Page 136 of Dark Love

Max snorts.

“To me he is. He would never hurt me.”

There’s that stinking eyebrow raise again.

“He wouldn’t. I need my boss to understand that my friend won’t hurt me.”

“What did you do?” Max asks.

“I… um… suggested that my friend join us at an after work dinner with my boss and some fellow employees.” Please tell me I’m—

Max bursts out laughing.

“This isn’t funny.”

“But it is. There’s going to be a bloodbath.”

Max is joking.

Max has got to be joking. “Um… you mean metaphorically, right?”

“Nope. At minimum, your ‘friend’ is going to punch your boss sometime during dinner. At worst, he’s going to need to find somewhere to bury the body.”

I knew this was stupid.

Really, really, really stupid. “I should cancel.” That won’t go well. Adonis will think Vex is afraid of facing him.

“Nope. But you need to tell me where and when so I can watch.”

“Has anyone told you that you’re twisted? And that isn’t helping me at all.” What am I going to do to avoid bloodshed? Maybe Max is being dramatic. Vex seems so calm. He isn’t going to punch someone at a restaurant.

“On occasion.” Max reaches for another cookie. “So I can expect that invitation.”

“Absolutely not.” There’s no way I want him sitting at a table laughing like a fool at the insanity of my life. “Should I cancel? I should, right? Who cares what my boss thinks? He isn’t going to fire me. That’s all that matters, right?”

“Take a breath. Or better yet, have a cookie.” Max nudges the plate towards me.

“I don’t drink.”

“This isn’t drinking.”

But it is. It really is. “Those are all for you. Though I don’t know if your advice was worth the effort.”

“Hey now, don’t be like that. You want real serious advice?”

I nod.

“Bring your friend to the dinner and see how he reacts. Then judge for yourself if he’s a man you want in your life. Because it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. If you respect and trust him, that’s all that matters.”

“You aren’t afraid he might be an abuser like Adonis.”

“Nope. Because if he ever lays a finger on you, I’ll kill him. And before you get all huffy, I’d do that for any woman.”

Huffy. Okay, maybe I’d get a little huffy. Max and I agreed to be friends only. It’s nice that he respects that.

Dyce Trouble

Vex

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