Page 15 of Shadows of Nightshade
I could feel their eyes following my movements, as I grabbed my purse and made for the door. “Thank you for the tea,” I couldn’t be entirely ungrateful.
Someone moved after me, but I ignored them. There was nothing else that could be said.
I opened the door only to come face-to-chest with my giant, lumberjack stalker.
My pulse jumped in alarm. He actually followed me to the house? How persistent.
“Titus—” Damen was right behind me. “What happened to your face?”
Titus—apparently, thatwashis real name—was looking at me with his striking eyes. Even though his face was blotchy and those same eyes were watery and swollen, he was still somehow breathtaking.
My heart thundered with fear—for a different reason this time. Not only was this man Damen’s friend, but now there was the stark reality that I’d maced him.
Sure, he’d been creepy, but things were different now. He was no longer a random stranger on the street.
I was going to get the crap kicked out of me.
“You were coming here?” Titus asked me. “Why didn’t you just say so?”
Surely there was a witty response at hand, but I couldn’t think of it. My mental limit for the day had been reached. All I knew was that I was about to receive swift retribution.
“Titus?” Julian approached as well, sounding worried.
This was bad. Soon they would all know what I had done. And when that happened, they’d think I was crazy. Plus, they would certainly be angry. Of course, they would; friends shouldalways defend each other.
Titus frowned and reached for my shoulder and my heart stilled.
More touch. The very thing that had me terrified from the first moment I saw him. The edges of my vision blacked. So, I did the only thing left for a sensible young woman to do in this kind of situation.
I kicked him in the balls and hightailed it out of there.
5
I wasn’tsure if the guys were adept at tracking, so I had no choice but to change my escape route. It was only after I had arrived at the bus stop—with my hair tangled and clothes covered in burdocks—that I realized it was obvious I’d come here anyway. So really, my painful trek through the woods had been for nothing.
It was not my brightest moment.
However, no one had come after me. Not even for revenge for Titus’s crushed balls. I could only hope that their lack of initiative didn’t mean they were planning something far more sinister.
I wouldn’t have been terribly concerned if it were only Miles, Julian, Dr. Stephens, or even Damen, seeking revenge. The worst they’d do would be make fun of me—or maybe lock me in an insane asylum. That, I could handle.
No. It was Titus who concerned me the most. There was something unsettling about him, and it scared me witless. It also didn’t help to know that, since he hadn’t lied about his name, maybe he was telling the truth about everything else, too.
He owned asecurity company. I read things on the internet that made me wonder—colorful stories about corrupt security companies with ties to the Mafia.
It made sense and correlated with my earlier suspicions. Especially given the context of Dr. Stephens’s statement regarding their ritualistic meetings. Heck, they’d even said some pretty weird things while I was there.
Clearly, they thought they were members of some sort of special club and were blinded with delusions of grandeur.
And Titus did seem like the type to belong to the underworld. All he needed to do was switch out the plaid with leather.
I couldn’t trust any of them.
But at least they seemed to be going to let me flee with the remainder of my pride intact.
It was barelyan hour after I returned to Professor Hamway’s house before Miles and Titus arrived. How had they even known where she lived? Did professors exchange addresses?
This, of course, reinforced my earlier theory—Titus was dangerous, swift, and resourceful.
