Deathtrap (Crossbreed #3)(70)
She blurted out a laugh and let go of my hand. “I’m not sure what you mean. I’ve never had accidental sex before. And feeling close to someone doesn’t automatically mean I’m going to share bodily fluids with them.”
I scratched the back of my head. “That’s one way to put it. Look, I didn’t mean to offend you or anything. I’m still trying to work on my people skills. I lived alone on the streets for a long time. That’s no excuse, but I lost my filter somewhere along the way.”
She worried her lip, her violet eyes wide and doe-like. “Can I say something?”
“Sure.”
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but if you’re… you know… lonely, maybe you should fill those needs outside the house. I don’t think that you and Christian will be doing the naughty, but if you’re afraid to get close to him because you might accidentally sleep together, then maybe another man isn’t such a bad idea. He certainly does. With women, I mean.”
“Is that what you do?”
Her cheeks turned bright red. “I’m too busy working to dwell on physical relationships. I’m not suggesting you should sleep around, but sometimes when people have trouble separating their emotions from physical needs, they don’t make the best decisions.”
I looked over my shoulder, uncertain how to respond.
She shrugged. “I just thought you might be dealing with something like that since you assumed I could accidentally sleep with Claude.”
Gem was smarter than I gave her credit for, and sometimes I forgot that despite her youthful appearance, she was over fifty years old. No matter how innocent she came across, Gem had acquired some wisdom in those years.
Nothing awkward about this conversation. Nothing at all.
I steered down the hall that led to Wyatt’s office. “Do you hear that?”
Our leisurely walk turned into a quick jog as we headed toward what sounded like a heated argument brewing.
“You just left me,” Shepherd growled.
We reached the doorway and stood just inside. Shepherd glared down at Wyatt, who was seated in his leather chair with a box of MoonPies on his lap.
“It’s not like it was a conspiracy,” Wyatt retorted. “We had to run—literally—and Viktor said we didn’t have time to find you.”
“Bullshit. Niko knew where I was.”
“I ain’t gonna sit here and argue with you. Viktor’s the one who calls the shots.” Wyatt tossed his phone on the desk behind him. “He’s on his way up. I’ll let him do the explaining. Meanwhile, don’t take out all your hostilities on me. Rollergirl bailed just like everyone else did. Why don’t you yell at her?”
“Don’t encourage him,” Gem said, sauntering into the room barefoot. She sat on his desk and crossed her legs at the ankles. “Shepherd, it didn’t make sense to bring you along. You’re volatile.”
“What is this all about?” Viktor said, weaving around me and approaching Shepherd.
I tried not to laugh. Viktor had on men’s pajamas. Just seeing him in silk pajama bottoms with an open robe showed me a side of him I wasn’t ready to see.
A sexy one. For an older gentleman, he had a nice torso and abs. Viktor looked like he belonged in a men’s catalog with a glass of brandy in one hand and a pipe in the other.
Gem was right…
I might actually stop ogling everyone in the house if I got laid.
Shepherd wiped his hand slowly down his black T-shirt. He locked eyes with Viktor and spoke, his voice calmer. “I know where to find Cristo.”
“How did you—”
“I overheard the call. Just so you know, I could have taken this information and gone by myself to finish it. But Maggie wouldn’t have wanted that. She would have said I’ve got a good thing here, but maybe I’m not so sure how good this thing is.” He folded his arms, pushing out his biceps. “If you can’t trust me enough to include me in a search, then I don’t belong here. I have medical experience. I could have helped Claude and Raven so it wasn’t all on Niko. And what if he’d gotten knocked out or some shit and wasn’t able to heal anyone? I thought we were a team, but you took off without me.”
Silence filled the room. Shepherd was right. You couldn’t punish a man for what he might do. Had Viktor pulled a stunt like that with me, I would have been tempted to quit. On the flip side, I understood Viktor’s reservations, but maybe they should have discussed it beforehand.
I felt Christian come up behind me. How I knew it was him, I couldn’t say.
Viktor clasped his hands behind his back, eyes locked on Shepherd. “You say you know where to find Cristo. Do you want to tell me how it is you came across new information when not even our computer genius could find anything?”
Shepherd squared his shoulders. “I can’t say. Are you with me? I’m leaving tonight. This might be the only opportunity we have.”
“He’s right,” Wyatt said, swiveling in his chair. “Nothing’s come up on the auction. I’ve done some preliminary searches on his name, but we don’t have any leads.”
Shepherd widened his stance. “Are we a team or not?”
Viktor rested his hands on Shepherd’s shoulders, his expression somber. “You have placed more trust in me than I have in you. It shouldn’t be that way. I apologize for excluding you on such an important mission.”