Defiance (Rise of the Iliri Book 3) (52 page)

"I'm not like some sweet little girl that's gonna end up sucking your dick.  Being all poetic doesn't get me off, Chance.  I just wanna fucking get high."

"Then get high.  You can be the tough one.  I'll be the sensitive one.  See, I kinda like poetry.  I think it exists in everything, even the way you try so damned hard to be a bitch but really aren't."

"What does my attitude have to do with poetry?"

He smiled, perfectly straight teeth easily visible.  "It's like some heroine from a game.  Tragic past, tough attitude, but a heart of gold.  Like an epic ballad where she beats the shit out of her demons, wins the castle, and reigns victorious in the end."

"That's how all games end.  Do I at least get plate mail?"

"Nah.  That's noob armor.  We'll get you some body-covering leather that is so tight it might as well be skin, except for the low-cut front that exposes your chest all the way to your belly button.  You know, so everyone can see the tattoos."

"Dick."  She didn't mean it and knew he could tell.

Chance grabbed another blade of grass and twirled it in front of his face.  "Figure we'll make all the companion characters around you men.  Super sexy ones, like me.  Then we'll dress them in flimsy strips of leather and have their dick and balls held in a tiny little pouch that proves they have nothing down there."

"Nice asses, though, hanging out in the open," she added.

"Oh yeah.  And big smooth chests.  And thigh high boots – because that always makes sense."

"Long gloves too.  What the fuck is it about the gloves and boots with a bare body?"  She leaned back to join him.  They were close enough to touch, but just barely.

"It's sexy.  Look at lingerie.  Little panties, tiny bra, but thigh-high stockings.  Medievalize that, and you get fantasy armor.  Guy looks at that shit and starts thinking about how he could slip a finger under one of those straps."

She shuddered.  "No thank you."

"You should try it sometime.  Touching, I mean.  It's a very different sensation from being touched."

"Touching leads to touching.  I mean, I shake someone's hand, and they close their fingers around mine.  And just walk up to someone and put my hands on them?  That's fucking weird.  Name me one guy that wouldn't think I was trying to get laid."

"Me."

For a long time, she said nothing.  "It doesn't work out well."

"Offer's still there.  Thing is, not touching you is kinda good for me."

"Why?"

He smiled.  "What happened, Dez?"

"Not telling
.
"

"Then neither am I."  Slowly, he sat up.  "You eaten?"

Dez shook her head.  "I prefer not to.  Doesn't go well with Vicodin."

"You worried about the Tylenol?"

"Technically it's hydrocodone, so no acetaminophen.  Easier to tell people I'm on Vicodin, though."

"Yeah, I gotcha.  I'm still starving and have a laptop for you, but I need a fucking shower."  He pulled himself to his feet.  "Coming?  I think you got enough done in the warehouse, and pretty sure you're not going to run for a while, so try food."

She sat up.  "Thanks, but not hungry."

"Not much of you left to starve away.  What will you eat?"

"I like candy."

Chance sighed.  "I've got some suckers and a little ice cream.  You eat something and I'll give you the wifi password."

"Sold."  She stood and dusted off her rump with one hand, the other clutching her gargoyle.  "Why'd you have this?"

"Well, I picked up some cable from Ian then had a date.  Bitch drug my ass to the mall.  Bored to tears, I was wandering around behind her like a well-trained dog and saw it.  Pissed her off too."  He grinned.  "Even more when I told her it's for this amazing girl I work with.  Told her you were my roommate, and she decided that shopping wasn't going to do her any good.  Made it back to her place pretty fast."

"You bought me a gargoyle?"

"Yep, and got laid because of it."  He tilted his head.  "So, I figure that means I owe you."

"God, you're a dick."

Slowly he nodded, heading back to the building.  "Yeah.  Basically.  Thing is, women always think they're going to change me, but they love it.  They want me to treat them like this because it makes them feel protected.  Just makes me feel like the guy operating the puppets."

"Won't work on me."

"I know.  You break all the rules, Dez.  It's why I respect you so damned much."

Flawed

by Auryn Hadley and Kitty Cox

About The Author

Auryn Hadley is happily married with three canine children and a herd of feral cats that her husband keeps feeding.  Between her love for animals, video games, and a good book, she has enough ideas to spend the rest of her life trying to get them out.  They all live in Texas, land of the blistering sun, where she spends her days feeding her addictions – including drinking way too much coffee.

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