Veronica's Fallacy

17.

-HIM-

I drove her home even though I wanted her to stay with me. However, the guarded look she gave me first thing in the morning reminded me that I needed to take it slow with her. Otherwise, she'd grow more guarded around me, which was the last thing I wanted.

"We're there," I announced, parking in front of her apartment building. It was a cosy condo in the quietest part of the city. A good place but too crowded for me. I preferred the mountains, with my closest neighbour living a mile away. She looked around and tried to open the door but turned around and glared at me when she found it locked instead.

"Open the door," She demanded. I gave her a smug look.

"Kiss me," I demanded. She froze for a second, her eyes flickered to my lips briefly and darkening there. I smelled a hint of arousal, and it stirred my wolf. "You can kiss me all you like," I urged, leaning closer to her. She snapped and glared at me.

"I'm not going to kiss you," She gritted, turning up the intensity of her glare a notch. I knew it was all play because the scent of arousal thickened, eliciting my desire.

"Then invite me to your place. You have to do either of them. The choice is up to you," I proposed, sitting back and watching her.

"I don't want to kiss you or invite you to my place," She snapped back. "Now, open the door,"

"I don't feel like opening the door either," I shrugged, sitting there casually. I waited for her, wondering what she'd choose to do. As far as I knew her, I expected her to invite me to her place. I preferred that because it'd allow me to spend more time with her.

That's why when she leaned closer to me and pressed her lips threateningly close to mine, I froze in my seat, shocked. It was gentle yet heated. The way the sparks danced at the contact of our skin shook me to the core. My heart skipped a beat, and something electric shot through my body, shaking me awake.

It was a mere peck, yet it was the most intense thing I had ever felt. Maybe it was because it was unexpected, yet it was too brief for me.

"There you go, Grim," she whispered, a sultry look in her eyes as she returned to her seat. I was the one intensely aroused this time.

"That wasn't a proper kiss," I growled, reaching for her. A playful look bloomed on her face as she opened the door and leapt out before I could get her. Suddenly, it made sense why she kissed me— so that she could unlock the door. Clever.

"Be more precise next time," She laughed, closing the door with a smug look and walking away. It took all the control in my body not to follow her and demand to be kissed properly, on the lips and for the whole day, but I didn't want to push her. The small kiss she gave me felt nothing less than a miracle. I couldn't stop touching the place on my cheek as I drove back home, feeling giddy.

The first thing I did when I went home was tell Gunner to make reservations for dinner tonight. I wanted to take Veronica out on a romantic date and make her fall in love with me as soon as possible. I wanted more of her kisses, and now that I knew what it felt like to have her lips against my skin, I needed more of that at any cost.

Gunner seemed a bit sceptical but didn't make any comment and did as I told him to do before he started discussing the Underworld news with me. Someone killed someone; someone went missing; someone was found dead under mysterious circumstances; someone was kidnapped by someone for doing something; someone is blackmailing someone. All the usual stuff I couldn't care less about.

"Did you look up Victor Stein?" I asked him, unable to stop thinking about Veronica. I needed to have something on him to leverage it. I remembered her playful laugh and smug look as she walked away after the kiss. I would show her what it was like to play with me.

"Yeah," Gunner nodded, "Just the usual stuff— council member, member of the intelligence department, cracked some hard cases. He was seen outside his office for the last time six months ago. We need to know if he's dead or alive,"

"I can do that," I nodded, "What else? How many enemies did he have?"

"Too many to be named. He was too involved with some of the Underlords," Gunner informed, his tone formidable.

"Like who?" I pushed, looking through the Reaper Scrolls of the past six months to find Victor's name on it.

"Like Arkadius," Gunner replied, and I froze, narrowing my eyes at him.

"Are you serious?" I asked, not able to believe my ears. "Fucking Arkadius?"

"I have no reasons to be joking here," Gunner replied grimly, and I searched through the scrolls more frantically. Meanwhile, a tense silence descended between us. "I hope he's dead. It'd be better than being caught by Arkadius," Gunner grimaced.

"Fuck that shit," I muttered, looking through the scrolls filled with the names of the dead people, hoping Victor's name would be on it. "If he's with Arkadius, I'm giving up," I groaned.

"Or you could use this as the perfect opportunity to reunite with him," Gunner offered.

"Are you on acid again? I swear you say the dumbest shit sometimes," I shot at him.

"I mean what I said. It has been a long time since you've seen each other. It'd be best if you two met up and set things right. You cannot keep avoiding Arkadious forever, Grim. You'd have to face him one time or the other. He's your—" Gunner fell silent abruptly after getting a sharp look from me. "I have to make the dinner reservations," He muttered, storming away, leaving me alone with the scrolls.

I searched through them repeatedly, but Victor Stein's name was not there. It meant two things— he was alive and hiding somewhere or someone had captured him. It was after a long time in my life that finding out someone was alive bothered me this much.

This wasn't a good thing. At all.

~

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