Page 26 of A King’s Obsession

“And the interview is over,” Ashlynn replied with a smile. “Now you came to have a drink with me.”

Jru glanced around the club before sighing. “One,” she warned, lifting a finger.

“That's all I need,” Ashlynn promised, looking entirely too innocent.

Malachi laughed from beside me. “That's a damn lie.”

Ashlynn cut her eyes at him. “Nobody asked you.”

“Good thing I don't need an invitation to insert my opinions,” he answered, leaning back with a satisfied grin.

Their arguing continued as the club started filling around us. The difference between the place we'd walked into earlier and the one surrounding us now was damn near instant. Music got louder, the lights dimmed, bottles started moving, and bodies filled the empty sections. That was the part I'd wanted to see. How the room changed once the crowd came in. How quickly the staff adjusted. Which sections filled first and whether the bartenders could keep up with the rush.

I watched all of it without making it obvious. The owner thought I was there to conduct business in a private setting, and that was true. He just didn't know I was also studying the atmosphere for Vice. Nobody knew about our club yet, and that was exactly how we wanted it. The fewer people who knew what we were building before we were ready to announce it, the better.

For the next hour, the four of us kicked it. No interview, no business, at least not the kind anybody else could see. Ashlynn kept everybody laughing, mostly at Malachi's expense, while he gave it right back. Jru was different once she relaxed. She laughed more, talked more, and even caught me looking at her a couple of times. The second time, she held my stare long enough for me to lift my glass in acknowledgment. She shook her head, but that little smile she gave me did something I wasn't prepared for.

Eventually, Ashlynn jumped up when a song she liked came on. She reached for Jru, trying to pull her toward the dance floor, but Jru shook her head and told her she was good. Ashly tried once more before giving up and grabbing Malachi's hand instead.

“Fine. You coming,” she announced, tugging him out of the booth.

Malachi didn't resist worth a damn. “Shiiiiit, you ain't gotta tell me twice,” he answered, already following her toward the crowd.

I laughed as they disappeared between the other people dancing. Jru watched them for a moment before reaching for her drink, and for the first time all night, it was just the two of us.

She took a sip, looking at me over the rim of her glass. “So… forty-one.”

I leaned back against the booth, amused by the way she said it. “We still on that?”

“You're the one who interrupted my interview to ask how old I was,” she reminded me, setting her glass down.

“And you made sure you asked mine.”

“Because I wanted to know why mine mattered so much,” she replied, studying my face like she was trying to catch me in a lie.

“It didn't,” I answered, keeping my expression straight.

Jru lowered her chin slightly, looking at me over the top of those glasses. I couldn't help smiling at the disbelief written all over her face.

“You don't believe me?” I asked.

“Not even a little bit,” she answered, her lips curving.

I shook my head, laughing under my breath. “You always this mouthy?”

“You always this nosy?” she shot back without missing a beat.

“When I want to know something,” I told her, leaning forward slightly.

“And what else you wanna know?” she asked, tilting her head.

I held her gaze for a moment, letting the question settle between us. “Plenty.”

She set her glass down and folded her hands on the table. “Like?”

“How long you been in Westhaven?” I asked, deciding to start somewhere simple.

“A few days,” she answered. “Why?”