Page 34 of Savoring Her Snake

“Enough to know.”

“How did you get in? I locked the door.”

“Darling.” Right, a silly lock won’t keep him out.

“Why do I want to believe her?”

“Because you should be able to believe your mom. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case.” He cups my face. “It’s okay not to believe.”

“I’ve been hoping,” I whisper. Heath is giving me permission to give up. I’ve held on for too long.

“Put your hope in a different direction,” he whispers.

“Your direction?” I ask, wanting to believe in him.

“Yes, I won’t let you down,” he says, and I nod.

“You don’t have to give her money.” It makes me nauseous thinking about it.

“Yes, I do. She won’t be easily swayed. The amount will make her pause in reaching out.”

“What if she does?”

“I will be there to encourage her to stop.”

I shake my head. “I can’t make you deal with that.”

“I don’t do anything I don’t want to.” He kisses me lightly. “We’re leaving.”

“Because of me.”

“Not entirely,” he says, grabbing my phone. “The wolf hit on me.” I narrow my eyes as he places it in my palm. “The bear in the corner made his move. Quinn got into a fight when he tried to hit on Gabby. The bear's friends decided to defend their friend, and the others had to step in. The table is in pieces. One of them touched Sally; another got too close to Daisy. Fucking with either of them isn’t acceptable to Micah or any of us. There was some fire when someone grabbed Roxanne’s hair.” He guides me into the hallway and I hear the yelling. “Bram isn’t happy.”

“What did you do?” How long was I in the bathroom? We stop at the entrance of the bar. The room is in shambles. Heath’s friends are in a line, facing several people groaning on the ground.

“I broke the arm of the man who picked up Sally,” he says, and my eyes widen.

Bram is growling, standing in between his customers and Heath’s friends. All the humans who wanted to come in to relax and have a drink were gathered together near the front door. Sally is nudging one of the men on the ground with her foot, glaring. Micah has his arm draped around Daisy’s shoulders, his expression bored. Kingston is glaring at Bram, standing in front of Saphira, and Maverick is holding his mate's hand. Quinn is snarling at the shifter on the ground, and Stephanie has her hand pressed to his chest. Gabby’s eyes are wide, standing behind everyone. Roxanne must find the ceiling fascinating, and I follow her gaze. Oh, shit. There is a burn mark on the wood. Looking back, one of the men’s pants is singed.

“I can change their memories if you like,” Micah drawls.

“Fuck you. All of you,” Bram grits out. “Yes, that would be helpful. After you’re done, I would appreciate never seeing any of you again.” Micah kisses Daisy and moves to the crowd.

“What is he doing?” I whisper.

“Vampires can change the memories of humans,” Heath says.

“Like you did?” I tip my head back.

“Yes.”

“It won’t hurt them?” I ask.

“No.” He kisses my head, and I smile. I turn back to the room, and Bram is glaring at me. I clear my expression.

“You need to take a few days off,” he says.

“Bram—”

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