Page 18 of Locked in Wonderland

The woman hesitated.

Henry stepped forward instantly. “You heard her.”

There was no mistaking the threat beneath the calmness of his tone.

The woman swallowed hard and handed over the bag. Queenie passed it back to the bodyguard. Apparently, carrying her own possessions was beneath her. I doubted she even wanted the handbag. This felt like a performance. A reminder that anything Queenie Hart desired automatically belonged to her. And Omar had claimed Kellan was the spoiled one. The apple clearly hadn’t fallen far from the tree.

Figuring I was far enough away to avoid attention, I lifted my drink and took another sip.

Nico’s head turned immediately.

The movement froze me mid-drink. Was drinking in Queenie’s presence a crime? Given how this had played out so far, it wouldn’t surprise me.

His gaze locked onto mine with unmistakable recognition. I saw irritation at first—annoyance that I’d ignored his warning and come here, anyway. It vanished quickly as his eyes traveled downward.

Slowly.

Taking in the tight leather.

Heat replaced irritation so completely it stole the breath from my lungs. Nico made no effort whatsoever to hide how much he liked what he saw. Goosebumps prickled across my skin. My grip tightened around the glass as my cock hardened against the leather trousers.

Get it together, Lysander. Think about Warren. He’s the reason you’re here.

Nico’s gaze lingered on my crotch long enough to make me wonder if he could tell I was hard.

Then his eyes lifted back to my face.

Try as I might, I couldn’t look away, the two of us locked in something I didn’t fully understand.

I needed to breathe. I needed to calm down. I needed… something.

For several long seconds, the rest of the room seemed to disappear entirely.

“Do you know him?”

Omar’s voice was the splash of cold water I needed to tear my gaze away.

“No,” I lied. Only, it wasn’t a lie, really. I didn’t know him. We’d met once, had one brief conversation, and shared a breakfast. That didn’t constitute knowing someone.

When I looked back, Nico had already turned away. Relief and disappointment tangled unpleasantly in my chest.

“Well, he definitely seems interested in you.”

“I didn’t notice.” The lies were rolling off my tongue.

“Sure.”

The skepticism in his voice was impossible to miss.

“If you don’t know him,” Omar added, “take my advice and stay away from him.”

“Why?”

We watched Queenie relieve another unfortunate woman of a diamond necklace. It was like watching a highwayman at work. Only in modern times, and they did their robberies in a fur coat.

“Because he’s dangerous,” Omar said quietly. “They all are.”

Across the room, Kellan stopped in front of a young man with his arm around his girlfriend. He tilted his head slightly, studying him with detached curiosity, the same way someone might examine an interesting bug they’d found on a leaf.