth question held not one whit of anger, but that made it a little more terrifying. Rome sighed.

“Liam doesn’t want her around me.”

Wait.

I twisted to face him and gripped his forearm when he didn’t pull away. “He said that?”

Rome gave a little shrug, then seemed to smile almost sheepishly. “Ignore Liam. I do.”

“Yeah,” Kestrel said. “Ignore him. Now, Sparrow, let’s eat.” He caught my free hand in his, the warmth of his fingers slotted between mine. Outside of