Alex pursed his lips. “Then her father is our most likely suspect.”

Yeah, Dominic was thinking the same thing. And that meant that the reason his mate had been almost killed three times could very simply be that Dominic was in her life. Fuck if that didn’t twist his stomach.

As they crossed the street to Ingrid’s antique shop later that day, Mila flicked a concerned look at Dominic. As usual, he’d come with her to the barbershop, but he hadn’t been his normal self. Oh, he’d put on a happy face. Joked and talked and laughed as she’d worked. But other times he’d sat there with his shoulders slumped, his mouth turned down, his brows drawn, and his gaze inward.

Whenever she was close, he’d reached out and touched her. Stroked her hair, smoothed his hand up her back, kissed her mouth, gave her hip a little squeeze, traced the bite on her neck with his finger. When he wasn’t touching her, subconsciously seeking comfort, he was unnaturally still—as if forcing himself not to make any anxious movements.

She didn’t need to ask what was weighing on him. It was guilt. He now believed that Pierson was responsible for the hit on her, and so GQ was blaming himself for the danger she was in. Which was quite simply fucking stupid.

Mila wouldn’t be surprised if he later announced that they needed to put some space between them, hoping Pierson would then cancel the hit. She’d shoot that shit down fast. The only person she’d let come between them was her or Dominic—no one else. “It might not be Pierson, you know.”

Dominic’s mouth tightened. “It’s likely that it is.”

“That’s still not a reason for you to be feeling guilty.”

He sighed. “Trey was right. I should have listened to him and kept my distance from you until Pierson’s little campaign blew over.”

Reaching the front door of the antique store, she rested her hand on it. “You’re not thinking clearly. Trey gave you that order after Pierson’s second article was posted. But the jackal came at me before Pierson had even had his first article posted, which means the bounty was already on my head well before Trey gave you the order. If Pierson is behind this, you wouldn’t have changed anything by obeying Trey.”

“Maybe not, but I was selfish. I didn’t want to be away from you, so I didn’t stay away long.” Dominic trailed a fingertip down the side of her face. “I should wish that I’d stayed away from you altogether, but I don’t. I can’t.”

“I’m glad you didn’t. You’re not responsible for other people’s actions. And I’m really not so sure it’s Pierson.”

Dominic exhaled a heavy breath. “Let’s go see what Vinnie has to say.” As she pushed open the door and they stepped onto the hardwood floor, a bell jingled above their heads. His wolf wrinkled his nose at the scents of lacquered wood, musty paper, and old cloth.

With one hand splayed on her lower back, Dominic followed her down the narrow aisle, taking in the wood cabinets, hand-carved dressers, grandfather clock, and oil paintings. The smaller items, such as the brooches, vintage hairbrushes, and shaving kits, were either set on display tables or locked in cabinets. He heard voices chatting, hinges creaking, and a dozen clocks ticking out of sync.

Mila came to a sharp stop just as someone rounded the aisle, almost bumping into her, and Dominic could almost hear her internal groan as she found herself face-to-face with Adele.

The blonde gave them a bright smile. “Oh, hi. How are you, Mila?”

“Good,” she replied. “You?”

“Great.” Blue eyes cut to Dominic. “Hi there. Hope you’re taking care of our Mila.”

“My Mila,” he said.

Adele chuckled. “I guess she is—lucky you. Oh, Mila, I heard Alex is back. You must be so relieved.”

“I am, yeah,” said Mila.

“I know it’s normal for him to go off alone for months at a time, but when no one could get in touch with him . . . well, I kind of worried something had happened to him.” Adele pressed her palm to her heart, blowing out a breath. “Thankfully, that’s not the case. And it means Vinnie will now have the answers he needs to get that bounty off your head. It’s just a relief all around.”

“It is,” said Mila, forcing a smile.

“Well, I better get going.” Adele patted Mila’s arm. “You take care.” With one last smile at Dominic, the blonde breezed out of the shop.

His brow creased, he looked at Mila. “She’s not like any pallas cat I’ve ever met.”

“You mean because she’s sweet?” asked Mila, her mouth quirking.

He pulled her close. “No, you can be very, very sweet.” He kissed her, needing a brief taste. “What I mean is that Adele . . . she doesn’t seem to have that killer edge, even though she’s a dominant female and one of your kind. There’s just no fierceness about her.”

“Mila!” a voice called out in delight.

They turned just as Ingrid came out from behind the desk and made a beeline for them. She gave first Mila a hug, and then Dominic.

He grinned. “Hey, Mrs. D. You have something on your head. Oh, it’s fine, it’s just a halo.”

Blushing, Ingrid smiled at her granddaughter. “This one’s trouble, isn’t he? My boys are expecting you. Go right on up.”

Dominic followed Mila through a door, down a narrow hallway, and up a curved staircase. The upstairs apartment was small but cozy. It smelled of lavender and citrus cleaner. He could also scent meat and mayonnaise, so it wasn’t a surprise to find Vinnie, Tate, and Luke gathered around the kitchen table, munching on sandwiches.

Vinnie urged them to come inside and gestured at the table. Once he and Mila had taken the empty seats, the Alpha said, “I spoke with Alex at length earlier, so I’m up to speed on everything. He came with us to pay John Norton a little visit. Norton claims he has nothing to do with the attempts on your life, Mila. I believe him.”

“So this was never about Alex,” she said.

Dominic combed his fingers through her hair. “What about your enemies, Vinnie?”

“This isn’t someone targeting me through Mila,” the Alpha replied. “I have plenty of sources. If someone had put a hit out on Mila to get at me, I’d know about it by now.” He picked up his soda can and took a swig. “Alex told me about the conversation you had with him this morning. I never considered Pierson.”

“You’re not convinced it’s him,” Dominic sensed.

“Neither am I, as it happens,” said Mila. “Pierson’s human, so how would he know about that website? If he was going to put a hit out on me, wouldn’t he have hired a human?”

Vinnie pointed at her. “That’s what has me doubting that he’s who we should be looking at.”

“I wondered about that too,” said Dominic. “But many lone shifters are guns for hire—humans use them more than our kind does. If Pierson spoke to one who didn’t want the job, they could have told him about the website.”

“Possibly.” His plate empty, Tate leaned back in his seat. “We could pick him up. Make him talk.”

“Yeah.” Luke stretched. “Humans always break easily.”