Sweet Peril (32 page)

She squealed as he tickled her, and the others clapped. Blake hadn’t noticed me sitting away from the group, watching in shock as he turned the girl for a kiss. Her arms went around him, as if this was a common occurrence, and petals of pink bloomed around her. More envious auras sprouted, from the girls as well as surrounding guys who’d turned to see the commotion. Blake gave her one last peck before looking around and catching sight of me.

“Anna?”

He stared at me, unsure, his arms still around the blonde. I smiled and stood as he came over, the girl close behind him.

“Hey,” I said.

He greeted me with a hug and the girl stopped, crossing her arms. I kept my attention on Blake.

“What are you doing here? Where’s Kai?”

“I need to talk to you about that, but not here.” I shot a glance at the crowd watching us.

“Is everything okay?” he asked. I nodded and stepped back from him, sensing discomfort from the girl. I leaned and waved at her from around Blake.

“Hi, I’m Anna,” I said. She frowned in return, her aura becoming a jumble of green and gray.

Blake jumped to attention, stepping to the side. “Yeah, hey, Michelle, this is one of my friends from way back. Anna, this is Michelle . . . my girlfriend.”

Girlfriend?
He wouldn’t look at me.

Michelle eyed me from top to bottom before determining I was a nonthreat. She uncrossed her arms and reached for Blake’s hand, giving me a small smile and a “hey.” Then she stepped in front of Blake for his full attention. They were the same height.

“Good job out there, baby.” She kissed him and he smiled.

“One more set to go, then I’ll be done,” he said. “Let Anna sit with you, cool?”

Her aura zipped with gray agitation, but her face didn’t waver. “Sure,” she told him.

He kissed her again and gave me a wink before returning to the games, stopping to shake hands and receiving pats on the back the whole way.

Michelle turned away and went straight to her friends. They couldn’t read her aura, but they could probably tell from
her body language that she was not happy about having to babysit Blake’s little friend.

“Anyone else ready for another drink?” Michelle asked. The girls crowded around the cooler and I watched the dirt arena. I wished I could crawl back over to the shade of the tree to contemplate the fact that Blake had a girlfriend. It made sense, as far as working went, for him to have the devotion of the most beautiful girl. But his affection for her had been genuine. And she loved him.

My heart suddenly hurt for Ginger.

“So, how long have you known Blake?” Michelle sat next to me, one slim leg outstretched and one bent. Her legs were golden and shiny next to mine in the bright sunlight. She twisted the cap off the hard cider and threw it in the grass.

“A while now,” I said, purposely vague. “How long have you guys been together?”

“A year,” she stated. We stared at the motocross lineup of competitors, getting ready for the trick competition. “A whole year, and you didn’t know about it. That’s interesting, you being a good friend and all.”

I tensed at the passive-aggressive comment and looked at her, but she was watching the dirt trails. Through her big sunglasses I could see unnaturally long eyelashes framing light eyes. Her face was a perfect oval and her lips were plump and pouty.

“We’re family friends,” I explained. “I haven’t seen or talked to him in over a year. I’ve been out of the loop.”

“How old are you?” she asked.

“Eighteen.”

“Oh. You look younger.” She sipped from the dark bottle. “Do you have a boyfriend?”

I almost said no, out of habit, and an uncontrollable smile leaped to my face. “Yes,” I answered.

She relaxed at that, leaning back on her elbows and taking another drink. “Want one?” I was roasting, and the thought of a cold drink sounded really good. When I hesitated, she said, “Nobody’s paying any attention, it’s okay.”

I swallowed hard. “No, thanks. I have to drive soon.”

She shrugged. We watched and clapped as the bikers performed insane and impressive feats. The crowd hissed and flinched when stunts didn’t go well. Blake never fell. He had no fear, and the fans were crazy for him.

He came to us after the awards ceremony, laden with trophies. I slinked back to the shade of the tree while Blake was approached by spectators giving congratulations. Michelle never left his side, beaming at Blake and his fans. Her prideful aura bothered me. The purple was so dark and thick that it overlapped the pink of her love for him. I couldn’t look at pride without thinking of Duke Rahab, the most loathsome of hell’s workers. My skin chilled at the memory of how he mentally tortured Gerlinda before killing her. Despite the day’s heat, I shivered.

