Page 107 of Junkyard Dog

“Always.” He flopped onto the sofa and ran his hands through his hair. “I thought you were taking off.”

She froze midtype. “You want me to?”

“No!” He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her, resting his forehead on her stomach. “No. I was just…yeah. Give me a second and I’ll go with you to pick it up.” He gave her a quick squeeze and stood. “We coming back here?”

Sifting through the restaurant options, she nodded. “I like your place better than mine,” she said absently, flipping through a menu. When he didn’t move, she glanced up at him and smiled. “Pass me my shirt?”

A strange look crossed his face before he reached across the dinette and handed Charlotte her shirt. “Find a good place?”

“Here,” she said, setting her phone down and sighing as he pulled his own shirt over his head. “You need pants.”

*

Alex propped hishead up on his wrist and watched Charlotte as she slept, her face scrunching up every so often before she’d resettle with a huff.

Marry her.

The mantra had been playing in his head since they’d eaten their lukewarm breakfast in bed, his heart having recovered from the spike of adrenaline that had coursed through him when she had started dressing.

He’d been so certain she was taking off, spooked by second thoughts. His stomach had sunk, the euphoria of minutes earlier replaced by a wave of nausea as he watched her casually flip through her phone, oblivious to how dark his thoughts were sinking.

But it had also been that moment that solidified exactly how he felt about her.

A soft knock on his door yanked him from the moment. He eased off the bed and padded to the door, opening it slowly and freezing as his mistress came into view.

She smiled as she pushed past him and arched her neck to look into his bedroom. “Oh, good. She smartened up.”

“She what?”

Seph reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. “Did she give you my message?”

A chill ran through his veins. “You hunted her down.”

“Appeared to her,” Persephone corrected haughtily. “Hunted her down. I’m not Athena.”

Stepping between his mistress and Charlotte, he eyed Seph as she ran her fingers over his counter. “We can barter,” he said, unable to hide the plea in his voice. “Keep Ryan and Bo out of this, and I’ll sign on for anything. Anything. Just give me a few decades, Seph.”

“Silly girl,” Persephone huffed. “Probably waiting for the right time to talk or some ridiculousness.” Lifting a perfect brow, she scanned the dinette bench and perched on the edge, arranging her skirt with excruciating slowness. “I expect visits alongside your brothers no more than two months apart to maintain your youthful appearance. Obviously, she can’t join you yet, but absence can be good in small doses, as I can personally attest.”

He stared at her.

“Your mission continues to take priority. That I couldn’t negotiate. But I was able to eliminate any punishment on the condition Charlotte accepts the pantheon both here and in the afterlife.”

His jaw dropped as he took in the enormity of Persephone’s words. “You…”

“You’re welcome. Talk it over with Charlotte and I’ll check in on you two in a week.” She rose to her feet and ran her hand over his chest. “You’re so lucky you’re pretty.”

Chapter Forty

Charlotte smiled politelyat Daniel as he handed her a cup of coffee, sliding off her chair to join Alex and Thomas at the back booth. “Why don’t I hang out over there while you two talk?” she offered.

“Stay, kid,” Thomas grunted, moving over to give her room and watching with interest when Alex stood and she slid in on his side. “So I take it you’re hanging around for a while.”

Alex nodded, his hand resting on her knee, a move that didn’t go unnoticed by the elderly bar owner. “Looks like it. How do I get hired back on here?”

Thomas leaned back in the booth and spread his arms across the back of the seat. “I have a full-time bartender and two part-timers coming on later this week,” he stated, nodding at Daniel. “I’m also in the market for a cook.” When Alex opened his mouth, Thomas grimaced. “Not you, obviously. You can’t cook.”

“Okay,” Alex said slowly, glancing over at her. “You’re saying you don’t need any more staff.”

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