Page 6 of That Emerald Vow

Her beautiful green eyes are looking up at me in challenge, forcing me to smirk back at her.Tonight may be more fun than I originally anticipated.There is something about them though. They are shining with mischief, but something lurks behind them that I can’t quite put my finger on. I can already tell it’s something that will drive me nuts until I can pinpoint it.

I have to forcibly remove my eyes from hers to focus on Lily. Opening my arms, I reach over the table awkwardly to envelop her in a hug. “Lily, it’s so nice to see you again. It’s been years.”

“It’s nice to see you too, D,” she says, chuckling.

“It’s nice that you’re all still in touch from high school. I don’t talk to anyone from mine,” Charlie says as she takes a sip of her drink. “Lily told me about The Crimson Creed. What made you go into business with your best friend?” One would expect these questions to be directed at her best friend’s potential boyfriend, but her eyes are locked straight on me.

“Um, I was going through a hard time back then . . .”That’s theunderstatement of the century.“Adrian helped me a lot. When we had this opportunity presented to us, we couldn’t say no.”Saying no could have been life-threatening. “I started working at the garage with him when I got my act together. Once the first shop was up for sale, it just felt right. We wanted to give back to the community that helped both of us.”Shit.I realize too late I shouldn’t have said that. How do you explain to someone that you help free trafficked individuals and are a gun for hire to get rid of the asshole criminals contributing to the problem?

“Give back to the community with an auto shop?” Charlie asks, her face contorting in confusion. “It’s a very helpful profession, but I don’t see it as giving back. No offense.”

My mouth hangs open a bit, at a loss for words.Think of something.I turn to Adrian, hoping for support.

He clears his throat. “I think he means we noticed there was a need for a reputable shop within a reasonable distance. So we wanted to provide one and make it more affordable for everyone in the neighborhood.”

Both of the ladies respond in unison. “Ohhh!” Which helps relieve pressure from the breath I was holding in and effectively ends that line of questioning.“So, Charlie, how did you and Lily meet?” I ask after ordering another round of drinks for the table, knowing very well that I should be getting reacquainted with Lily versus focusing on her gorgeous friend.It should count that it relates back to Lils, right?

“We met in freshman year chemistry. Our girl may be a whiz when it comes to complex emotions, but throw in some complex chemical compounds? She turns into a fish out of water.” Charlie playfully nudges Lily.

Lily sticks her tongue out at her. “Oh, shut up.” I catch Adrian glimpsing towards Lily like she hung the moon. This man is so love sick.

I can’t ever imagine caring for someone like that . . . Being cared for like that . ..

“She ended up dropping the class and taking anthro to fulfill the science requirement.” Charlie smiles warmly at her. “But the friendship was already formed. She was stuck with me.”

“For this life and all the rest. I found my soulmate,” Lily says, winking.

“Soulmate, huh?” Adrian asks playfully, but you can hear the small twinge of boyish jealousy. They used to be best friends growing up, but things turned complicated when they grew into more right before graduation. His asshole father got in the way of that. One small decision that Adrian made to protect the woman he loves changed all of our lives. Our friendship was forged in fire way before that, but I could understand the sentiment of friend soulmates.

I laugh and put my arm around him before saying, “Oh, I totally get it! Soulmates can also be found with friendships. I love you, Adey-spadey.” I squeeze his shoulders for good measure.

We all start laughing. “I love you too, you big buffoon,” Adrian says as he pats my shoulder.

“Aren’t you guys thesweetest,” Charlie says in a mocking tone.

I lean in her direction. “Mmm. Do you like sweet,gem?” My lips turn up in a full, toothy grin. She is smirking back at me when I notice a little flutter in her emerald eyes, more beautiful than the real thing.

She leans forward, mimicking my movement. “Oh, darling, I actually prefer spicy. I doubt you could handle the heat.” Charlie ever so slowly pulls her bottom lip into her mouth, making my dick twitch. Which is unsurprising because she is one gorgeous woman. Whatissurprising is that it also makes something deep inside me warm—a part that has iced over from years of neglect.

I sit back and take a sip of my beer to cool myself down. “You couldn’t begin to imagine what I can and cannot handle.”

“Want to f—” she starts as the DJ announces that the band will start in five minutes. She winks at me, letting the moment end.

“Hey, why don’t we go use the bathroom before they start?” asks Lily. Charlie, still looking at me, nods her head in agreement as they slide out of their seats and head over there.

I look up to see Adrian smiling at me funny. “What are you looking at?” I ask.

“Oh, nothing. This is going to be interesting,” he says.

Not sure what he means, I choose to ignore him and drain the rest of my beer.

“So what happened tonight?” he asks.

I kick my head back and groan. “One of Michael’s henchmen became a problem. Built like The Rock but fought like he was Jackie Chan.”

Adrian starts to laugh. “Oh, did a little henchman get the best of you, Damon?”

I furrow my eyebrows before growling out, “No, he did not! I just . . . I just needed a little bit of extra time.”

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