Chapter 11

Killian Savage

I watch as Tori's rosy cheeks pale, and I turn a quizzical eye on the newcomer. Underneath his orange raincoat, he's dressed in a navy blue button-down shirt and a pair of black slacks that don't have a single wrinkle in them. His black shoes shine despite the lack of sun, and each loop made in the laces is perfectly shaped. Despite how old he looks, freshly cut white hair covers his entire head, and his beard is well-cared for.

He looks back and forth between the two of us with shrewd eyes, and it's then and there that I decide that I instantly don't like the guy. I stare at him with narrowed eyes as I try to get a read on him.

After she gets over her initial shock at being caught, she squares her shoulders and juts her chin. "Pastor Kent," she greets clearly.

"I see you're making friends, Tori," he says back in a carefree tone, even though I know it's anything but.

She scowls. "I have a lot of friends."

"Sure, sure," he murmurs, and then he turns his attention to me. He holds out a hand. "Pastor Kent Hilton."

I don't shake it. I just stare at him because I made myself a promise that I'd never shake hands with a snake again.

He drops his arm back to his side when he realizes that I don't plan on introducing myself. "I haven't seen you around. You must be new to town. Are you one of Tori's ‘friends'?"

I breathe deep and exhale through my nose because it's better than hitting him. "Yes," I answer. It isn't a lie. Though I may have kissed her and though we barely know each other, I've told her more about myself than I have to anyone else in a long time. That achieves friend status. Not that I'd know any different. Friends were hard to come by in my line of work.

"With benefits, I assume." His sly grin is anything but friendly.

I shrug a little and lean my side into the back of the bench. "Assume what you want."

"Oh, I don't have to truly assume anything," he says, waving a hand in the air and faking dismissal. "Tori has a reputation with men. Don't you, Tori? I'm sure you're no different."

I clench my teeth as Tori looks down at her hands folded in her lap. It takes her a moment to collect herself, to shove away the sting of his words before she raises her gaze back to his. She has a fight in her eyes as she asks, "Why are you here, Kent?"

He tips his head toward the lilies. "I came to take some lilies back to the church. The altar has been empty, and the lilies would brighten up the sanctuary. "

Her eyes narrow dangerously. "They're city property. That's illegal, and you have no right to them."

His chuckle pisses me off because it's so damn arrogant. "I could argue that you have no right to seek shelter in them."

"And why is that?" I nearly growl.

The asshole keeps his gaze on Tori's glare as he answers me. "They're a symbol of purity. With her lifestyle and her little side business, if you want to call that devil's shop a business, she doesn't fall into the category of pure. In God's eyes, she shouldn't be anywhere near them."

For a moment, my chest swells with pride because her nostrils flare, and I know that what he said may have affected her, but she wasn't going to go down without a fight. "Go to hell, Kent," she spits.

"Oh, no need." He gives her a look of sympathy. "God has preserved a space for me in heaven."

I highly doubt any sort of god would have the patience for a man like him.

"You know, the asshole who was chasing the woman I hit wore the exact same raincoat as you."

Truth be told, I've seen many people with that exact same coat. Derek probably pawned them off on customers just like he tried to do to me. But I know she was digging and probably trying to rattle him.

It doesn't seem to work.

He leans a little toward her and gives her a smile. It's almost as though he's grinning at a child for some nonsense they just said. When he doesn't seem to rattle her, he shrugs, rights himself, and heads to the lilies. From his coat pocket, he pulls out gardening shears, and as he snips his way through the flowers' stems, he says, "Funny thing about truths, they need to be backed up with proof. "

My eyes narrow to little slits as I drill holes into his back with them.

With the bundle of flowers in his hand, he turns back to face us. Tori crosses her arms over her chest. "Is that what you tell your congregation?"

He begins to stride in our direction with a smirk back on his face. As soon as he passes the bench, he says, "I'm sure I'll see you both around."

As soon as he's gone, I look back at Tori, who continues to glare in the direction he left. "You okay?" I ask, and I find that I genuinely care. It shocks me a little, but I brush it off for the moment.

She shakes herself at the sound of my voice and tucks her hair behind her ears. "He's such an asshole."

"He doesn't seem to like you." I can't imagine that many sane people would like him either.

She meets my gaze. "Yeah, he's made that plenty clear."

I tip my head slightly to the side. "Does he always antagonize you?"

Her eyebrows lower. "Any chance he gets. He's driving business away from my Wiccan shop, and he's trying to overtake my territory as a realtor."

"Hmm," I say as she looks back down at her fingers. I don't like the way she hides from me, so I reach, crook a finger under her chin, and bring her gaze back to mine. "You know I don't care that you've slept around, right?"

She laughs, but there's no humor in it. "You might be the only one. And Tegan. Kent has made a big deal about it since I slept with his grandson, and magically, everyone seems to have the same opinion."

I retuck a strand of hair that came loose. "I see no problem with the person you are."

Her forced smile fades from her face, and she searches mine for the truth. She'll find nothing otherwise there because I meant what I said. She reminds me of my past, and even though that should scare me, it doesn't at this moment. "Are you trying to get into my pants by saying nice things to me, Killian?"

I suppress my shudder at the thought of what that pretty, pink pussy looks like. Not to mention the way she said my name. I don't think she meant to, but it purred from her lips. "Are you saying you'd say no?"

Her eyes sweep my torso, and the wicked boss-lady returns. "Someone like you would have some wild kinks."

I smirk. "Someone like you has to have tried them all."

She considers me carefully again, but I note that she doesn't deny it. That's good for me because my flavor has never been vanilla. "You really don't care about being another number on my headboard?"

I lean until I'm right next to her ear and whisper, "I know that I've been dying to experience what your pussy feels like wrapped around my cock." She shivers, and I grin. "Are you sure you can handle me?"

"Maybe," she whispers back, but that one word holds so much heat that my cock hardens.

"Let's find out," I murmur, my lips tickling her ear. I pull away, and once I'm standing up, I hold out my hand for her.

"Right now?" she asks, her eyebrows high on her forehead.

I give one curt nod because, even though I don't care that I'll be a notch on her headboard, I know that she knows this will be different from the others she's slept with. I'm looking forward to showing her exactly that. And, I'm looking forward to finally quenching my thirst when it comes to all things Tori Townsend. Maybe then, my past will stop rearing its ugly head.