Free Demonicus (Overworld Underground Book 2) by John Corwin Page B

missed me."
    "Very much so." I leaned away and looked her over. She positively glowed. "Things are going well, I see."
    "Jack is the best." She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially in my ear. "Just don't tell him I said so."
    "Too late," he said with a smile. He shook Tyler's hand. "Any progress on our business trouble?"
    Tyler waved away the topic. "Let's save that talk for work. I just want to relax."
    "You got my vote on that."
    I decided now was a good time to indulge in enough alcohol to soften my inhibitions about the adventurous night ahead. My fears were something of a mystery even to me. I wasn't a complete prude when it came to sex, nor was I a stranger to pornography. During the last few months of our relationship, my ex-fiancé, Peter, had convinced me to watch such videos while we had sex.
    At first, I hadn't minded, until the videos grew more disturbing—some of them filled with fake violence. I'd put a stop to his new fetish, or so I'd thought. Then I'd discovered a hidden stash of sex videos he'd made with other women, some of them recorded while we were still together.
    And yet, the foundation of my anxiety about the sex clubs had nothing to do with the negative associations of the past. I simply felt embarrassed about the ordeal, even it was for a good cause.
    "You're not playing around tonight," Isabel said with a laugh as I downed my third shot.
    Tyler seemed amused as usual, a smile playing about his lips. "Maybe we should pace ourselves," he said. "We've got work tomorrow."
    "Ugh, don't remind me." Isabel threw up her hands. "I used to love my job until they sold out to a mega-corp."
    I put my drink down. "You didn't tell me about that."
    "It happened while you were on vacay." She sipped her Choco-Lava rum drink. "Some big-wigs visited the office, so I had to give them a tour. Can you believe they didn't even seem to know what we did to make money?"
    I bit the inside of my lip and tried to remember. "Website design, right?"
    "Yep." Isabel sighed. "I got the strangest feeling they were more interested in talking to me than they were about the company."
    "Yeah, because you're hot." Jack winked at her.
    "Shush, you." She made a tutting noise. "Everyone knows it's because of my stunning intellect."
    I nodded in agreement. "Precisely." My pronunciation was rather slurred and imprecise which was no surprise since I felt very warm, pleasant, and a touch numb.
    It didn't escape Isabel's notice. "Em, I'd have to say you just achieved buzz-vana."
    "Just a teensy little bit." I pinched my thumb and forefinger together to illustrate and then reached for my glass.
    Tyler's hand intercepted mine. He pressed my knuckles to his lips. "Perhaps you'd like some water." He raised a hand and got Alex's attention. "Two waters please."
    The bartender had them to us a moment later. "Everyone else good?"
    "We're great!" I assured him.
    Isabel let me take a couple of sips of water and then took me by the wrist. "Potty break. We'll be back."
    Before I could resist, she guided me through the sparse Monday night crowd and to the back hall with the restrooms. She stopped outside and narrowed her eyes suspiciously at me. "Is something wrong between you and Tyler? You don't usually drink like this unless I need to kick someone's ass."
    "I love you, sis." I squeezed her tight. "You've always got my back."
    She extricated herself from my tight grip. "I love you too, Em. I'm worried, but I can't help if you don't tell me what's going on."
    I blew a raspberry with my lips. "Demons."
    She raised her eyebrows. "Demons? I thought vampires were the problem."
    "Bloody fucking demons." I leaned against the wall. "Tyler's old buddies are back in this world, and we have to track one down tonight." I felt tears coming on and tried to keep them at bay. "Can you believe I have to wear a leather skirt and blouse to a sex club later?"
    She snorted and covered her mouth. "You're going to a sex club?"
    "It's not funny!"
    "Is that where the demon