Page 3 of Pining for the Prince
“I’m surprised you’re allowed to drink,” he said, grimacing at the taste of his wine. He loved a good champagne, pity Ian didn’t know a decent one from mouthwash. “Aren’t you footballer types meant to be super health-conscious?”
“I won’t tell anyone if you don’t.” He winked.
Hyax supposed Ian could be attractive to someone, sort of, in the right light and who thought money bought charisma, but there was something about him that made Hyax think Ian had taken a ball to the face a few too many times.
“I’m not someone who’ll go running to teacher.” Hyax imagined Ian would be in a shit ton of trouble if it got back to his coach he’d been out drinking. Depending on how annoying the rest of the evening was would determine if he somehow made sure it did.
“It’s no big deal. I’ve been on the bench the last couple of games, and I’m only having a glass or two, I wouldn’t want to impair my performance later.”
Why was it that men thought he was automatically going to sleep with them? He knew by human standards the fae were beautiful, but that didn’t mean he was easy to get into bed. The worst thing was, the one person he would be willing to shag with no questions, apart from when they would do it again, had put him in the friendzone with no obvious way out of it.
Hyax decided he was already bored enough to move this along. Usually he’d pander to the mark’s ego a bit, butter them up as that tended to make them more susceptible to the dust, but he wasn’t in the mood. His conversation with Gwil was takingup more brain space than he should allow, and he knew it was more than just being a friend. He was annoyed Gwil had agreed on Hyax’s behalf to help without consulting him, but in essence the job itself wouldn’t be too difficult with the right planning—he wished Gwil had thought it through properly. Once they took on this kind of case, they’d never hear the last of it.
“I said are you all right?”
“What? Oh, sorry I’m a little distracted. I’ve a lot on my mind.”
Ian bristled, and Hyax thought he was probably used to being the centre of attention. “Worried the new Louis Vuitton collection won’t be to your taste?” he drawled.
Once it would be nice to be wrong, and that he hadn’t spotted an arsehole before they’d opened their mouth. “I’m more a Gucci man myself.”
“You don’t say.”
He’d had enough. He didn’t have the patience tonight, he was too rattled by how he’d left things with Gwil. Hyax shoved his hand into his pocket and grabbed a fistful of powder. In a smooth action, he brought his hand up to his lips, opened it and blew a cloud of fairy dust into Ian’s face.
“What the fuck?”
“I have some questions.” The dust had a different effect depending on the species. To other fae it made him a bit more sparkly, elves more vicious than usual, vampires it varied, and for humans it made them super suggestive and then forgetful. A bit like fast-acting vodka but with less strain on the liver.
“Okay.” Ian grinned. “You’re so pretty. I’ll tell you anything.”
“Do you know a man called Jasin?”
“Yes, he is my sister’s not-boyfriend—fuckboi is probably the best description.”
Sounded right. Rogue bloody fae-cross, half fae half dryad. He wasn’t supposed to be outside the fae realm withoutpermission—which he most certainly didn’t have. “Do you know where I can find him?”
Ian screwed up his features and then placed his hand on Hyax’s thigh. “Why’d you wanna know about a creep like that when you can have me?”
He bit back the responses that there were various levels of creep. “I’ve been asked to find him. His family are really worried. They haven’t heard from him in weeks.”
“Odd. Jasin said he’d only seen his mum a few days ago. I spoke to him yesterday at a reception my sis was holding.”
If that were true then Jasin had implicated his parents and a stint in fae prison would be a family affair. “It’s his father. He’s getting on and starting to feel his mortality.”
“Right.”
“Give me his address.”
“I don’t have it. I just know he lives somewhere in Tottenham. Not far from a pub that has its own brewery.”
Not what he’d call helpful. He leant in and whispered into Ian’s ear, the fairy dust would do most of the heavy lifting in making Ian suggestable, but he could sugarcoat the offer. “If you can get me his number, I’ll make you feel like you’ve won the treble.”
Ian fumbled with his phone. “He’s also a dealer. I can get his number from my sis making out that I have a friend who could be lucrative if they were on his client list.”
Humans were so simple. Sometimes it hurt how easy it was to take advantage of them. “Thanks, I’d really appreciate it.”
He reached over and squeezed Ian’s thigh. There was no mistaking the benefits of his profession, his physique was amazing, or at least his legs were. For a moment he thought what would be the harm with going home with him. It had been a while since he’d scratched an itch but the thought of Gwil gave him pause. Bastard.
