Page 50 of While She Sleeps

Orion stares at him for a beat before nodding, which is odd.

Was that explanation just a cover?

And if it was, what was Orion doing while he was missing from the table?

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

ORION

Fucking Killian.

The man is the bane of my existence at the best of times, but right now, I could strangle him in the middle of the bustling restaurant.

Which I can’t do for a multitude of reasons.

One, because it’s busy as hell, and that’s how you end up in a prison cell.

Two, because he’s the only person other than me who can run our business, which I need when I finally make Ember mine.

And three, the woman across from us likely wouldn’t be a fan of watching me murder someone.

She looks up at me with brows pulled together. She knows Killian’s excuse was a lie. Of course she does. She reads people for a living. She’s the best fucking thief in the city, which means she can see through a lie without so much as blinking.

I kick the leg of the chair Killian is sitting in, the same one I vacated to chase off the threat to Ember. “Can I talk to you for a second?”

He nods and gives Ember a smile, which doesn’t help his cause for ending up in a shallow grave. If I could stop all men from looking at my woman, I sure as hell would.

But I can’t, and I need Killian to be able to look after her when I’m not around to keep her safe.

We take a few steps from the table, but I make sure I have a clear view of Ember as she toys with the bracelet on her wrist.

“What happened?” Killian asks. “I noticed a few guys skulking around, which is why I approached the table.”

“Not to talk shit about me?” I snap.

He chuckles. “You’re so gone for this girl, it’s fucking crazy.” He shakes his head. “Now answer my question.”

I suck in an irritated breath. “There were two guys parked out front. Said they were just supposed to distract me so they could get Ember out.”

He rubs a hand down his face. “Any information about who ordered the extraction?”

“No,” I growl. “I came back inside as soon as they told me that.”

“Effectively confirming that you’re attached to Ember,” Killian provides very unhelpfully.

“Yes.” Perhaps before I sprinted back into the building like my ass was on fire, I could have claimed Ember was nothing more than a passing interest, or a piece of ass I wanted to get a piece of. But I showed my hand, and I have no doubt the assholes from the van are going to report back to their boss, if they haven’t already.

“You need to move her into your penthouse. Like, tonight.”

“And how exactly do you propose I do that?”

“I don’t know. But make it fucking happen, because as soon as you showed an interest in her, you put a target on her back.”

Killian stalks off without another word, but he does give Ember a quick wave as he heads toward the exit. The asshole is right, and as always, I hate it.

But alas, there’s a reason I made him my number two, and why I’ve kept him around all these years.

I step back to the table and slip into my chair, while Ember keeps her eyes trained on the empty plate in front of her.

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