Gods & Monsters

FOUR

Lia

    Chloe and I sit in a small cafe with steaming cups of coffee and baked goods on a plate in front of us. She recounts her night in vivid detail to me and I try my hardest to pay attention, but my brain is far elsewhere.

    "Are you okay?" Chloe's voice brings me from the depths of my mind and my attention shoots up to her, my cheeks warming in embarrassment.

    "Yes, I'm fine. Just a long night, is all."

    "Not in a good way?"

    "No, Chlo, not in a good way." I give her a look and she shrugs her shoulders as she grips her coffee cup in both hands.

    "Well, want to tell me what happened after I left?"

    I sigh before taking a sip of my coffee. "Well, after you left, Aden, that guy I told you about, came up to my table and was acting...off. I don't know how to put it. The man is hot, that's undeniable, but he just seemed like he hated me but at the same time, he wouldn't leave me alone. It was weird. And his friend, Ciara, was the exact opposite. Super friendly, insisting we go over to her house tonight. They gave me a ride home and that was it. But..."

    "But?"

    "I don't know. Aden gives me weird vibes."

    "Every man gives you weird vibes, Lia."

    "Yeah, and they've never steered me wrong, have they?"

Andrew was proof of that.

    "You have got to stop being so pessimistic, Lia. You're setting yourself—"

    "Up for failure," We say in unison, her eyes glaring me down as I mimic her words perfectly.

    Suddenly, the hairs on my neck stand at attention and I sit back, recognizing the feeling almost immediately. I turn around, just as Chloe's eyes widen slightly only to catch a familiar pair of amber eyes. I sigh heavily and turn back around, begging Chloe with my eyes to not say a thing.

    What the hell is he doing here? I feel anxiety prick at my skin and focus my attention on my coffee, willing my breathing to come out normally. Aden's footsteps sound like a repeating threat as he nears our table, his presence and warmth swallowing me more and more with each step.

    Is this man following me? How could he possibly run into us again? He beelined for our table, there's no coincidence—

    "Lia," He says, his voice a low rumble. He stands in front of our table, wearing a short-sleeved black tee and a pair of jeans, his attention centering on me. Everyone in our vicinity watches him with curiosity, and the women stare at him with lustful eyes, completely forgetting about their boyfriends at their sides. I try not to be like them, but fail, my eyes ogling his biceps which are covered in tattoos of swirling patterns licking up his forearms and the swell of his muscles.

"Aden." I finally say, tearing my eyes from his body and jutting out my chin at him, glaring beneath my lashes.

    "I wanted to...apologize for my behavior last night." He licks his lips and I watch the motion, heat blooming between my thighs. Goddammit. I mentally shake myself and tear my gaze from his mouth with a blush creeping up my cheeks. He stares down at me with his jaw flexed and intensity in his gaze, his orbs locking on the curve of my body and the length of my neck.

    "How did you find me?" I ask him, completely ignoring his apology as well as the feeling of his voice and presence that elicits something inside me I'm too ashamed to admit.