The Lure of the Devil (The Demons' Muse #4) - Auryn Hadley Page 0,79

then grabbed the spear with the olive on the end of it. The whole time, Sia watched me, so I just couldn't help myself. I slipped the fruit into my mouth and slowly sucked it off the little plastic stick.

"In my opinion, managing to get me naked is the epitome of flirting. Are you trying to say you expect something else?"

Her almost-shy giggle was adorable. "Typically, I expect that when I get a man naked, he's not going to run away every single time."

"I just have to play a little hard to get." And I watched as she swallowed the last of her drink. "But I have a feeling that about three more of these could change my mind."

"Oh, I am so calling your bluff," she teased as she slipped away from me to grab the glass I’d discarded.

I realized she was going to get a second round, so caught her arm. "Hey, I'm supposed to be buying."

She just held out her open palm. "Fine, but buying isn't the same as getting. In case you're wondering, you only get it if you're willing to go all the way… Over there."

With a laugh, I pressed a bill into her hand and admitted defeat. Damn, but I liked this new version of her. It seemed to me that once she'd accepted she could do whatever she wanted to, she'd done it with her entire heart. When she put a little extra sway into her hips as she headed to the bar, I knew I was in for the night of my life. The only question was if I was going to back out again.

I told Nick it was because of my promise. I told Ron that I couldn't. All of that was bullshit. The truth was that my pretty little Muse scared the shit out of me. I wasn't used to having people around that were more powerful than me. I wasn't sure I knew how to deal with that, and yet she never used it against me. Somehow, she'd found a way to bring all of the First Legion back together, stronger than ever before.

It wasn't just because she was beautiful - although she was. It wasn't simply because she was a sweet girl, with her wide-eyed view of the life we'd all learned to take for granted. No, it was that she managed to be this perfect mix of everything, all at once. Sia was strong and weak, brazen and reserved, independent and reliant. It was as if she found the perfect balance between what others expected of her and what she felt comfortable doing. Or she thought about it for a while and then found that balance.

When she leaned over the bar to order the drinks, her sweater rode up to reveal even more of her ass. Standing like that, I couldn't stop thinking about all the things I would love to do with her. And we just happened to be alone. The guys knew she was with me, so they wouldn't worry if we didn't come back right away.

Maybe tonight was the night. I was pretty sure I'd run out of all my excuses, and I didn't even care. Keeping my hands off of her wasn't exactly keeping her safe, so why was I denying myself? Even bigger question: why was I denying her?

I was so lost in my thoughts, that I didn't initially notice the guys arguing beside her. Not until their voices rose a little bit more. The moment they started shouting insults at each other, Sia glanced over with a worried look, and stepped away. From the bar’s entrance, the bouncer started heading that way, but I wrote it off. Just a pair of stupid humans doing the sort of thing that men thought would impress girls. It never worked.

Sia grabbed our drinks and was heading back just as the bouncer reached them. He grabbed the closest guy, but the other reached in to push him off, not wanting his argument interrupted. As soon as the shoving started, everyone in the general area moved back. Some girl slammed into a guy, spilling his armload of drinks on the floor with a clatter of breaking glass.

On the far side of the room, someone yelled, "Bar fight!" as if it was a good thing.

And in slow motion, I watched as Sia jerked back to avoid the mess on the floor. The bigger of the two men fighting decided that was the perfect moment to throw a punch.