Twisted Luck

by Mia Downing

  He noticed my battle between cowering and fight? There was no battle on this issue. I’d given him his relationship; I’d fed my mother details about our fairytale love affair. I’d get my mother down the aisle, and then I’d find a way to save her.

  But I wasn’t getting engaged.

  “Screw Samuel.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  I spent the next few days terrified of when Leo would pop the question. He took great joy in my discomfort, too. The first time he went down on one knee was at the restaurant Sunday night after the carnival with my mother and Samuel in attendance. My eyes had widened in horror, my breath trapped in my lungs as they clamped down.

  “Olivia, would you please,” he asked as rummaged around in his jacket pocket, “move your legs so I can find my cufflink?”

  “Don’t do that to me,” I ground out from clenched teeth as I ducked my head to help him look.

  I got his perfect, cocky smile in return. Thank goodness my mother had been focused on something Samuel had been saying and missed the event.

  Monday night, he attempted his fake proposal at the grocery store, and I took great glee in him kneeling on some loose blueberries and staining his pants.

  He hadn’t tried a third time yet, but this was in the back of my mind when co-worker Gerry had pulled me to the side earlier to invite me and “the boy toy” to a small, casual party to celebrate the model boyfriend’s birthday at seven thirty.

  I’d said yes because Gerry had guilted me into it, claiming I’d never been to anything, and yada, yada, yada. I had figured I would somehow ditch Leo and go solo. Maybe there was another Alaskan special on TV.

  But no such luck.

  Leo had guilted me into taking him, working all the angles until I had no choice but to just surrender. I have to admit, I was too defeated and sad to put up much of a fight.

  So we pulled up to the lovely Victorian home complete with a white picket fence. Leo parked on the street behind another co-worker’s car. I had let Leo drive since his skills had improved to the point where he could probably drive on his own.

  He went to get out, and I grabbed his forearm. “Promise me you won’t pull the fake or real engagement thing tonight.”

  The corner of his handsome lips quirked as he rubbed his stubbled chin in contemplation. “Don’t want me to pop the question in front of your friends?”

  “No! It’s Todd’s birthday, and it would take away from his moment. Gerry would hate me forever.” I wasn’t sure if that was true, but it sounded good. “In fact, just stop the whole engagement thing. It’s making me nervous.”

  “The wedding is Saturday,” he reminded me softly. “The longer I wait, the more trouble I face.”

  There was that. Samuel had expected the deed to be done over the weekend, and here it was, Tuesday night.

  I decided to try something different. “Look. This party is horrible enough for me, but I’m here, I’ve brought you to shut both them and you up, and hopefully this will be water under the bridge. Smooth water,” I added when Leo cocked his head with a devilish smile.

  “Why is this horrible? Parties should be fun. Decadent. Sinful.”

  My eyes grew wide with horror at the infliction in his voice. “There will be no sin or decadence. You’re going to drink a single drink. You’re going to enjoy a slice of cake, and you’re going to drive me home. There will be no engagement proposals, no orgies, no groping of my body, no sex or sexual acts performed in a closet, spare bedroom, or bathroom.” I hoped that covered all of it.

  He frowned. “That’s boring.”

  “Exactly.”

  We got out of the car, walked the walkway, and knocked at the door.

  Gerry answered immediately. “Hey, Olivia.”

  He cast an appreciative and nosy eye over Leo as we filed into his foyer. Leo looked every inch the sexy boy toy with his dress shirt open a button or two, exposing just a hint of chest hair.

  “This is Leo Weston,” I introduced. Leo nudged me. “My boyfriend.”

  They shook hands, and Leo didn’t seem to mind that Gerry practically drooled all over him. I guessed he wasn’t homophobic. But then, when a guy looked like Leo, he had to expect appreciation from all genders.

  A timer beeped from deeper inside the house, and Gerry tore his gaze from Leo’s chest. “Olivia, you know everyone. I have to get the munchies out of the oven. Make yourself at home.”

