A suit was one thing, a mussed dress shirt was another. But this, the lack of formal wear, suited Jaxon well. Max’s thoughts were in a continuum. Visually, he overwhelmed her. The heady cologne waged war with its high, dark notes and a sweet musk riding low. She’d lost her tongue in the car and battled an impulse to moan.
“Where are we anyway?” she asked, as Low helped her out of the car. And, oh yeah, him too.
“What she said.” Low smiled deliciously.
What had she done in her past life to be tortured so ruthlessly? They were thick pieces of vampire male, and standing between them, waiting, Max never felt small or delicate. And she was a far cry from demure.
Low was Jaxon’s speed, so it was good if he wanted in on that. Elliot Collins often used his sensual elegance to get what he wanted most.
“So…” Max cleared her throat.
“I heard you the first time.” Jaxon lowered a lidded gaze and grinned. “We’re going to my friend’s house. You remember Ines?”
Smoke swirled in murky, mid-June air and framed his perfect features.
“Of course, the Italian from Boston, not New York.”
“Nice observation. Let’s go.”
Jaxon started their journey, and they fell in line willingly. What would a man like him want from her? Nothing was the answer; that’s why Max knew his interest was a farce. He had a fluid gait and voluminous waves. The color of an irate Venus sky and adorned with thin strips of spooled gold. It was gorgeous.
Unnatural.
Max felt sleazy, gawking like a swooning teenager. She focused on Low, who was no better, and jabbed him in the torso with her elbow.
“Don’t stare,” she whispered.
As they marched down a quiet street, Max gathered from high brush and gates that this was a classy neighborhood. These people made more than her father, median easily in the multi-millions. Mansions towered behind stone and ivy.
“I would have liked a heads up, bruh.” Low pulled from his blunt and purged smoke. “I typically like to look better for a kick back, you feel me.”
“It’s not that serious.”
“Still, I prefer it.”
“What you searching for?” Jaxon glanced back at them with a nasty smile. “A compliment?”
Low shook his head when the male faced forward. “If I was? You up here in the latest and greatest. Balinchi-gaga and shit.”
Max frowned at her lover. “Don’t do that, you know better than anyone how good you look. Name brands mean nothing.”
He cocked a brow. “Says Shorty in Chanel.”
They embarked on an incline that turned into a winding drive. At the tippy top was a decent home, if you loved dreariness and glass. The house was nothing more than tinted windows and steel beams.
“Wow, I dig the architecture.”
“No, you don’t.” Max dismissed Low’s lie. He loved inviting and warm. Wood and greenery. Nothing too bright or clean. Whereas Max enjoyed modern, architectural wonders.
After taking the shallow stairs, Jaxon didn’t knock before opening the door.
When he barged in, they followed, and Low grabbed her hand. Oohhh, how she swooned over his protective streak and attentiveness.
Entering the house, various scents and sights captured her attention. The cool air was a jarring contrast to the sticky summer heat.
Creeping through a narrow foyer, they brushed shoulders and squeezed past kissing, grinding couples. Bodies on top of bodies. Music drummed in her ears, and she appreciated the vibe. Glass Animals was a good choice given the intimate atmosphere. Zaba was a great Album, their best, to be frank.
The foyer opened to a three-way street; Jaxon banked left. Max was grateful for wider halls and the breathing room.
“Damn.” Low chuckled and said, “I like this party.”
Standing slightly above the crowd, Max giggled. “Me too.”
Their trio stepped into the sunken living room, doubling as a nightclub,b and eyed some goodies.
“Aye,” Jaxon shouted, nodding at someone. A female, a woman, a human. Max licked her lips. The girl bounced over and stopped in front of Red, as Low called him.
“Hay AB, I got some left, you want a sip?”
Jaxon didn’t respond, but his actions were swift and visceral. He yanked the woman by the back of her neck. She dangled three feet off the ground as fangs penetrated. There was growling, slurping, and carrying on.
“My third leg finna start walking,” Low whispered into her ear. Max choked on laughter. “I’m serious. Look at him.”
Oh, she was looking alright, and trapped in hell too. Little Miss was happy when her feet touched the hardwood. She sighed, as if he hadn’t almost killed her.
“Y’all want some?”
“Sweetheart, do you know where you are?” Max yelled in the girl’s face and clutched her shoulders. “Have you been drugged? Abducted? I can get you outta here, my taser is my bag, honey.”
The wee one let a high-pitched laugh slip. “No. Why would I wanna leave? I’m making money. And my mortgage needs to be paid somehow.”
“Oh.” Max relinquished the bitty and nodded. “Ohhhhh okay, I get it. My bad.” She shot a glance in Jaxon’s direction and regretted it. The male sucked on a digit and licked the tip. “I thought, you know.”
“You have a problem with not reading the room,” Jaxon clipped.
Low giggled and added his commentary, though no one asked. “She do. I tell her all the time.”
“Shut up,” Max growled. “Nobody asked.”
With Red leading the way, they weaved through a tasty crowd and landed on an enormous sofa. “Every human you come across is being paid to be here.”
“Damn,” Low muttered. “Like that?”
He was astonished, and Max shared his view.
“Yeah, and if you partake, tip them.”
“What you mean, tip?” Low grimaced. He was a cheap, penny-pinching grandfather at times. They didn’t go to strip clubs often ‘cause of it. Despite Max begging for a trip to K.O.D., he remained a Scrooge.
“For what?” Low queried.
“They are providing a service, sir. So it’s only fair if you tip. They have a half pint minimum; if you go over that, it’ll cost you a blue note.”
“God damn,” Low snarled, sitting on the arm of the couch. “What kinda scam you running up in here?”
“I don’t have anything to do with this. Do you want anything?”
“Nah, I’m good.”
