Chapter 4

The mood at O"Reilly"s pub was sombre. The Ghouls put up a good fight, but they were beaten five goals to one. As they say, the Demons were the better team on the day.

"We"ll kick their asses next time." Easton draped an arm over Cat"s shoulders.

"Of course you will," I said. "That was just a warmup."

He grinned at me and offered me a fist bump. I bumped before grabbing Eden"s hand and pulling her towards the bar.

"Time to have some fun." I ordered a vodka and orange juice and tapped my phone on the card reader.

Eden ordered hers and leaned sideways against the bar. "You didn"t have fun watching the game?"

"Of course I did, but this is even more fun." The bar attendant placed my drink in front of me. I nodded my thanks and slipped a straw in before taking a sip.

"So good." I toasted Eden and tried not to look at Oliver, who stood amongst the crowds, a few metres behind her.

Like Cat, she had no idea what was going on between him and me. I hated lying to her as much as I hated lying to Cat. Sometimes, I just wanted to blurt out everything. Clear the air once and for all.

"Is something bothering you?" Eden asked. "You seem like you"re on edge tonight. You know you can talk to me about anything, right?" She was perceptive. Sometimes I wondered how she hadn"t guessed already.

"I know," I said lightly. "Everything is fine. I mean, it would have been better if the guys won, but there"s always next time."

She gave me a doubtful look, but didn"t push any further. Instead, she turned to lean her back against the bar and glanced around slowly. "I think this is the highest concentration of testosterone Opal Springs has ever seen."

I laughed. "You say that like it"s a bad thing." I glanced around too, taking in the toned bodies of the Ghouls, the Fury, who came to commiserate with the hockey boys, and a handful of Ghosts, the local soccer team.

"It"s like a dick buffet," Eden said with a grin.

"How many are you planning to feast on tonight?" I teased.

She shrugged. "Only the lucky ones."

I caught Oliver"s eye before Cat came up to us, a brown haired guy in tow.

I froze. I knew that short hair and toned physique. The last time I saw him, it was dark, but I had no doubt it was him.

"Marley, I want to introduce you to Toby." Cat drew him over and all but pushed him in front of her.

Oliver followed, looking, of all things, amused.

"Um, hi," I said awkwardly.

"Hey there," he said in his American drawl. "Cat said you were cute, but she didn"t say how cute." He offered his hand.

I took it and shook. A jolt of lightning passed all the way up my arm, right down into my core. I found my eyes locked on his, ready to drown in those depths.

"It"s nice to meet you." I tried to sound smooth, but I probably squeaked.

"You two are already cute together, right Dad?" Cat asked.

Oliver hummed. "Yeah, adorable." He managed to contain a slight edge of pissed off.

Cat gave him a funny look, but hooked her arm in his and pulled him away. "Is your girlfriend coming?"

I didn"t hear his answer as she pulled him away.

Toby arched an eyebrow at me.

"I"ll leave you to it," Eden said. She gave me a quick hug and hurried away toward a group of our other friends.

Toby leaned his elbow on the bar beside me. "Wanna tell me what"s going on?"

I sighed and took a big sip of my drink. "It"s complicated."

"I can see that already." I waited for him to say it was none of his business, but he didn"t.

"Not here," I said finally. I nodded towards the door that led out to the beer garden.

It should be almost empty out there on a cold night like this, even with the heaters going full blast. A handful of people were dotted around here or there, but we found a seat in a quiet corner and sat down.

"What you saw the other night," I started.

"It just happened?" he asked. "It was a one time thing for you to fuck your friend"s father?"

I blinked at him. "You"re very blunt."

"I"m from New York, we"re not known for pulling any punches." He propped his elbow on the table.

"I can see that," I said dryly. I glanced around to make sure no one else was listening. "It"s not a one time thing. It"s been going on for a while."

"You seemed very comfortable with each other." He sipped his beer. "I take it your friend doesn"t know. She seemed very interested in setting us up. An idea I wasn"t averse to, personally. I"m still not." He raised an eyebrow at me. "A wise person once said if a guy keeps you as his dirty little secret, maybe he"s not really into you."

I couldn"t help bristling at his words, even though I"d thought them myself.

"Let me guess, this is where you say he"s not like that." He smirked.

"You don"t even know him," I snapped.

"You didn"t tell me I"m wrong," Toby pointed out. He pointed a thick finger in the direction of my nose. "I can see the doubt on your face." He leaned in and looked at me intently. "If you were my woman and you were out here talking to some strange guy, I"d be right there, punching the crap out of him." He spread his hands out. "Where is he?"

I couldn"t deny either his words, or the fact it was hot. I was a modern woman who could take care of myself, but his protective attitude made my clit throb a handful of times.

