Page 36 of Thirsty
“Yeah, the—the supernatural community,” Charlie said uncertainly.
“It’s not a community,” Lorenzo said flatly. “Werewolves, vampires, fae—we don’t have anything in common. Even vampires barely have anything in common with each other. I do these jobs because—” He stopped abruptly.
“Why?” Charlie asked.
“For the cash,” Lorenzo said gruffly. “As you said.”
That was clearly bullshit, but Charlie said nothing. This wasn’t the Lorenzo of five years ago; this was his Lorenzo, and Charlie didn’t want any of those sore spots to become a bruise.
Chapter 10
Tensions always ran high in Lorenzo’s apartment on game nights. Rachel organized them and brought a rotating group of her friends, most of whom took the whole thing far too seriously. As a vampire, Lorenzo was naturally skilled at games of wit against humans and other lesser beings, so he enjoyed the gatherings. He was less pleased when Charlie showed up to the latest one.
“It’s about betrayal,” Rachel’s friend was explaining as Charlie listened raptly. He was wearing a pair of dark blue glasses that made his skin glow, and he looked like he’d shaved just before coming over, like his skin would be damp and just the slightest bit rough. “We’re all loyal knights, but one of us is lying—he’s betraying the group.”
“Got it,” Charlie said, eyeing the cards and tokens.
“Why did you even invite him?” Lorenzo asked the room at large. Rachel was deep in strategy talks with a friend and didn’t respond; Maggie, who was counting out everyone’s game pieces, said, “Hush.”
He supposed he couldn’t complain—he was the one who’d subjected them all to Charlie in the first place. He was also the one who’d cemented the unfortunate situation by losing that foolish bet. For now, he was stuck; he’d have to set aside his grand plans for vengeance until he’d fulfilled the terms of their agreement. No matter how grating it was.
Predictably, Charlie had already won everyone over, carousing with Rachel’s friends as if he’d known them for years. “Stop pretending you hate this,” Charlie told Lorenzo amiably. “I know you can’t wait to somehow murder me in this game.”
“Only if you’re the traitor,” Lorenzo said equanimously.
“No mercy,” Charlie said with a small, private grin. Lorenzo wanted to slap him. He wanted to lick his neck. Maybe grab him by the throat and watch his pulse flutter.
He caught Maggie looking at him, her rugged features pulled into a small smile. He glowered at her. She bit down on both lips.
“Let’s get started,” she said to the group. “Everyone put their tokens in for the first vote.”
Things went decently with the game—in a satisfying turn of events, Charlie was a terrible player—until Isolde came home. She didn’t make much noise or greet any of them, but every head still turned in her direction as she crossed by. Except Rachel, who scowled at the rest of them.
One of Rachel’s friends—an orc who Lorenzo thought was named Kevin—called out to her, ignoring Rachel’s forbidding glare. “Hi!”
“Hello,” Isolde said placidly. She gazed at the table where the game was laid out and said, “What are you doing?”
“Playing a game,” Kevin said. “Want to play with us?”
Isolde paused for a moment, then narrowed her eyes at him.“Why are you propositioning me if you’re in a relationship with her?”
She was referring to the orc’s girlfriend, a very pretty young wraith sitting next to him, whose jaw dropped at Isolde’s matter-of-fact pronouncement. Kevin sputtered by way of reply. “I’m—I’m not propositioning you!”
“Your lust is obvious,” Isolde said quite calmly.
The orc looked frantically at his girlfriend, whose pitch-black eyes were rapidly filling with hurt. “Um, I really wasn’t—”
“You’ll have to excuse Isolde,” Rachel jumped in. “She’s not house-trained.”
Isolde turned on Rachel icily. “Are you comparing me to a dog?”
“I was comparing you to a horse,” Rachel said with a cocky smile, though it faltered after a moment. “A...pet horse that’s...house-trained.”
“I—I wasn’t hitting on you!” Kevin insisted. “I just thought you might like to play with us.”
“I can see it within you. This human form I have taken on is, for some reason, incredibly appealing. You lust after it, as do you, you, and you. Not you,” Isolde said, indicating each of Rachel’s friends one by one. “And you,” she added, nodding at a man across the table whose head was on fire. “Though you feel incredibly conflicted about it because up until now you’ve only experienced attraction to men.” She shook her head, seeming almost disgusted. “Humans are so bizarre.”
“Okay, you can’t do this shit.” Rachel stood, making her chair scrape loudly. Her friends were shifting uncomfortably, exchanging anxious looks.
