Page 5 of Crow Me A River

“None taken.” Misty sighed with a shrug.

Bruce stared at her for a second before shaking his head. “What the hell did your stepbrother get for you?”

“His ass saved.” Misty snorted, but there wasn't anything funny about it. “My stepfather owed Jack Crow money. A lot of it, apparently. Then the bastard disappeared.”

“And Jack went after your stepbrother for the money.” Bruce put two and two together.

“Yep.” Misty picked up another twig, snapping it in half. “Only he didn’t have it.”

“And he gave you to Jack.” Bruce’s eyes narrowed. “Damn.”

“I’m an unmated female Crow. That makes me valuable to a Murder. There are more male Crows than females. If you are unmated you are free game.” Misty hissed, thinking of all the trinkets covering her porch that morning. “I refuse to play the game.”

“So let me get this straight. There are more male Crows than females...correct?” Bruce verified with a serious stare.

“Yes,” Misty replied not knowing where this was going.

“What if she looks like she flew face-first into a windshield?” Bruce asked, then laughed. “Get it? A Crow? Flying into a wind⁠—”

“I get it.” Misty gave him a narrowed glared.

“I mean not you. You aren’t that bad looking for a...” Bruce eyed her up and down. “Crow.”

“Thanks...I think.” Misty gave him a sideways glance. “But if Jack thinks I’m going to mate with one of those feather-brained assholes, he’s in for a big surprise. They can try all they want, but this Crow is not mating material.”

“I need a drink.” Bruce sighed long and loud after a few minutes of silence, then stood. “You need a drink?”

“I could use a drink.” Misty stood and stretched. She might as well have one before facing the Alpha for missing the weekly meeting.

“Come on, let’s get shitfaced at Shift Faced.” Bruce headed out of the woods.

Misty followed him, trying to process what he’d just said before she laughed. “Shift Faced. Is that the bar at the edge of town?”

“Yeah,” Bruce replied as they continued walking. She could already hear faint music in the distance.

“Wonder if they’re hiring? I need to find a job.” Misty frowned, knowing Jack or one of his lackeys would eventually make an appearance for what they liked to call her dues. She called it what it really was. Extortion.

The Murder hadn’t done a damn thing for her since she arrived. What little money she had was quickly disappearing just keeping a roof over her head, and calling the piece-of-shit shack a home was being generous. The roof leaked, there wasn’t a bathroom inside and the outhouse out back smelled like something had crawled inside and died. Bathing meant finding one of the many ponds around the area, preferably one far enough away that she didn’t have to worry about some asshole stumbling across her naked.

Yeah, she needed a damn job.

“I’m pretty tight with the owner,” Bruce replied just as they stepped out of the woods. “If you need a job, I’ll get you a job.”

“Sweet.” Misty looked down at Bruce, who still seemed a little sad. He’d told her some of what happened with his woman, but she had a feeling he’d kept a lot of it to himself.

She stopped. “Hey.”

Bruce stopped and looked up at her. “What?”

“I know we started off a little rough, but if you need anything, I’m here.” Misty meant it. “And for the record...it’s her loss. So what if you looked at another cat’s tail? You didn’t sleep with her, did you?”

“I didn’t,” Bruce confirmed. “I can’t help if my eyeballs wander at times.”

They started walking again, crossing the crowded parking lot. Misty decided to leave it at that. She’d put it out there that she was there if he ever needed to talk. She wasn’t going to push him. God knew she hated when people did that to her.

“Same, Crow,” Bruce finally said. “I’m always around.”

Misty smiled down at him and felt her throat tighten. It had been so long since anyone gave a shit about her. She figured Bruce wasn’t one to get sappy and shit, but she understood exactly what he meant.