18. Dani

“I still can't believe you didn't tell me that you were seeing her!”

A groan gurgles in my chest as I snap a lid onto the coffee cup in my hand and slide it across the counter. Rose has been voicing her opinion on my time with Ashe for the past few days now and, to be honest, I was getting a little tired of hearing it. Or maybe I was tired of lying.

The customer takes his beverage with a nervous smile as Rose appears next to me like some phantom shadow. I can practically feel her blue eyes staring at the side of my face, analyzing me with predacious precision as she waited for me to respond. If she stared any harder I was sure that icicles would start to form in the air between us.

“It's not like I planned it, Rose,” I finally say, refusing to meet her glare as I busy myself with wiping down the milk frother. “And I'm not seeing her.”

In truth, I haven't really seen much of the redhead since my first night at her apartment. If she wasn't working late then she was busy entertaining Catalina in her bedroom, and I would much rather Ashe didn't come home at all on those nights. Even though she hasn't yet tried to 'taste' me, that woman still gave me the creeps. What the hell could she possibly have on Ashe, anyway? I really hope they don't work together.

I still don't even know what Ashe does for a living. Clearly demons didn't have normal day jobs.

“No, you just moved in with her.”

I knew mentioning that was a bad idea, but what else was I supposed to say when she called me up out of the blue to ask why some strange family was now living in my apartment? I was actually a little surprised at how quickly Terrace View rented out my unit—apparently they had a very extensive waiting list, despite their office being burglarized. How Ashe managed to pull that one off without getting caught was still a mystery to me.

My stomach knots as I swallow down the truth and regurgitate the lie I had concocted. “I told you, I was getting evicted and I needed a place to stay. Ashe offered to let me crash in her spare room until I got back on my feet and I said yes, but that's it. There's nothing going on between us.”

Forced hospitality was the more appropriate term, but it was probably for the best if I didn't let that little tidbit slip.

“You could've stayed with me, Dani, or asked me for help. Why didn't you?”

Because I've somehow managed to add an ill-tempered demon goddess and a murderous sex-devil in stilettos to my collection of baggage? Even for Rose, with seemingly endless dating drama of her own, that would be too much to invite in. I didn't add a 'plus one' on my ticket to this crazy train when I put the soul ring on. I wasn't about to add one now.

“I didn't want to burden you.” At least that wasn't a lie.

“And what about him?” She points to the other side of the café, where a disheveled bear in a plaid button-down was reading the same newspaper article since this morning as he sipped his third cup of coffee for the day. Every so often I would find him glancing in our direction as he scanned the café, sniffing the air every time a new patron walked through the door.

How inconspicuous.

Still, I decide to play along. “Who, Marco?” I offer her a nonchalant shrug. “What about him?”

“He's been following you around like a stray dog. Isn't that just a little creepy?”

“He's not that bad, Rose.”

“He was even with you when I called a few days ago, Dani! What is he now, your bodyguard when Red's not around? Did you join a cult?” She suddenly gasps, her eyes widening with just a little too much dramatic flair as she leans in and whispers, “Are you involved in some kind of weird, crazy threesome with them?”

“Ew. Rose, no!” I roll my eyes. Why did everything always come down to sex with her? “You need to calm down with your conspiracy theories, hun.”

“And you need to tell me what the hell is going on! Moving in with some chick you barely know, coming to work with a lumberjack bartender looking over your shoulder? Not talking to me about any of this? I mean, Jesus, we haven't even hung out outside of work since you started hanging out with them. This isn't like you!” She draws her eyebrows together, concern etched in her face. “I'm worried about you, Dani girl.”

“I'm fine, Rose, I promise.” Physically, anyway. My mental state was a whole other story. “Just trust me, okay?”

“Oh, sweetie, I do trust you. I just don't trust your choices right now.”

I was still questioning them, myself, actually. But the logic behind this situation seemed to fly out the window the moment Ashe's touch sent my heart racing that first night. The absence of her heat since and the stolen glances that I'm sure I've seen her throw my way have left me craving more. I was running on pure gut feeling at this point, common sense be damned.

