Dion’s nostrils flared. “All you had to do last night was agree that everything was fine when Damien approached. Instead, you threw Castor right under the bus.”
Ignoring the way my stomach twisted at the mere mention of Damien, I snorted. “If you think I’ll ever protect someone who clearly has no issue being rough with women, you’re seriously freaking mistaken.”
“It would not be wise of you to make enemies here. Especially if you like being a waitress at the club. I am quite sure the manager would dislike having a waitress with such a bad attitude. You could be very easily replaced, you know. There are many humans who long for a different position—particularly the maids who clean the Residence Halls. Do keep that in mind.”
“In other words, I should stay quiet if vamps give me problems or you’ll pressure Maeve into finding another human to take my place as a waitress? Go for it,” I invited. “See how far it gets you.”
I was pretty certain no one would fire me—it would come across as a punishment, which would give the wrong impression to humans and vampires alike. I didn’t believe Sam and Jared would want that. Plus, Damien assured me that humans would never be seen as ‘making waves’ if they filed any complaints. I believed him over this asshole.
“I thought you were intelligent,” said Dion, which was literally the nicest thing he’d ever said to me. “Clearly I was wrong. You underestimate my influence here.”
“Or you overestimate your own merely because one of your nest was once a commander within the legion.”
Dion looked as though he might say something else, but then his gaze wandered to something over my shoulder. Snapping his mouth shut, he took a step back.
Wondering what had spooked him, I glanced over my shoulder to see one of Damien’s squad members, Salem, standing a few feet away glaring at Dion. Yeah, I’d have backed up, too. Salem was a scary motherfucker and only ever smiled around his tiny mate, Ava.
“We’ll talk another time,” Dion said to me. He then looked at his friend. “My apartment.” Nodding, Colm teleported them both away.
Finally. I looked behind me again, intending to give Salem a grateful nod—purposely or not, he’d scared Dion away. But Salem was already gone.
Pulling in a breath through my nose, I rolled my shoulders and headed to the club.
He was back. And he was watching me. Again.
Usually, Damien’s stare was all heat and intense focus. Tonight, there was a knowing glint there, reminding me he knew exactly how I tasted. That gaze also held a promise. It wasn’t just a promise of sexual satisfaction. No, it was a promise that he’d have more, just as he’d vowed.
His words drifted through my mind, unbidden …
You won’t be able to move by the time I’m done with you.
My cheeks heated. Fuck, it was hot in here.
It had surprised me when he asked for a kiss last night. I’d truly expected him to request blood in payment when he’d declared he wanted something. And, well, I’d had no qualms at all with finding out if a kiss would be as hot and electric as the sexual tension between us hinted at. It hadn’t been that intense, though. It had been even fucking more intense. Wild. Thrilling. Intoxicating.
His cocky ‘I’ll have more’ comment had indeed made me bristle, but it hadn’t annoyed me half as much as I would have liked. Because all that confidence and dominance pushed my best buttons whether I was good with it or not.
Did I want more? Hell, yeah. If a kiss between us could be that explosive, sex would be off-the-charts hot. And I had no hang-ups about one-night stands.
The only thing tainting the situation was the knowledge that once we’d had our night of fun, his attention would shift to someone else. He wouldn’t watch me like this anymore. That shouldn’t bother me, and it unnerved me that it would. There was little I could do about that, though. The situation was what it was.
Needing a reprieve from him, I was super glad when my break began. I retreated quickly to the breakroom, where I gulped down some water as I sat at the table. Damn the scorching hot bastard for getting me all flustered and tingly. It seriously wasn’t fair.
I’d tried putting him out of my mind, but it wasn’t as easy as I’d hoped. Concentrating on simply doing my job didn’t help either. The club might be busier than usual due to it being a Friday night, but it was also as relaxed as usual, so I wasn’t rushed off my feet.
Not even Dion’s presence here proved to be distracting, despite that he occasionally offered me little snarls and kept coming to the bar to whisper shit to Maeve while also staring at me. I wasn’t sure whether he was doing what he’d hinted at earlier or just trying to make me think he was. Maeve was acting just as warmly as usual towards me, so if she did think it was better for me to be replaced she sure as shit wasn’t showing it.