Viper (Fallen Angel #2)(5)

My jaw ticked as the alcohol buzzed in my veins. “Is that right?”

“Oh yeah. He said they hooked up last time the band was in Miami, and I didn’t believe him, but I guess he was telling the truth, huh?”

“Looks like it,” I muttered. You knew what would happen. You know who Viper is.

Yeah, I did, but it’d been less than twenty-four hours since I’d been the one in his bed underneath him, and already he had a replacement. It stung. Of course it fucking did. It didn’t matter how prepared I thought I’d been for the reality of what would happen after spending a night with Viper—the actual aftermath was a harder pill to swallow.

It would help if he’d been shit in bed. But to have the most intense sexual experience of my life and then pretend tonight that it never happened? While Viper sat there looking so gorgeous and more edible than the damn steak on my plate? Ugh.

I ran a hand over my hair before remembering I’d tied it back this morning, and then sighed. How long did I have to sit here and watch Ansel pawing at Viper before I could leave? Would this be the way things were now? Me sitting on the periphery, watching Viper and his endless conquests?

You have to be okay with it. This is what you signed up for.

But foolish me for thinking I’d be satisfied with one night with Viper. We’d never discussed it, but I’d stupidly assumed whatever this attraction was between us would lead to more than just a one-night stand. Nothing as deep as a relationship—I wasn’t delusional, after all—but a casual hookup every now and then.

Yeah, that’s not happening, I thought, as I imagined throwing daggers into the side of Ansel’s head. Focus on something else. Anything else.

I threw back the rest of the vodka and then laid my hand over the back of Vanessa’s chair, angling my body to face her. She was definitely attractive, with heart-shaped lips and long, glossy black hair your hands could get lost in. As she smiled at me, I thought about how easy it would be to turn on the charm and end up with her slim body underneath me, writhing until the early morning hours.

But the thought didn’t make my cock jerk in my pants. No, that honor belonged to the man across the table, the one with the hard, well-defined body and the sinful mouth that could wreck you with one kiss.

I brought my hand up to stroke the dimple in Vanessa’s cheek. “I like these.”

“You do?” Her smile widened. It was a beautiful smile, her pink lips full and wanting. Still, my dick refused to take notice. “Are you, um…busy tomorrow night?”

“You askin’ me out?”

Her cheeks flushed. “Well, there’s a bonfire at the beach, and it’s always a good time…”

“You’ll be there?”

She nodded.

But before I could answer, a low growl reverberated across the table, and Viper shoved his chair back, the legs scraping against the floor. He downed the rest of his drink and slammed it on the table as he got to his feet.

“Goin’ out,” he said, before he stalked off toward the back door that led to his guesthouse. I stared after him, belatedly noticing that he’d left alone. Ansel was half standing, his face almost comical as it fell and he began to sputter. For a moment, it looked like he’d follow Viper, but the guy next to him put his hand on Ansel’s arm and said something in his ear, and Ansel sat back down, not looking happy at all about the turn of events.

I almost smirked until I realized Viper hadn’t exactly left with me either.

As I dropped my arm from the back of Vanessa’s chair, Killian tossed a balled-up piece of his roll in my direction.

“Yo, Halo,” he said, his elbows on the table and the index fingers of his interlocked hands pointing toward where Viper had disappeared. “Why don’t you go make sure he’s cool.”

I opened my mouth to protest, to comment that he’d been a dick all day, and I was pretty sure I’d only make things worse. But then Killian cocked his head ever so slightly, a knowing look on his face, and fuck. He knew. Somehow, he knew about Viper and me.

Pushing my chair back, I tossed my napkin onto my plate, and when I got to my feet, I was aware of everyone’s eyes on me yet again. But fuck it. I didn’t know any of these people, and they didn’t know me, so I threw out an “Excuse me,” and retraced Viper’s steps.

Out of view of the dinner party, my hand paused on the door that led outside. I didn’t know if Viper would even want to talk to me, but somehow I needed to squash this tension that had infiltrated today. He and I needed to clear the air, and it needed to be now.

With a deep inhale, I opened the door.





Five





Viper





FUCK THIS DAY.

That was the thought playing on a loop in my mind, as I slammed out the patio doors of the mansion and made my way across the back lawn toward the guesthouse. The night had chased the sun away, and as I stormed toward my sleeping quarters, I tried to shove aside the image of Halo and that Vanessa chick getting all nice and cozy at dinner.

When Ansel and his crew had first shown up, I’d thought it would be the perfect distraction for my shitty mood. Ansel was the kind of guy who was down for a good time with no strings attached. He was the ideal partner for someone like me. Someone who wasn’t interested in forming attachments to the men he took to his bed, and while I’d known he’d been up for exactly that—since he’d guided my hand over the blatant invitation that could be taken no other way—my interests had stayed firmly fixated on the one seated across from me. The one who’d snuck out of my bed earlier that morning. The one who, for all intents and purposes, had dismissed me as though he was done…with me.