  Home didn’t feel like facing the lions while fending off the Spanish Inquisition all at once. I girded my loins and fumbled for Leo’s hand. I rounded the corner into a short hallway that led to the living room.

  And I saw her, dabbing the corner of her eye on a tissue as she spoke to a mutual friend.

  Heart in my throat, I shoved Leo back into the foyer. “We have to leave.”

  “We just got here.” Leo peeked around the corner. “What’s the problem? All I see is a pretty brunette, holding court.”

  “She’s the problem.”

  Dawning lit his eyes, and he rubbed his chin in thought. “She’s the bed breaker.”

  “Bingo.” I tugged his hand. “Let’s go.”

  Leo tugged back. “Lemme guess. You haven’t seen her since.”

  “No. We have—had—too many mutual friends. I haven’t been out much.”

  Seeing Jessie again hurt worse than seeing David, the ache in my chest sharp like she’d yanked out my heart and twisted it. I’d pledged my life to David, but she’d broken girl code. I’d told her things David would have never learned. And yet, despite knowing how broken I was, she’d defiled our friendship in my bed. The fact that she’d screwed David hurt, but not as much as realizing she’d never been my friend in the first place.

  Leo poked his head around the corner again, then squared my shoulders with his large hands and ducked to look me in the eyes. “You have nothing to worry about.”

  “You say that.”

  “I know that.” He fumbled for his pocket and offered me a tissue he had stashed there. “Look. She’s holding court because her life is a shambles. You’re going to hold court because your life is awesome, and she’ll crash and burn without you saying a word to her.”

  I clutched his tissue, fighting the tears that threatened to spill. I didn’t want to cry in front of him. I wanted to be strong, damn it. “How can you say my life is awesome?”

  “Because you have me. I’m gorgeous, rich, powerful, dressed impeccably, and I am charming as all hell. She’s a money-grubbing, gold-digging whore. The rest of them are just as superficial. I know people, Olivia. You’ve got this. Smile and think about how happy I make you when you come, and the image of perfection will be complete.”

  I couldn’t stop the smile forming at his words, both the egotistical ones and the hateful ones toward my former best friend. “You’re not lacking confidence, that’s for sure.”

  “That’s the beauty of dating a demon.” He cupped my cheek, brushing his thumb over my skin.

  “What happens in a month when I face these people again, and you’re gone?”

  His jaw flexed as he considered this. “Then you tell them you kicked my egotistical, pompous, stuffy ass to the curb because I wasn’t good enough for you. I’ll even let you lie about the size of my cock. Tell them it wasn’t big enough.”

  I laughed weakly and stared at the tissue I’d begun to shred, now pieces in my hands. “That’s big of you.”

  “Olivia.”

  I glanced up at him.

  “You are more than anyone in that room. You are more talented, more giving, more special. Your beauty lights you from the inside out because your soul is amazing.”

  I blinked at his kind words, not wanting to believe them. “You’re just saying that because you own it.”

  “I’m saying that because it’s true, and pride does a demon good. You don’t share yourself for good reason. I’m not saying you have to let these people in to see the real you. I’m saying you need to let a little of that out and leave them panting for more.
That will last even after I’m gone.”

  The idea of him leaving left me cold, inside and out. Which made no sense. I rubbed my arms, weary of the lecture. “Can we just…go home?”

  He gave a long sigh. “No. I have a lesson to teach you. Hold my hand, smile, and pretend to be in love. Can you do that?”

  “I guess.” Just stretch the lie a little more. I shouldn’t care about what they thought, but I did. I cared too much about everything. “Yes.”

  He held out his large hand. “Then come.”

  ****

  The party was like any other. People gathering. Drinking. Everyone huddled in little groups, talking with friends. Everyone but me talking, because I didn’t share. I never realized that fully until Leo pointed it out in his hallway lecture.

  David had always spoken for us, talking about his job, his life, his money, his connections. He’d worked the room with charm and personality, and I’d been content to simply bask in his glow. Maybe a part of me had thought being at his side had been enough since my life was pretty boring. And my childhood had sucked too much to discuss with normal people.

