The crowd was silent, except for Craig’s ragged breathing. Ken turned and walked away without looking back.
Doug sighed heavily, reached down, and yanked his father up by the arm. “Take Ken at his word and stay away. If he doesn’t remove you, I will.” He released him roughly and walked off. “Michelle, get him out of here.”
Kane didn’t move. He stood rooted, watching, every muscle still coiled tight to see what this idiot was going to do.
Craig looked up one last time, voice trembling. “Monica, why do you hate me so much?”
Monica’s eyes were lifeless when they met his. “I’d have to feel something for you to hate you,” she said softly. “But I haven’t felt anything for you in a long time. Just leave us alone—like you always have.”
“You’re a bitch,” Craig spat, shaking with fury. “You kept a father from his dead daughter, and don’t you ever forget that!”
Kane felt something inside him snap. He didn’t move, but his voice carried enough weight to silence everyone within hearing distance.
“Walk away,” he warned, the growl in his voice prominent. “While you still can.”
Craig backstepped further away from Kane, his eyes wide as the woman grabbed onto his arm. They hurried to the parking lot.
As the sound of tires faded into the distance, Kane looked back at Monica, who stood where he had left her, grief painted across her face, and he knew in that instant that something had changed. It took every ounce of control he had not to follow that son of a bitch for even thinking of laying a hand on that woman. The feeling was so strong that Kane cursed under his breath, looking away from Monica. Never in his life had he felt the need to protect someone as he did in that moment.
“Shit,” he hissed to himself, now wondering if he was the right man for this job. Things just took a sudden turn.
CHAPTER 5
Monica couldn’t believe what just happened. Okay, yeah, that was a lie. She totally believed what Craig had just done. The man had always been one bad decision away from their family being on aJerry Springerepisode. What she couldn’t believe was that Kane was here. And not just here, but stepping in to protect her like some dark, brooding knight with an attitude problem. She honestly thought he couldn’t stand her.
“Monica, are you okay?” Doug’s voice broke through her thoughts, his tone full of concern as he came toward her.
She nodded automatically, but the expression on her brother’s face made it clear he wasn’t buying it. With a sigh, she added, “Yeah, I’m fine.” Lie number two. If fine meant her heart was still doing backflips and her brain was screaming ‘what the hell just happened’, then sure, she was peachy.
Doug turned his attention to Kane, extending his hand. “I don’t know who you are, but thank you.”
Monica watched as Kane took his hand, his calm confidence somehow making her pulse race all over again. The first time she’d met him, she’d been hit with instant attraction—right up until he opened his mouth and proved that being gorgeous didn’t mean he wasn’t an asshole.
“Doug, this is Kane,” she said, shooting her brother a warning glance, then looked at Kane. “Kane, this is my brother Doug.”
“So, you’re the one,” Doug said, grinning like this was already entertaining. “Not much rattles my sister, but you sure as hell did. Nice to meet you, man.”
“Is that so?” Kane replied with a slow grin, his brow lifting as he shot her a look that said, ‘we’ll talk about that later.’
“I told her she should’ve been working with you,” Doug said, leaning in slightly, lowering his voice like they were sharing state secrets. “Didn’t like her going off on her own. Having a Warrior around would’ve made me feel a hell of a lot better.”
Monica smirked when Kane’s eyes narrowed in her direction.
“I’m not a Warrior,” Kane corrected, his gaze still locked on her. “I’m a Dark Guardian.”
Doug blinked. “A Dark Guardian?” He turned to Monica, brow furrowed. “You said Warrior. What’s a Dark Guardian?”
Kane’s mouth curved in that smug, dangerous smile that made her want to roll her eyes and shove him into a wall. “We’re more badass,” he said casually. “And less known. We deal with more than vampires.”
Doug’s curiosity flared like a bonfire. Monica could practically see the gears spinning in his head. He’d been fascinated ever since she’d mentioned the VC Warriors, peppering her withso many questions she’d nearly strangled her brother multiple times.
“Yeah? Like what?” he asked, eyes darting between them.
“Demons,” Monica answered with a dramatic roll of her eyes. “He deals in demons.”
Doug’s jaw dropped before he broke into a grin. “Holy shit,” he said, looking almost giddy. He pointed at her as if he had just won a bet. “I told you there were demons!”
“You knew what she was doing and allowed it?” Kane frowned at Doug; his voice had a hard edge to it.