"Jesus, doll." A high-pitched voice made me look up. "What happened to your face?"
Amber stood by my table holding a takeout coffee cup. She was the type of woman I was used to seeing my brother with. For the past two years, Amber had been at Luc's beck and call. A much more obvious beauty than Mia, and Amber was fully aware of her appeal. It came across in the way she spoke and moved. She was the perfect match for Luc. Obnoxiously full of themselves with so much ego that no one else could fit into their world. That’s how it should have stayed.
"Ask your ex," I told her bitterly.
She narrowed her eyes and then, without an invite, sat down at the table, sweeping her blonde hair over her shoulder. I had been around Amber before, but she had always paid me little attention. We were in different leagues that weren’t even remotely close to each other. Our only interactions had been when necessary.
"Lucas did this to you?" Amber asked and then added, "What did you do to deserve it? You’ve always rubbed him up the wrong way."
Of course, Amber would side with Luc in this. I took a moment before I answered, "I told Mia I loved her."
"Bold move,” she said, arching a perfectly groomed brow.
"And then I kissed her."
Amber tipped her head back and laughed. A sound that had always grated on me. "Well, she seems to have everyone wrapped around her finger, doesn't she? I'm surprised she didn't go for someone like you."
Not as surprised as I was. I still couldn't wrap my head around it. Why would Mia choose someone like Luc? The way she went for him when he reached his hand out to her was like some well trained puppy. How had I ended up as the bad guy in this situation? My blood started to boil.
Fate obviously hated me at that moment because the door to the store opened and Mia and Luc walked in, accompanied by Dante. Mia scooped a puppy into her arms, and it licked her face as Luc's eyes landed me. I hadn’t imagined him doing something as domesticated as walking a dog on an afternoon coffee run.
"Mia, we're leaving," he told her.
She wrestled her face away from the pup and looked in my direction before turning back to him.
"You don't have to speak to him," Mia said. "And there isn't another coffee place close by and I really need a fix."
"So do I," Dante chimed in.
Luc looked less than happy, but he placed an arm around her as they walked to the counter.
"Doll, am I not even going to get a hello?" Amber asked, leaning back in her chair. Luc ignored her but she continued, "I thought you never wanted a pet."
"Looks like he changed his mind," Dante said.
She leaned back a little further to look at Mia. "You might want to keep an eye on how fickle he is."
The puppy started to bark, and Mia soothed him. "Cerberus. Shh. Be a good boy." She calmed him with ease, giving him a scratch behind the ears.
"Cerberus?" I asked. "As in Hades?"
Mia flushed and gave a small nod. Luc stood behind her and Dante nearby and I doubted either of them knew who Cerberus was.
"Why don't you guys join us?" Amber suggested, gesturing to the cluttered table.
"I'd rather shit in my hands and clap," Luc told her.
Mia pulled a face at the graphic image. "Luc."
"Mia, go grab your coffee." He took the puppy from her arms and placed him on the ground as Mia walked up to the counter. "You need to watch the company you keep, Stefan," Luc warned, looking between the pair of us at the table.
I didn't know if Luc was looking out for me or just trying to cause trouble. Either way, I couldn't care less. My jaw ached and I was still healing from the beating he had dished out. The worst thing had been getting a lecture from Mom when I had gone to visit her. She usually took my side in these things but not this time.
Maybe Amber was right; Mia had managed to work on everyone.
"You're going to hurt my feelings if you keep going, Luc," Amber said to him. "You didn't mind my company when it was keeping your bed warm."
Dante rolled his eyes and a muscle near Luc's jaw twitched. Amber had hit a nerve but there was no lie in her statement.