“Can you at least trust that I know what I'm doing?” I place a hand on the blonde's shoulder and offer her a small smile. I hope the gesture is more reassuring than my words.

“I just . . . I feel like I'm losing my best friend, here.”

The crack in her voice nearly breaks me. “I swear you aren't losing me, Rose. I'm just trying to figure this all out. And when I do”—I level my gaze with hers, silently pleading for her to understand—“I promise I'll tell you everything. But until then, please just trust me on this.”

Rose's bright blue eyes flick between my own as she weighs my words, contemplating their sincerity, before she finally sighs. “Just do me a favor. Don't let her become another Monica, okay?”

I don't think I have to worry about Ashe leaving me anytime soon. And despite what she is, despite the distance she's tried to create between us and Catalina's persistent presence, as long as I still wore her ring I don't think I could leave her, either. I'm not so sure that there's a part of me that even wants to.

I just wish I knew whether or not she felt the same.

“You don't have to worry about that.”

Rose dips her head in a curt nod. “Good, because I'll fuck a bitch up if she fucks you over.”

A low chuckle rumbles in my throat as I tuck a strand of loose hair behind my ear. Rose was nothing if not eloquent with her choice phrases, and I couldn't help but admire her for her candor. If only I could afford her the same courtesy.

There was no denying that I was drawn to Ashe, like a star entrapped by the gravitational pull of a black hole as it inevitably descended into the unknown. Whether it was due to us being soulbound or something more I can't really say, but I can only hope that my intuition is right about her.

Rose's all-seeing gaze follows my movement. “That still won't come off, huh?”

I pull my hand away from my face and glance down at the ring, watching as the florescent lights glint off the silver and illuminate the sapphire band. It really was a gorgeous piece of work, like a rare flower in a garden of mediocrity. But every rose has its thorn—mine just so happens to come in the form of fangs and the daily promise of death.

“No,” I huff. “I haven't had any luck getting it off yet.”

In the brief words we've exchanged on the nights she paid us a visit, Catalina has offered to remove it on multiple occasions. If it weren't for Ashe keeping her at arm's length, I'm sure she would take much more than the ring from me if given the chance.

I swallow my fear at the thought.

“I really wish you would've let me take it off your hands instead of putting it on. I feel like this all started because of that ring.”

“I'm finally taking your advice, Rose. I'm fishing.”

The blonde snorts, but a smile twitches on her lips all the same. “Just make sure you don't bite off more than you can chew. You rarely ever test the waters before you go diving in to these kinds of things, and I can't be there to bail you out every time.”

It might be too late for that.

A low chime resonates from Rose's pocket and I breathe a sigh of relief. For now, at least, I didn't have to keep lying. The guilt was like a heavy stone in the pit of my stomach and I wasn't sure how much longer I could bear the weight of it.

“Shit, it's James!” Rose runs her fingers through her hair, brushing it down as best she could as she turns to me. “Quick, how do I look?”

“Rose, it's just a phone call.” I quirk a brow as a new feeling washes over me, prickling my skin. Even after she raved about how charming he was during their first dinner date, and the unbridled glee in her tone as she shared the most intimate details of the evening after their second date, I still didn't like his vibe. “Aren't you being a little hasty?”

“Don't give me that double standard crap, Dani,” she warns, ice glistening in her eyes. “Don't you dare.”

Goddammit, she was right. I had no leg to stand on, here. “Right. Sorry, hun.” I shoot her a grin as I flip the ends of her blonde locks playfully over her shoulder. “You look stunning.”

“You're damn right I do.” She winks before glancing around the café. “Do you mind holding down the fort while I take this?”

Aside from Marco and a few other patrons, Café Roasted was hardly busy this late in the afternoon. I nod anyway. After all the lies and deceit, it was the very least I could do for her.

“Just keep the phone sex to a minimum. Don't need you scaring off our customers.” I grab a pot of fresh coffee and walk the floor, leaving her to her conversation.

