Next-Door Incubus, page 9
part #1 of Becoming Lust Series
She frowned. “Javier is an asshole who likes to lead people on, apparently. What we had was nothing compared to you and Trevon.”
I gazed over at the burning bacon. “Has Trevon come over?”
“No.” She turned off the stove and placed the bacon on a glass plate. “But Eros did.”
Eros came looking for me?
“You should go see him. He seemed worried.”
“I will,” I said. “Later.”
All I wanted to do now was sink into my sheets, fall asleep, and dream of him. I knew that the Eros in my dreams wasn’t the same as the Eros in real life, but Dream-Eros had comforted me last night. And I hoped that it would happen again.
Chapter 18
After work, I drove myself to Kasey’s house and knocked on her door. I hadn’t seen her or Trevon or even Eros in a few days, and I wanted someone to talk to. There was no answer. I was about to turn away when a shirtless guy opened the door.
His thick brown hair stuck up in all different directions, and he furrowed his dark brows at me. “Hello?”
“Hi, is—uh—Kasey here?”
Who was this guy? He couldn’t be her boyfriend; she just introduced me to Mycah a couple days ago. Maybe it was her brother?
He smiled, leaned against the doorframe, and crossed his arms. There was a small scar in the center of his chest. “You must be Dani. Kasey talks a lot about you.”
“Oh, um… good. What’s your name?” I asked awkwardly.
“I’m Aarav, Kasey’s boyfriend.”
My eyes widened. Oh, he was her lover. Had she broken up with Mycah already?
Kasey walked behind Aarav, tying a black silk robe around her small waist. “Dani! Come in.” She slapped Aarav lightly on the chest. “Hun, go put on a shirt. You’re making her uncomfortable.”
Aarav jogged to the bedroom, and I walked into the apartment. Heart racing. Maybe Kasey was cheating on Mycah. She hadn’t told me they broke up. I thought she would have. Would I be able to look at her the same if she was cheating, especially after what Trevon did?
“What’s on your mind?” She puckered her red lips and curled her arm around mine, dragging me to the kitchen.
“Aarav is your boyfriend?”
“Yep.”
“When did you break up with Mycah?”
“I didn’t. We’re still dating.”
My eyes widened. “Oh.” Wow. Okay. Out of everyone, I didn’t think Kasey would ever cheat. She was so angry when she found out that Trevon was cheating on me.
I gnawed on the inside of my cheek. Maybe I should tell Mycah. I would’ve wanted someone to tell me that Trevon was cheating. It would have saved me from blindly believing that he was still in love with me.
Kasey giggled at my expression, her nose scrunching. “Dani, I’m in a relationship with both of them.”
Yeah, that was clear.
“No, no, no. I mean they both know about each other. We’re in a polyamorous relationship.”
Oh.
“Really?” I asked, curiously.
She sucked her bottom lip between his teeth, brows furrowed. “You don’t think that’s weird, do you?”
“No, of course not.”
I had never met anyone in that kind of relationship before. And while it was different, it wasn’t weird. It was intriguing more than anything. Two partners to care about. Two partners who cared about her.
She hopped onto a stool at the counter and tugged me along with her. Aarav walked into the kitchen, a loose white shirt hanging off his body. “Would you ladies like some dinner?”
“Just something light, hun.”
Aarav threw some burgers on the skillet and leaned against the counter. “I heard what happened with Trevon,” he said. Kasey narrowed her eyes at him. He raised his arms in defense. “What? I just wanted to tell her how well she took it. Not everyone can get over a breakup in a few days, and she’s already going on another date.”
My brows furrowed together. “I don’t have a date.”
Kasey grabbed my hand, a guilty look on her face. “Actually, I kind of told someone that you’d go on a date with them tonight.”
“What? Why would you do that?”
“Because you need to get back out there, and I know the perfect guy for you!”
“Kase, I’m not ready to go out on a date. I just got off work, have had no time to freshen up, and I’m not meeting a guy for the first time looking like this.” And I didn’t want to go so soon after the breakup. It was still so fresh, and I was so scared that I would fall for another guy that would break my heart just like Trevon did.
