Vala Eminence by J. F. Jenkins Page A

mocked. “Get over yourself. And it is my business because Cheyenne is my business. If I can help her, I'm going to do it. If that means I have to help you too, then I'll bite the bullet and make it happen.”
    â€œYou've got it bad for her, huh?”
    â€œYou sound so surprised.”
    â€œI am, because I didn't think you had a heart capable of loving. Or is it because you still haven't made her one of your conquests yet?”
    â€œStill hung up on her?” Denver folded his arms in front of him, ready to stake his claim on his girlfriend if need be — again.
    Shaking his head, Zes faced away from him. “No, I'm not hung up on someone who cheats. Once a cheater, always a cheater. I'd never be able to trust her again. I wish I could just write her out completely but… she's also the only person I can talk to and…”
    â€œYou're connected, and not just because you two decided to hook up.” Denver touched Zes's arm again, his fingers pressing over where he thought the demon's brand was.
    Zes's dark eyes closed. “I don't know what you're doing but it…”
    â€œIt what? Hurts?”
    â€œTingles, actually.”
    â€œInteresting…” Denver moved his hand away. “That thing is the problem and until it's gone, nothing is going to be better for anyone.”
    Scoffing quietly, Zes held his arms. “You're sure sweet and all for wanting to fix things, but nothing can be done. Please, please , just leave me alone?”
    â€œWhat if I could make it better? Destroy your connection, free you from the magical burden that keeps you from moving forward. Then what? Because I bet without it, you'd be able to find some other person to tell all your stupid secrets to. And I'll be happy because then Cheyenne wouldn't talk about you like you're some kind of a trophy. She'll be happy because…” Denver exhaled slowly, unsure of how much he dared to admit. “She'll be free.”
    â€œFree?”
    â€œYeah.” Free from you, free from Lucien, free from this whole mess. It wouldn't surprise me if that brand was some kind of a spell put in place to keep her hooked into Lucien's stupid plans. He certainly didn't brand you because he wanted her to be happy. Something else is going on. If I can get the brand off, maybe it'll stop all of the brainwashing going on with Cheyenne. But as much as he wanted to spill his guts to Zes, he didn't know how much the other guy was informed. A massive info dump in the bar would get reported back by the demons who were no doubt lurking in the shadows.
    Zes groaned. “Care to elaborate?”
    â€œFree from feeling obligated to keep dealing with you. She's always so guilt-ridden over everything. Maybe if you didn't suffer anymore, she'd be able to move on. When she does, you do too. Duh.” Denver folded his arms in front of his chest, squaring his shoulders, and tried to keep his confident posture.
    Frowning slightly, Zes shook his head. “Something else is going on. You mentioned talking about me like a trophy. I've never heard her do that.”
    â€œI can tell you all about it another time then if you want to know and have your ego petted,” Denver sneered. “So do you want to do this or not? Because I can make it so we're all disconnected in a bunch of different ways, but the other ones might hurt more than what I'm thinking.”
    â€œAnd what are you thinking?”
    â€œAgain, we can talk about that another time.”
    â€œI'm not agreeing to anything if I don't know what it is.”
    Denver nodded. “Just agree to talk with me on campus. I won't do anything but talk. Okay?”
    â€œUm, okay?”
    â€œGot it, I'll send you details later. Go back to your hot date before she thinks you fell into the toilet.”
    With a roll of his eyes, Zes walked away. “She wouldn't think that if you hadn't come by.”
    Whatever. Denver threw a wad of cash onto his table where