“Take it easy, girl. I was just going to ask if you wanted to join us. We have some extra chairs at our table.” He shifted his body in a lame attempt to flex his muscles. I could only imagine how many times he would try this in a night.
“No, thanks,” I said. “We’re fine.”
Jez shot me this look that said she didn’t understand why I bothered trying to be polite. There were a few reasons; one of them was that a bar fight would bring cops, which I didn’t need.
“Come on, ladies. I’ll buy you a drink.” He looked at us expectantly, almost eagerly. Did he not realize that Jez was shooting daggers at him with her eyes?
“Save us the song and dance. You’re wasting your breath here.” I met his eyes when I said it so he’d see that I was serious. However, like most guys his age that are in a bar looking for women, he chose to disregard the fact that we were really not interested.
“Well, you don’t have to be such a bitch about it.” The minute the words left his lips, the energy level surrounding us tightened with the tension. I was suddenly very aware of Arys’s eyes on us from across the room.
“What did you say?” Jez’s tone was frighteningly similar to the one she’d used with Morgan.
“You heard what I said. I’d think you would have been flattered.” His conceited words made me suck in my breath. If only he knew what he was dealing with.
Coolly eyeing the redheaded chick cuddled up with his buddy, she said, “I’ll take her over all of you chumps in a heartbeat.”
Before he could open his mouth again, there was a faintly cool breeze behind me as I felt Arys’s approach. The young man’s egotistical demeanor melted away.
“Is this guy making trouble for you, ladies?” The vampire’s voice was low and velvety.
“No, Arys. It’s fine.” I said. “He was just walking away.” I gave Arys an irritated look that he chose to ignore. I didn’t need him coming to my aid. Not this again.
He said nothing, but I knew he'd heard me even if he wanted to pretend he didn't. He'd already gotten into a brawl here with a man who'd been dumb enough to drunkenly grab at me a few months back. That man hadn’t been seen here since. Suspicious. I wasn’t planning to make a habit of letting Arys save the damsel in distress.
“It isn’t in my nature to allow a lady to be threatened.” Arys looked directly at the guy who lifted his hands in surrender and quickly returned to his table.
“I'm not threatened, and nobody is threatening.” My voice was flat. I meant it. I hate being treated as a weak female. I might be five foot one and counting, but that doesn't mean shit when it comes to what really makes you tough.
Arys stared down at me for a long moment before giving me a curt nod. Things were different with him than with most people. He was neither wolf nor human, the two things I knew best, and I found these situations uneasy. We were left to stare at one another like two dogs unsure of whether to wag tails or tear each other apart.
“Oh, come on you two, give it a rest. Alexa, you’re so damn stubborn.” Jez shook her head at me and took a long swallow from her glass while I wondered who the hell she was to talk. “What’s wrong with allowing a man to defend your honor once in a while?”
I had no response to that. Hesitantly, I reached out a hand but didn’t quite touch Arys’s bare forearm. His aura was warm, and I could feel his power beneath my fingertips. He blinked dark ocean eyes at me, and I almost expected some kind of displeasure in his expression. Instead, his gaze remained calm and cool.
After a moment, he chuckled and said, “Damn Alexa, you should have been a vampire.”
I wasn’t sure if that was an insult or a compliment. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
As the words left my lips, my cell phone rang. A glance at the caller I.D. revealed it was Raoul. What could he possibly want?
He knew damn well that I had nothing to say to him. I debated whether or not to answer, but it gave me an excuse to momentarily avoid the awkward tension of the situation at hand.
“What do you want?” I growled into the slim silver phone.
“A ride, actually. If you don’t mind coming down to the police station.” The strain in Raoul’s voice was evident. His wolf was clearly pressing the boundaries of his control.
Arys watched me silently while Jez’s eyes were all questions, all curious cat. I suddenly needed some fresh air.
Chapter Three
Stony Plain only has one police precinct. Just my luck, it was on the same side of town as Lucy’s Lounge. I took my sweet time getting over to the cop shop. My heart was pounding before I’d even left the Lucy’s parking lot.