Clearly Prince was an observant man who interpreted every gesture into a meaning.

“Careful not to read into me too much, you might be dyslexic. Had I crossed my legs toward Austin—a mated alpha—it might have given you the wrong message about the nature of my relationship with him.”

Austin cleared his throat as a warning not to engage in this topic with Prince.

“No, no,” Prince said to Austin. “I don’t meet many women who understand the subtle nuances behind posture and the messages behind body language.” He regarded me with his gaze. “Then why not put both feet flat on the floor?”

“Because that’s not how a lady sits, and I would appear closed off since I’m not facing anyone. This conversation involves me, so it’s important I show I’m honest with nothing to hide. Crossing my legs in your direction is not about me showing interest; it’s about giving you my attention and trust.”

He silently studied me with a closed-lip smile. Austin appeared hesitant to interrupt, so I saved him the agony of watching his friend flirt with me.

“A human purchased the club I work at, and many others. He’s behind a series of kidnappings, and it turns out he’s using these girls for cage fights.”

Prince’s smile withered, replaced by a frightening expression.

Austin crossed one foot over his knee, then set both feet on the ground and widened his legs. “Last night we broke into Delgado’s house and rescued two Shifters.”

“You broke in,” Prince said flatly. “Without a warrant?”

“We had enough evidence. He’d made Naya an offer to work for him as a cage fighter.”

Prince slanted his eyes toward me. “Is that so?”

I picked at my nail, deciding a manicure was in order. “Someone like me is valuable to a man like him.”

“We expected him to call back, but he’s gone silent. That makes me nervous,” Austin admitted. “I don’t expect he’ll come busting through my door, but a man with that much money could buy off someone in a position of authority to take me down. By force or false charges. Either way, the unknown kept me up all night.”

“How many of his men did you kill?”

“Two confirmed. The others were left tied up or unconscious. We moved the girl to a safe, undisclosed location, so that leaves us with the young Shifter. From what they told me, he’s not in good condition. He might have skipped town by now. That’s what any sane person who’s not in a pack would do.”

Prince turned his head and stared at the black television. “How did a human purchase our clubs to begin with?”

“It’s been going on for years. Somehow he got his foot in the door long enough to make some good money—enough to pay someone off. Maybe selling drugs to humans is one way he got started, but he’s our problem now. We can’t touch him because the Breed laws prevent us from going after humans. That’s his shield.”