Chapter 25 : Afternoon Love and a Massage

The next day, my quarry stands in the kitchen, arguing over the menu for tonight’s dinner. We didn’t get to eat last night’s meal because we got a tip about rogue activity that led to a late-night stakeout and short tempers when we didn’t nab Rollo.

“No, no, no. You can’t serve steak tartare! And honestly, raw meat seems so primitive. They may be debauched degenerates, but Goddess forbid the dinner isn’t to their liking.”

Mr. Bricker spins around in a huff and stalks away from the chef, coming face to face with me.

“You’re a hard man to pin down, Mr. Bricker.”

He points outside toward the kitchen garden. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m overdue for my break.”

I follow him into the colorful vegetable, fruit, and herb garden. A cornucopia of freshly grown produce. The tomatoes shine like rubies, the blueberries like sapphires.

“This is amazing,” I say.

He sniffs. “Only the best for the Alphas.”

I gather my courage. “What did you mean before?”

“Just that if you had any sense, you’d le