Call Me Thirsty
Grumbling, I took my sweet-ass time getting up the stairs. If Phillip looked over, he’d see I was salty about it.
Not that he cares.
With several backward glances, I tried to covertly check out who had come knocking on the door, but their voice totally gave them away when Phillip finally let them inside.
“Where’s V?”
“Resting. It was a long flight,” Phillip replied swiftly. Proof he was a top-notch liar, and I didn’t know how to feel about it.
“Bet it was,” Sloan retorted, tone amused. He chuckled quietly to himself, and the sound of it was like a melody of happiness. “You and I both know she’s eavesdropping at the top of the stairs.”
Phillip let loose a dramatic sigh. “Because she doesn’t listen.”
“Says the dude who literally does whatever he wants,” I clapped back and descended the steps, not even sorry. “And why do I have to go upstairs at all? It’s just Sloan.”
“Just?” Sloan asked, lips tilted sarcastically. “I thought I held a little more sway in your life than just Sloan.”
Sloan mesmerized me anytime he was near, so I had difficulty looking at anything or anyone else. He was the angel to Phillip’s devil. A total contrast, these two. Not only that, but the dude was runway gorgeous and looked the part today.
Out of his usual fighting garb, Sloan was a vision.
Sleek look. Tailored fit. Hair styled to perfection.
Immaculate skin on display, and all in a pair of shiny shoes.
It was all there, a high-fashioned masterpiece and utterly drool-worthy.
I didn’t really care about that stuff. You know, fashion and shit.
But Sloan made me wish I did. Maybe it’d give us more to talk about.
Had I always been this thirsty? Christ.
Either things with Phil opened the door for indecent thoughts and urges, or they’d always been there and only recently found a voice in my head.
Either way, it was becoming a real problem lately.
Phillip was one thing, but Sloan stepped into dangerous territory.
I couldn’t harbor sexual urges for a saint, and not after I’d finally gotten myself out of a weird three-way.
Get it together, V.
“Okay, you big schmoozer,” I finally responded, swallowing around an uncomfortable lump in my throat. “You know you’ll never be just Sloan to me. But also, what are you doing here?”
“I’m here to assist with your training. Would be a pity to let Phillip have all the fun. I might offer a perspective he can’t.”
“Is that what you’ve justified it with?” Phillip sassed, offering the man beside him a cute grin.
Sloan crossed his arms over his chest, clearly in a good mood. “Bet I get her proficient with the skills I teach faster than you can.”
“Oh, feeling arrogant, are we?” Phillip’s smile totally gave him away, and Sloan’s wasn’t far from it.
I expected it from Phil, but Sloan acting like a self-centered D-bag was a surprise.
Maybe Phil brought it out in him. I’d be the first to admit the Austrian uncovered a few of my less-than-appealing sides as well.
But two alpha male types flexing their egos wasn’t my idea of a good time, so I quieted and let the two men strut around each other like feather-splayed peacocks.
“You got yourself a deal. Whoever gets her to master their end of things faster wins—”
“A date,” Sloan cut in, light eyes sparkling.
Phillip’s expression soured. “You’re not my type, Sloan.”
“Not you,” Sloan replied, laughing loudly. “I meant V.”
“Me? You’re talking about me?” I sounded so damn lame, but Sloan brought it out in me. “D-date? W-why?” True to form, I ended the stuttering mess of a response on a weird cackle like laugh that made both gorgeous men smirk.
Christ. Magic to be invisible would help loads right now.
Sloan’s sparkling eyes were far too mischievous for my liking and took me off guard. “For the fun of it? Does it not appeal to you?”
“I mean, I’m not against it…”
“Of course you’re not,” Phillip remarked, sounding extra prickly.
“It’s just a bit of fun, right?” I snapped back, feeling a little salty myself.
The Austrian’s jaw tensed before he nodded. “Right.”
Sloan watched the two of us before patting Phillip on the shoulder and grinning. “Fair fight. No dirty tricks.”
Phillip’s grin was back. “You’re one to talk. I’m still not convinced you didn’t cheat to win our last bet.”
“I always play on the up and up, my friend. But thanks for the compliment.”
Standing awkwardly between the two bantering men, I failed to hide my interest in how close they seemed. Phillip really let his guard go down around the other Hunter, and his demeanor completely changed. It was adorable, really. A real-life Kodak moment these two macho men were being.
Still, I wasn’t sure whether or not Phillip disclosed to Sloan what we discovered back at the club despite how close the two men seemed. It was more likely Phil hadn’t been given time to fill the other Hunter in. But there was a chance he’d chosen not to, so I avoided bringing it up.
“Where’s Kris?”
“She’ll be joining another team of Hunters elsewhere for the time being. She sends her love,” the gorgeous Casanova remarked in his luscious voice, made all the more appealing because he looked like a high-paid executive. “Hope that’s okay.”
I’d have fantasies about this later, for sure.
“Of course,” I immediately replied, getting a small laugh out of the other Hunter. “Whatever you guys think is best.”
Phillip eyed the two of us. The Hunter was clearly not happy I’d come downstairs and been party to their weird bet. But what was I supposed to do, wait for him in bed while another man was in the house?
“Shouldn’t you go upstairs and rest,” my partner emphasized singularly, bright eyes sliding down my body. “Sloan can come back in the morning to talk.”
Sloan regarded the two of us thoughtfully, lips raised. “I could really go for a cup of coffee, if you’ll have me.”
Glad for the change of subject, I smiled at the captivating Hunter. “Phillip, you heard the man. Go get some coffee ready.”
Phillip’s face was priceless. He hadn’t seen my demand coming, and Sloan snickered before putting a hand over his mouth. To my eternal satisfaction, the other Hunter was already fuming by the time I glanced the Austrian’s direction.
Phillip leaned over to hover uncomfortably close to my ear and his fingers brushed a sultry path across my lower back, out of the Sloan’s eyeshot. “You’ll owe me for this later, you minx.”
Knowing that Sloan’s superior hearing meant he’d heard everything didn’t help smother the blush reaching my cheeks. But it didn’t matter when Phillip strode away, a smug smile on his lips.
Jerk.
Sloan didn’t stay after an evening spent chatting. He’d taken out a temporary lease on a place not far from Phillip’s to stay close by. It was both a relief and disappointment because Sloan was a lot of fun to talk to.
When Sloan was around, Phillip really shed his outer skin and smiled more.
Not going to lie, I liked the new side of the Austrian around his favorite bro.
It made the seriously jaded Hunter seem younger and full of life.
Like he was just one of the guys. Like we weren’t on the run and under the eye of the same people who created us.
Like he hadn’t spent over two hundred plus years living a tragedy.
Their cute bromance made my stomach all fuzzy and warm and filled my head with mushy-gushy girl thoughts, though I’d never admit any part of it to the man himself.
Thankfully for me, unlike Phillip, Sloan wasn’t the showy type and didn’t prattle on endlessly about how awesome he was.
The magnetic and physically perfect man barely mentioned looks at all, aside from mine.
Basically, the suave charmer called me pretty so many times, in so many ways, my cheeks were painted red the entire evening.
Aside from Nigel, no one called me pretty so persistently—and the fact that it was him and not Phillip made me a little bitter. Sure, Phillip made comments in bed. He glorified my body and sang my lewd praises, but it wasn’t the same.
I mean, not really.
Sloan’s compliments were a classification of their own, and much too sweet to ever be uttered by the likes of the self-centered bad boy. To be fair, it’d make me want to vomit if Phillip ever said anything half as sweet. Not to mention, I’d be convinced he was an imposter.
Sloan made such sweetness somehow palpable, though.
For that reason, Sloan wasn’t anything like the boys strutting around my school like they were God’s gift to women.
He had every reason to brag, but he didn’t.
Not for a single second. The beautiful Hunter also didn’t go out of his way to be mean or rude to me like Phillip did.
Although, I’d argue it was incredibly fun to be party to a back-and-forth with the Austrian when he was extra salty; much like he’d been the entire time Sloan and I talked animatedly about life.
Sloan wasn’t afraid to ask me questions or tell me about himself. He didn’t wear his jaded heart on his sleeve like my Austrian partner did. He disclosed as much as I was willing to hear, and I found myself increasingly drawn into the intriguing life he’d led.
Phillip didn’t bother to ask me about myself, and it made it difficult to open up to him. Not that he didn’t act like he already knew all there was to know about me. But between us, it either ended in sarcastic banter or sex.
Pretty sad, actually.
I wanted to know more about Phillip. I wanted a relationship that engaged our past, present, and future the way Sloan and I easily navigated it in our first real conversation since meeting.
Sadly, things were never that easy. More than that, I was afraid of things changing.
Of things becoming more than they should and our relationship edging towards something neither one of us was ready to move into.
With Sloan, it was safe. It was new and far less complicated. Plus, it was Sloan’s quiet regard and compassionate empathy that were a soothing balm on a tough few weeks.
One I hadn’t been aware I needed.