Page 90 of Corpse Roads

Striding into the kitchen, Hunter carries his charcoal suit jacket over one shoulder, ripping his blue tie off with his spare hand. My mouth goes dry at the sight.

Whatever Leighton’s stirred in me… that hungry, wanton creature is refusing to return to her sinful locker. Hunter’s tattoos are peeking out of his shirt, hinting at the beauty beneath.

“What are you two doing?” he asks suspiciously.

Leighton shrugs, his lips sealed tight.

“Ruining dinner,” I blurt.

Hunter laughs. It’s a deep, throaty sound that scares the living daylights out of me. I can’t believe what I’m hearing. Leighton looks equally unnerved as we exchange glances.

“You tried to cook?” Hunter chuckles.

Leighton glares at him. “I was feeling optimistic. I’m not that bad, jeez. You ate enough of my grilled cheese growing up.”

“We’re lucky the house didn’t burn down. And for the record, your grilled cheese sucked. I was usually too hungover to care.”

“Sucked?” he repeats in outrage.

Hunter snorts as he deposits his jacket. “Just order takeout. We have enough problems without getting food poisoning.”

Leighton claps his hands together and perches at the kitchen island while scrolling on his phone. He gives me a pointed look, trying hard not to smile. I drop his gaze before I embarrass myself.

Hunter definitely doesn’t need to know what we were doing. I’m still not certain he isn’t going to kick me out soon, and if he knows I’ve been kissing his brother, we’re all in for a battering.

“How was work?” I ask awkwardly.

Fiddling with his hearing aid, Hunter seems apprehensive. When the tension reaches breaking point, he finally stops avoiding me.

“You’re going to find out soon enough anyway.” He folds his arms while sighing. “We’ve been passed a missing person’s report. Could be nothing, but we’re looking into it.”

My entire body goes cold. “What? Is it him?”

“We don’t know. She’s younger than the other victims and comes from an affluent family. It seems a bit out of character.”

“Where?”

Hunter studies me for a moment. “A university campus in Leeds. She was walking home from a late lecture and took a shortcut. We can’t see past the CCTV blind spot.”

“A student on campus?” Leighton chips in. “Doesn’t sound like the same MO. This asshole wouldn’t risk getting caught like that.”

“I agree,” Hunter answers, twisting the tie in his hands. “The whole country is on edge. The police could be jumping to conclusions.”

Flicking off the tap, I attempt to dry the chopping board with one hand, but end up dropping it. Hunter plucks it from the air with ease, his frown trained on me.

“You don’t need to worry about this, Harlow. We’re only investigating as a precaution. I still think the suspect is in hiding. Losing you has spooked him for the time being.”

Helping himself to a beer from the fridge, Hunter removes the cap with his teeth, taking several large gulps.

“Is Enzo eating?” Leighton hums from his phone.

“He’s working late on some stuff. Order enough, we can set it aside for later on.”

“Gotcha. Credit card, big bro.”

“In my coat,” Hunter grumbles under his breath.

Leighton leaves us in tense silence. I can tell Hunter is watching me again, even as I hide behind a curtain of hair.

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