«Are your eyes different colors?» the man asked softly.
«Yup.»
«That’s really. . cool.»
Well, yeah. Unless you were a vampire born into the glymera. Then it was a physical defect that meant you were genetically broken and therefore an embarrassment to your bloodline and utterly unmate-able.
«Thanks,» Qhuinn said. «What color are yours?»
«You can’t tell?»
Qhuinn tapped the tattooed tear underneath his eye. «Color-blind.»
«Ah. Mine are blue.»
«And you’re a redhead, aren’t you.»
«How do you know that?»
«Your skin tone. Plus you’re pale and have freckles.»
«That’s amazing.» The guy glanced around. «It’s dark in here — I wouldn’t think you could tell.»
«Guess I can.» To himself, he added, And how about I show you some of my other tricks.
Qhuinn’s new buddy smiled a little and went back to checking out the crowd. After a minute, he said, «Why’re you looking at me like that.»
Because I want to fuck you. «You remind me of someone.»
«Who?»
«Someone I lost.»
«Oh, shit, sorry.»
«It’s okay. It was my fault.»
Little pause. «So you’re gay, huh.»
«No.»
The guy laughed. «Sorry. I just figured. . Guess it was a good friend, then.»
No comment. «I’m about to get a refill. Why don’t I hook you up, too.»
«Thanks, man.»
Qhuinn turned around and signaled the bartender. As he waited for her to hopscotch over, he planned out his approach. Little more liquor. Then add some females to the mix. Step three was to go back into one of the bathrooms and fuck the girl(s).
Then. . more eye contact. Preferably when one or both of them were inside a woman. Because as much as this redhead with the great hair appeared to be into chicks, the SOB had felt the connection when the two of them had looked at each other — and hetero was a relative term.
Kind of like virgin.
Which made two of them, didn’t it. After all, Qhuinn never, ever nailed redheads.
But tonight was going to be an exception.
As Payne lay on her metal slab beneath the odd chandelier of illumination, she couldn’t believe her healer was a human.
«Do you understand what I’m saying?» His voice was quite deep and his accent was strange to her, but not one she hadn’t heard before: Her twin’s mate had the same intonation and inflection. «I’m going to go in and. .»
While he spoke to her, he leaned down into her field of vision, and she liked when he did that. His eyes were a brown color, but not that of oak bark or old leather or the coat of a stag. They were a lovely reddish shade, like mahogany that had been polished — and just as luminous, she would venture to say.
There had been such a flurry of activity since his arrival, and one thing had become clear: He was well versed in the giving of orders and very confident in his job. Actually, there was something else, too. . He didn’t care that her brother had taken an instant hatred to him.
If Vishous’s bonding scent got any stronger, it would be visible upon the air.
«Do you understand?»
«Her ears are just fucking fine.»
Payne glanced over as far as she could toward the doorway. Vishous had returned and was baring his fangs like he was of half a mind to attack. Fortunately, by his side, a male stood tight upon him, rather like a leash with stout legs: If her twin were to lunge for it, that male with the dark hair was obviously poised to encompass Vishous bodily and drag him from the room.
This was good.
Payne refocused on her healer. «I understand.»
The human’s eyes narrowed. «Then tell me what I said.»
«Whatever for?»
«This is your body. I want to make sure you know what I’m going to do to it, and I’m concerned about a language barrier.»
«She knows what the fuck you’re say—»
Her healer glared over his shoulder. «Are you still here?»
The dark-haired male beside her twin locked an arm around Vishous’s chest and muttered something on a hiss. Then he addressed her healer, speaking with a slightly different accent. «You need to chill, my man. Or I’m going to let him turn you into beef jerky for taking that tone. Capisce?»
She had to approve of the way her healer met the aggression head-on: «You want me to operate, it’s on my terms and in my way. So he’s out in the hall or you’re getting yourself another scalpel. What’s it gonna be.»
There was a lot of consternated arguing at that point, with Jane rushing over from where she had been at a window that played pictures upon its pane. She spoke softly at first until finally her voice was as loud as the rest of theirs were.
Payne cleared her throat. «Vishous. Vishous. Vishous!»
Getting nowhere, she put her two lips together and whistled loud enough to shatter glass.