Another pretty face. Another book of lies. Another problem.
A wicked grin stretched across her face. “Well, I’m going to help you get ready. You’re going to look hot as Wrat—Hell. Hot as hell.”
“No,” I said. “I’m not going. I probably won’t even like the guy.” There was only one guy that I’d consider seeing, and he had disappeared from my life a few days ago.
“Oh, you’ll like him. Don’t you think so, Aarav?” she asked.
He flipped the burgers and nodded.
“See! Nothing to worry about!”
“There’s everything to worry about! What if he turns out to be a pervert? What if I get awkward and do something stupid—like have a heart attack?”
Kasey burst out laughing. She rested her forehead on my shoulder, shaking from laughter. “Dani, calm down.”
But I couldn’t. I was still getting over Trevon and didn’t know if I was ready to date again. I hadn’t flirted with another guy in years, except Eros but he didn’t count. And, anyway, I couldn’t go. I needed time for myself, time to make sure that this was going to make me happy.
“He’s not a pervert.” She wiped tears from her cheeks, still giggling. “And, I assure you that he doesn’t care if you do something stupid. I can’t promise you about the heart attack thing because if you two…” She wiggled her brows at me. “… you know, have sex, then you might.”
I wrinkled my nose. “There will be no sex on the first date, and…” I raised my brow at her. “How do you know the sex will be that good? Is he one of your ex-boyfriends?”
She made a face. “Oh, heavens, no.”
The burgers sizzled on the skillet, and Aarav chuckled as he shook spices over them.
“Well, who is he?”
“I can’t tell you that. It’s a blind date.”
“Then, I’m not going.”
“Please, just this once, and if you hate him, then I’ll never make you go on another date again.”
I sighed and pushed a hand through my hair. It was a win-win situation for me. If I had a good time, then I might go out with this guy again. I’d be able to get my mind off of Trevon and Eros for a few hours. If I had a bad time, then I didn’t have to go out on another date again. I could pick up Project Hermit right where I left off, and I was completely fine with that.
“Just this once, and then never again,” I said, giving her the hardest eyes I could.
Kasey pulled me off of the stool. “Deal, let’s get you ready.”
“Oh, come on,” Aarav said. He turned around with two burgers on a plate, each with a smiley face drawn with ketchup on it. “You’re not going to eat?”
Kasey placed a kiss on his cheek, leaving a red stain. “I’ll eat it later, hun.” She winked back at him and dragged me to her room.
~~~
Crimson’s Nouveau was buzzing with people when I arrived for the date. The last time I was here was with Trevon, Eros, and Maria. Trevon was chatting up Javier so much that night, I should’ve realized that something was going on.
Men, dressed in suits, were sitting around the bar with beers in their hands. Some watched me walk by in the plunging navy-blue sweater dress that Kasey had forced me to wear. I found an open seat and scooted onto the stool. “A white sangria please,” I said to the petite woman behind the counter.
One man gazed at me from the opposite side of the bar, eyebrow cocked ever so slightly. His eyes were a dark brown—black, even, but maybe it was just this dim light. I gazed down at the table, cheeks flaming. God, I hope this wasn’t the guy Kasey set me up with. I was hoping for someone less attractive, someone I’d be able to say goodbye to at the end of the night and not feel bad when I didn’t call him back.
When I looked back up, he was suddenly next to me—standing a bit too close. He brushed his fingers against my slim wrist. “What’s a pretty, little angel like you doing in a bar like this?” His voice was deep and melodic, and his eyes… I swear they really were black.
That same easy feeling I got with Eros filled me, and I found myself leaning closer to him. He smelt so good, like the beach, a salty aroma of shore and sea. Even his hair was a sandy brown.
“I’m… uh…” I moved my lips, failing to form words. “Waiting for someone.”
He was so mesmerizing that I almost missed a woman storming straight toward us with a bitter look on her face. She grabbed the man’s wrist and pulled it away from me. “I leave you alone for one minute and you’re already flirting with—” She looked me up and down in pure disgust, green eyes glistening. “—someone like her.”
