Page 15 of Vampire Lee

“Who are you hooking up with?” Eli gave him a curious look.

“I don’t kiss and tell.” Or maybe he did. Grinning, he grabbed a cloth and wiped the bar.

“It’s Rei, isn’t it? You have that gleam in your eyes.”

“What gleam?” What the hell was he talking about?

“You always get a little twinkle when you’re about to do something stupid. Fucking jaguars is stupid, Lee. He can rip you to shreds.”

Lee chuckled. Rei could crush his skull with one bite, but he didn’t plan on fucking Rei again. Not now when they were colleagues, sort of.

“Stupid fucker.” Eli thumped his empty glass. “Give me another.”

He poured the drink and did his best to ignore the way Maybe-Aaron studied him.

It took almost an hour before Rei entered the bar. Lee was afraid Maybe-Aaron would leave before he got there, but he sat nursing his beer the way he’d done the night before.

Rei headed straight for the bar, and when he reached it, he stretched over it as if expecting Lee to kiss him. He did; leaned over and pressed his lips to Rei’s. “Hiya.” He spoke low against his now wet lips, making it sound way more intimate than he and Rei ever had been. Rei smiled at him, which was plain weird. Rei didn’t smile.

“Want a drink?”

“Beer.”

Lee poured him one but made no motion of charging for it. He’d sneak his boyfriend free beers if he had one, right?

“Rei, this is Aaron.” He motioned at Maybe-Aaron. “And you know Eli.”

Rei nodded in greeting.

Eli caught Lee’s gaze and shook his head, but he looked amused, so Lee believed they were selling the story. When someone called for Vampire Lee, he went back to doing his real job—pouring drinks. He noted Maybe-Aaron and Rei talking. Rei drank his beer as if he was there on a night off, and Lee wondered if he should keep them coming. It was a couple of hours until he got off, and they’d agreed they would leave together. On the other hand, he didn’t think a few beers would make Rei any less capable of taking care of himself.

People came and went, he chatted with some of the regulars, and when Rei’s glass had been empty for a couple of minutes, Lee poured another beer and switched out the empty glass for a full. Rei caught his hand for a second and squeezed it before letting go with a small caress. Lee winked at him and moved away again.

He kinda liked Rei touching him. It wasn’t Rei, it was the feeling of being wanted despite it only being for show. Huh. Maybe he should get a boyfriend.

After an eternity, the crowd was finally thinning out. It was a normal workday tomorrow, even if it was Friday. Lee placed another beer in front of Rei when Eli got to his feet. “I should head home.”

“Sleep well.”

Eli grimaced. “I doubt I will. Zain still hasn’t been in touch.”

Fuck. Lee gave Rei a look which was met by a frown. He’d have to explain later.

Soon it was time for the last call. Maybe-Aaron had left a few minutes ago, but Lee and Rei kept the charade going.

It wasn’t until they walked out on the street Lee dared take a deep breath and relax his shoulders.

“Bad night?” Rei moved through the dark like the predator he was; gone was the mellow mood he’d exuded in the bar.

“I’ve had low-grade anxiety all night.”

Rei looked around, and the hair on the back of Lee’s neck stood on end again. He slung an arm over Rei’s shoulders, hoping it wouldn’t hinder him should they need to fight someone. How strong a sense of smell did jaguars have? Better than vampires, but all shifters had a better sense of smell than vampires did.

“Why?” Rei spoke so low Lee almost didn’t hear him, and it didn’t help the tension building in him at all.

“My place?”

Rei leaned into him like a lover would—not the way Rei would—which had him suspect someone was watching them. “Yes, let’s get a move on.” It was said in a flirty tone, but Lee listened more to the words than the tone.

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