His eyes almost turned emerald as they flashed green around the iris. I snarled. I might be out of place, but that didn’t give him the ability to disrespect me. Thankfully, instead of brawling, like the socialite he was, he ignored anybody he deemed lesser-than.
“Have you seen Damien?” William might want to ignore somebody beneath him, but he didn’t stop giving me the side-eye. If he thought he was throwing shade, he had never met a sexually frustrated Alejandro. He’d need to take lessons to hurl daggers with that level of accuracy.
“I just arrived. I’m sure he’s schmoozing with somebody far above my pay grade.”
“His influence is almost…” William rubbed his chin to prove he was deep in thought. I wanted to bop him on the nose just hard enough to break the cartilage. His tailored suit lacked any personality, much like the man wearing it. The only things that stood out on him were the piercing green eyes and a rock necklace of the same color. Tacky. “…superhuman.”
“I’d wholeheartedly agree,” Sebastian added before guzzling the golden liquid from his glass.
“And what doyoudo? Xander, was it?”
“Oh, you know, manual labor. I’m sure you’ve—” Sebastian shot me a look. Fine, I could behave for the sake of his job. “Excuse my manners. I’m a paramedic with the S.E.M.S.”
“Hero chasers.” His tone spun a fact into an insult. Nope, not going to take the bait.
“Villains, too.” I gave the man a slap on the shoulder. “Equal opportunity when saving lives.”
“You must see some uncanny things in the emergency room.”
I nodded. I wasn’t sure where he was going with this. But I couldn’t argue the point. My last trip to the emergency room ended with a supervillain trying to beat me to a pulp.
“I’m sure Damien would love to hear about your escapades saving the tyrants from lording over Vanguard City.” There it was, the moment where I went from being a human to being a resource. It was a reminder that Revelationsdragged heroes through the mud. I might have once empathized with their mission, but doing it now made me a hypocrite. I hated hypocrites.
“And on that note, I should probably continue scouting for local studs.” Sebastian smacked his forehead, shaking his head. It appeared that my charm was operating at peak capacity.
Somewhere, obscured by the crowd, a string quartet played. I couldn’t make out the tune, but I’m sure I’d heard it on the radio. Thanks to the men walking about with silver trays with champagne, the bar remained practically empty. I conversed with the bartender before handing him five dollars and taking my beer. I took a long sip, emptying half the contents before coming up for air. Now I was ready to mingle.
“Xander?” Was this going to be an ongoing event? Should I assume that at the most inopportune time, somebody in Damien Vex’s sphere would call me by name? I gripped the glass, turning slowly.
Aiden’s face gave away his confusion. I’m sure he didn’t have a clue why I might have come tonight. His brow transitioned from sharp angles to a soft roundness. He couldn’t decide if he was angry or glad that I had showed.
“I would have been here earlier, but I had a previousengagement.” Did I give him a kiss? A hug? It had been so long since I cared about somebody I didn’t know the protocol. It was high school all over again.
Aiden wrapped his arms around my torso and squeezed. It wasn’t a brief embrace. He lingered, and I savored the smell of his cologne and the way his hands held one another, giving him leverage to squeeze harder.
“I’m still mad at you,” he whispered.
“You should be,” I replied, kissing his neck. “I was an asshole.”
“Keep going.” A little humor. He gave me an in where I could come back from this.
“I met your editor.”
“William?”
“Sebastian introduced me. He’s…” I pulled back as I searched for a word to describe the condescending jerk. “A piece of work.”
“The lovable, carefree Xander doesn’t like somebody? There’s a shocker.”
“Ouch. I deserve that. But you have to admit, the guy is a bit of a jerk.”
“A jerk who got me a staff position at Revelations.”
“About that…” Was I willing to risk another fight? There was a quick and easy way to sidestep this potential disaster. With a flick of the wrist, the arm of my suit would turn into black liquid latex. With a tense of the muscle, I could summon a ball of fire in my hand.
“I don’t want to diminish your accomplishment.” I could do this. Check my words, keep my ego out of it. A little restraint, and I could navigate the situation. “But your article about Blaze is misinformation and slander.” Jesus, there was something wrong with me.
Aiden’s eyes hardened, and the tension seized his muscles until I thought he might throw a punch. “You can’t just be happy for me, can you?”