She pointed a slender finger at me. “Don’t you ever look at him like that again, or I’ll take you right to Satan’s kingdom and watch you burn.” And, without another word, she dragged the handsome man right to one of the dark back doorways.
I sat there, staring at the almost glistening door that they disappeared behind and raised my brows. The bartender placed a drink on the bar in front of me, and I looked away. “White sangria.”
Well, that guy was definitely not the man Kasey set me up with. I drew my finger across the wooden bar, thinking about how my first date I had after Trevon was already going to shit. A handsome, taken guy flirting with me. His girlfriend threatening to take me to Hell herself. The night was bound to get worse.
I was going to stumble over my words, spill my drink on myself. Maybe even spill it on whoever my lucky date was. He’d say it was alright, but it wouldn’t really be alright. Then he’d tell me that he was going to wipe it off in the bathroom and would just never come back out.
I fiddled with my necklace as the heat crawled up my neck. Calm down, Dani. It’s just a date.
Why did I agree to this again? Why was I even here?
“Kasey, this is the last time I’m doing this for you. I told you last time I didn’t want to go on anymore dates,” someone said.
My eyes widened, and I stared down at my sangria. He was here.
Someone leaned over the bar next to me, shirt sleeves rolled up with forearms. “Apple cider with Fireball,” he said to the bartender. He sounded familiar, but I didn’t dare look over. “I told you that I’m done dating dem—”
Oh, God. He didn’t even want to be here.
“Kase, I have to go.” He shut off his phone and paused for too long. “Dani.”
My heart nearly stopped. Just by the way he said my name—so slow and sensual—I knew who he was. And when I lifted my gaze to meet Eros’s dark one, I was more nervous than I was a few minutes ago.
He stared down at me, brows creased. “What’re you doing here?”
I didn’t know what to say, so I just stared at him, wide-eyed. “Um…” I took another sip of my drink. Kasey set me up with Eros. My hot next-door neighbor Eros.
But Eros didn’t even want to be here. That’s why he was probably avoiding me these past few days, didn’t want any kind of relationship right now. I shook my head. This was a huge mistake. I shouldn’t have come. “Just… drinking some sangria.”
The bartender gave him his drink. He rested a forearm on the bar and gave me a light smile. “You only drink when you’re nervous about something.” He sat on the stool next to me, and all I could remember was sitting at Trevon’s bar with him, our knees grazing against each other, him taking in every inch of me. “Did Kasey send you here on a date?” he asked.
I pressed my lips together and stood. “Uhm, yes.” I grabbed my coat from the back of the stool. “But I was just doing it to make her happy, not because I actually wanted to go out on a date.” My palms were sweating; I could feel my heart pounding in my chest.
This was the only guy that I wanted to go on a date with but having him sit next to me with that sultry look in his eye terrified me. So, I continued to fumble with the zipper of my coat, hands shaking.
I didn’t know why I was letting this rush right by me. This was what I wanted. He was what I wanted. He just didn’t want to be here. It wasn’t the right time. This—
He grabbed my wrist, stopping me. “You’re not going to have a drink with me?”
When I gazed up at him in this dim light, I felt like I couldn’t breathe. “Eros…” I said. There was no point in lying. “I heard your conversation with Kasey. We don’t have to do this. I don’t mind.”
“I want to have a drink with you. I just didn’t want to date another one of Kasey’s friends.”
“I am one of her friends.”
“Yeah, but…” He gazed down at his drink, lips softening into a smile. “You’re you.” His fingers grazed against my palm and curled around it. “Now, unzip your coat, sit back down, and have a drink with me.”
When I sat, he tapped his finger with his ring against his glass. “I’m sorry about Trevon.”
“It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. You don’t deserve to be treated like that.”
“I know.”
He gave me a boyish smile. His lips were set in a soft curve, and there was a lightness in his eyes. “Good.” He grabbed my hand on top of the bar. “Zane and I kicked Javier out.”
“You didn’t need to do that. It was Trevon’s decision to cheat on me, not Javier’s.”
Eros’s jaw clenched for a split second, like he knew something that I didn’t. “It doesn’t matter. He’s not coming back.”
I didn’t want to talk about Trevon or Javier. This wasn’t the time or place to wallow in misery over him. I was on a date with Eros. A rush of heat warmed my body at the thought, and my cheeks tingled.
“Thinking about me in those horns again?” He placed his elbow on the bar top and leaned closer to me, finger curling around my hair.
My face flushed. “Oh, God.” I couldn’t believe that I told him about that. Liquor really did give me the courage to tell my deepest, darkest secrets. “I—no. I wasn’t.” But I was now.
Eros smirked and brushed his thumb against my cheek. “You know, I never got that kiss.” His breath smelt like a mix of cinnamon and apple.
“What kiss?” I smiled, my gaze flickering to his lips. Of course, I remembered that night in the kitchen when he was so close, when our lips were hovering next to each other, when he told me that all he wanted was to kiss me. “I never said that I wanted you to kiss me.”
He raised his brows and pulled his hand away, leaning back in his seat. “Dani, I really don’t think you want to tease me.”
I tilted my head, feeling confident in myself for the first time tonight. “I’m not trying to tease you.”
His eyes darkened. “If you want to play this little game, then I’ll play it with you. But just know that you’re not going to win.” He grasped my chin in his hand, thumb brushing against my lips. “You won’t be able to resist me.”
When he leaned back in his seat, he crossed his arms over his chest, making his biceps bulge. I already knew that I wouldn’t be able to resist him, but it’d be fun to try. Maybe I’d even get him to break before I did.
The thought of it excited me, and this was the first thing that I was looking forward to in the past week.
A game with Eros.
Who’d succumb to the other first?
Chapter 19
After our date, Eros stood next to me in the elevator, leaning against a shiny—almost shimmering—silver wall, and stared at me. His eyes were dark, hooded, and oh-so-sultry. This was going to be harder than I thought. I didn’t know how the hell I was going to win this, but I knew damn well that I was going to try. And, if I didn’t, what would be the worst that could happen? We have sex and I do, in fact, have a heart attack.
I shifted from foot to foot, feeling the warmth pool between my legs, and hoped that the doors to our floor would finally open. “So, how do you know Kasey?”
“She’s my sister.”
My eyes widened. “Your sister?” Why didn’t she tell me? God, I’d been telling her everything about Eros. And by everything, I meant everything. From the first day that I met him to the bar incident. She knew every single intimate detail.
“That would explain a lot,” I said.
He chuckled, his shirt tightening against his chest when he did. “Are we that much alike?”
“Yes.” They both seemed… turned on—all the time.
The doors to the elevator opened, and I stepped out as quickly as possible. It was getting hot in there. Eros walked me to my door, hand dangerously close to mine. “I had a good time,” he said, posting a hand against the door frame, the muscles in his arm flexing.
My eyes fell upon his lips for a moment. “Me too.”
Keep your cool, Dani. Remember: You will not break first.
He smirked, leaned down, and grazed his nose against mine. “We’ll have to do it again sometime,” he mumbled against me.
His lips were so close to mine. So damn close. His breath was sending me into a daze, the way it did the first time I met him. I didn’t even know how he was doing it. All I knew was that I wanted more. More of him. More of this.
I’d been craving the feeling of his lips against mine since the day I met him. And I had the chance to close the distance. I stood on my toes, bringing my lips closer to his—waiting for him to close the distance instead. My fingers traveled up his torso.
“I thought you didn’t want me to kiss you.” He smirked against my neck.
Don’t do it, Dani.
I stopped myself from falling into his little trance and mirrored his smirk. “I don’t.”
He trailed his nose down my jaw, and I suppressed the urge to shiver at his touch. He brushed his lips against my ear. “You do, Dani,” he said. I dug my fingernails into his chest. “But if you want to break me, you’re going to have to try harder than this.”
