Talon.
He thrusts a champagne flute in front of my face, eyes locked on Julien like a tattooed bald eagle who just saw another male circling his nest.
“Julien,” I say, contempt on full display. “This is the guy I regretfully brought with me.”
But Julien’s already retreating, smile soft and apologetic as he disappears into the swarm of dancers near the party room.
I snatch the flute and whirl on Talon. “Why are you like this?”
“What? Protective?” he scoffs. “Ashlyn, quit being naive. He was eyeing your ass.”
“No, he wasn’t. It was facing away.” I suck the champagne down in one long pull. “Besides…we’re at anorgy,dipshit. I think the pointis to stare at assesand not just that, but fuck them, too.”
I whip the glass over toward the bar. It explodes against the marble tile, shards flying along with the last slivers of my peace of mind. It’s gone. Talon stole it, like he always does. Clumsy hands. Dirty mouth. No sense of rhythm or timing.
He runs his paws through his greasy brown hair, then grabs my upper arm. “Then let’s go do that. I’m almost ready.”
I roll my eyes. He probably just snorted some lines and got his dick sucked in the bathroom by aSigmaho. Or one of myOmegasisters, thinking screwing him would bring me down a peg.
We can pretend Talon matters to me.
I’ve done it for years.
His brown eyes are bloodshot behind his Zorro-style mask. Occasionally swiping at his runny nose with a thumb, he cranks his neck to the side while I study his ‘Cosa Nostre’ ink. Wrong spelling. Wrong font. Never had the heart to tell him. Because I don’t have one of those.
Talon’s tattoo is a running joke in his fraternity,Delta Pi Alpha. I fake outrage when they mock him, only so I don’t have to hear him whine about their ribbing for hours.
“Can you even get it up now?” I ask, eyeing his trousers. He thinks they’re black Armani. They’re gray. And also, not Armani.
“What the fuck does that mean?” he asks with a glare.
“Figured you’d already started without me…”
“Ash, pumpkin. I wouldn’t do that. We came here together.”
Like second nature, I shove my bottom lip out and blink slowly at him. “Do you love me?”
He strokes my light-brown hair over my shoulder. “Of course, fancy. You want to fuck here, and I can show you, or in the hot tub, or in a room upstairs? We could find a couple of girls to join us.”
I swallow. Showtime.Fancy feet, don’t fail me now. Are you ready for it?
With the utmost care not to overact, I part my lips. “Oh…I know you said you wanted to fuck me with a bunch of other girls. I just…still feel kinda scared about it. Like, how will you feel about me after?”
“I told you, it’s different for guys. We don’t get emotional.It’s just sex, Ash. No big deal. The entire point of coming here was to try with other people, yeah?”
“I suppose…Other people?”
Bending over, he brushes his lips against my cheek as his tattooed hand rests on my waist, like he owns it. “Yes, fancy. Whoever you want. You can decide. I’m sure once you try pussy, you’ll realize you’re bisexual. Iknowyou are.”
He doesn’t know shit. But I bounce on my toes excitedly. “Okay. Give me a minute. I need to use the restroom!”
Heat sparks across my backside as I sashay away from him. He ogles my bestasset. And I’ll use it to keep him tame…for the time being.
Acting lost, I meander toward theThetaManor foyer, tossing my thick hair back like a banner before climbing the stairs. Talon’s still watching, so I raise a palm and shrug, then mouth,Are they up here?
He doesn’t respond. Two guys start fucking right on the floor in front of him, accidentally shoving him off-balance. His fists shoot up in the air as he yells something unintelligible, indistinguishable from the riot of voices surrounding us.
Keep it the fuck together, Talon. At least until I can use you.