Wicked Thing (C.O.A Series Book 2) (24 page)

He didn’t want to be Kayn’s Handler and if it was painfully obvious to the entire table it would also be just as evident to Kayn. Lexy once again turned to Grey and was thankful for the fact that he’d never done this when his job as her Handler had been thrust upon him. She took a sip of her drink and recalled the day they’d met and how he’d followed her back to her cabin deep in the woods. Had it been anyone else she may have killed them first and asked questions later but there was something about him that made her certain she could trust him and she was the girl that trusted no one. Lexy glanced over at Kayn and observed the flirtation going on with Frost.
A part of her wanted to take her aside and tell her about the part that Kevin had played in her rescue. Perhaps, that would slow this thing with Frost down?

She heard her Handler’s raspy whisper in her ear, “It’s too late. She’s fed from his ability. You know what Lily and Frost are like when their abilities have been triggered.”

Had Grey just heard that whole thought, or had he guessed what she was thinking because of the concerned expression on her face?
She peered over at Grey and he was intently observing the flirtatious exchange between Frost and Kayn. He hadn’t been tuned into her thoughts. Two emotions washed over her, relief and guilt. Relief because he didn’t know she’d left him out of the loop that night to keep him safe and guilt because she had a secret and she felt like she was lying by omission. Lexy stuck the fork in her steak salad and savored the mouthful.
Beef, was so much better than that sketchy stringy meat they’d been eating at the banquet.

Frost whispered, “You might want to pace yourself. Pick a drink and stick to it. If you mix beer, cider and those sweet drinks that Lily likes your night will end badly.”

Kayn reached across the table, stole one of his fries, dipped it in his ketchup and popped it into her mouth. She replied, “This isn’t my first time.”

Frost slid her beer back across the table and teased, “I warned you.”

Kayn licked the ketchup off of her finger, picked up her glass and took a sip.
Oh, boy. This wasn’t going to take him long at all.
Lexy gave Frost a disapproving look. He winked at her and shrugged. Lexy had to smile, she couldn’t help it. Kayn couldn’t be with Kevin. She had to let that go and Frost was definitely a beautiful distraction. Lexy slid her hand onto Grey’s bare leg without really thinking about her actions. He slid his own over hers and laced their fingers together, keeping her from pulling it away when she realized what she was doing. She hadn’t done that on purpose. She had to stop luring Grey back to her with intimate actions especially when she was actively trying to move on. He loosened his grasp and Lexy casually slipped her hand off of his thigh and pretended to cough, using both hands to shield her mouth.

Markus stood up and announced that they were going back to their room and calling it a night. They said their goodbyes and left the diner with the jingling of the bells on the door. The entire group was preparing to leave.

Frost announced, “I’m out of here. Are you guys still coming with me?”

Grey looked at her and asked, “Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?”

Lexy smiled at him and answered, “I’m all good. I told Orin I’d watch a movie with him. Have fun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Grey was going to walk away, but he paused and whispered, “After your shenanigans at the Summit. I guess that leaves me pretty open.”

Lexy glared at him and ominously threatened, “You like to live dangerously, don’t you?”

Grey yelped, “Shit!” As Lexy leapt out of her seat and chased him out of the jingling door into the parking lot.

She pursued him all of the way to their room, pinned him up against the door.

He raised both of his hands, grinned and laughed, “I surrender. I surrender!”

She started tickling him. He managed to unlock the door while swatting her away, dashed towards the bed and leapt onto it. He burrowed under the covers as she straddled the lump in the blankets created by his body and questioned, “You just can’t let that go can you?”

Her Handler popped his head out from under the nonexistent safety of the layer of mauve blankets, smiled at her and exclaimed, “For the record I think Orin would be a wonderful option. I’m all for you and Orin. I’ll even get team Lex-Orin t-shirts made.”

She gave him a dirty look and sighed, “It’s a friend thing Grey. Orin is my friend and we’re watching movies not auditioning for a role in Caligula.”

He popped his head out, looked into her eyes and said, “Maybe you should be?”

