I jerked my gaze away, realizing I’d been staring. And he wasn’t at all the kind of person I wanted to be staring at. Living on the streets had given me a keen instinct for danger. This guy? He was not someone to mess with. A sense of purpose radiated off of him too. I figured it was better not to get in the way of whatever he was up to.
Just my luck, he sauntered up to the bar right beside me. “Give me the best thing you have on tap,” he said to the bartender, and turned toward me. “Nice night to be out on the town.”
“I suppose,” I said noncommittally. How long was it going to take Kylie to get here and give me an easy exit?
Cheekbones cocked his head. “All the early summer energy in the air, it really brings the beast out.”
What was that supposed to mean? I shrugged and acted fascinated by my Bloody Mary. He didn’t take the hint.
“Maybe we could take a walk, get to know each other a little better.”
I cut my eyes toward him. He was confident, wasn’t he? My quick tongue got a little ahead of my better judgment. “Who says I’m looking to get to know you?”
Cheekbones grinned at me, looking unfazed. “I’m just saying, we clearly have a lot in common. This isn’t our kind of place, is it? Why not come back to the fold, at least for a visit?”
A lot in common? The fold? Was this guy on something? No dilated pupils, no jerky movements, but you never knew what drugs were making the rounds these days.
I drained as much of my drink as I could in one swallow and set down the glass. The hit of spice and alcohol sharpened my inner claws. “I’m pretty sure we have exactly nothing in common,” I said. “For one thing, I know how to take a ‘No.’”
Before I had to find out how he was going to answer that, I hopped off my stool and made a beeline for the back hall with its Restrooms sign. He wasn’t likely to follow me into the ladies’.
Washing my hands, I peered at my reflection. I hadn’t put on anything other than my standard mascara and light maroon lipstick combo today. I was dressed casual in a faded Nine Inch Nails tee and jeans. I’d been blessed with a good hair day, my chocolate-brown waves drifting artfully across my shoulders the way I usually struggled and failed to style them, but otherwise nothing extra special was going on. So why were guys honing in on me like flies to a jar of sugar water?
It didn’t matter. Cheekbones made me too uneasy. Either he was drugged out or partly insane, and neither would lead to a good outcome. I’d text Kylie to meet me at the all-ages club on the other side of town and grab a cab to be on my way.
I was reaching for my phone as I came out of the restroom, and a pair of arms slammed around me from behind. One clapped a damp cloth over my face. The other wrapped around my waist. A sickly sweet smell washed over me. I swung back my elbow—and the world went black.
Want to read more of Ren’s story? It’s free with Kindle Unlimited! Grab Dragon’s Guard here.
About the Author
Eva Chase lives in Canada with her family. She loves stories both swoony and supernatural, and strong women and the men who appreciate them. Along with the Flirting with Monsters series, she is the author of the Cursed Studies trilogy, the Royals of Villain Academy series, the Moriarty’s Men series, the Looking Glass Curse trilogy, the Their Dark Valkyrie series, the Witch’s Consorts series, the Dragon Shifter’s Mates series, the Demons of Fame Romance series, the Legends Reborn trilogy, and the Alpha Project Psychic Romance series.
Connect with Eva online: