Soar

“Are you positive?”

“I’m sure you can find something to do.”

“Maybe I should see if Casey’s free…”

“She’s not.” I regretted my decision to hold off on our dinner date until the next night.

“Are you sure? She seemed to really like me this morning.” He was just pushing my buttons, but it pissed me off.

“Try the witches’ place in Battery Park.” Anything to keep him away from Casey. I’m sure he’d find something or someone to keep him busy there.

“Maybe I will.”

“Great, now get out of my office.” I pointed to the open door.

“I thought we were just starting to have some fun.”

“Go bother someone else.”

“Will do, but get me those files. I’ll need an office for the time I’m here.”

“You’re not going to be here long.”

He finally got his damn feet off my desk. “I still need an office.”

“Fine. Ask Nelly.”

“Sounds like a plan.” He got out of my chair. “Try to calm down. Stress isn’t good for you.”

“Fuck you,” I grumbled. Even if he weren’t a cocky bastard, I’d still hate him. He reminded me of everything I hated about Levi—only worse. He’d better stay far away from Casey. She already had Eric to worry about, she didn’t need Jared too. She didn’t need me either, but it was probably too late for that. She’d awakened a side in me I thought was gone, and I needed it. I dug out my phone as Jared strolled out through the doorway.

“Hey, Toby,” Casey answered in a singsong tone. She sounded happy to hear from me.

“Hey. Any chance we can move that dinner date up to tonight?”

“Miss me already?” she teased.

“Yes.” No reason to beat around the bush. Maybe part of my motivation was another Pteron, but I still wanted to see her.

“Honesty. I like that.”

I glanced at my watch. “Are you still at work?”

“No. I’m home, but didn’t you know that?”

“How would I know that?”

“You have me under surveillance.” She didn’t sound as annoyed about it as I would have thought. We’d only been hanging out for a few days, but I already knew to expect the unexpected with her. Her reactions were hard to predict, and there was something exciting about it. My work life had been stressful, but my personal life had been as boring as they come. The change was good.

“I don’t ask for minute to minute updates. I just want to know if there’s anything suspicious.”

“Ah, I see. I’ll run to the store and meet you at your place.” She sounded excited, and I wanted to see her.

“Do you really need to do the shopping yourself? We could have someone else do it.” That would give us more time to hang out at home. God, I sounded like an old person. Dinner at home was okay for one night, but I’d have to take her out somewhere nice next time.

“Seriously? Seriously, Toby?” Her voice rose a little, and I could just picture her incredulous expression.

“What? I’m just saying…”

“We’re going to the market like normal people.”

“We? So I’m invited?”

“Oh. I guess I did say that.” She sounded surprised about her words. “Yeah. You’re invited if you want.”

“I’m leaving my office now. Wait for me.”

“I will.”

I’d never been more excited for food shopping in my life.

Chapter Thirteen

Jared

Toby was too easy to rile up. Usually it took me a while to find someone’s weak spots, the things they were most sensitive about, but not this time. Maybe I was getting better which, beyond being fun, was part of my job. I needed to find ways to get people to think and feel what I wanted them to. Strictly speaking, I didn’t need to mess with Toby, but it was too simple to resist.

There was something about that girl, Casey, that he wanted. She was attractive. There was no question about that. Even in the oversized clothes I could tell she had a great body, and that pretty face of hers wasn’t anything to brush off either. Still, it had to be more than that. There were lots of pretty girls out there, and Toby seemed bent out of shape over this one. But they weren’t a couple. She’d made that part crystal clear. Was she doing that for my benefit? I wasn’t going to seek her out, but if she came to me, I wouldn’t hold back on his account.

I pushed Casey from my mind and focused on my plans for the night. Glad I’d thrown a blazer in with my clothes, I got ready to go out. I’d never been out in New York without Levi and Owen, but I didn’t let that stop me. There was no way I was sitting around and staring at the walls all night. Besides, it might actually help me figure out what the hell was going on.

I hadn’t taken a trip up to the city in a while, so I decided to take Toby’s suggestion and check out the place in Battery Park. A paranormal club would serve my purposes for the evening. The paranormal bars in New Orleans are what you’d expect them to be. Picture biker bars with stronger liquor and more dangerous clientele. I already knew this place would be different. Any place run by witches was bound to be trouble.

I decided to fly over, so I carried the rest of my clothes with me. There was something cool about flying in New York City at night. As much as I’m a New Orleans guy, nothing beats that skyline, and it looks even better from above. I had to fly high up to avoid being spotted, but I stayed close enough to enjoy the view. I landed in the park and quickly got changed. Shirt buttoned and blazer on, I headed inside.

“Florence, what the hell are you doing here?” The bouncer recognized me immediately when I stepped up to the entrance. He looked like a Silver Back. Those gorilla shifters were built large.

“Glad to see me?” I had no clue who the guy was.

“No. I’m never glad to see you.”

“Really? Is there a particular reason why not?” I could have pushed him out of the way, but his annoyance was actually kind of amusing.

“Yeah, you slept with my sister.”

“I doubt that.” I made it my business to stay away from anyone not human. “I don’t do shifter trash.”

“She’s adopted, jackass. “

“Oh. Well, did she complain?”

He lunged for me, and I easily caught his fist. “Let’s not make a scene. We both know who’d win a fight.”