Seduced by Chaos by Stephanie Julian Page A

and not deal with the customers more than he had to. If they hadn’t been so busy, she would have asked him what was up with that. She filed it away for later.
    Fred’s dinner menu pulled in a decent crowd every night but by eight o’clock, the regulars held down their places. The table of unsuspecting eteri nurses glanced at Cam and Stella when they walked in, their eyes registering Cam’s appeal then going back to their discussion. The two Enu and three shapeshifting versipelli males met and held Cam’s gaze for a long second before nodding and turning back to their companions.
    Wow, the guy should have a ring they could kiss.
    Her palms began to sweat.
    “Chill.” Teo’s voice whispered along her ear, raising goose bumps. “Cam doesn’t bite. But I will if you ask.”
    His tease had the desired effect as a smile curved her lips and she glanced up into Teo’s warm hazel eyes. “Behave. I’m busy and if I stop to think about any of this, I might run screaming.”
    Teo shook his head. “No, you won’t. You’re stronger than that.” He set the pitcher he’d filled on the counter so he could tilt her chin up with one finger. “You’re not making a mistake trusting me, Lacey.”
    She knew that. She just hoped no one got hurt because she’d been selfish last night.
    Teo must have read something of her thoughts in her eyes because he sighed and shook his head. “Deliver this then I’ll introduce you to Cam and Stella.”
    He gave her ass a quick stroke before walking back to his brother’s table.
    Skin tingling from his touch, she huffed and grabbed the pitcher.
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    The nurses, involved in an intense debate about trauma versus emergency, barely glanced her way when she set the pitcher on their table. No help there avoiding what was coming.
    Hell, she might as well cluck.
    Her chest tightened as she turned and walked to their table, more than half hoping someone wanted to place an order. No one bothered her and by the time she arrived at Cam’s table, she could barely breathe.
    Before Cam or Teo could say anything, Stella stood, a warm smile on her face, hand outstretched.
    “Hello, Lacey. I’m so glad to meet you. I’m Stella de Feo. You have a great place here. I keep telling Cam we need to get out more, but my stick-in-the-mud mate is more interested in staying home.”
    And just like that, Stella staved off Lacey’s panic attack and aligned herself as an ally. Lacey smiled into the woman’s pale green eyes.
    “Thank you for coming.” With her eyes, she included Cam in her greeting as Teo laced his fingers with hers and pulled her to his side. Cam’s expression lightened as he watched them, and when he smiled, he became almost as handsome as Teo. Almost. “I appreciate your time but I’m still not sure this—”
    “Lacey.” Teo cut her off, his dark eyes reassuring. “Give Cam a chance to do his thing. Please.”
    Well, when he asked like that…
    * * * * *
    The bar started to clear around twelve-thirty and at one-fifteen, Lacey closed the door, resting her head against the solid oak for a few seconds.
    Power infused the entire building, warding it against magic intended to cause harm. She’d paid the strega , the Etruscan witch who’d set up the wards, extra for an 73

    Stephanie Julian
    additional spell to warn her of the arrival of a Mal . So far, that spell hadn’t been triggered.
    Sighing, she thought about making a run for it. But how stupid was that? This was her place. Teo only wanted to help. His brother was a professional investigator and…there was that phone call this afternoon.
    Teo and Cam turned at the exact same time with the same intense expression. It would have been amusing if she’d been in a better mood. At least Stella’s smile was reassuring.
    Teo held out his hand and she moved without thought to take it. Pulling her onto the chair next to his, he put his arm around her shoulder and drew her close.
    His warmth curled around her like a