When the crowd began to disperse, I joined Blake and Michelle. He was explaining to her that he needed to do the “family thing” for a few days. Her bottom lip plumped fuller.

“All right then,” she said, sighing.

He tipped her head up by the chin and she raised her puppy dog eyes.

“It’s all good, Chelley. I’ll see you in a couple days.”

“I’ll miss you, baby,” she said.

“I’ll miss you, too.”

Gag
.

He kissed her until a stream of red was roused into her aura, and I had to look away. I wasn’t sure what kind of game he was playing with her, but it made me uneasy.

I followed Blake to his house; he drove a shiny new truck with the dirt bike strapped in the back. Being at the Duke’s house again made me nervous, even though I knew he was in Vegas. The summit could drag on throughout the day, but my paranoid instincts had me worrying it would end soon.

Blake was quick about showering and getting ready, coming out in dark jeans and a backward baseball cap.

“So, what’s up?” he asked.

I exhaled, so glad not to be alone. “If you don’t have plans, I could use your company. My dad sent Kai on a mission with Kope.”

“For real?” His eyebrows shot upward and he half grinned.
“Awwwkward.”

“Yeah,” I agreed. “Can you come to L.A. with me? Just until they get back? I can tell you everything while we drive.”

“Yup,” he said. “On one condition.”

“Uh-oh.” I eyed him as he twisted the barbell in his brow, looking devilish.

“I get to distract you any way I want. And you gotta be a good sport about it.”

That was a frightening condition. Knowing Blake, he’d have me parachuting from a plane. But I agreed, thankful for
his company. He ran back in the house to pack some things before we set off in Kaidan’s SUV.

I told him everything about the mission, careful to keep my eye off the speedometer. He was an even scarier driver than Kaidan. But at least he couldn’t pop a wheelie.

“They’ll be fine, Anna,” he assured me. “Seems like a cut-and-dried scenario to me. I know you’re scared, but I’m gonna try to keep your mind off it, okay?”

I chewed the inside of my lip. Nothing was cut-and-dried about this situation, but I appreciated his efforts to ease my worry. Talking helped.

“What’s a changing of the guard?” I asked. “My dad said that’s what they’re doing this summit.”

“Ah. Yep, that makes sense. It’s where the Dukes change positions, move to other parts of the world, get new bodies.”

Ick
.

“All of them get new bodies?”

“Nah, just the ones whose bodies are getting old. Like my pops. He mentioned he’s due for a change. That’s gonna be weird. Pretty soon me and my father could be the same age. He could be even hotter than me.”

He laughed. I wondered if my dad would have to change, too.

“Will you have to move?” I asked.

“Probably not. Some Dukes make their offspring follow them wherever they go, but my father usually doesn’t. He let my brother stay in Panama—”

My head whipped toward him. “Your
brother
?”

“Yeah.” He looked surprised by my shock.

“I never knew you had a brother.”

“He’s, like, forty. I have a sister in Belgium, too. She’s real old.”

I stared at him. How could I not have known this? “Do you think they would be willing to ally with us?”

He scoffed and shook his head. “No way. My sister is ninety and my brother hates humans. He came around during my training to work with me, and I couldn’t stand the dude.”

“He helped train you?”

“It’s usually the older siblings who do the training if they’re around. If it’s an older sister, she’s the one to raise the younger Neph. Kope and his brothers were raised by a sister. She’s gotta be pretty old, too, by now.”

“Who else has siblings?”

“Not Kai. His last sister was killed when he was real young. She was in her thirties, and some stalker dude she was dating murdered her. I’m not sure, but I think Pharzuph’s kid before her was a sister, too, and she got pregnant.”

I didn’t need to ask what happened to her or the baby. It put my stomach in knots to think of the cruelty of the Dukes.

I didn’t ask any more about siblings. In my mind family should share a certain bond, but we clearly weren’t dealing with the same dynamics as human brothers and sisters, with the exception of Marna and Ginger.

“So . . .” I cleared my throat. “You have a girlfriend, huh?”

He sniffed and switched hands on the steering wheel.

