“That’s what they all say. Right before they chop you into little pieces.”
“Call him back. He will have my number and address. It would be hard for me to hurt you when he had all that information on me.”
“I guess you’re right. Okay.”
I dialed my number one last time and gave the empty air on the other end the address. Thanking nobody, I hung up again and turned back to him.
“To your place then?”
“Yep. My car is just over here.”
I followed him to a little Honda Civic and climbed in when he unlocked the door. I was a little surprised that he drove when his house was so close to the bar he loved to hang out at. I wasn’t too upset though. Getting back to his house faster meant I could get to work on seducing him.
Regan was right in telling me to go through with it. Dylan would be a challenge, but I was ready for it.
CHAPTER NINE
His place wasn’t impressive, but I wasn’t there to do any home shopping. The only thing I was interested in was him and he had everything I was looking for. He brought me inside and led me to the tiniest living room I had ever seen. I was sure the dimly lit, drab brown furniture would have fit in the walk-in closet Regan had built for me. I looked the torn fabric up and down trying to figure out the best place to sit without having a broken spring poking me in the rear.
“Oh, here,” he said and put a blanket down over the love seat when he realized I wasn’t moving closer to take a seat. “I know it isn’t much, but someone needed a living room set, so I gave them mine and found this down at the thrift shop. It’s only temporary until I can find the time to get a new one.”
“No problem. It’s...nice,” I lied. Taking a seat to make him happy, I finished looking around the room as innocently as I could. There were generic pictures of farmhouses and streams but none of family or friends. I thought that was odd since I had seen him out with people both nights I had followed him.
I also wasn’t buying the no time excuse. He had plenty of time to go out with people and could have used that time to take care of his place. Regan would be rolling over in a coffin if he saw where I was in that moment. In my favor: the less personal items, the less they seem to be missed.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he said and hung his head. “I guess it’s safe to tell you the truth. My sister left her abusive husband with my niece and nephew. She barely had enough money to get out of the state, so I helped her any way I could. I gave her my couch, love seat, kitchen table, and the spare double bed I had. It left my place a little bare, but I rest easy knowing they are safe.”
“Do you still talk to her? Is she close by?” I didn’t really care about her, but if I was going to get him back to our house, I had to show interest. I also needed to know how tight their connection was because finding loners was safer than anything else.
“No. Not because I don’t want to, but because it’s safer for her and the kids. If he found out I knew where she was, he could get to her. I know she left Georgia, but that was all I asked for.”
“Do you have any other family?”
“My parents died when I was twelve. It was Hailey and me from then on. She’s the only family I have left.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.”
“What about you? You have a brother. Anyone else?”
“No. Just him.”
“Not much for talking, are you?”
“There isn’t much to say I guess.” I wasn’t there to befriend him; I was there to seduce him. That was proving to be harder than I thought, and I would have to step up my game if I was going to move things along. I had thirty days to drive him so wild, he would follow me down the dark, winding stairway to the basement where we held them before we celebrated.
“Not a bad thing. You speak when it’s important. More people could learn that gift.” He stood up, sat down, and then stood again. “Where are my manners? Would you like something to drink? I have beer, wine, water, and milk, but I would skip the milk if I were you. That stuff has been in there for a while.”
“I’ll take wine, please.”
“Sure thing.”
He took off around the corner and a light flicked on. The dim yellow barely reached into the living room. I heard him in there shuffling things around and figured he was washing a dirty glass as fast as he could without making it obvious. I had to stop the laugh I felt rising in my throat when I realized I had been getting to him. His way to cover it was to jump around like a jack rabbit.
Men were so simple, and most women complicated them by thinking they were anything like us. In a way, I was lucky. Regan found me and turned me in a much simpler time, and I was able to bring that to the table when we would hunt. The men loved that I wasn’t much of a talker or that I wouldn’t demand things from them. Most of the time, that got me expensive items before the thirty days were up when I was baiting them. It also made them feel like idiots when they realized why I had been after them. Most, with their egos shattered, were more upset that they were duped than the fact they were about to lose their lives.
Dylan could pose a problem with that. He clearly wasn’t into material things and was willing to go to items that should have been at the bottom of a landfill rather than to see someone else go without, but it could also work in my favor. He bought the whole car thing without batting an eye. If I could make him think I needed him, I could have this wrapped up in no time and Regan could be proud of me.
“Here you go,” Dylan sang when he came back with the glass of pink wine.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he said and sat down on the broken couch.
I took a sip and had to force myself to swallow it. If it came from anything but a cardboard box I would have been shocked. The bitter liquid seemed to hold on to my tastebuds with all its might and I wished I could rinse the taste out without offending him.
“Aren’t you having anything?”
“No. I had enough at the bar. Besides, if your brother doesn’t show up, I will have to make sure you get home in one piece. There are a lot of crazies out there who would love to hurt a beauty like you.”
“Are you one of them?’ I asked and slightly raised my right eye. I knew the answer to the question before I asked it, but I wanted to see him squirm.
“No. I don’t think I could hurt a person even if I had to.”
Too bad for him, I could.
“My brother should be here soon. I can wait for him outside.”
“No. You will wait right here. I have no place to go and I would worry about you out there anyway.”
“I’m getting pretty tired. I’m not sure if he will show up anyway. He sounded pretty loaded and he forgets everything when he is.”
“You were going to let him drive you home drunk?”
“No. I was going to let him drive here and then I would drive back. I’m not that stupid. I want to live to be old and grey.”
“Good. I thought you were smarter than that, glad to see I wasn’t wrong. I’m usually a pretty good judge of character.” He stuck his chest out like it was something to brag about. He was so wrong about me that I wanted to laugh in his face. Instead, I composed myself and went along with his little charade.