  At this party, Leo also spoke for the both of us, but his confident words were all about me. My job, my promotion, my success, the raw beauty he’d seen in my artwork. My skill in putting out his kitchen fire.

  For someone who’d known me for such a short amount of time, I was shocked by what he did know. I’d lived that life, and it hadn’t been nearly as exciting or fun as it sounded. Hearing him tell it…damn. I wanted to live it again.

  These strangers who called themselves my friends drank Leo’s verbal Kool-Aid and started looking at me differently, as if I had worth and something to give. It made me sad and excited all at the same time. Excited because I’d always wanted to be noticed. Sad because I’d been there all along, and they’d never seen me.

  I went to refresh our drinks, turned to get ice, and someone ran smack into me. I looked up into familiar green eyes laced with hatred.

  Jessie.

  That seething animosity hurt more than if she’d run me through with an ice pick. She had no reason to hate me. I’d given her so much of myself as a best friend should, and yet she hadn’t hesitated in taking what was mine. I should be brimming with hatred, but all I felt was…pity.

  “Excuse me.” I dismissed her with a nod as I got ice from the dispenser in the fridge.

  Funny how I’d rehearsed what I’d say to her if I ever saw her again. I had so many scenarios filled with hatred and demise, so many nasty words. But after an evening basking in Leo’s praise I felt so good, so…full, that I could brush her off like a tick.

  That had to be progress, right?

  She grabbed my arm and spun me around, spilling the ice cubes. Blood red nails bit into my forearm, right above the invisible signature for my contract. Everything about her screamed perfection…except her brows needed waxing and her hair needed a cut and color. Huh.

  Lip curled, Jessie sneered, “You ruined my life.”

  My brows shot up. “If you hadn’t screwed David, his financial issues would have been my mess to clean up. Not yours.” My wedding date would have been May of next year, so at least I wouldn’t have married him before the bottom fell out of the proverbial pail of crap. “But since I have poor judgment in friends and fiancés, I guess I should thank you for helping me dodge that bullet.”

  Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, gasping for air, her cheeks flushed from alcohol and anger.

  Finally, she composed herself and cast a condemning glance down my body. “So what’s this one see in you? He’s hot and successful. You’re…you.”

  If Leo were human, I would have wondered the same thing. I wasn’t into fashion, and I didn’t have the money Jessie had to indulge. I didn’t have connections or friends in high places. A few weeks ago, I’d been so down about myself that I’d unwittingly sold my soul in exchange for hot sex and good luck.

  But tonight…maybe I had too much to fight for that made these facts insignificant. Maybe being with Leo as he pretended he cared had soothed something.

  “I don’t care what Leo sees in me. He’s with me. Period.” I licked my dry lips and shrugged, feigning nonchalance. “Maybe I’m using him for his big dick and multiple orgasms.”

  Strong arms circled my waist from behind, his hands splaying my belly. “I hope so,” he murmured against my neck. “Who’s this?”

  “Jessie, this is Leo. Leo, Jessie,” I supplied.

  “That’s right,” he said. “You’re the bed breaker.”

  Scarlet colored Jessie’s cheeks as her open admiration faded to embarrassment. Her gaze snapped to mine. “You don’t need to tell people.”

  I lifted my chin. “You defiled two relationships in my bed. Therefore, I can tell whomever I wish.”

  Her nostrils flared, and she opened her mouth to say something.

  I gently slapped my hand under her chin and shut it. “I didn’t want to admit to anyone you were the bad friend. I had felt dirty and cheated, and I felt like I’d done something wrong to deserve it.”

  Jessie’s eyes lit up with anger, and she opened her mouth again.

  Again, I smacked it shut. “I didn’t do a thing wrong, and you know it. If anyone asks me about the truth from this point forward, they’ll know you were a bad friend. I’m not going to drag your name through the mud because that’s not who I am. But I’m not hiding anymore.”

  Before she could say anything else, I turned to Leo. “Ready to go?”

  He kissed my cheek. “Of course. I can’t wait for you to use me for my big dick.”

