“I’m fine,” he said stiffly.
“You sure?” she teased. “You glitched a little.”
He glared.
She laughed, too loud for an office. Not that she cared. She leaned back, watching his face flush the faintest, impossible-to-catch shade darker.
“You know,” she said, almost conversational now, “for someone who pretends he doesn’t want attention, you make it very fun to give it to you.”
Hektor’s voice dropped, low and gravelly. “I’m working, Zara.”
“Mhm,” she replied, sipping her coffee smugly. “And I’m annoying you. We can multitask.”
His lips twitched, the closest thing he had to a smile.
“You are…annoying,” he murmured.
“And,” she chirped, “you like me anyway.”
He didn’t deny it.
He just looked at her, that unreadable Drakkon focus tightening like a pull in the air between them.
She was thrilled he didn’t deny it. She was so thrilled that her brain emptied itself, as if someone had pulled a plug. She scrambled for something, anything to say.
“Maybe I’m the one who needs practice,” she blurted.
His brows shot up. “Practice with…dating?”
She hadn’t meant to say that much. But now she was committed. “Yes.”
Heguffawed.Actually laughed, a deep, startled sound she had never heard from him.
Her annoyance flared immediately. Fine. She’d show him.
“Yes,” she repeated pointedly. “I’ve been messaging with a couple of guys. And yes, I’ve been flirting with them.”
That wiped the amusement right off his face.
“Oh yeah?” he said flatly. “And what kind of monsters are they?”
She took a long sip of her coffee, trying to look unbothered. Her brain scrambled through the list of random profiles she’d scrolled past when she was bored.
“Uh…one was a kelpie. Maybe. And another was—what were they—um?—”
“You don’t even remember,” he muttered.
But irritation sparked in his eyes. Good. Let him squirm a little.
His jaw flexed. “Then you should go meet them.”
Ugh. She did not want that. Not even a little.
“And there’s one I’m really interested in,” she added, pushing because pushing him was becoming one of her new favorite hobbies. “He lives far away, though. That’s the only downside.”
He stared at her.
“Well,” she said breezily, “He’s…hang on. What are they called? Half their body is a tail?”
