I grit my teeth together before taking a sip of my unfortunately plain coffee.Gods, why did he have to make it so difficult sometimes?“Whatcha been up to?”His right brow quirks up and his eyes flick to me briefly, giving me a once over. Then he just shrugs. “Worked out. Ate. Gamed.”“Riveting,” I deadpan.“It’s more than you can say, Sparkles.”My lips pucker on the nickname as my hands tighten on my mug.What a frustrating man.“Well, I’ll be out of your hair soon enough.”This time he turns to face me, and it’s everything I can do to keep my focus on the skyline.“You can’t seriously be thinking of going back to your apartment?”“Maybe.”Honestly, now that I’ve left, I have no desire to go back. Sure, most—well, all—of my stuff is still there, but the thought of stepping back into the place where I’ve had my privacy completely violated sends a tsunami of unease through my gut.My rose-tinted glasses have cracked, and there is no way for me to think of my apartment without seeing

“She was fine.”“She wasn’t hot?” Aleks reaches for his beer.“Aleksander,” Stevie chastises, sinking back down on the couch next to him and pouring a healthy glass of wine. “Be nice.”Herson holds his hand out to me, and I stare at it in confusion. He nods, angling his chin down at the controller in my lap. “The date was fine, she’s just not my type. None of them are.” The tips of his fingers brush against my thumb as he tugs the controller from my hands.The boys start a new match, but I struggle to keep my attention on the screen, my gaze slipping to Herson over and over again.“What?” His eyes clash with mine.“That was, like, your fifth date, wasn’t it?”“Didn’t realize you were keeping track.”“It’s just morbid curiosity, like watching a plane crash.”“Sure.”I take a sip of the cherry seltzer, eyeing him over the can. “It’s a pity. All those good looks and you can’t even land a girlfriend.”His brows pull together and he starts to open his mouth but Aleks’ voice cuts in. “Sucks

“Perfect, just wait. I make the best drinks.”There’s an excitement pouring off her that I’ve rarely seen before. The bubbly sweetness of her personality doesn’t seem artificial but natural. It’s refreshing, cute.A sparkle enters her eyes as she mixes random liquids together, the drink going from purple to pink with a squeeze of a lemon. She crouches to eye level as she begins to pour in the vodka. More vodka than I expect her to pour in.Fantastic…The smell of popcorn slowly starts to permeate the air as the pops get louder and louder. Panther frowns as she turns around and eyes a bowl that’s just out of reach. The tips of her long, pointy nails tap against the glass rim.I push off the island and move in behind her, reaching to help her grab the bowl. But just as I position myself around her, she lifts a knee up on the counter and hoists herself up. Her ass presses right against my crotch, almost grinding on it. She gives a surprised yelp, and I hold back a groan. A warmth spreads

“Because you’re touching me, you weirdo.”With what little energy I have, I shrug out of his grip and begin to crawl my way to his bathroom. My hazy mind has one clear mission: deny everything.He lets out a loud sigh. “I’ll deal with this; you head back to bed.”“You sure?” I can hear Aleks flicking his switchblade back and forth.“Yeah, no need for two babysitters.”“Rude,” I mutter.It’s only once I cross the threshold of the door and my knees hit the tiles that I force myself to stand, using the counter to support my weight. My eyes squeeze tight as I turn on the lights. When I open them, I catch Herson’s reflection in the mirror as he leans in the doorway.“Want to tell me the truth?”“Iwantto take a shower.”“Okay.”I grit my teeth together and let out a groan before summoning all my strength to shove the bathroom door closed. With him comfortably out of sight, I let out a sigh.It takes longer than necessary for me to remove my stale contacts and my oxidized makeup. I barely re

I feel too exposed out here, awareness prickling its way up my body. But when I head back into the quiet apartment andlock the balcony door, the resounding click echoes in my bones, hollowing me out. My ears hum with the sound of a thousand dragonflies as I stare absently through the glass door, a million thoughts crashing into me at once.I have no idea what I’m doing anymore.Everything is going wrong.My breathing picks up as my brain feels like it is being plunged underwater.“Panther?”A strong hand curls around my own, which is still clutching the door handle. I blink and startle back, my shoulders bumping into a hard chest. That strong hand comes up to curl around my bicep and steadies me.“Are you okay?”The pure concern in his voice, it’s something I’ve never heard before, and it cracks a shard open within my battered, armored soul.“No.”The word is barely a whisper through my lips, but I know he heard me because his grip tightens on my bicep ever so slightly. Without saying