A Whisper of Sin Read Online Free

like all changelings, he’d healed the damage fast. No, this was simply the face he’d been born with. It had never really bothered him before, but now he rubbed a hand over his stubbled jaw and decided he’d damn well better shave before he went to check up on Ria.
    The shave and shower cleaned him up, but he was aware he still looked like a thug when he knocked on the door to her family home. He most definitely looked nothing like the pretty boy walking up the drive with a huge bouquet of roses.
    Shit.
    Why the hell hadn’t he thought to bring flowers?
    â€œHello,” the other man said in an Ivy League-educated voice. “I’m Tom.”
    Emmett held out a hand. “Emmett.”
    â€œSimon mentioned you on the phone,” Tom said with a friendly smile that failed to hide the calculation in his eyes. “You helped Ria last night.”
    â€œYou’re a friend of the family?” Emmett asked to see what Tom would say, just as the door opened.
    â€œNo, he’s my daughter’s fiancé,” Alex said, pulling Tom down for a kiss on the cheek.
    Emmett glanced at Tom. “You don’t believe in rings?”
    â€œIt’s not official yet.” The other man was calm, confident, clearly sure of his suit.
    Emmett didn’t smile, but the leopard snapped its teeth inside him. This human cub was about to learn that leopard males didn’t recognize any claim not acknowledged by the female. And Ria didn’t consider herself bound to this one. Even if he hadn’t overhead her conversation with her grandmother, nothing about her had spoken of a commitment to another. She didn’t carry Tom’s scent . . . and she hadn’t pushed Emmett away last night.
    Saying nothing of that, he turned to face Alex. “Could I speak to Ria?”
    â€œWhy?” Alex’s eyes narrowed, even as she pulled Tom inside and put her hand on the opposite doorjamb as if to bar Emmett’s way.
    â€œI need to see if she remembers anything else about her attacker.” Emmett’s leopard knew a worthy adversary when it saw one. Alex was one hell of a protective mama-bear. But Emmett had tangled with plenty like her in the pack. “It’ll help us make the streets safer for all daughters.” No, he wasn’t above using emotional blackmail to talk his way in.
    Alex dropped her arm. “Hmm. Come in—but if you upset Ria, I’ll beat you up myself.”
    â€œI’m not fragile, Mom.” A familiar voice, a familiar scent—soft, fresh, but with a lingering spice to it.
    He drew the contradiction of it deep into his lungs, his leopard keeping careful watch as Ria hugged her mother, then took the flowers from Tom. No kiss.
Good.
His claws scratched inside his skin, wanting out, wanting to do damage. Pretty Tom with his slick hair and flawless skin irritated him.
    â€œEmmett.” Ria looked to him, all big brown eyes and hair. “We can talk in the living room.”
    As he nodded, Alex took the roses. “I’ll put these in water. Tom can sit with you for moral support.”
    â€œOn second thought,” Ria said, making Alex freeze, “I think I’d rather go out for a walk—I can show Emmett where I was ambushed. Grandmother wants to talk to Tom.”
    Grinning inwardly at how neatly she’d cut off all options but the one she wanted, Emmett stepped out onto the drive and waited for her to join him. “You’ve done this before,” he said when she came up beside him and they headed off.
    â€œYou have to grow a fairly strong personality in my family,” she said, a smile flirting with her lips. “It’s a survival mechanism.” Reaching into the pocket of her coat, she passed over a folded piece of paper. “The account number.”
    â€œThanks.” He glanced at her features, frowning at the bruise she’d tried to hide under makeup. “Show me your hands.”
    She