  I laughed at Jessie’s wide eyes. The old me would have shrank in embarrassment at Leo’s words. The new me patted his cheek. “I hope you’re up for the ride of your life.”

  ****

  After saying goodbye to the hosts, Leo held the passenger’s door open for me. I slid in and he rounded to the driver’s side.

  He put the keys in the ignition but didn’t start the car. Instead, he glanced over at me in the yellow glow of the old streetlight. “So? How did I do?”

  The smug grin told me he knew exactly how he did, the egotistical bastard.

  “You were magnificent.” He’d shown me exactly how to work a party, how to show just enough of myself without feeling like I’d given it all away. I’d never felt more…important. If I had to do it again on my own, I could. Maybe not quite with his flair, though.

  “Your gold digging ex-friend is something else. Her soul is ripe for the picking, you know.”

  A stab of pain hit me in the chest and rendered me speechless for a moment. Not that I wanted a demon, but he was mine, damn it. I didn’t want him to notice that whore in any capacity, especially if it involved him owning any part of her. “You want to screw her that bad?”

  “No. I want to torture her that bad.” He turned toward me. “She hurt you, Olivia, and you’re mine. Though I’m not as aggressive as Samuel, I do find avenues to express wrath.”

  I blinked more as I realized his words hinged on vengeance, not lust. “You want to torture her. For me.”

  “I wanted to torture David, but you didn’t allow that, either.”

  Torn between being grateful and hating him for his violent ways, I whispered, “You don’t like blood.”

  “I’d make an exception to get glorious revenge on them.”

  Gratitude choked my throat and made it hard for me to breathe, to speak, to think. No one but my mom had ever stood up for me to that extent. To want to maim and kill for me... Not that I would condone those actions, but just the thought made me fight stupid tears. I finally cleared the lump from my throat. “Thank you.”

  “For what?”

  “For defending me.”

  He stared at me in the yellowed glow cast from a nearby street lamp. My entire being—lips, skin, every nerve ending—tingled with some unnamed emotion.

  “My defense falls under pride and greed. You’re mine, therefore you are worthy of defense.
Hence, too, my bragging of you earlier at the party.”

  Always with the deadly sins. Stupid me for thinking I was winning at anything. I rubbed my arms to ward away the lingering tingles. “Thank you anyway.”

  “Olivia.”

  I turned my attention back to him.

  The tingles returned as his hooded gaze took me in. “If we rolled back time, and I came to you tonight to barter for your soul—with you feeling as empowered as I believe you are now—what would you have said?”

  “No.” The quick answer surprised me, as did the smile that played at his lips as he started the car.

  “Good.”

  I laid a hand on his forearm. “But I still would have screwed you senseless.”

  He laughed and drove us home.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  On Thursday, I arrived home at six fifteen, expecting to find Leo pacing the hall, famished, or researching a recipe, just as famished. Instead, the apartment rang in an eerie silence that chilled me to the bone. The TV sat silent, no Travel Channel playing as Leo munched popcorn.

  I tried his cell phone and got no answer, which was just as odd. Though he still communicated with Samuel via the Demon Network during the day, his cell had become the standard for evening when the magic diminished.

  My heart in my throat, I peeked in my room and then in his. His fastidiousness always surprised me, his space as neat as a pin with everything in place. His clothes hung in his closet, his suits neatly lined up, his shoes side by side beneath. He’d hung his suits and placed his shoes by color, brown and then black for the shoes, brown to blue to gray to black for the suits. All were expensive brands I recognized from glossy magazine advertisements with hot men. I had a thing for suits.

  I sat on the bed, unsure what to do. I didn’t dare call Samuel. Leo wasn’t really a missing person even for police standards. He was twenty minutes late. I shouldn’t worry about bodily harm given he was a demon and for the most part, immortal. But…this wasn’t like Leo.

  I smoothed the covers he never slept under and snagged a T-shirt from the very neat pile of dirty clothes. It smelled like him, that blend of citrus and spice and demon that usually drove me wild. Today, it comforted me as I waited in the silence.