“Confused?” He finishes my sentence, a knowing smile playing on his lips. I nod, feeling a mix of embarrassment and intrigue. “The drugs will do that to you, love.”
“Drugs?” I’m definitely going to throw up again.
His smile fades slightly as he sets the coffee grinder aside and turns to face me. “Yes, the drugs,” he says, his tone serious now. “I saw you at the Orion with the two blokes you were with in Dandelions last night.”
“Y-you were at the Orion?”
He retrieves the coffee grinds with a shrug. “I own the Orion.”
Of course he does.
“I had to stop off to get some work done when I noticed a familiar face on the cameras,” he explains, his intense gaze making me feel like he can see right through the layers of clothes I’ve borrowed from him. “I didn’t expect to see you there, especially with those lads. You looked a little,” he pauses for a brief moment to collect his thoughts, “out of it.” AJ adds the grounds to the coffee maker and presses the start button. “I thought that was a bit odd given the fact that you were drinking water when I arrived, and I hadn’t seen you with another drink in Dandelions after that pair showed up.” The machine whirs to life as AJ continues to speak. “I spoke to the bar staff, who said you didn’t order anything other than water since you arrived at the club.”
“But,” I stammer. I stuck to water because it’s safe and virtually undruggable.
AJ seems to follow my train of thought because he says with a slight grimace. “Check your arms and thighs for any signs of injection.”
“But surely I’d feel an injection?”
He turns his gaze to the milk frothier, “You’d be surprised.”
I pull off the hoodie I borrowed from him and begin inspecting my arms.
“Ah!” AJ exclaims. He turns the machine off and rushes over to me, pointing at a small bruise on my forearm. “There it is,” he says, turning my arm enough for me to see the bruise. “That’s definitely a needle mark,” he confirms. His grey eyes lock on mine, and I feel my cheeks heat. “I guess you’re oneof the lucky ones.”
“Yeah,” I grunt, pulling my arm back and rubbing the bruise. It happened again. How the hell did it happen again? I’m beyond pissed at myself for going to that stupid club with Ciara. For fuck’s sake, we could have been killed. “Thank you,” I mean it, even if it doesn’t sound like it.
“Hey,” he bends his knees and crouches down to my level. “You did nothing wrong, ok?”
I force myself to look at him. “Why are you being so…”
“Nice?” he smirks. “I’m not. I’m really an arsehole; haven’t you read the papers?” He turns to get my coffee from the counter.
“The only reason I buy papers is to line my guinea pigs’ cage,” I reply with a small smile. “Oreo probably shat on your face for all I know.”
He laughs and hands me my coffee. “Guinea pigs? Really?”
“What’s wrong with guinea pigs?” I demand. How dare he make fun of my piggies? “They’re adorable and low-maintenance pets,” I defend, taking a sip of my latte. “Unlike some people I know.”
He doesn’t miss a beat. “Your sister, you mean?”
I pin him with a glare. “You were right; you are an arsehole.”
He only shrugs. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
I slide onto a stool at the kitchen island, and he walks back around the counter.
“Do you know what happened to those blokes last night, the ones who—”
“The last time I saw them, they were running from the bouncers,” he says, settling his forearms on the counter and leaning in.
“With any luck, they were hit by a truck,” I mutter undermy breath.
Something sparks behind his grey eyes. “Vicious little thing, aren’t you?”
“Can you blame me?” I gesture to the needle mark on my arm.
“Not in the slightest. I’d imagine you’d want to call them out on it if you ever saw them again.”
