Page 125 of Specter Bred

I shrugged.

"You said you’re stuck in the middle and confused, so I asked about what exactly."

His grin faded, replaced by something more cautious.

"I guess..." he rubbed the back of his neck. "What’s going on between you and Maeve. What’s going on between me and Maeve. And now..." he gestured between the three of us. "Whatever this is. The unit."

Archer went still.

I nodded once.

"Fair."

My eyes shifted to Maeve.

"I know what’s going on between Archer and me."

Her pulse kicked at that. Then I looked back at Hayes.

"But you’re right. I am curious about what’s going on between you and her."

Hayes swallowed.

"So, show me," I said with a shrug.

He looked even more confused.

"Show you what?"

"Yeah. Show you what?" Maeve said, cutting in with narrowed eyes.

I looked at her, a smirk lining my lips.

"How you ride Farm Boy’s face, Teacup."

The silence that followed was thick enough to choke on. Hayes looked as if he had forgotten how to breathe. Archer’s stare locked on mine, heat flaring hard. Then realization sank in and her head snapped toward Hayes.

"You told him that?!" she hissed.

Hayes winced, holding his hands up as if surrender might save him.

"In my defense," he blurted out, "he used his alpha bark."

Maeve stared at him in disbelief.

"That is not a defense!"

"It kind of is," Hayes muttered.

I leaned back on my cot, watching them argue.

"I cannot believe this," Maeve muttered as she dragged a hand over her face.

"To be fair, I left out a lot of details," Hayes said.

"That’s true," I said before adding, "Which is why I need to see it for myself."

The temperature in the room changed. Teacup's scent sharpened first, and Farm Boy's followed a second later, tangled up in hers until the whole damn tower was thick with it.