My Beautiful Poison (Wicked Poison 1)

“Hey, you’re August’s friend, right?”

Okay, that’s weird.

“No,” I answer, then turn away to gather my thoughts. Shandy is watching the dude intently, and I notice a slight head shake, which I have no idea what that means.

“How about a drink?” he asks.

“She said no,” Shandy replies for me, her lips are thinned as she glares.

I glance around the table—the others are not paying any attention as they fight about werewolves.

“I only want to talk. No beef, lady.” When I turn around to him again, he’s studying me. “It’s nice to meet you, Rylee. I’m Josh. Tell August I said hi.” He winks and then walks out of the bar.

Umm, okay.

“That was weird. Did you know him?” Shandy asks, her eyes firmly set on the exit.

“No. Not at all.”

“He probably recognized you from somewhere. I bet you get that a lot.” She taps her glass to mine and turns back to the conversation.

Okay, is that strange too?

I reach for my phone and message August.

Someone said to say hi. Josh… do you know him?

I wait, and when he doesn’t respond, I put my phone on my lap and join in the conversation. Shandy’s nice, and she starts discussing her private life. She lives by herself, and her family has a house in a different state, so everyone she’s met has been from work, as she moved specifically for the job.

My phone beeps in my lap as we stand to get a second drink, and I glance down, reading the message.

Where are you?

No hello, nothing.

So I choose to ignore it and step off to the bar. I shout a round of drinks for the table, and when I return, there are a few missed calls.

I’m at Wobbly.

I text back, choosing not to call him. I’m not sure I want to hear his voice right now. Dreams of him are enough without having to hear him as well.

“So you and your boyfriend… it’s a no-go?” Shandy asks quietly.

“Separated.”

She nods. “You okay?”

“Yeah, it was time. We passed our expiration date a long time ago.”

“Can I say something you may not like to hear?” She bites her lip.

“Umm… sure.”

“He tried to hit on me every time he came in. Honestly, it gave me the heebie-jeebies.” She shivers.

Of course he did.

“Don’t look now, but… holy shit! The most devastatingly gorgeous man has just walked in, and well, crap… he’s coming this way.” She sits taller and pushes her tits up, which are already spilling out of the top of her dress. I have to laugh until that gorgeous man is standing directly in front of my chair.

As I glance up from the floor, I see black boots, followed by black jeans, a green shirt encasing steel-hard shoulders, and a tense jaw as he stares down at me.

Oh, shit! Is he pissed?

Forest green eyes lock on to mine. “We need to talk,” he says, and it seems everyone stops their conversation.

I stand and nod at Shandy. “I’ll just be a minute.” Turning and heading for the door, I feel him behind me every step of the way until the cold air hits my face and sends a shiver over my entire body. When I turn around to ask him if everything is all right, he’s pacing back and forth with his hands bunched into tight fists by his sides. But even more concerning are the flared nostrils and the noisy breathing through his nose. He sounds like a raging bull.

“Where is he?”

“Huh?” I ask with a grimace.

“Josh. Was he here?”

Oh, that. I nod, to which he steps closer until our chests are almost touching.

“Stay away from him. If he comes near you, you will walk the other way.”

“You couldn’t have texted that tidbit of information?” I ask, scrunching my brows in confusion.

“He’s dangerous. Stay away.”

I nod. I mean, what else can I do, but this makes him grind his teeth.

I’ve had a few drinks, and I was happy. I should be worried, but instead, I’m turned on.

“Want to come in for a drink?” I ask, nodding my head to the bar.

He glances that way, then back to me, his eyes raking me up and down before he nods.

I am so getting lucky tonight.

Chapter 16

August

Probably against my better judgment, I follow Rylee inside the bar. She’s wearing a tight, pink dress that hugs her perfect ass, with white heels accentuating her legs that I can imagine wrapped around my neck. Those shoes are probably the only reason I agreed to come in.

Because I hate people.

For some reason, though, little Miss Rylee Harley seems to have the opposite effect on me.

I don’t dislike her, even though I’ve tried to stay away.

Believe me, I’ve tried.

Her friend with the red hair checks me out and then grins.

Rylee reaches for my hand and pulls me down to sit next to her.

“Shandy, this is August,” Rylee introduces us.