Lexy slowly shook her head, knowing he’d probably be quite happy to practice for a starring role in the remake of that movie with damn near anyone this evening. She rolled her eyes and got off of the bed. As Lexy wandered towards the bathroom she said, “Enough of your shenanigans Greydon. I’m using the bathroom first. I guess I’ll put some effort into it. You never know what might happen. After all Orin was around back then.” She’d only been teasing him, and didn’t really think anything would happen between them but knew if there was an ounce of jealousy that remained that comment had hit its target dead on. She dug around in her bag and changed into a comfortable silky navy blue dress that had some give to the material.

Lexy looked into the mirror as she applied her fire engine red lipstick and ran her fingers through her wavy crimson locks.

Grey appeared in her reflection. He kissed her cheek and announced, “Well, I’m off then.”

As he walked away she sang after him, “Have fun.”

He called back, “Always.”

Lexy stared at her reflection for a second longer and exhaled while imagining a different situation where he’d chosen to stay. She backed up, sat on the edge of the tub and took another deep breath.
You’re moving on. You are not going to do this anymore. You have to move on…

After another moment of forward thinking Lexy stood up, walked across the room, grabbed her purse off of the end table and left the motel room. She took her time on the stroll to Orin’s room, pausing to stare over the balcony and gaze at the stars that lit up the night sky. She smiled knowing Grey was probably still standing outside looking at these same stars. This whole moving on to get over him thing was useless. No matter who she tried to move on with Lexy knew she would always love him most. Anyone else could never be more than a pleasurable distraction. Lexy smiled as she shook her head, and both figuratively and factually stepped away from the ledge. Her heart had a good argument but her head kept fighting for her to take that step away from Grey so she could find something that could be more. Orin could be more if she let him. Tiberius, as pleasurable a distraction as he was could never truly be more than a fleeting affair. She started to walk again and paused outside of Orin’s door.
Perhaps, this wasn’t the right timing for a new entanglement?
Lexy knew she wasn’t finished with Tiberius. Lexy knocked on his door, knowing she was being ridiculous. She was overthinking everything.

Orin opened the door after making her wait for a second longer than it would have taken him to make it there from anywhere in the room.
Maybe, he was having the same thoughts? Well, minus the desire to sleep with Tiberius of course
. He held the door open for her and she stepped over the threshold and into his room that was a mirror image of hers with everything on the opposite side.

He grinned at her, hopped onto the bed and announced, “Do you have anything you’ve been dying to see?”

It took her a second to respond as she filtered his question through her now dirty mind. Tiberius had done this to her with their continuous naughty exchanges. Lexy couldn’t help herself as she answered his could be naughty question with a could be dirty answer, “Do you have anything that you want to see?”

He grinned at her, knowing what she was doing he took a chance with his response, “Come sit down next to me on the bed and we can scroll through the options.”

She slipped off her shoes and climbed onto the bed with her long-time friend. She’d always thought he was attractive but he’d always been Jenna’s.
This felt wrong.
There was no way Jenna could be alright with the thought of them being together as more than friends. Lexy knit her brow as she said, “I feel like Jenna couldn’t possibly be okay with us out on a date.”

“Technically, we’re staying in and it was her idea,” he replied as he passed her a beer.

She took it from him and said, “You still love her though.”

He grinned as he replied, “You still love him.”

Yes, they were in equally screwed up situations weren’t they?

Orin raised his beer can in salute, “To moving on.”

Lexy knocked her can against his, noticing that his five o’clock shadow was gone. Orin was cleanly shaven and he’d obviously just had a haircut. His aftershave smelled incredible. She smiled at him and said, “You smell amazing. I love that aftershave.”

“Frost is responsible for this whole date night makeover,” he announced.

Lexy smiled, knowing this was probably his way of saying thank you for what she’d done for Kayn. He’d spruced up her date. It was a little bit funny. She grinned again and suggested, “Well, let’s pick a movie out.”

