Page 53 of Incubus with Benefits
“Promise?” he asked, eyes gleaming.
And then Julian was back.
He stepped between us, handed me a drink, and turned to the incubus with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
“Find your own witch, Rafe,” Julian said. “This one’s mine.”
The incubus held up his hands in mock surrender and backed away.
The room went quiet for a beat. Then Gina laughed, low and wicked.
I took a sip of my drink, heart thudding. Whatever happened to friends with benefits? Another sip and the truth of it camecrashing into me. Julian was parading me in here on purpose, like a dog showing off his new squeaky toy.
I didn’t like it. Everyone would leave this room tonight talking about Julian and his new pet. That was the exact opposite of what I wanted to be known as. I’d rather be his nothing than the toy of the hour. I imagined everyone was already counting down the days before he got sick of me, then I’d be fair game and he’d be free again.
Hell, that was one of the reasons why I’d refused to come up here with him that first time he’d asked. Why the hell did I think this would be anything different?
Julian gave me a squeeze. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I said, bringing the drink to my lips again.
“I can see your aura,” Julian whispered, pulling me close and nuzzling the side of my face. “You’re not happy. We can sit a bit then head home.” He said it like it was our home. “Now that I’ve made my appearance, we don’t have to stay for long.”
“You mean now that you’ve already shown me off?” I mumbled.
Damn it! Why couldn’t I have just kept that to myself?
And why the hell was this affecting me so much? I closed my eyes and sent my awareness out, trying to pinpoint what was making me feel so irrational. Sure, I didn’t like the way things were playing out, but that didn’t explain everything. I was way more irritable than I should be.
I should just soak it all up and enjoy it instead. I focused on my drink, but all too soon my glass was empty.
The door to the room opened and Nathan poked his head in. He caught Julian’s eyes and motioned him over.
“I’ll be right back,” Julian murmured, brushing a kiss against my temple before stepping out the door.
And just like that, I was alone with the sharks. But I could handle this. I wasn’t some delicate flower.
I stood and made my way over to the bar to grab another drink. Maybe it had just been a tough week and I needed to relax. The blonde I’d seen on the monitor earlier sauntered over, her heels clicking with purpose. I braced myself.
She didn’t waste time. “So you’re Julian’s flavor of the month.”
I arched a brow. “Excuse me?”
Another woman with sleek black hair and perfect cheekbones sidled over. “Don’t be a bitch, Stef.” Then to me she said, “But seriously, Julian gets bored easily, so don’t get too attached. Besides, there are plenty of other flavors to choose from.”
I smiled, doing my best to control the bitch within, which was more like a mountain lion at this point. “Julian and I are just friends. So maybe don’t get your panties all in a bunch.”
The blonde blinked, clearly not expecting that.
The other one laughed. “I like you,” she said. She stuck out her hand, even as the blonde sashayed away. “I’m Jordan.”
“Lily.”
“Stef’s been trying to snag Julian full-time for ages. Don’t worry about her.”
“And you?”
“I’m here to find someone to help recharge my magic,” she said. “It’s safer than random hookups. And much less stressful than maintaining a relationship. I tried that once. It was like having a grown-ass kid around. No, thank you!”
