Page 64 of Stone Temptation

I felt no judgment from Asher.

“Seth’s an arrogant prick,” he continued in my head. “But a clever one. There’s more to this. Trust me.”

“Do you think he might know what the threat is?”

“Who knows, dude. We’ll see how it plays out.”

“You’re going to tell the truth?”

He made my drink.

“What’s your history with Seth?” I asked.

“He blew my boyfriend.”

Thank God I hadn’t picked the mug up yet. “He what?”

“Seth came here for a weaver conference a few years ago. Caught him with his lips around my knight boyfriend. Fucker loves sucking dick.” He shrugged. “Same here, but not taken peen, you know?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Dropped the cheating prick, wanted to dropkick Seth. Carissa stopped me. For the best really, because he’d have made me pay.”

“What a bastard. Is he still around?”

“Nah. Transferred to Liverpool.”

“Seth really is cruel.”

“It’s worse for you, Luke. He attacked you with his tail.” He growled. “Know what I’d like to do with his tail.”

I sighed, resting my hip on the worktop. “I had a mild case of the rose-colored glasses with him. They’re gone now.”

“Cool. But don’t beat yourself up. We all make mistakes, and he’s charming. Until you see the maggots beneath the mask.”

“Gross.”

“Yeah. Sorry.”

Even when discussing Seth, Asher’s warmth shone through. He countered my melancholy, sunshine breaking through a cloudy sky.

“We tell Carissa,” he said as I picked up my mug.

“W-What.” Shaking, I put the tea down before it went everywhere.

“This might sound naïve, but the truth is better than lies. Especially in this case. There’s too much here that might trip us up later on. If the truth fucks up Seth, then even better. But don’t make rope for a noose. Know what I mean?”

Vines tangled in my chest. “I do.”

Crap. Crap. Crap.

“You messed up, but you’ll be fine. As long as we don’t lie.”

Was honesty really the best policy? I’d go with it, my heart telling me to trust him.

“Sorry I’ve dragged you into this,” I said.

“I wanted more interesting action.”