Wicked Heart (Starcrossed #3)(42)

“Because I was invited to bring my imaginary boyfriend, and considering we had a nasty imaginary breakup yesterday, he was unavailable.”

“Got it. You look amazing, by the way.”

I smooth down my plain black dress and run my hand over my sleek hair. “Really?” It’s strange to deviate from my usual uniform of ponytail and jeans, but I figure I should look like I at least made an effort. Anyway, this skintight black number is the only dress I own, so it wasn’t like I had a lot of choices.

“Quinn’s eyes are going to bug out of his head.”

“Oh, please. He’s sleeping with one of the most beautiful women on the planet.”

“True. But you’re also an inferno of white-hot womanhood, and no matter how much he loves his fiancée, he’ll still have a boner over you in that outfit.”

“Josh, no.”

“Lissa, yes.” The elevator opens and he puts his hand on the small of my back as we exit. “You two had phenomenal sex in the past. A man doesn’t forget about that, no matter if he’s single, married, or pledged to the Flying Spaghetti Monster. When he’s in your presence, his dick will react. Trust me on that.”

I stop just before we reach the doors and face Josh. “Please tell me you’re going to behave yourself in there.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“Because you’ve been kind of cold to Liam since I told you what happened with us.”

“That’s because what he did was a dick move, and unlike you, I don’t like dicks.”

“I don’t disagree, but if I can be nice to him, so can you.”

He huffs. “Fine. I’ll behave. Besides, Angel will be there, annoying me with her perfection. I doubt I’ll even register Quinn’s existence.”

We head into the restaurant. When we give Angel’s name to the hostess, her eyes light up for a second before she regains her composure. With a flip of her perfectly coifed hair, she leads us toward the back of the packed restaurant.

“This place is huge,” Josh whispers. He’s not wrong. On the far wall is a stage complete with a dinner band, and there’s a dance floor in front of the stage, around which tables are set. On the outer walls are several curtained-off VIP areas. Our hostess leads us to the most private of these, in the far-back corner of the restaurant. Angel and Liam are already there. They stand when they see us approach.

“Elissa!” Angel envelops me in a hug. “I’m so happy you guys came.” She looks incredible, as usual. I feel like an ugly stepsister in comparison.

She turns to Josh and hugs him. “Josh. Hi. What an unexpected surprise.” I swear I hear Josh moan as she wraps her arms around him.

I look over at Liam, who’s watching me nervously. “Hey.” I feel lame, but I have no idea of the proper etiquette in greeting an ex-lover one is still in love with.

“Hey.” Liam must also be clueless, because he takes a breath before leaning over and giving me an awkward one-armed hug. I return it as best I can, grateful I’m not being subjected to the full pressure of his body against mine.

When we pull back, Liam clears his throat, and I swear he’s blushing. “You look . . . great.”

I doubt it. My face feels like it’s on fire. “Thanks. You, too.” He really does look amazing. Sharp gray suit. Crisp white shirt with no tie. If he wasn’t an actor, he could rule the world as a model.

“Shall we sit?” Angel asks, oblivious to our discomfort.

Liam pulls out Angel’s chair, and Josh quickly follows suit for me. Then Josh sits opposite Angel and I find myself staring at Liam.

Wonderful. So this blush is here to stay, then.

I’m grateful when a waitress appears with ice water, and wonder how uncool it would be for me to hold the glass against my cheeks.

“So your boyfriend couldn’t make it?” Angel asks.

The question catches me off guard. “Huh? Uh . . . no. He couldn’t. Sorry.”

“Come on, Lissa,” Josh says. “We’re all friends here. You can tell them the truth.” I flash daggers at Josh, but he simply smiles. “She doesn’t want you to know she had to break up with him. He was getting obsessed with her. Constant flowers and presents. Love poetry. Serenading her in the street. The boy had it bad.”

Liam looks over at me, his brows furrowed.

“Sounds a bit stalkerish,” Angel says. “And I should know. I’m the Pied Piper of whack jobs.”

Liam’s still staring. “How did he take the breakup? Because Angel’s right. With guys like that, rejection can set them off. You need to be careful.”

His concern is appealing, but I’m embarrassed by the attention. “It’s totally fine. Josh is exaggerating.”

Josh puts his hand on the back of my chair. “Not by much. I don’t think he’ll cause trouble, but he was pretty devastated when she broke it off. He really loved her. And who can blame him? She’s spectacular.”

I grab Josh’s leg under the table, but he ignores it.

“I’m with you, Josh,” Angel says. “I’ve only known her for a week and I’m in love with her. Is this a common issue, Elissa? People falling for you?”

I almost spit out my water. “Uh . . . no. Not really.”