Nester felt as if he were invading Pyke’s personal space, his home, and Nester hated feeling like a burden, although Pyke hadn’t said he was.
Pyke returned, fully clothed now. What a shame. Nester might be frightened of the guy, but there was no denying how sexy he was and what a banging body he had.
Nester’s fingers tingled to run through Pyke’s facial hair. He wanted to nip Pyke’s chin, and then…whoa. It was one thing to be attracted to someone, but Nester was getting all hot and bothered in Pyke’s presence.
“Hungry?” Pyke asked as he walked to the cupboard beside the stove and grabbed two frying pans. “Don’t worry about starting right away. Take today to get to know where everything is. I don’t mind if you get nosy.”
The only thing Nester wanted to get nosy about was who Payton was and why he kept bothering Pyke.
“I don’t mind cooking breakfast.” Nester needed something to do besides sitting on his ass and watching Pyke cook. Besides staring at the guy’s ass while he bent to get something out of the bottom of the fridge.
“Nah.” Pyke straightened and set the carton of eggs on the counter. “How am I going to impress you if you do the cooking?”
“Why would you want to impress me?”
Pyke winked. “We’re mates, and I have to show you I’m worth keeping around.”
“I was thinking the same thing.” Nester joined him at the stove. “How about we do this together?”
Nester was dying to ask about Payton, but they were working in perfect harmony, and he didn’t want to ruin the moment. If Pyke wanted him to know, he would tell him.
That was his thought, anyway.
Nester snapped his head around when he heard the doorbell ring. Pyke had just finished the stack of pancakes, and Nester was scooping the scrambled eggs onto a large plate.
“I’ll be right back. Why don’t you set the table?”
Before Nester could say another word, Pyke was gone. When he returned, Nester nearly dropped the plate of eggs.
Right behind Pyke was a guy Nester had seen many times coming and going from the motel. The housekeeper was with him, too. Nester wasn’t sure if they knew what was going on, but this was too close to being discovered, and he needed to get out of there.
The housekeeper cocked his head. “Hey, I know you. You lost your phone. Oh my god! You’re Nessie!”
“Who?” Pyke asked as he looked between Nester and the housekeeper.
“The guy who killed Scott,” the housekeeper said.
This time Nester did drop the plate of eggs as he shot to the back door, making his escape.
* * * *
Pyke ran after Nester, but fuck, the human was fast. His mate jumped backyard fences like he belonged in the Olympics. He cleared the hurdles, barely slowing down.
“Nester, wait!” Pyke shouted, but his mate kept going.
He raced down a driveway, ran across the street, and was around the corner before Pyke could catch him.
“Fuck.” Pyke slowed, pressing his hands against his knees as he tried to catch his breath. He really did need to get out and run more often. He was winded, and Nester was gone.
Pyke walked back to his house and stormed into the kitchen. “That was the murderer?”
Lewis stood there gaping at Pyke, while Arlan paced the kitchen.
“Why did he run?” Arlan asked. “The sheriff already declared it self-defense. Nester’s mother is looking for him, too.”
Pyke cursed. Mike, the owner of the motel, had told him about some guy named Nessie, but Pyke hadn’t put two and two together. Shit. He needed to find his mate before Nester left town for good.
“Until I get the full story, I’m leaving the sheriff out of this.” Pyke looked at the table of untouched food. Nester had to be hungry, and Pyke was determined to find his mate.
“We could help you look,” Arlan offered.
“I can talk Sheriff Copache into keep things on the down low,” Lewis said. “Maybe I can even see if he’ll give me Nessie’s phone.”
“Nester,” Pyke corrected.
Arlan held his hands up. “Okay, Nester it is. Let’s go find him.”
“He’s my mate,” Pyke confessed. “I have to find him.”
Lewis cursed under his breath. “We’ll find him, Pyke.”
They left the house, taking their separate vehicles. Pyke had no idea where to look for his mate. Was Nester even from Maple Grove? If he wasn’t, then there was a good possibility that he could leave town, and Pyke had to stop him before he did.
Pyke’s chest actually ached as he drove up and down the streets, keeping his eye out for Nester, with his greenish-yellow eyes, silky blond hair, and plump lips, which Pyke was dying to kiss.
God. He wished he’d known that Nester and Nessie were the same person. Pyke would have cleared things up already. But Nester was skittish, and until he could get his mate to trust him, Pyke was going to leave the law out of this.
He pulled into the gas station when he saw the needle almost on empty. Pyke spotted a slim redhead and groaned to himself when he realized it was Payton.
The guy was out to make his life hell, and Pyke was just as determined to stay as far away from the jackass as possible. Payton was toxic, and his constant harassment was proof of that.
Maybe Pyke was exaggerating. The problem with their relationship was that Payton loved to argue. Pyke did not. Everything turned into a heated debate, and Payton hardly gave an inch. In Pyke’s opinion, that was no way to have a relationship.
If Pyke hadn’t needed gas, he would have pulled away. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t get far if he did. With a heavy sigh, he got out of his truck and used his debit card to start the pump.
Payton stormed over to him, his lips pursed and anger in his jade-green eyes. “Are you stalking me?”
“Are you fucking serious?” It had been Payton who had found Pyke in the diner. It had been Payton who had come to Pyke’s house early this morning. “You need to walk away before I lose my patience with you.”
It was surprising Pyke hadn’t already lost his patience. He needed a damn medal for how he’d been handling Payton so far, but he was getting dangerously close to the end of his tolerance. Before Nester, Payton was like a bothersome gnat buzzing around Pyke.
Now? Pyke wanted to squish him like a bug.
Payton leaned against the back of Pyke’s truck and crossed his arms. “We’ve always had a feisty relationship. You’ve never complained about it before, but now you want to fuck around with some slut. Why? I just don’t get it.”
Pyke counted to ten as he gritted his teeth. They’d been over this a million times, but it seemed Payton was oblivious to anything he didn’t want to hear. In truth, Pyke got it. He understood why Payton was the way he was. The guy had grown up with parents who argued all the time. It was bound to rub off on Payton, and also, the guy was lonely. Pyke knew that, but it didn’t excuse his ex’s behavior.
“Why?” Pyke replaced the nozzle onto the pump and screwed his gas cap back on. “As far as our feisty relationship, it was borderline abuse on your part. I’ve already told you, Payton. We’re over. Get that through your thick skull and leave me alone.”
Payton pushed away from the truck and balled his hands into fists. “Are you saying I abused you?”