Page 57 of Flint's Arrow
Cyrus disappeared into the sawmill without answering.
“Shit.” Python took off after him. “Cyrus, please. The leather is vintage. Babe!”
The moment they were gone, the entire table erupted in laughter.
“Oh my god,” Pax wheezed, holding his stomach. “Did he just…”
“Weaponized masturbation,” Storm finished, wiping his eyes. “That’s new.”
“That’s Cyrus being pissed,” Devon corrected, grinning. “Python’s going to be groveling for days. We did warn him.”
“It was worth it, though,” Levi said, raising his beer. “Arrow handled Patterson, the agency backed off, and we protected our own.”
“To family,” Calvin added.
“To family,” everyone echoed, clinking bottles.
Arrow’s shoulders relaxed as Flint sat down again, overwhelmed but in an entirely different way. His new friends had risked Cyrus’s anger - and in Python’s case, the wrath of a bear shifter and a stained Maserati backseat - to support him. They’d shown up without being asked, backed his play without question, and were now celebrating his victory like it was their own.
Because it was. Somehow, Arrow had found his people, despite himself.
Flint leaned his head against his shoulder. “Welcome to the Alley, babe. Where the drama is constant, the loyalty is absolute, and someone’s always in trouble with their mate.”
“Usually Python,” Wren added helpfully.
“Hey, I resent that. It’s at least forty percent Storm.”
“Thirty percent,” Storm argued. “And that’s generous.”
Arrow watched them bicker, watched Pax steal more pie, and watched as Levi and Calvin started debating the merits of different wood stains for their next furniture project.This is my new normal,he realized. His life. His family.
Our pack,his wolf said contentedly.
“Yeah,” Arrow murmured, pulling Flint closer. “Our pack.”
Chapter Nineteen
“You need to laugh more,” Flint said into his small microphone, keeping his voice low. “Let him think you’re charmed by him.” He shifted his position on the rooftop across the street, adjusting his scope to keep Arrow and the mark centered in his field of view. Through the crosshairs, he watched his mate lean against the bar, a picture of casual elegance and practiced charm. The target - a hedge fund manager named Bancroft who’d been trafficking omega shifters through fake adoption agencies - gestured expansively, already three drinks in and warming to Arrow’s attention.
“I’m laughing,” Arrow protested. Right on cue, he threw his head back at something Bancroft said, the movement drawing attention to the long line of his throat. Several people at the bar turned to look.
Show off.
Flint’s snake hissed agreement, coiling restlessly in his chest. Watching Arrow work shouldn’t feel this strange. His mate had volunteered for this after Flint mentioned that in many of his previous jobs, he needed to lure a mark to a secondary location. Arrow had bristled at the idea of Flint getting close to anyone, flirting, laughing, or touching anyone to manipulate someone into following him somewhere quiet.
“I’ll do it,” Arrow had said immediately. “I can be charming when I want to be. I’ll be his new best friend, get him talking, and convince him to go with me. That way, you just have to handle the shot.”
It made sense tactically. Arrow had spent years in cybercrimes schmoozing with corporate types, and he knew their language and tells. He had the type of background that meant he couldslide into their world without raising suspicion. And Bancroft was exactly the kind of target who’d respond well to another sharp-dressed professional showing interest in his opinions.
Still, watching Arrow work felt wrong in ways Flint couldn’t articulate.
Through the scope, Arrow signaled the bartender for another round. His suit had been ridiculously expensive, in Flint’s opinion, although the tailored charcoal gray material hugged Arrow’s frame perfectly, and the burgundy tie brought out the amber in his eyes. He’d slicked his hair back and wore a watch that screamed money without being gaudy. In other words, he looked every inch the successful young executive out for drinks after a conference.
He also looked exactly like the cocky wolf who’d dismissed Flint in that bar six months before. Flint shook the thought away, keeping his eyes focused on their target.Arrow’s different now. This is just a role.
“So I told the board they could either accept my recommendation or find themselves explaining to the SEC why their compliance officer quit,” Arrow said, loud enough for the wire to pick up. He laughed easily and sounded so damn confident. “You should’ve seen their faces.”
Bancroft ate it up, leaning closer. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about. These old guard types, they don’t understand how the market works anymore. It takes someone young, hungry, willing to break the rules...”