“Refill?” I ask, shaking the pot as I approach Marco's table.

“Didn't know this place offered free refills,” he remarks as I fill up his cup.

“We don't.” I set the carafe down on the table and pull out a chair. “But what David doesn't know won't hurt him.”

Marco grins in amusement. “Well I won't tell if you don't.”

“Deal.” I return his smile. “You know, you really suck at being covert.”

“I'm just a regular customer.”

“Most customers don't sit at the same table all day and read the same article for hours.”

The bear glances down at the open newspaper and shrugs. “It's an interesting story on”—his eyes scan the page and he frowns—“a potato the size of a rat terrier. They call this news?”

His commitment to Ashe's assignment was endearing, if a little overbearing. Although I did enjoy his company, it was a constant reminder of my situation and came at the cost of normalcy. Oh, how I missed normal.

“You don't have to stay, Marco. I'll be fine on my own.”

He takes a deep breath, almost as if he had anticipated this conversation. “You're a nice girl, Dani, but you're not out of the woods on this one yet.”

“It's been two weeks already and nothing's happened. If there ever was any danger, I'm sure it's over by now.”

“Nothing happening in that time's a good thing, but it doesn't mean you're safe.” His eyes flick to my hand and his look softens. “As long as you wear that ring, you won't ever be.”

I lean back with a disgruntled sigh. I was getting tired of hearing that. “And what if we can't get it off? Are you going to watch me forever?” When he doesn't immediately reply a groan of frustration bubbles in my throat. “Look, don't take this the wrong way. I like you, I think you're a teddy bear. But I miss my independence. I miss my own apartment, with my own things and my own life. I miss my friends and being around people who don't want to kill me.”

And people who actually want to be around me.

Marco takes a sip of his coffee as he mulls over my words. He was no stranger to my gripes—with Ashe avoiding me and Rose oblivious to the supernatural secrets that plague me, Marco was the only person I could really, truly talk to about all of this. My hairy confidant in plaid.

“I can't promise that you'll have all of that back,” he says after a while. “And I can't let you take that risk. But one thing I can promise you is that my kin won't wreck your place while they're house-sitting. They'll leave it just how you left it for when you can go back.”

I look at him. “Your kin?”

His mustache droops as he lowers his gaze. “I, ah, wasn't entirely honest when you asked me what I owed Ashe.”

“What do you mean?”

Marco huffs, like he was embarrassed to admit any of this, and I can't help but think how heartwarming it is to see this burly bear of a man squirm. “I got into some trouble with some werewolves when I first moved to town. I had a reckless spirit back then and thought I was invincible, but I wasn't and they were determined to remind me of that fact. They're very territorial, you know, and if Ashe didn't happen to walk by at the right time then I would've been dog chow.”

So that's why he agreed to this whole babysitting gig. In some small sense, I could relate to his feeling of indebtedness to the redhead. Ashe saved his life just like she had saved mine. If anything, it painted his unwavering devotion in a whole new light. But does that mean that I'm now indebted to Ashe, too?

“So you owe Ashe your life, is that it?”

“Money isn't the only commodity, you know. Favors can be worth a lot to the right people. I owe Ashe and, over the years, others have owed me.”

At least that explains how my unit was rented out so quickly, but I wasn't exactly sure how I felt about a bunch of shifters living in my apartment. “Well your were-buddies better not scratch up all my furniture while they're there. I like you, Marco, but I like my couch more.”

Marco snorts as he takes another drink. “If it's any consolation, I think you're alright, too. For a human.”

Ding!

Marco's brow furrows as he sniffs the air. No matter how many times I see him do that, I don't think I'll ever get used to it.

“Are you going to do that every time someone walks through the door?”

A low growl rumbles in his throat, sending a chill racing up my spine and I freeze. I didn't want to turn and face the café's newest patron, but the glint in Marco's eyes as he glared behind me confirmed my fear.

“Hello, sweetling. I think it's time we had ourselves a little chat.”