My phone dinged and I pulled it from the back pocket of my jeans to give it a cursory glance.

“Mom.” I explained. Shooting her a quick text to tell her to be careful on the way there and that things were fine here.

Such a lie.

Eric watched me, waiting until I’d tucked my phone safely away, to grab my attention.

“So, you want to go back to discussing the important stuff?” He redirected with a quick grin.

He thinks he’s so damn charming.

“Like what?”

“What are you supposed to say if you want to back out?”

“I’m done.” I said sullenly staring out the windshield. Wondering if I should just say it now. Or if just now had counted. I peered at him to see.

He was grinning, gaze hooded. “Nice try. You have to mean it.”

“So, what exactly am I supposed to do at this party?” I asked the dreaded question.

“Be with me.”

“Meaning?” I turned my head slowly to lift a questioning brow.

He shrugged. “Like you’re with, with me.”

But I don’t want to! A tiny voice in my head whined.

Say done. Say ‘I’m done.”

“Like we’re...a couple?”

“Yeah.” He bobbed his head. Still watching the road. “Just like that.”

I gulped.

“You’ll be fine.” He laughed.

***

We arrived and midway up the drive, Eric paused and tossed his white leather over my shoulders.

I tried to crawl out of it, but he draped it back on them and then slung his arm over.

Oh, no. I prayed Emilia wouldn’t be here. I’d have an awful lot of explaining to do.

But my fears were realized when we entered, and every set of eyes turned to us.

Eric grinned as his buddies sauntered over.

“Got the poor thing, twisted around already?” One of them slapped his back.

“That didn’t take long.” The other remarked.

I turned, mouth opened wide to put them all in place. But before I could say a word, Eric rounded and dropped a soft peck on my upper lip. Effectively silencing me and making them cheer robustly.

“I’m going to be over here for a minute talking with my buddies, Sweety.” He gave me a brazen wink.

I wanted to tell him he could take his ‘Sweetie’ and shove it right up his great ass.

A hand clenching my forearm so tightly that it nearly shook drew a slow venomous gaze from me.

“Oh, My God, Allison!” Emilia cried. Her eyes rounded to the size of saucers and her jaw gaping. “What the hell happened?”

I deflated. Shoulders drooping. I sighed. “I lost a bet.”

She glanced over her shoulder at Eric. Her gaze dropping to the part of his anatomy I had just been thinking about.

“To the devil himself.” She sighed wistfully. “Mmm...hmm.”

“Emilia!” I caught her chin and drug her appreciative gaze away from his rear. “This is serious! How do I get out of this?”

“Get out of what?”

“A lost bet.”

“You’ve never reneged on a bet the entire time I’ve known you. It’s like your one rule!”

That’s true. Keeping our word had been a carry-over to her and my friendship from back when Eric was a real human being.

When we’d been friends.

That seemed forever ago now.

Yet he still seems bitter about something. I chewed my lower lip.

***

“I vote to just do what he says!”

“Emilia!” I objected.

“Well...” She shrugged. “He’s hott, Allie. Haven’t you noticed?” She caught my lower jaw and yanked it to my left where I observed countless girls frozen with drinks half to their mouths. Having stopped what they were doing, to watch him come in.

She then jerked my face to my right, to observe the same thing.

“They all want to be you right now. Wearing that white leather.”

“And I just want out of it!” I pouted.

“I’m sure he’d be more than happy to take you out of it.” Emilia giggled.

I gave her a black look. “Not funny.”

She pinched her finger and thumb together to indicate a small inch. “Little funny.”

My eyes narrowed on her.

“Fine! What do you want me to do?”

“Talk him out of this.”

“Yes,” She bobbed her head sarcastically. “I’m sure he’ll be hanging on my every word.” She paused for emphasis. “Hey smoking hot, Honey. Can you let my friend go? She’s scared you’ll want to do her, and she won’t be able to say no!”

I swatted her shoulder but only because she ducked and dodged away.

“Some friend!” I shouted after her retreating back.

“Na-uh.” She waved over her shoulder. “I’m not going to get between you. Just the steam coming from between you two, could scald me to death!”

“What’s that supposed to mean!”

“You know.” She vanished into the next room.

***

Realizing that my best friend had utterly abandoned me, I turned back around to face Eric and his group. Sure, they’d all be laughing at me.

Instead, I bumped into a hard wall which smelled like Sandalwood cologne.

Eric.

My eyes lifted, filled with dread.

“Trying to recruit backup were you?”

“Trying.” I grunted.

“I got to her first.”

“What?” I looked around quickly. “How could you do that.”

He reached around me and slid my cellphone from the back pocket of my jeans. Waving it in my face. “When you go up to change, you might not want to leave this in the living room.”

Eyes wide, I snatched it from him. Skimming through it to find my last message to Emilia.

This is Eric. Taking her to Sage’s party tonight. You should come. She’ll try to get you to help her out of the bet. If you care about her fear of human contact and want to help her get over it, you’ll let me work.

Do come though.

I blinked at my phone in shock. Then up at him.

How did he turn an invite into a warning, a semi-threat, then back to an invite and make it still seem so friendly?

“I really don’t like you.” I muttered up at him.

He grinned unabashedly. “Aww, you say the sweetest things.” He palmed his chest. “Why, if I had a heart, you’d just melt it right away.”