Chapter 14 #2
As I’d once needed to do in Damon’s presence, I forcibly restrained myself. The last thing I wanted was to scare my little doll away before I could convince her to be ours.
Forever.
“What are you reading over there?”
I snapped back to attention as Star reached over the counter for my book, and while I could have easily snatched it out of her reach—if I hadn’t been so distracted by her cleavage—I also didn’t give a shit if she knew what I was into.
“Blood and Secrets, huh?” she teased as she flipped it open to a random page.
“That sounds dark and mysterious… and spicy. You don’t strike me as the kind of guy to be into—OHMYGAWD, it is spicy!
Why didn’t you freakin’ stop me, Max? Holy crap.
” She continued to hungrily scan the page, despite her protests.
“Dude has another dude’s… in his mouth!”
I wonder if it was the cock biting part…
“Is that a problem?” Damon growled, understandably defensive.
I could tell Star wasn’t judging. I’d just caught her off guard with my extremely graphic choice of reading material.
Poor baby.
“Of course not!” she squawked, turning deliciously redder by the second. “It’s your business. Both of yours. And it’s totally hot—I MEAN, FINE! It’s totally fine. Ugh. I’m making it worse, aren’t I? Now I feel like I’m creepin’ on your sex life...”
Please do.
“You may creep all you want,” I teased in return, unable to resist. “I don’t mind. Although, be warned—I might see it as an invitation to share.”
Ok, maybe I’m not completely teasing…
They both tensed. She looked enticingly intrigued while his reaction was harder to read—unsurprising, since turning Damon into a vampire meant I was no longer able to access his thoughts.
It wasn’t dire, as I’d made a point not to invade his privacy in that way while he was still human, but every now and then—like now—I wished I could take a peek.
What do you think of our future third?
Damon’s gaze flitted between the two of us with an expression that could have been interpreted as either wary or worried, and for what was difficult to tell.
I could still get a read on his emotions to some degree, but “horny and angry” was his default at this point, and wasn’t providing me with better insight.
We will talk about this, pet.
Whether you like it or not.
In contrast, Star was a completely open book—and a deliciously smutty one at that—and the sound of her heart rate speeding up only confirmed my suspicions.
Along with the blatant arousal she’s pumping into the air.
“What the fuck is this?!”
All three of us turned to face whoever was eerily echoing Damon’s outburst from the day Star first arrived.
A stereotypical Valley Girl was standing beneath the roll-down security gate at the front of the store.
She was all shimmering Lip Smackers and French-tipped manicure, topped with boring, salon-blonde highlighted locks.
Even without her sneer, crossed arms, and hip jutting out, she was giving off enough attitude to make Damon seem like a harmless little kitten.
I do love it when he purrs for me…
“H-Heather?” Star’s voice was uncharacteristically wavering, and I immediately disliked this newcomer for causing the change in demeanor. “What are you doing—”
“On this side of the tracks?” Heather scoffed.
“I needed to buy some cheap crap to decorate the kiosk for the very busy Halloween season, and figured I could slum it here at The Mall of Losers without anyone who matters seeing me. Case in point.” She dismissively gestured at Star—as if that didn’t put her in immediate danger of me ripping off her hand at the wrist. “I shouldn’t even be surprised that this is where you’ve been lurking all this time. Painted up like a whore.”
HOW DARE SHE?!
Damon also reacted negatively to the blatant insult, although I couldn’t be certain if it was that Star was the target or simply the unnecessary jab at sex work.
Which has always been real work, thank you very much.
Then the bottle blonde strutted further into our store—our territory—unwittingly drawing closer to the two deadly predators in her midst. It wasn’t bravery that compelled her, but a singular focus on cruelty, as her evil gaze was fixed on Star alone.
Star, who was trembling…
The last time I’d felt this rageful was when a posse of half-wit humans thought they could hang my mate at the entrance to their one-horse town. I’d gruesomely dispatched those responsible and left the rest to wither and die on their own as I whisked Damon far away from his former life.
In the present moment, however, I didn’t want to leave Heather’s death up to time. I wanted to make her hurt for the hurt she was causing Star. Permanently.
You can’t kill the human, Max.
At least, not out in the open…
“You need to leave.” I came out from behind the counter and placed myself in the invader’s warpath, more than willing to protect what I’d decided was mine. “Nobody talks to my employee that way—”
“Your employee?!” Heather shrieked, peering around me to grin at Star like it was the best news she’d heard all day. “So pretending to be goth for minimum wage was the best you could do after Bodacious Babes, Brit? I guess I really was the brains behind the business after all—”
“Didn’t you hear, Heather?” Star bravely cut in, even as her voice shook. “My boss said to make like a tree and get the fuck out of here.”
Good girl.
I crossed my arms and nodded in affirmation, delivering a no-nonsense stare tinged with a touch of compulsion.
Get. The. Fuck. Out.
My power worked like a charm. The bobblehead shook her permed head in confusion before backing toward the door.
“Whatever, Brit,” she drawled, clearly intent on getting the last word in. “It’s good to see you’re getting exactly what you deserve after how horribly you treated me. Have a nice life, loser.”
And with that, the human with a death wish stomped away.
Bye for now, bloodbag.
When I turned to check on Star, my breath caught at how defeated she looked.
I wanted nothing more than to pull her into my arms, but I knew enough of modern times to understand that level of affection would be considered inappropriate due to our working relationship.
So I clenched my fists instead—playing it cool as the perfect plan to win over the girl of our dreams began to form.
I am going to murder Heather.