“I was, sweetheart,” Dev replied. “I was reaching a state of contemplation when Zack showed up and announced that you and Sarah were beginning a lesbian relationship.”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s not what he said.”
“Well, that is what I heard, my mistress.” He had a sweetly salacious grin on his face. “I quickly finished my rituals and got here as fast as I could.” He shifted his attention to the other girl in the bed. “Sarah, I will pay one million dollars if you’ll just kiss on her a little, maybe slip her some tongue and” —his fingers twitched— “play with her nipples. You won’t have to do much. They’re sensitive. Seriously, I can get it in cash.”
I laughed and shook my head because Dev would really do it.
Sarah looked at her husband, obviously expecting a little bit of outrage. “Felix? Are you just going to take that from him?”
“The money, no,” Felix said with a frown. “But if you wanted to do…all the things he said, I’m fine with it, really.”
“Zoey, I need to talk to…holy crap, are they naked?” Daniel asked, walking into the room. His blue eyes went wide.
Males are males whether they happen to be humans, vampires, faeries, or fallen angels. They all have penises and that means they have certain common reactions. They stop at the sight of two unclothed women in any type of close physical contact. Daniel stared for a minute, his jaw slack. I let my eyes roam over his body. He was in soft, well-worn jeans and a T-shirt that showed off those big arms of his. I couldn’t help but remember how good it felt to be held by him, to have him deep inside my body. I wasn’t sure I could handle another sexual encounter where he walked away like it meant nothing to him.
“Is that Neil?” Daniel asked shortly, his lust turning to anger just like that.
I tensed at his tone. “Yes, it is. He was sick.”
He made no comment on that. “I need to talk to you.” He said it in a flat, no-nonsense tone that made me think this was it. This was the fight I’d been waiting to have since the night of the heist when he’d turned away from me. He was going to do this here and now.
“All right,” I said, my voice shaking only a little. “I’ll get dressed.” I turned to Sarah. I didn’t want to do this in front of everyone. “Can you stay with him?”
“Of course. I wouldn’t be anywhere else. Felix can take your place.” She nodded to her husband.
“I can?” Felix repeated as though he would never have thought of it himself. His wife’s eyes were narrow with irritation. “I can take your place,” he said, now with utter confidence.
The men left the room and I slipped into a robe, not wanting to take too much time. I’d been worrying about this for weeks now and I wanted to get it over with, no matter the outcome.
I belted the robe around my waist and gave Sarah a little smile that came nowhere near my eyes. “Take care of him. I’ll be back one way or another.”
I walked out of the bedroom and Felix passed me on his way back in. Dev and Daniel were standing in front of the room Daniel had been using. The minute he saw me, Daniel entered. It seemed like he wanted to get it over with as well.
Dev gave me a tight smile and led me in. It was lit from the inside by a camp lantern. The atmosphere was ruined by the coffin and the look on Daniel’s face. He was frowning as I walked to him.
“What do you need, Danny?” My heart pounded in my chest. I already had tears threatening. Don’t let him leave me. Don’t let him leave me. Please, please don’t leave me.
He sighed. “Dev, do you mind? I’d like to talk to my wife alone.”
“I do actually,” Dev replied. “If you’re going to have this conversation with her, then I would like to be there. It affects me as much as it does Zoey.”
Daniel’s eyebrows came together in the little V they always got when he was concerned. “Fine,” Daniel said, his gruff tone belying his words. “Fine. I suppose it does concern you.”
Daniel’s arms crossed defensively across his chest. “I’m going to head out. McKenzie wasn’t interested in listening last night, and I just don’t see a way to get him to trust me. It’s a bust. You two are going to stay on and complete the ritual.”
I knew something he didn’t, but I really wanted to see where he was going so I held that ace in my pocket for the moment. “You don’t think it’s worth it to stay and try, Danny? He might be more reasonable after the ritual.”
Daniel shook his head. “No, I think it’s useless. Besides, I have to get back to Dallas. I have to meet someone there.”
I didn’t like the sound of that.
I also didn’t like the way Dev tensed beside me. He knew what was coming next, and he thought it would hurt me. “Don’t do this, Dan. We can find another way.”
Daniel’s jaw tightened. “There is no other way. You’re the one who taught me to use the cards I have, Dev. That’s what I’m doing.”
I took a deep breath. “All right, Danny, I’ll bite. Who do you have to meet, baby? Who’s so important that you would leave us behind here?”
He didn’t even flinch. He just looked me straight in the eyes and replied. “Her name is Tamara. I found her in Oregon when I found Joel. She should be at the penthouse by now, but I need to make sure she’s comfortable.”
Getting punched in the gut hurt a hell of a lot less than hearing those words come from his mouth. I could guess just what Tamara was. Danny had solved one of his problems, no doubt. But he was going to have to say it. “And who is Tamara, Danny?”
“She’s a companion, Zoey,” he said, making my fear a real thing. “She’s my companion.”
I quickly searched Dev’s face. It was tight and his mouth twisted down. That told me this woman actually existed rather than being a lie to get me to run away. Maybe he wasn’t trying to get me to run, I acknowledged for the first time. Maybe he was just sick of me. I let myself sink onto the sofa because my legs didn’t want to work anymore. I knew my face was red, and the tears were already filling my eyes when I looked back up at him.
“Did you already perform the ceremony?” I forced the words out of my throat.
“Does it matter, Z?” he asked quietly, his mouth a thin line.
“It matters to me,” I replied.
He nodded, accepting my answer. “No, I haven’t yet. I didn’t actually make contact with her until a few weeks ago. I intended to bring her in for one of the baby vamps. To make them strong. I changed my mind.”
“After the heist.” After I managed to screw everything up and get his vamps torched, I added silently.
He hesitated, but finally acknowledged the timeline. “Look, Z, this hasn’t been working for a long time. It’s obvious to me that it’s best for everyone if I just let you go with Dev. He’ll make you happy and Tamara can give me what I need. I need an easier companion. I need a companion who I never have to call a cleaning crew in for. You can see why I’m anxious to get home. I need to perform that ceremony.”
I was trouble. I was a whole lot of trouble. I didn’t follow directions. I didn’t always do the best thing. I tried to do what was right, but I often screwed up more things than I solved. I had to accept the fact that he might be telling the truth, that he really wanted someone other than me.
I knew suddenly that it didn’t matter. His not loving me didn’t change the way I felt about him. It just made my heart break.
“All right, Danny.” I wiped the tears from my eyes. Fighting wouldn’t change anything. Yelling at him would only make me look like a fool. “If that’s what you want, I can’t stop you. I’m really sorry about Joel, though. I didn’t mean…I never thought trying to steal that artifact would hurt anyone like that. I thought I was helping.”
“You always do, Z,” Danny said with a sigh.