Page 29 of Kodiak

“Babe, she was drugged. If she was in full fighting form, she’d have laid those fuckers out and not broken a sweat,” I reply.

“That I have no doubt,” she says, agreeing with me. “I’ve seen her take on men twice her size and make them beg for mercy.”

“I’ve seen it for myself. She’s a badass. I think the fact that she can take men down at the knees is the reason Xavier is so taken with her.”

“So, he’s got a bit of a pain thing?” she asks.

I snort as laughter bubbles up. “Fuck no, unless it’s himcausingthe pain. He likes that a woman is able to take care of herself and do it so magnificently.”

“Look at you using all these big words,” she teases.

“It’s Xavier’s fucking fault,” I grumble. “He was using some really old word earlier and I gave him shit for it. He said he didn’t want y’all to think we were a bunch of dumbasses.”

“Oh, I’m sure you guys get up to dumbass shit, but I’d never presume about another person’s intelligence based on how they talk, Marcum.”

Somehow, that soothes something inside that was a bit unsettled thinking about how she might see my brothers.

“Besides, do you know how often I have to reference my thesaurus to find a word I need?” she questions. “It’s a trick of the trade which is the only reason I have the vocabulary I have.”

“Makes sense. What do you want to drink? Beer? Soda? Water?”

A look crosses her face that I can’t decipher before she says, “Water, please.”

“Are you the sober driver tonight, Luna?”

“Something like that,” she tells me, beaming up at me. But there are shadows in her eyes that say loud and clear that she’s holding something back.

“You gonna tell me what has you looking so glum, sweet Luna?”

“Later,” she mumbles, looking down at her shoes.

“I’ll hold you to that, my moon,” I say, gripping her chin between my fingers and angling her head upward. “I can’t help you if you keep things from me.”

“I’ll tell you, Marcum. I swear. First though, I want to get through our conversation with Demi.”

“I’ll accept that. For now,” I reiterate. “Let Xavier get a few drinks in her first so she’ll loosen up before we hit her with what our plan is.”

“That was my plan too,” she acknowledges. “But she can hold her liquor so it may be a few hours before she lets go.”

“We’ve got nothing but time,” I remind her. “The night is still young.”

Food has been consumed, and Demi is in the midst of the club girls, dancing and singing to the lyrics. I turn to Luna and raise my brows.

“Yeah. It’s time once we can convince her to come with us,” Luna says, biting her bottom lip.

“Don’t be nervous, Luna Moon. I’ll be the one doing the talking,” I reassure her. I know she feels as if she’s betrayed her friend by telling me about the assault. But after Demi cools her jets, she’ll understand that Luna had her best interest at heart.

Squeezing Luna’s hand, I let go and walk in the middle of the girl’s mob dancing. “Ladies. I need to speak with Demi privately for a few minutes. Stay warmed up and she’ll come back and join you soon.”

Demi gives me a quizzical look, but waves to the girls as she follows me. “Luna, Demi, you two follow me.” I know they’re not my men and don’t have to follow my orders, but out of respect, I still expect them to do it.

I lead them to my office and shut the door behind us. “Have a seat,” I state, pointing my fingers at the two chairs situated directly in front of my desk. I walk around it and plop down in my reclining office chair.

When I look at Luna to see if she wants to start this meeting, I notice that her eyes are clamped shut. I guess she expects me to do it all, which is fine, I prefer it this way.

“Demi, I want you to hear me out and wait until I’m done speaking to insert your two cents. It’s imperative that you don’t jump to conclusions and let me lay it all out for you. Okay?”

“Sure,” she says, shrugging her shoulders. However, I can see the devil resting on her shoulder, ready and willing to assert her dominance over me.

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