He got the message but wasn't remotely happy about it, shooting me an angry glare before flicking his scowl back to Chase.
"Uh-oh," Chase said with a chuckle, "do I smell trouble in paradise here? What a shame. You two are the ultimate star-crossed lovers, like something straight out of a Shakespearean tragedy." His sick smile spread wide, and his single eye bored into me.
"What do you want, Chase?" I asked in a cool, unemotional voice. "Zed and I were having a nice time until you decided to stink the place up with your foul energy."
Chase parted his lips to reply but was interrupted by Nadia storming out of the kitchen.
"You!" she barked, shaking a finger at Chase. "You get out of here. You're not welcome in my establishment."
For whatever reason, Chase genuinely seemed surprised that this old woman was scolding him and gaped at her for a moment, speechless. I smirked, leaning back in my seat and stuffing my hands into the pockets of my leather jacket.
"You heard me, Mr. Dibbs," Nadia continued, making a shooing motion at Chase. "You're a known enemy of Hades, so you're an enemy of the Reapers. Now get."
My fingers touched something in my pocket, and I tilted my head, trying to remember what it was. Then it struck me. This was a jacket that had survived the apartment bombing. I knew exactly what was in my pocket and couldn't fight the smile as a rapid plan formulated in my mind.
"Actually, Nadia," I spoke up, drawing everyone's gazes. "Mr. Dibbs here was just passing by. I don't mind handling this if that's okay with you." I gave Cass's grandmother a sly smile, letting a spark of my evil intent show through my gaze when she met my eyes.
She jerked a nod, understanding that I had things firmly in hand, and with a parting glare at Chase, she stomped back to the kitchen while muttering insults about him under her breath.
Chase's lip curled as he refocused his one eye on me. "Oh, you've got me handled do you, Darling? Been a really long time since I've had you handle me, but I remember it like it was yesterday." He ran his tongue over his front teeth, and I tightened my throat to hold back the bile threatening to decorate Nadia's pretty tablecloth.
Instead of telling him where to shove his memories, I stood up and gave him a small smile like I was really joining him on that little trip down memory lane. Or nightmare lane, as it may be.
With a well-practiced sleight of hand, I passed the vial of drugs to Zed as I brushed past him to approach Chase. Like Zed and I had just discussed earlier in the day, the Chase Lockhart we both knew had one huge blind spot. It was about time to test whether that was still the case or not.
"I just bet you do," I murmured, stepping right into his personal space and placing a hand lightly on his chest. His muscles twitched under my touch like he was shocked I'd willingly touched him. In fairness, I was amazed I'd done it without breaking out in hives, too.
"What... do you think you're doing, Darling?" he asked in a low voice, his eye locked on my face as I leaned in closer still. "If you think you can play me by reminding me what an excellent lay you are—" He broke off with a sharp inhale as I bit his earlobe between my teeth. It wasn't hard enough to rip the flesh from his head, no matter how badly I wanted to disfigure him further than I already had. Nope, this was one of his erogenous zones, and he loved it rough to the point of pain.
Chase moaned, and my stomach tightened with disgust. And a little bit of fear. His hand snaked around my waist, pulling me hard against his body and showing me just how turned on that one bite had gotten him. Then he released me like I was made of barbed wire and took a firm step back.
"You sneaky minx," he hissed. "You're up to something." He gave a short laugh, but I could hear unease in the way his voice shook ever so slightly. I'd unnerved the hell out of him, and it made my smile wide and wicked.
Chase shook his head, pointing between me and Zed, who was still seated at the table and sipping on his coffee like he wasn't also shaking