“Yeah. Kai’s always busting my balls.” He tried to keep his voice light, but I sensed the slight falter in his words. “It’s something to do, you know?”

Something to do. Right.

“You love her?”

“Nah. I mean, she’s cool. She’s got issues, but she can be sweet. We have fun.”

“But . . . why not just date? What made you decide to be with one girl all this time?”

He took off his hat and rumpled his shiny black hair, driving right-handed.

“It’s the only thing my pop’s ever demanded.” He sighed, a sad and defeated sound. “He says I need a trophy wife, and it has to look perfect to the outside world. I’ve been dragging my feet about it, but I can’t put it off much longer. After ten years or so, he’ll want me to trade her in for a younger model. My brother’s on his fourth wife now.”

I closed my eyes, shaking my head.

“Don’t say anything to Ginger,” he said quietly. “I want to hold off as long as possible.”

That, I could understand. Even if the marriage was forced, it would still change things. Knowing Blake was attached to another girl in such an intimate way would drive Ginger insane.

“Well,” I said, needing to lighten the mood for him, “next time Kai tries to, um, bust your balls, you can give it right back to him, because he’s got a girlfriend now, too.”

His almond eyes rounded for a moment and he held out his fist.

I bumped his knuckles with mine and he started snickering, bringing that same fist to his mouth.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

“You said
balls
.”

“Shut up.” I hit his arm, unable to keep the smile from my
face as he cracked up.

“For real, though,” he said. “I’m glad you two are together. He’s been such a punk, all heartbroken and shi—
iiiz
.”

I rolled my eyes. “Not this again, Blake.”

“I’m tryin’ to be good! Consider it a personal challenge to myself.” He grinned. “And I meant what I said about you and Kai. You just gotta be careful. I worry about him when it comes to . . . you know.”

“What?” I asked. “Work?” Or lack of . . .

He nodded, appearing serious.

“I know,” I agreed. “Me, too.”

We made it to Kaidan’s apartment in record time. Part of me wanted to curl up in his soft sheets and nap, but Blake wasn’t having any of that. He went to the entertainment center and when he hit the power button we both jumped back at the ear-blasting, screaming lyrics: “Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage . . .” Blake fumbled for the volume control while I winced. “Then someone will say what is lost can never be saved . . .”

He finally figured it out, cutting off the jarring song.

“Dude,” Blake mumbled to himself while he sifted through the music, “someone’s got anger issues.”

He found something with a techno beat. The sound of it immediately started his feet moving, followed by his arms and hands in smooth motions.

“That’s more like it. You ever dance, Anna?”

Oh, gosh. I liked to dance, but I remembered Blake breaking it down on the dance floor at that New Year’s party in Atlanta. He had definite moves that put my hip-shaking,
arm-waving “dancing” to shame.

“I don’t know,” I said as he moved closer, taking my hands. I wanted to pull away and break into giggles. Jumping from a plane might be less embarrassing than this.

He moved one hand around to the small of my back, bringing us closer. When our thighs and hips met, it felt unnatural to stay still while he was in motion. My body tried to match his, which matched the beat of the song. The next thing I knew, we were dancing. It was sexy, but not sexual. It made me feel good to move, but I knew his intentions were only friendly.

“That’s it, girl.” He spun me so my back was against his chest, guiding my arms to the side and above my head. “Hey, I know what we’re doing tonight,” he said, suddenly breaking away and snapping his fingers. I spun to face him, watching a joker-faced grin spread across his face. I put my hands on my hips.

“Should I be worried?” I asked.

“Nope. You’re gonna love it.”

I should have been worried.

Blake was taking me clubbing. He’d done an excellent job so far of occupying our time, and though thoughts of Kaidan were always present at the forefront of my mind, the anxiousness was kept at bay. It was difficult to worry when you were trying so hard to learn an impromptu dance routine. We’d spent three hours getting the moves just right, laughing hysterically when my feet tangled with his and I went sprawling. He never lost his balance. Ever. It was kind of freaky.

“Dude, you’re a good dancer,” he’d told me, sounding surprised. “You just gotta channel that inner sassy girl when you feel the beat.”

I gave him my best
rawr!

He frowned and clucked his tongue. “You can’t be smiling when you do that.”