His gaze jumped back and forth between us, and I knew he’d either dated her, slept with her, or both. Why did it make my insides churn? I squashed all feelings of jealousy before I had to admit to myself how bad it was.
“No, thanks. I’m just on my way to the gym. Why don’t you give me a call sometime when you’re free?” Casey slid a sidelong glance in my direction, and then she gave him the look.
I barely restrained the desire to tear her eyes out. Power began to hum softly around me, and both Shaz and Casey reacted to it.
He knew exactly what it was, and his jade eyes narrowed in warning. Casey began to fan herself saying, “It’s hot in here, Shaz. You should turn the air conditioning on.”
“It is on,” he replied. He quickly added, “Maybe it’s broken. I’ll have the superintendent look at it.”
“You should.” She flashed me a brittle, cold smile and finally turned to leave. I sighed aloud. I hated her.
After she forced Shaz to promise to call later, he closed the door and turned to face me. Guilt defined his features, and I looked away, embarrassed by my jealousy.
“Sorry about that. I wasn’t expecting her to come by.” The moment was wretchedly awkward. The sound of the forgotten video game played loudly in the quiet apartment. “We only went out once. Nothing happened.”
“Don’t, Shaz. You don’t owe me an explanation.” And didn’t I know it? It was hard to swallow even a taste of what I’d inflicted on him.
“I want you to know that I didn’t mention it because there was nothing worth mentioning.” He shrugged, and his voice grew soft. “I only went out with her because I thought you and I never stood a chance.”
“It’s ok, Shaz. I’m the last person in the position to be demanding answers. It’s none of my business.”
He accepted that reluctantly. He nodded slightly, but I knew that he wanted to say more. Less than ten feet separated us, yet I felt like we were a world apart. I’d gotten so used to keeping people at a distance that I still didn’t know how to let anyone in.
“You want to finish the game?” He brushed past me into the living room, and the repeating music stopped.
“I’m done. I’ll be seeing colors in my dreams as it is.”
He chuckled and turned the PlayStation off. The apartment went silent. “I should probably start getting ready for work anyway.”
“Well, thanks for entertaining me. It’s been a while since we got to do this. It was nice.” I was doing a rotten job of maintaining eye contact, but I felt weird and knew he would see it in my face. Of course, he could sense the rapid beat of my heart.
“It was.” Shaz leaned casually against the wall as I gathered my things to leave. “So why don’t we go out sometime? On a real date, I mean.”
In turn, I sensed the blood rushing through him. His cheeks were flushed, and I couldn’t hide my smile.
“You’re asking me on an official date?”
Thinking back briefly, I couldn’t recall ever having been asked out on an actual date. My teen years and early twenties had been chaotic enough without romance of the human variety. After the last week, I was astonished that he even wanted a date with me.
“Yes. I’m asking you on a date. Dinner, on me.”
“And after?” I dared to ask playfully.
He shrugged. “Catch a movie, go for a run, park and make out. Whatever you prefer.”
Energy shifted between us. At the core of me, where the power of my werewolf lay rooted, I felt him. Like a shadow that I could feel but not see, his wolf lingered, hesitant to reach for me.
The vampire in my energy made him pause, and I hated that. I knew the touch of his skin as well as I knew the silk of his fur or the musk of his scent. I longed to pull his wolf around me like a blanket to drown out the energy of the grave. Everything with Arys felt more wrong when I was this close to Shaz’s pure, untainted aura.
But, I couldn’t force out what I had allowed to become a part of me. It scared me to the tips of my toes to think that I might not ever be able to.
“I would love to go on a date with you, Shaz.” I giggled slightly and felt like a total moron. I heard him release the breath he’d been holding.
“Great. How’s Friday?”
I would have ditched anything to say yes to him in that moment. As I scanned through my mental calendar, I was already free that day.
When we’d confirmed that he would pick me up at nine on Friday, I crossed the threshold into the hall and turned back to say goodbye. I loved that he was just there, close enough for me to feel.
His breath was warm and inviting. His kiss was chaste but tender. Still, I felt his hunger leashed beneath his calm surface.
My heart skipped a beat when, just as fast as he was there, he was gone. Only his scent lingered to tease me as I waited for the elevator. I was one damn confused werewolf.