They settled on a new action movie and snuggled up under the covers fully clothed. They each drank a couple beers and consumed a bag of chips during the movie but remained rather painfully in the friend zone. As the movie had progressed she’d actually been curious as to why he hadn’t tried anything? Lexy smiled as she realized what it was…
She’d spent forty years programming everyone to stay away from her. Orin wasn’t going to make the first move
. This was where she realized she didn’t really know how to make the first move with a guy other than Grey either. It was then that Tomas popped into her head.
She’d made the first move once, with him.
Lexy shifted a little bit closer to Orin on the bed and realized she’d just devoured an entire bag of sour cream and onion chips. She should have eaten the Salt and Vinegar chips. Her breath was probably nasty. Lexy excused herself and Orin paused the movie as she went to the washroom.
Where was his toothpaste?
Lexy found it and ate some, rubbing it on her tongue. She unwrapped one of the glasses and drank a full glass of water. Now, at least she knew she didn’t smell horrible. Lexy wandered back and climbed onto the bed next to him.

He grinned at her and started to laugh.

She beamed and questioned, “What?”

He moved closer to her on the bed, looked into her eyes and teased, “Now I’m going to have to go and brush my teeth too.”

She grinned at him and sparred, “I was eating sour cream and onion chips.”

Orin shifted closer to her, took her hand and assure her, “It wouldn’t have mattered but it’s become painfully obvious that we need to loosen up a bit.” He walked across the room, opened the mini fridge and returned with an arm load of tiny bottles. “I’m sure the Aries group won’t mind the charge after shooting you multiple times for a new trainee.”

He dropped the arm load on the bed and playfully announced, “Pick your poison.”

She took a tiny bottle of the vodka and he did the same. Lexy twisted off the lid and cheered, “Bottoms up.”

They both downed their first shot glass sized bottle as Orin said, “I have an idea.

Lexy grinned at him feeling the pleasurable numbing sensation as she replied, “Do tell?”

“How about a game of truth or dare?” Orin quizzically answered as he took the lid off of the next shot glass sized bottle of vodka and passed it to her.

She held it up in the air and he met her salute with another toast, “To loosening up an awkward situation.”

Orin started to laugh mid drink but kept it together. He swallowed and volunteered, “I’ll go first.”

Lexy grinned and she responded, “Truth or dare?”

He replied with one word, “Truth.”

She gave him the obvious question that she already knew the answer too, “Are you over Jenna?”

Orin looked into her eyes and answered, “Not yet.” He took another bottle, drank it and said, “You’re turn.”

She looked into his steady gaze and stated, “Truth.”

Orin passed her a bottle as he asked, “Are you over Grey?”

Lexy downed the tiny bottle, and made eye contact with Orin as she replied with his exact wording, “Not yet.”

She wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol or the brutal honesty that was making her want to see how far their boundaries of friendship could stretch but she kept the game going as she whispered, “Truth or dare?”

He chuckled looked into her eyes and said, “Truth.”

She asked him the question that she’d been curious about, “Are you sure you and Jenna won’t get back together?”

Orin answered, “At first I thought Jenna was just punishing me for the whole impregnating her mortal look-alike revenge scenario. We finally had a chance to talk and it appears she’s pretty adamant that we have different life paths to explore. There are things that are supposed to happen that our relationship has been keeping us from. You know the whole I love you but…conversation.”

She passed him another bottle and said, “Truth.”

Orin mischievously grinned as he shot her an intensely personal question, “How far did it go between you and Tiberius. Full disclosure no cheating.”

She’d known this question was coming
. Lexy bit her lip, grabbed a bottle of amber colored liquid and downed it before starting. She looked into his eyes and tried to explain what happened, “I promised him the ability to see into my past during the battle at the Summit and after he did, it created this connection between us. He showed me kindness and it confused me.”

Orin smiled and scolded, “The truth, Lexy. Remember, I’m a Healer too.”

It occurred to her for the first time that he might also prefer things a little bit darker. He’d never seemed like the type. Lexy gave him the unfiltered version, “Let’s just say we played some extremely naughty healing games involving knives at the Summit. After that we met up once in a stair well. We’ve messed around but he’s never had me. Not yet…”