“What?”
“Huh?”
“What will you owe me?”
“Umm,” The air thickened around us. “What do you want?”
Electricity crackled between us, the air was heavy with… something. His eyes didn’t leave mine. “I’ll let you know once I win.”
“Too bad you’ll be completely drunk.”
“We’ll see.” He grinned finally, took a sip, then another. “It tastes like you played suicide with liquor instead of soda.”
“Best game ever, I always mixed my Mountain Dew with Doctor Pepper.” I said trying to lighten the mood and the tension swirling in his eyes. He gave off heat and something else, cinder maybe? But that would be crazy.
“What a monster you must have been” He finally grinned. “And you haven’t lived unless you’ve mixed coke with lemonade.”
I made a face.
“Trust me,” He winked and stood, then literally downed the rest of the drink in se
conds before handing the glass back to me. “It was a valiant effort.”
“Well, wait for it to kick in.”
“I have a very aggressive metabolism.” He shrugged.
I waited for him to laugh, slur, say he was tired, thank me, kiss me, I mean really any sort of behavior other than him just staring at me with big bright blue eyes and darkness in his pupils would have been better.
“About that favor…” He leaned in, his hand grazed mine as he pressed the glass farther against me. And then his eyes flashed red so brief I probably imagined a trick of the lights. His knuckles grazed mine and then he gripped my hand. The glass dropped onto his desk shattering into several pieces. He shook his head then leaned forward. “Did you drug me?”
“With liquor? Yes.” I squinted, he seemed… brighter. “Are you okay?”
“You—” He leaned, swayed, then tightened his hold. “So many colors, like a painting, not dull at all. Like the desert, and heat, like the sun.”
“Um… should I get Tarek?” I backed away even as my heart picked up speed at the way his eyes bore into mine.
“Don’t you feel it? See it?” His eyes narrowed, and then he jerked his hand away from me and stared me down like I was a disease. “I should fire you.”
“For giving you a drink?”
He exhaled a curse and rounded the corner of the desk. “Do not touch me again, ever. I don’t know who sent you but no, the answer is no.”
“No?” I repeated. “Timber I think you just had too much to drink—”
He burst out laughing. “It’s not the alcohol. It’s you.”
“I make you drunk.”
“I was going to say violent,” he spat. “Stay away from me. This isn’t a game. You’ll only get hurt. Run along now.” He flicked his wrist.
“Okay, I think I’ll just grab some water for you and—”
In a flash he was bracing my body against the wall, holding me up like I weighed nothing, his teeth flashed, were those fangs? I blinked and then he looked normal again, his eyes blazed so blue they almost turned white and then he slowly lowered me to my feet. “Do. Not. Touch. Me.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t speak to me,” he added. “Don’t look at me. As far as I’m concerned, you do not exist. Are we clear?”