“Oh, er, forever, I guess. It shouldn’t run out. It’s not like it’s a battery that needs charging.”
He lets out another hum under his breath and I think I’ve surprised him. I guess it’s not all that usual for something to have magic and never need to be topped up. But that’s why the Cedar Orlog found me so valuable.
It’s also why he was never willing to let me go.
I brush that thought aside and step back, ready to get out of here. But before I can make it to the door, Dorian catches my attention by calling my name and I spin back around to look at him.
“You’re spending a lot of time with Micah and Cal.”
I nod slowly. They’ve both been so... nice and we’ve been hanging out. One or the other of them has attempted to cook every night. And then we’ve spent the evenings vegging out, watching movies or crappy TV, sharing snacks.
Honestly, I’ve been loving it. I guess I’ve been starved of company over the past few years.
Sad as it might sound, I’ve come to recognize this week quite how lonely most of my life has been.
“They both have big hearts,” Dorian says. “You better not fuck with them.”
I blink at his brusque words. “It’s not like that. We’re just hanging out. I think they’re just being nice, so I don’t feel awkward living here with you all.”
He stretches his arms above his head and I can’t stop my eyes from flicking down to the little patch of skin he bares with the movement. “I dunno if you’ve realized yet, but they’re not your typical rock stars,” he says.
I roll my eyes. It feels kind of like he’s warning me off and his attitude is starting to grate on me.
I’m neither a femme fatale nor an asshole who plans on hurting anybody.
Still... something about Dorian makes me want to mess with him. It’s like from the moment he stepped into that elevator, I discovered a new facet to my life’s purpose and it’s to fuck around and find out.
“I dunno, I’m pretty sure they’re all about the sex, drugs and rock-n-roll, baby.”
Dorian scoffs. “They’re both practically two innocent virgins who would rather spend their time rescuing kittens than trashing hotel rooms. Don’t fuck with them, or you won’t like what happens if you do.”
Huh, being warned off about damaging the virtue and the delicate sensibilities of a couple of monster rock stars isn’t something I ever expected to experience. Maybe Dorian thinks I’m Sin by name, sin by nature.
That particular thought makes me snort to myself.
Then my stomach drops at the nasty little voice in the back of my head that says he might be right.
But I push those thoughts aside, shoving them into a box at the back of my mind, which I plan never to reopen. It’s filled to the brim with all my poor decisions and, quite frankly, it can go get fucked.
“Well, as fun as this has been, I need to head back to work,” I tell him as I slink back to my cave.
I’m not running away from him. Nope. I’m just feeling the pressure of needing to have something to show for the week.
I’mdefinitelynot rattled by Dorian’s warning words.
No siree.
I wind up working right through dinner, ignoring my growling stomach and focusing on the work in front of me. I need to get this done since it’s not like I’m being paid for the pleasure of my company.
There’s no time to get distracted by sexy rock stars in their ridiculously cozy cabin. I need to focus and hope like hell I can produce something that’ll be worth all this effort.
My head is down and my eyes are blurring from overuse by the time I come out of my feverish sprint, working on the design for one of the prototypes I’m hoping to fit in with Iri’s grand ideas.
I guess that’s how I don’t notice the Orc in the room.
The huge, muscled Orc who smells of clean laundry. Who is watching me from the doorway, a slight frown on his face.
“Have you stopped all day?” he asks, his rumbled voice rolling over me and causing me to jerk, bashing my knee against the worktop as I spin around.
