“You live in The Underworld?” Rebecca gaped.
“I do.”
“Sweet! I’m Rebecca.” She shoved her hand toward Lilith, who accepted the shake.
“Nice to meet you.” Lilith turned to Alan. “And you must be Bigfoot, the star of the show. I’m Lilith.”
“You… Uh…” For the first time in Alan’s life, he was speechless.
Lilith cast her gorgeous grin toward Spencer, and his breath caught in his throat. “I’ll hear that apology now, so we can move forward with our relationship.”
“Relationsh—” His nostrils flared with his exhale. He could not have this conversation right now. “I’m working, Lilith. Text me your number, and we can talk about this when I get home.”
She flinched again, and she gazed upward, her brow pinching as her lips puckered. Why the hell did he find her expression so damn adorable? It was her magic. It had to be. Lilith was a seductress, and he wasn’t about to become her next victim.
That was what he told himself, but when her gaze met his again, something snapped inside him, and warmth bloomed in his belly before rising to his chest. She’d gone to a lot of trouble to find him. The least he could do was offer the apology she deserved.
“Give us a second, guys?”
Alan looked from Lilith to him. “Sure thing.” He nodded in the opposite direction, and Rebecca followed him down the road, leaving Spencer alone with Lilith.
She smiled tentatively before catching her bottom lip between her teeth. That little flash of fang sent blood pooling in his groin, which was so not the reaction he should have been having. Spencer did not date vampires. Hell, he’d be happy if he never dated anyone again.
“I’m sorry for leaving the way I did.” With his arms by his sides, he tapped his index fingers against his thumbs, hoping the single sentence would suffice and she’d be on her way.
She simply arched a delicate brow, and he drew in a breath, grasping for the right words that would convey his sincerity without giving her the idea he was interested. Because he wasn’t interested, and he would keep telling himself that until he believed it. Besides… While it was flattering that she tracked him down, the fact she was able to pull it off proved she had power and sway in The Underworld. No telling what kind of magic she used to locate him.
“I’m sorry for being rude, but I’m not interested in dating anyone. I told you that from the beginning.”
“Then why did you ask if I was free the next day?”
“I lost myself for a moment. When I found out who you are, it snapped me back into the present, and…even if I was interested in dating, I don’t go out with vampires. No offense.”
She crossed her arms, her expression turning from amused to curious to baffled. “Why not? It’s the blood drinking, isn’t it? Do you faint at the sight of blood?”
“No, it’s not that at all. Vampires are hunters; so are owl shifters. It’s…the whole bit about you being immortal and me having the lifespan of a human.” He shrugged. “I can’t get past it.”
“That’s a minor issue that’s easily remedied.”
“I don’t want to be a vampire.”
She rested a hand on her hip. “I see.”
“I’m sorry you came all this way for an apology, but that’s all I have to offer. I should have explained things, and I didn’t. Now, I’ve got to get back to work. I assume you can find your way back home?”
She straightened her spine, lifting her chin slightly. “That’s not all I came for.”
Why was she making this so hard? “You seem like an amazing woman, but?—”
“No.” She held up a finger. “Let me finish.”
He looked down the road at his friends, silhouetted against the moonlight. Alan tipped back a beer, already preparing for the show.
“I have a problem, and I think you can help me.” The crow he’d seen earlier swooped down from the sky and landed on Lilith’s shoulder.
“Don’t tell me you have some kind of power over birds.” If that were the case, he needed to fly as far away from her as possible. She was already mesmerizing without using any magic at all.
“Of course not. This is Percival, my familiar.”
