Page 94 of Hearts of Stone

I so wanted to lap up every bit of praise. I totally wanted to bathe myself in the pleasure that his touch brought. A very hungry part of me wanted to pull down his fly and feel his hot length as it filled my hand and bring him right to the edge I was teetering on. Instead, I forced myself to let go of him and step backwards with a regretful sigh.

“Look, Adam, it’s obvious that I want to explore whatever the hell this is,” I told him.

“But there’s more than just yourself to consider.” His fingers were featherlight as they brushed against the bite mark, then withdrawn. “Well, when you discuss this with your fated mates, remember this: it doesn’t have to be either gargoyles and no warlock, or a warlock and no gargoyles. If a man really cares about you, he won’t ask you to choose.”

I felt like I might have something in response to that, but I wasn’t sure what. But as I went to open my mouth, anyway,my phone started to buzz. I pulled it out and saw Daniel’s name flash up on the screen.

“I’m sorry, I really need to take this.”

“That’s fine,” he said, with a smile, “but… make sure you talk to your gargoyles. And then meet me tonight at The Mayflower restaurant.” Somehow I’d already forgotten that was part of the ‘prize’ I’d won. “If you come, I’ll know you’re open to at least…” His hand slid into mine, stoking those flames again. “…exploring whatever this is between us.”

Before I could say anything else, he turned and left, leaving me hot and bothered, with a buzzing phone to answer.

“Hey—”

“Bitch, what took you so long?” Daniel yelped down the phone. “Guess what happened? Guess what happened?!”

“What?” I asked with a chuckle. I was well and truly familiar with Daniel’s hysterics. He reminded me of one of those little yappy dogs that would spin around in circles when excited.

“Big called.”

My smile instantly faded. I hadn’t been a fan of Daniel’s mysterious lover before their last date, having watched my otherwise cocky friend shrink down into himself after too many interludes with someone who I assumed was a closeted man. But, now…? I forced myself to blink several times to stop seeing the bruises on his skin, the way he’d seemed so crushed, both inside and out.

“Danny, you can’t go out with him again. After last time—”

“Don’t worry, I had the same conversation with him. I told him that I couldn’t…” I went perfectly still as his breezy tone broke and something raw rose up, but Daniel mastered himself quickly. “That I couldn’t let him do shit like that to me again, no matter how good it felt.” I frowned slightly, then looked down at my own palm, able to feel the ghost of that pleasure Adam had inspired. “And he agreed.”

“What?”

“He said he knew he’d gone too far and that’s why he dumped me at the gates. He was terrified of what he’d do if he didn’t get me out of his place. He said he lost his shit, stepped over a line…”

Daniel’s words came out faster and faster and I knew exactly what this was. It was that frantic need to rationalise, to explain away the inexplicable. The origins of our friendship had come from trauma bonding: he’d cried on my shoulder just as many times as I’d cried on his, both of us devastated by men that we thought would be everything we needed, and then made it clear they were anything but.

“Anyway, he said he was taking me out tonight on an actual date.”

“Daniel! Danny, is this smart?”

I didn’t want to pop his bubble, but I was terrified of what would happen if he didn’t take more care. He’d seemed to rally quickly after last time, but… I never wanted to see him like that again and, honestly, I needed for him to want that too.

“Love’s never smart, Jade,” he told me in a voice that vibrated with emotion. “Why would anyone bother to invest in another person that deeply? They can leave you at any moment, disappoint you…” He drew in a breath. “Hurt you. But there’s something inside us that wants to reach out for more. It has to. I need you to be excited about this, Jade.”

And there it was. Our friendship had been forged on the notion that at any point one person could require wholesale approval of the other, even if they secretly thought the plan, program or person was a bad one. He’d done the same for me when I’d told him I’d continue living at Trevor’s. So I sucked it up and forced myself to smile, so there’d be a positive note in my voice, before replying.

“I’ll be home shortly,” I said. “Then we’ll go upstairs and see what else is in those wardrobes. Maybe the perfect suit soyou look amazing on your date. Or if there isn’t one, we’ll go shopping somewhere swanky and get you the best that money can buy.”

“That’s my girl,” he said with a sigh. “Do you think you can find me an etiquette coach at short notice? Where we’re going is really fancy and I have no idea what all those knives and forks are for.”

“Whatever you need,” I assured him.

Chapter 52

Jade

“You’re going out with him again?”

Harry walked into the foyer of the house with a stern look on his face as I tweaked Daniel’s tie, making sure it sat just so. We’d found a double breasted suit in a deep charcoal that suited Danny’s slender frame perfectly. His bright blue hair looked darker now that it was slicked back and held in place with some styling wax, and gold cufflinks glinted at his wrists.

“How the hell…?” Daniel said and I hissed as he turned to face the other man. “You recognised the car.”

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