Hard to Get (Killer of Kings Book 4)(8)

“Your order is all there. It should be refrigerated.”

“Will your husband be joining you?” asked Amanda. Karen came up behind her friend, adjusting a sheer sash over her shoulder. Surely they knew Riley was alone and single. Of course they did. It was like high school all over again.

“Erm, no, it’s just me.”

She wanted to run, to be in the sanctuary of her own home. This wasn’t her crowd, not that she’d ever been a people person.

When a warm hand landed on her hip from behind, she jerked. Nobody was allowed to touch her without permission. She turned around, ready to tell the asshole to keep his hands to himself.

It was him.

Mystery neighbor.

Shadow.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked.

After remembering how to speak, she answered. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

Riley loved the look of shock on the other women’s faces. They appeared as dumb-founded as she felt. Still, she wasn’t going to waste this chance to get the hell out of Dodge.

“Keep it down,” Shadow said to Amanda. “Some of us have to work in the morning.” He led Riley to the front door with a hand to the small of her back. She didn’t object, not just because she was thankful to be leaving, but she liked his touch. More than she should.

Once they were outside on the sidewalk, she stopped and faced him, pressing a hand to his chest to keep him in place. “What was that?”

“What do you mean?” He wore all black, smart casual pants and open collared shirt. He cleaned up nice, but she always thought he was gorgeous in that brooding sort of way.

“Really? I mean, where are you supposed to be taking me?”

“You’re smarter than that, Riley.” The man had no expression, a blank slate with those same evil eyes. The evening dusk gave him a menacing aura. Her instincts told her she should be afraid, but she wasn’t.

She exhaled, running a hand through her hair.

“I was saving you. You told me you couldn’t stand fake people.”

“Why were you there? Trying to get lucky?” Riley couldn’t help herself. Half the time when she should keep her mouth shut, it kept on running.

He frowned. “I’m not interested in spoiled bitches.” Shadow began walking toward their end of the street.

Riley bit her bottom lip, following along with him. She’d assumed even her reclusive neighbor would fall for the Barbie doll looks of Amanda and her friends. “Well, thanks for that. You don’t have to leave because of me,” she said.

“I wasn’t there to socialize, just help you out. According to your rules, that should earn me a question.”

She smiled. “Sure, ask away.”

The street lights flicked on, the music from the party fading as they neared their homes. “You were in foster care since you were twelve. What happened before that?”

“I never told you that.” Her nerves flared up. How could he know that about her?

“If you were busting tables at fourteen to avoid turning tricks, I guarantee you were a foster kid,” he said. “What happened before that?”

This guy might be nosier than she was. Riley owed him an answer, but his question was way more invasive than asking for a simple name. She didn’t like to venture that far into her memories. They were vile, and she wished she could erase them from her head completely.

“Why do you care?”

“I have an inquiring mind. Considering you like to spy on me, I want to know what I’m dealing with.”

She frowned, grating her teeth. Her first reaction was to tell him to “fuck off”. She was good at that, putting up walls and keeping people at bay. But he was right. Riley had been snooping on him because her curious mind drove her crazy if she ignored it. She still refused to admit the truth.

They stopped in front of their driveways. She turned to face him, her hands defensively on her hips. “My childhood isn’t anyone’s business but mine. Besides, it has nothing to do with who I am today.”

“I beg to differ.”

“Then your childhood must have been really fucked up,” she said. Riley immediately regretted her words. She sounded like a bitch, but she was used to protecting herself with words when she felt threatened.

“It was.”

Then he walked up the path to his front door without another word. Riley felt like a royal ass. The guy had saved her from the party, walked her home, and asked a question. What was wrong with her?

Part of her wanted to chase after him and apologize. Again. She had no clue what this guy’s history was, and more than anyone, she knew what it was like to have a miserable childhood.

She watched him enter his house before going home. How had he known she needed saving from the party? Why did he care? A tiny piece of her heart hoped and wondered if he liked her. Relationships didn’t exactly work out for her—ever. She liked sex, liked men, but the long-term thing always fell flat. Riley was convinced she attracted assholes, keeping her dream of a normal happily ever after out of reach. Maybe staying away from Shadow was in her best interest.

For the next week, she barely saw her neighbor. She’d seen him leave the house once, and he put out his trash as usual. He ignored her as he had since she moved in, but it just felt awkward now.

After closing up late the next Friday night, the parking lot was already full, a mix of cars and motorcycles. The new bar in the plaza was attracting an unsavory crowd. A few of the units had already complained, and they’d only been open for a week. Riley didn’t really care since she was usually closed for the day before they started getting rowdy.