Too bad he wasn’t going to get the chance to get to know her better. He turned back to Valin. “I think it’s about time we took our leave.”
Valin shook his head, his bourbon eyes darkening with determination. “I’m staying.”
Annie wasn’t the only warped mind here. Bennett pierced Valin with a don’t-be-a-blimey-idiot look. “Think that’s a good idea, mate?” And then when that didn’t knock any sense into him he asked, “What do I tell Senior?”
“Tell him I’ve infiltrated the ranks and will contact him when I’m able,” he said sarcastically, but Bennett couldn’t help but note that his eyes drifted to a room a short ways down the hall. Aw, crap. A hundred pounds that was Gabriella’s room. A thousand on top of it she was the source of both Valin’s frustration and his despair.
The troops had sure been falling as of late. Thank the Lord he was made of more indifferent stuff than that. Women were women were women, and as long as he could convince one of them to offer up her soft, sweet body for his pleasure it was all good.
“You’re not planning on coming back, are you?” he asked in a low voice, trying to steal some privacy for this rather private conversation.
Valin stared back at him, unblinking.
“Bloody hell, Valin. The kind of mood Senior’s in, he’ll put a price on your head.”
“You looking to collect?”
Bennett recoiled. “God, no. But I don’t understand why you’re pissing it all away.”
“All what? What am I pissing away? You know at Haven I’m nothing more than a second-class Paladin. Only one of lower rank is Roland and you don’t see him banging on the doors to get in.”
Valin’s voice had risen as he spoke. Bennett glanced over his shoulder at the three people doing their best to listen in on the conversation. Other than perhaps Annie—who’d already proven she was a bit touched in the head—there were no welcoming faces there.
“You think it’s going to be any different here?” he asked as quietly as he could.
“They’ll get used to me.” Valin pushed away from Bennett, turning down the hall toward the room he’d glanced at. “Now if you’ll excuse me. I’m going to get dressed.”
“Goddamn it! Does no one give a shit that I have a fucking gun?” Aaron started after Valin, his steps faltering as he passed Annie. He turned on his heel, walking backward as he pointed at Keon. “Stay with them. And this time shoot his ass if he so much as moves.”
Keon flashed a brilliant white smile in answer. When Aaron was out of hearing range he turned to Bennett, eyeing him up and down with a pensive twist to his lips.
“You truly going to shoot me?” Bennett asked, a bit pissed at the complete lack of trust. He’d disarmed them, not attacked them, and only then to prevent bloodshed that had the potential to lead to outright war. Valin may’ve been right that he wasn’t high on Senior’s favorites list, but Bennett was at least mid-list and they both were Paladin…and in Senior’s mind these soldiers were not.
Keon lifted and dropped his shoulders, looking a bit chagrined but not really all that pissed. “Might be easier if you hadn’t bent the damn cartridge.” He held up the magazine cartridge, showing the dented corner at the top. “What are you—fucking Superman?”
Bennett figured the bent corner had nothing to do with him but rather the fact that it was an old gun. It had probably already been bent and just needed a ginger touch to get it to slide home. Kind of hard when your hands were shaking. Despite the bravado he’d shown, Keon was rattled.
“Sorry about that, mate. Didn’t mean to bang you up, but I couldn’t let you boys shoot my mate full of holes either.”
“Yeah, I’da done the same,” Keon said, still fiddling with the rifle. Bennett held out his hands. Keon hesitated, but in a moment of stunning trust gave it to him. It took a little bit of coaxing and wiggling, but a few seconds later the rifle was back together and in Keon’s hands once more.
“Uh, thanks.”
“No problem, mate,” he replied, then took up a folded-arm stance against the wall to wait.
Taking a page from Bennett’s book, Keon assumed a similar pose kitty-corner across the hall. For show he kept the rifle lifted, but Bennett noted that it wasn’t precisely aimed at him either.
Annie, who’d watched the entire exchange, shifted from one foot to the other and then stepped across the hall to take up a bit of wall beside him.
“You know,” she said after another blissfully quiet minute, “you really don’t act much like the other Paladin.”
Bennett turned his head toward her. “And how is that?”
“You’re not an ass,” she explained.
“And you don’t look much like a pain in the arse, but so far, from what I’ve seen, you are.”
“Hmm…” She smiled, her pretty, straight teeth flashing against her rosy lips. “I think I’m going to like you.”
He arched his brow. “Because I insulted you?”
“Something like that.”
Definitely warped. He shook his head, leaning forward to look down the hall toward the room Valin and Aaron went into. No shots fired yet. That was a good sign.
“So what are you going to do now?” Annie asked, tipping her head forward into his line of sight.
He couldn’t help but notice how her tank top dipped invitingly low as she did, revealing just the slightest swell of breast. He swallowed, leaning back against the wall. Valin could damn well take care of himself. Besides, there were much more interesting things for him to pay attention to. Like the woman beside him who was looking at him with—bless the fairer sex—a whole lot of interest in her golden-brown eyes.
“I don’t know. Think your bother will go for lessons in exchange for room and board?” he asked with a charming smile. Hell, if he was charming enough, maybe he could get her to convince her brother to give back his knife and phone too. Man, that still buggered him.
Her brow creased, but then lifted. “You mean Jacob?” She laughed, a husky sound that ran down his spine and curled around to his cock. Christ, she had a great laugh. A bedroom laugh. And those were bang-me legs too. He could just see them wrapped around him as he pile drove her. “Maybe, but probably not.”
He shifted, turning so he was facing her as he leaned on his right shoulder. What he really wanted to do was box her in and press his throbbing cock into the soft mound that dipped down into her concave belly, but they did have an audience.
“Don’t suppose you’d be willing to put me up.” He gave her his megawatt smile, keeping his voice low and seductive.
She gripped her bottom lip with her teeth, running her finger along the collar of her tank top. “Maybe…but I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“You sure about that?”
She smiled, leaning in closer, but almost immediately drew back again. Out of the corner of his eye Bennett saw why. Keon had shifted, stepping into the middle of the hall, and he looked none too happy.
“Annie, don’t you think you should go tell the others that you’ve been found?”
“Why should I do that?” Annie asked, folding her arms in a make-me gesture.
“Oh, come on, Annie. You know by now what happens when you slip your guards.”
Her mouth turned down in a distinct pout. Bennett found himself frowning too. Why did she need guards? Or was this a new development since her break-in to Haven last week? He supposed that made sense. She was the person of interest in the council’s mind.