Page 71 of Fanged Temptation

Rolling my eyes, I let her lead, though a tender sense of relief warmed me from the inside out.

We did something good there. Two more lives set free.

“You absolutely cannot wear the same clothes you wore this morning.”

If there was one thing I believed in with absolute conviction, it was outfit changes. A new location?New outfit.It was a point of principle, especially for something as momentous as Hunter’s bachelorette party. And yet here I was, arguing—no,pleading—with Leah to wear anything other than her scuffed boots and sea-splashed jacket.

“Come on, humor me. Just this once.”

Leah folded her arms, lips quirking in a stubborn line. “Sure, we came straight from the beach—ish,” she shot back. “I’m a bit damp, yes, but I’m fine. And no one is going to give a damn about my boots.”

I scoffed dramatically, throwing my palms skyward.

Leah rolled her eyes, but I caught a flicker of amusement in her grin and pounced on it. “Don’t you want to look your best for your dear friend’s bachelorette? We’re celebrating Addison and Hunter. That’s cause for a new set of footwear!”

Leah sighed, though her lips twitched up at the corner, comfortable in our usual song and dance. “I’ll brush my hair. That’s it. My boots are staying, my jacket’s staying, and you, Miss Overdressed, can just deal with it.”

And deal with it I did, albeit with my nose stuck in the air, all the way to the swanky nightclub where the rest of the Leyore women were waiting for us. We arrived at the venue—a swanky private lounge in the VIP section—only slightly behind schedule.

Leah stuck close to me at first, and people parted like the Red Sea as we found our party. Jordan stood near the bar, chatting with Ethan, sipping something suspiciously bright red with anumbrella garnish, wearing that perpetual titillating smirk. She waved us over, beckoning impatiently.

“About time you two got here,” she said, plucking the tiny umbrella out of her drink. “We’re doing a ‘toast every ten minutes’ rule, so you’re already behind.”

“You’ll have to catch up,” Addison added from her spot on a velvet sofa, grin wide and eyes sparkling. The bride-to-be. She turned her attention to Leah. “Just be careful which drink you pick up. Wouldn’t want to confuse your strawberry daiquiri with a Bloody Mary, if you know what I mean.”

Hunter, the other half of that soon-to-be marriage, was perched beside Addison, and she glowered at me when I blew her a kiss.

“This is Addison’s gig, by the way—not mine,” she insisted, though from the slight pink coloring her cheeks, I could tell she was secretly pleased. A bachelorette party for both fiancées. Because why not?

“Amara is on the dance floor,” Jordan jumped in, jerking her thumb at the small cluster of moving bodies under the swirling strobe lights. “She’s doing pretty well since, you know, everything.” She shrugged. “And Dylan’s over there playing protective wife, obviously.”

My gaze wandered to the dance floor, where sure enough, Amara swayed to the thumping bass that rattled through the floorboards, Dylan with her arms wrapped around her waist. They looked good, comfortable in each other’s orbit, a far cry from the stress that had weighed them down weeks prior.

River lounged on a side couch, swirling a martini glass full of something red. She greeted us with a regal tilt of her head, letting out a low chuckle when she spotted my glitzy heels. “How exactly are you meant to dance in those, Max?”

I sniffed, my eyes flicking to Leah, whose boots now felt entirely in place among the dance crowd.Traitor.But thefondness in my chest spiked anyway. “Forget about shoes, River. We’re here to celebrate.”

Addison clapped her hands. “Yes, we are! I think it’s about time for another toast.”

Leah shot me a sidelong glance, a mischievous curve on her lips. “You see? My outfit’s fine. Nobody cares.” She gestured at Addison’s relatively simple ensemble. “At least I’m not overshadowing the bride.”

I rolled my eyes but grinned back, taking a cherry-red champagne flute from the bar. “You’re overshadowingme,though.”

“Impossible.” Leah laughed, then she tapped her glass to mine, eyes twinkling like bubbly champagne.

“All right, all right, everybody shut up.” Jordan announced the next toast, hooking an arm around Sky’s waist for good measure. She hiked up her glass. “To Addison and Hunter, who, for some reason, are actually tying the knot, willingly.” She shot Addison a teasing smirk. “May you tolerate each other’s bullshit on the daily—and with love.”

Hunter groaned, Addison giggled, and the rest of us raised our glasses in unison.

At some point throughout the night, I realized that maybe, just maybe, I had worn the wrong shoes for the occasion. My feet hurt like crazy and I eventually had to vacate the dance floor, tottering over to the bar and cursing under my breath.

I left Leah boogying under the strobe lights with Ethan and Addison, and zeroed in on River. The vampire woman was perched on a barstool and watching the scene with a small smile on her lips.

“Hey,” I said, sliding onto the stool beside her. “Got any more visions you’d like to share of my oh-so-bright-looking future?”

River arched a perfectly groomed eyebrow. “Even if I did, I couldn’t tell you. If you know what to expect it might not come true.”

“Fair enough.” I shrugged, leaning back against the bar. “I was wondering though, about that comment you made, how it was about time I showed my true strength. You made it sound like youknewI’d do something big.”

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