The Valkyrie Returns and Slays (Raven)

Chapter 66

Chapter 66

Right then, a guy stepped out of a slick, limited-edition Bentley. He was rocking a sharp black trench coat, moving with a smooth, almost godly grace.

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Those killer eyes-good enough to make anyone melt-locked onto the Century Globe Hotel's entrance. A tiny spark of hope flickered in them, so faint you'd miss it if you blinked.

As he headed for the doors, a decent-looking guy in his mid-twenties jumped out of the car and hustled to keep up. The guy had a chiseled jaw and gave off total "loyal wingman" vibes.

He shot the man a look, his face full of silent gripes-for what had to be the millionth time.

Then he spoke up, "Master, no way the one you're after is here. Isla's just drooling over your face-she made up this 'I've got a tip' nonsense to reel you in!"

The man's cold stare slid over to him. "This time's different," he said, voice smooth as ice.

This time, he could feel it-she was nearby.

The assistant rolled his eyes, barely keeping a groan in check.

"Sir, how many times have you said that?"

He stopped for a sec, then pushed on, "How many times have you dropped that line? Last time, some guy said he had a clue about her and tried to sell you junk. You said, 'This time's different

"The time before that, a fortune teller fed you some crap about your love life being jinxed with too many exes. You freaked out, thinking she'd get jealous

your old flings, and shelled out three million to 'erase every past fling-except her, obviously!

"And guess what? Your love life's still a mess. That dude's 'curse fix was pure garbage. I told you he was full of it, and you still said, 'This time's different.""

"And the time before that-" he started again.

But the man shut him down. "Quiet."

His voice wasn't loud, but it had a razor-sharp chill that hit like a smack. The assistant's heart jumped, and he zipped it fast.

The man tilted his head a little.

"I'm heading in solo. Hang back," he said.

His assistant was way too good looking.

If the he wasn't half-decent at his work, he'd have canned him ages ago.

he tracked down his girl, this assistant was gone-better to dump him quick

vibe and knew exactly what he was

الله الله الله

in his pocket and shoving it in his boss's perfect face-let him

possibly think a regular guy like him was any kind of competition? Where'd this weird paranoia even

assistant lingered for a beat before

wasn't about loyalty—it was that his usually stone-cold, untouchable master turned into a total pushover the second she

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16:45 Mon, 14 Apr

Chapter 66

his master got so hooked on a lead that he let Isla play him, he'd have to take himself out from the embarrassment just to square things

barely stepped inside the hotel when he

kicked in, he made a straight

a girl showed

just raw, natural beauty-cool and classy, like a flower popping up

dress clung to her, flaunting a figure that could stop you cold, all while

was Isla Thornton, the campus queen at Regalhold

the guy, her

on him, and a smile lit up her face-bright enough to make everyone

excited, like a kid spotting their

stopped walking, his cold

face didn't twitch, even with her warm smile

at him.

catch up with Isla.

"Where's SHE?" he asked.

faded, and a hint of embarrassment turned her

fake lead-saying she knew about the woman he wanted-just to

her head, once he was here,

counting on her charm, and even more on a Starcard being too

to pass up.

thought Cassian would look at her-after three hours of perfect

first thing he asked about

had never

this wasn't the time

and she

flashing a

she said casually, waving it off. "I've

come with me first."

reached for his