Great, just what he wanted to hear. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, si—”
Damn it, he was going to break that habit if it killed him.
Sidney laughed and chucked him on his arm. “That’s right, deny it all.” He winked and took a seat. “Everyone, this is Tristan.”
God, a public introduction. Tristan wasn’t good at those. He barely did well one-on-one.
“Hey, Tristan. I’m Trevor, nice to meet you.” A tall, dark, and handsome man reached over and shook his hand. “Welcome to Crazyville. And believe me when I tell you Sidney put the ‘azy’ in crazy.”
“Shut up.” Sidney turned back to Tristan. “Have a seat.”
Tristan took a seat in one of the empty chairs, watching Quinn closely as he talked to Theo. Jealously was ripping through him like a lightning storm. He could feel his hands strangling his sketchpad.
“I’m Sammy.” Another man introduced himself. “I actually work here. But it’s my night off. Oh, I know, who works at a place and hangs out there, too? Well, have you seen this town? There’s nowhere else to hang at night.”
Tristan just nodded. The guy sure was a talker.
“I even have Knox working here now, too.” He laughed.
Tristan didn’t get it.
“I’m Knox, the man in question.” Another shook his hand. Tristan’s head was spinning with all of these names. There was no way he was going to remember them all.
“So, do you play bingo?” Sidney asked.
Bingo? “I’ve heard of the game.”
“Oh, then aren’t you in for a surprise. We meet on Wednesday nights. I’ll come get you this Wednesday so you can go with us.”
Tristan once again nodded. He’d never met people this friendly. He could smell shifter on two of them. One was human. And the fourth? He’d never come across that scent before.
“Oh, and this is Missy.” Sidney pointed to a barmaid approaching their table. “We were going to tie her up and drain her when we first met her. But since we found out she’s a lesbian and not after our mates, she’s just one of us now.”
Tristan’s eye began to twitch.
“You look a little green.” Trevor leaned forward, a concerned look on his face.
“That’s just his shirt.” Sammy laughed.
Tristan needed to get away. Not only were these people crazy, once again someone was making fun of his clothes. He couldn’t figure out what was so wrong with them, but being teased hurt his feelings.
“Excuse me.” He made his way to the back of the tavern, looking for a bathroom. Tristan ended up in a kitchen instead. He spotted a screen door and shot toward it. The workers didn’t seem to pay him any attention as he raced to get away.
Once outside in the back alley, he pulled in a lungful of fresh air. Now would be a good time to make a break for it. Before he became too attached to Quinn and before those people in there took him down the rabbit hole with them.
Tristan clutched his sketchpad to his chest as he ran around the brick wall and out onto the street.
Chapter Three
Hunter turned the order form around. “Check it over, Dino, and make sure that’s everything you need.”
The foreman glanced at the sheet, nodding his head as he read it. “Looks like everything.” He handed it back to Hunter. “We’re hanging out over at Theo’s. You should join us.”
It had been a long day. Maybe a night of being around friends would do him some good. How long had it been since he got out? A month, maybe two? “Sounds like a plan. I’ll be over there as soon as I close up.”
“See you there.” Dino saluted with his fingers as he left Hunter’s hardware store.
Hunter smiled. The foreman was one of the good guys. He emptied his register and filled out his paperwork, slipping the money pouch in the safe. Hunter shut the store down, walking the one block over to Theo’s.
He immediately spotted one of his friends sitting over in one of the booths when he walked in.
Sully, one of Alpha Zeus’s soldiers, was his good buddy. He clapped him on the back as he took a seat. “I know whatever you’re talking about is all lies.” He chuckled, giving his order to the barmaid.
“That’s only because you know me so well.” Sully laughed. “Where the hell have you been hiding out?”
“With all the construction going on, I’ve been chained behind that damn counter at the hardware store.”
“Hunter, this is Sidney, Trevor, Sammy, and Knox.”
Hunter nodded and reached across the table, shaking their hands. “Nice to meet you.”
“Hunter here runs Hunter Hardware if you haven’t made the connection.” Sully smirked as he took a drink of his beer.