Page 11 of Stuck with my Frenemy
“We are parked.” I tugged her off my bike and held onto her until she was capable of standing on her own two feet. “I thought I killed you.” And I consciously ignored the fact that the thought of her dying freaked the hell out of me.
“I did nearly die, you crazy person.” I assumed the pat on my shoulder was supposed to be a punch. “Who drives that fast, huh? You might be all BFFs with Death, but I’m not.”
“That’s my mother’s thing, not mine.” With a strained smile, I nudged her to get her moving. “Let’s get inside. I have no desire to stand in this rain.”
Another clap of thunder applauded my words, and I shook my head when Cherry jumped from the sound. The good thing was she darted for the door of the bar, and I followed as fast as I could without stomping through the puddles. Much to my dismay, I missed the sound of the fat drops hitting the pavement and roof the moment I stepped inside the bar. Plus, the rush of voices and some country music assaulted my ears at the same time, just making my scowl deepen.
A hush fell over the large space when I removed the raincoat from my head. Alert for any attack, I turned around slowly, and it became clear why all the noise had stopped. Cherry had her raincoat off too, and oblivious to all the eyes on her, she was fluffing her hair. My gaze swept over everyone in the bar, taking note of all the exits and escape routes in case we needed them. Most of the gawkers averted their gaping when they met my glare, luckily for them.
“This is much better.” Cherry grinned at me.
“When you stop shaking your boobs, it’ll be perfect.” I ushered her toward the bar, which was stretched from one side to the other at the back of the building.
She grumbled something about me being a killjoy and mean, but I paid her no mind. My skin prickled, announcing the nearness of magic, and all my attention turned to that little fact. My partner, as crazy as she was, got back to the plan of trying to fit in. Sliding into our seats—me with my back to the bartender facing everyone present, and Cherry with her cleavage pressed over her folded arms on the bar—I focused on the crowd and tried my best to ignore her.
“I’ll have a Cosmopolitan, please.” Cherry purred, and my head jerked to the side to gawk at her incredulously. If I didn’t know who was sitting next to me, I could’ve sworn it was Aphrodite who’d spoken.
“What about your friend?” Goosebumps spread over my arms from the baritone coming from the bartender, and I was grateful I had long sleeves and a jacket to cover my reaction.
My eyes snapped to the human manning the bar, and the air froze in my lungs when emerald blue eyes caught me in their spell. If my frustration for Cherry didn’t still churn in my stomach, I would’ve thought we were back in our realm. Because the man with the crooked smile that said he knew something I didn’t could not possibly be human. With a chiseled jawline and sharp cheekbones, he was too beautiful to be in this realm. Long strands of blond hair fell over his broad shoulders, and thick lashes framed the piercing gaze he had locked on me. With his tanned skin contrasting with his light hair, he looked like a Viking from the humans’ past. Thankfully his question penetrated my foggy brain.
“Beer.” My jaw clenched when his smile grew at my breathy tone. “Whatever you think is best in this shit hole.” After a long moment and a cocked eyebrow later, he turned and walked away, allowing me to finally breathe.
“Oh, dear Cupid, he is cute,” Cherry whisper-yelled in my ear, and then she started shaking me. “He totally eye fucked you there, Ebs.”
“Shut the hell up, Cherry,” I hissed, my eyes flicking to him to double-check he didn’t hear her. “What’s the matter with you?”
“With me? Nothing.” After she dragged her barstool closer, she leaned in conspiratorially. “But I’ll tell you one thing. His eyes were locked on you like you just answered all his prayers.You. While all this is ready for the taking.” Her hand waved over her body from the top of her head to her feet. “That human’s got a little old crush on Ebs.”
I slapped her hand.
“You know I’m right.” A knowing smile stretched her mouth, and I wanted to slap that right off her face, too.
“Right about what?” A cocktail slid across the slab of wood to stop in front of Cherry. I avoided looking at the human.
“That this is a great place to meet people.” Cherry kicked me under the bar, but I ignored her and kept staring at the patrons. It was pathetic that I kept thinking how nicely the t-shirt matched the color of his irises. “We are new in town, so we wanted to check the bar out.”
“A couple?” Mr. Deep Voice inquired, and I choked on air.
“Oh dear Cup—ummm, goodness no.” Cherry couldn’t punch for shit, but she rearranged my organs while she pounded on my back. She laughed like she’d heard the funniest joke of the century. “We are besties, right Ebs? Practically sisters.” Since I couldn’t talk while trying not to cough out a lung, I nodded dumbly while blinking back tears.
“How delightful.” Either I was deprived of oxygen, or the human had a growl to his tone, and it did stupid things to me. What in all the hells was the matter with me? “The name is Ash. And you ladies are?”
“I’m Cherry, and this little ray of sunshine is Ebony.” She batted her eyelashes at him while I shot daggers at the side of her face. “She’s shy, so just give her a few minutes and she’ll come around for sure.” Unbelievably, she ended that bullshit with a wink my way.
I was going to kill her.
When the beer arrived, I snatched the frosted pint and chugged half of it down to clear my throat. With a deep breath, the glass thumped on the wood when I finally looked the human in the eyes. Feathers tried to render me mute again when they tickled the back of my throat, but I refused to let them.
“What brings you to town, Ebony?” Ash leaned over the bar, and I tightened my hold on the glass.
“We own an antique business and were told there are a lot of treasures to be found in this part of the country.” If I expected him to start spilling his guts and giving me the names of the thieves we were searching for, I didn’t get my wish granted. After clearing my throat, I nudged Cherry to say something, but she kept her mouth shut for the first time ever. “You don’t happen to know who we can talk to about things like that, do you?”
“As a matter of fact, I do.” His blue gaze turned calculating as he glanced between us. “My brother is an antique dealer. What are the chances?”
“Yeah.” With a nervous laugh, I picked up the beer to cover my squirming. Since when do I fucking squirm? It was all Cherry’s fault. “What are the chances.”
Ash was getting suspicious, and I had a feeling Cherry was gearing up to play matchmaker. Judging by all the squinting she threw my way, the shit was about to hit the fan, and I needed to be as far away from it as possible. Unfortunately, the Fates hated me, and it wouldn’t surprise me if this whole setup was my penance or my own bad karma.
Then Cherry opened her mouth.
And I really wanted to die.