"It"s complicated," I said. "It"s not just about us. Cat would notice if he marched out here and punched the snot out of you."

"So what?" Toby asked. "Are you ashamed?"

"What? No." I squinted at him. "Of course I"m not, it"s just— She"s one of my best friends. She… She"d be pissed off if she knew about me and her father."

"Not much of a best friend if she doesn"t want you to be happy," he said. "Not much of a daughter either, if you ask me."

"I wasn"t asking you," I said bitterly. He hit too many nails on the head in a short amount of time. Everything he said, they were all things I"d considered before. Oliver and I should be able to do whatever we wanted without having to tiptoe around. Was this what he wanted? Maybe he got off on sneaking around like we were Romeo and Juliet or something. No thank you, given the way that ended.

He grinned, totally unapologetic and way too hot for his own good. "I"ve decided to make it my business. I like you. I think you deserve better than to be someone"s side piece."

"What are you suggesting?" I asked.

"I"m suggesting we hang out sometime. If he sees what he"s missing out on, great. If he doesn"t, it"s his loss and my gain." He sipped his beer and shrugged one shoulder.

"Do you always go after women so hard?" I asked.

"Only the gorgeous ones." His dark eyes drank me in slowly. "I figure, life is too short to wait around for it to happen. If I see what I want, I go after it. That"s how I got where I am now. Goalie for a brand spanking new team."

"Why not stay in America and play?" I asked. "There"s more money in it for you up there, isn"t there?"

"There"s more to life than money." His gaze lingered on my mouth. "I wanted a change. To see another part of the world. Experience it in a way I couldn"t if I just came here for a vacay."

"That"s very enlightened of you," I said. "I know people who"ve never left Opal Springs. Not me," I added quickly. "Just people who like to stay in their comfort zone." I wouldn"t judge them for that. Comfort zones were nice places to be.

"Everywhere you go, there"s people like that," he said. "The world would be boring if we were all the same. But that"s not my jam."

"I guess that means you"ll only stick around for a season or two," I said. For some reason, that thought made my heart sink a little.

"That depends if I have something to stick around for." He looked at me meaningfully.

"We"ve just met," I reminded him.

"Like I said, when I see something I want, I go after it. What I want is to get to know you better. I can tell you want that too." He wasn"t lacking in the ego department.

"What if you"re wrong?" I asked.

He chuckled. "I"m not. I know when a woman is feeling the same vibe I am, and you are. I bet if it wasn"t for that Oliver dude, we"d be sneaking away already." He leaned in closer. "Maybe we should do that anyway. He doesn"t seem in a hurry to take you out of here and get you naked."

His words sent a shiver up and down my spine.

"Like you said, we should get to know each other first," I said.

He was right though; if it wasn"t for Oliver, I"d happily find a quiet corner and see how lickable his abs were.

I was tempted anyway. Oliver and I had never talked about being exclusive. He"d never staked any particular claim to me or me to him. Maybe it would be better if I started seeing someone else. Someone I could spend time with in public, without having to worry about what other people thought. Someone I could sleep with without upsetting any of my friends. I could do worse than a guy like this.

"There"s a lot of thought going on in your pretty little head," Toby said. "Are you picturing us both naked, my face between your legs?" He gave me a lopsided smile.

"Well I am now," I said. The image was an enticing one. I bet he knew what to do with his tongue. My panties were absolutely drenched. My clit very much wanted to be up close and personal with his mouth.

He looked smug. "I"m not going to apologise for putting that in your brain. Any time you want to experience the real thing, you only have to ask. I"d never turn down a woman in need, especially a beautiful one."

"How many times have you used that line on other women?" I asked.

He clicked his tongue. "So cynical. What makes you think I"ve used it on anyone else?"

I snorted softly. "Just a vibe I get. You seem like the kind of guy who gets around." I raised a hand. "Not that I"m judging. I"m just answering your question."

"I guess I deserved that." He grimaced, but only lightly. "I"d say I only practised so I could be perfect for you, but Australian girls don"t seem to be impressed with shit like that. Come to think of it, American girls don"t appreciate it much either. Lucky for everyone I prefer to be a straight shooter."

He sipped his beer and raised his glass to me. "I lick pussy because I like to. I like the taste and I like making women scream. I ain"t apologising for that. I"m looking forward to making you scream."

"You think you can?" I challenged. I had no doubt he could, but I wasn"t going to feed his already healthy ego if I could help it.

"I definitely can, all I need is for you to give me the chance."

"The chance for what?" Oliver asked. He stepped out the door into the beer garden and walked towards us, his expression tight, but clearly annoyed.