Max bit her tongue, knowing he only liked cold blood. For valid reasons, but still.
“Nothing? We have about twenty humans up in here.”
“No Red, damn, stop asking me.”
“He don’t like hot blood.”
Low hissed and shoved her. “That wasn’t any of his business, yo big ass mouth, bruh.”
Jaxon’s stare raked over Low, disgust riding his pretty face. “Oh, so you weird, weird. This is extremely odd behavior for a full grown vampire. You know how it looks, right?”
“Listen, calm down with tryna fit in, talk white,” Low spouted.
Jaxon cackled, and Max wanted to dip her tongue in those dimples. “What does talk white mean? I speak how I want, how I have for over a hundred years. You don’t like it, kiss my ass.”
“Ooooo.” Low chuckled and diverted attention to some ugly girl. She was lanky, bowlegged, and her hair was dry. “There you go, being uppity again. Don’t make me break yo ass in, bruh.”
Max gasped and smacked his shoulder. “Be nice, Low. Don’t be doing too much, now.”
“I don’t give a damn, and I need a drink, I know that.”
Jaxon threw both arms over the couch and watched as Low ascended. “What gives you the impression I need to be broken in?”
Another gasp punched through her mouth. Though Max kept her hands to herself this time. “Y’all are getting mighty candid. Should I give you two a moment alone?”
Low snorted. “Please, he don’t know what to do with a king like me.”
“Can you bring me back something?”
“I don’t think they got no brandy, baby.”
“Then tequila on ice.”
“Ight, don’t get fresh, Red… unless she lets you. But I wanna watch.”
“Get the fuck!”
“The bar is upstairs,” Jaxon smirked. “You can bring me back a glass of cognac. Neat.”
Low ran off with a giggle, and that ass bounced with him.
Jaxon glanced at Max and leaned into her. The action made her melt. “Are you into that weird shit too?”
“Me? No, but I need a ripe one.” Scanning the room, she took in the droves of men and woman. “I want her.” Max pointed to a stacked, tall dame in a corset. She filled out the top and bottom.
Jaxon high whistled. “Carmen!”
“Of course, you know these women by name,” she mumbled, not surprised because he exuded ‘no good ass man’ arrogance. His attitude and demeanor made that shit clear as day.
Carme used her bountiful hips like weapons. “Hay big daddy, how you doing?”
“I been better, she wants a nibble.”
Carmen held a warm smile as she sat next to Max. Her blessed map of veins illuminated beneath glowing mahogany skin. Ambient lighting was her best friend. God damn Black women were gorgeous.
“They treating you good?” Max asked.
Carmen recoiled. “They always do, and they pay, okay.”
“You so pretty, and you smell nice, too.”
“Awww, thank you.”
Max admired her corset, growing more envious by the second. “Where did you buy this fit, though?”
“Torrid or Fashion Nova…I can’t recall, but it was one of the two.”
Max nodded but stared at Carmen’s main, pulsating artery. It taunted and tempted her empty stomach.
Licking her lips, Max noticed how her fangs had come on down to play. “Well, where do you um… You know, wrist or wherever?”
“Right,” she laid a hand on the curve of her breast, “here.”
“Okay.” Max agreed, quick and without deliberation, she growled. Sinking fangs into Carmen’s flesh, she gripped onto her waist. Digging deeper, Max gnawed. Max hadn’t taken a fresh vein in five years. This shit was a narcotic, addicting, and soooooo much better than drinking from a cup. Max would rather not stop, but knowing she must, and when to, she paused.
Her forehead rested on Carmen’s shoulder as the heart slowed and the body went ape shit. Pleasure and euphoria worked like any vice. She groaned and settled into a cloud.
“Oh my god, Carmen,” Max smiled. “You are sweet and full-bodied, baby.”
“Thank youuuu. I work hard for that.”
“I can tell, shiiiiit.” The music reverted into something slow, chopped, and screwed. “You gotta a uhhhmmm,” her mind buzzed with feel goods. Lazy and dragging, her thoughts came together, “Cash app? Zelle?”
“I sure do, honey.”
After sifting through her heavy bag for what seemed like eons, Max found her phone. “You deserve a nice tip, Carmen.” Tapping numbers, she giggled. “Three hundred should do it.”
“No, no I—”
“Shhhhhh.” Max waved at the chit chat and sent her funds. “There you go, doll. Us big girls gotta support each other, okay?”
“Thank you, baby. You want anything, AB?”
“Nope, I’m good, love.”
Carmen rose with them thighs, and Max sighed. “I enjoyed that very much.” She giggled again and said, “I can’t even think straight. It’d be nice to get that every night…”
“Why can’t you?” Jaxon asked, his buttery timbre casting a naughty spell on her.
“’Cause it’s unnecessary, Red.”
“I’ve never let anyone call me that.”
“Until Low? Yeeeahhh, I get it, but you need to watch how you talk to him. He comes on friendly, but in truth, Elliot is as nice as a rattlesnake in a box.”
“Noted. I still want your number, though.”
Lifting a heavy gaze upward, their eyes met,t and she had issues with talking again. “No, you don’t. You only wanna pity me and make jokes.”
He chuckled. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“I told you already. There is a pecking order; we both know how it goes. I am not a pureblood.”
“I give no fucks about no league or vampire etiquette or class. I’m not into none of that dated shit. I don’t adhere to things like pecking orders anymore. And I haven’t for a very, veeerrrry long time.”
Drifting to his full lips, the tips of his fangs made her shiver. This was lust, unbridled and unhinged.
“Don’t let me interrupt.” Max inhaled and tore his attention away from the Pureblood as Low handed her a cold glass.
“I wouldn’t say you were interrupting, Elliot. Where’s my drink?”
Low cackled, sitting on the armrest nearest to her. “Muh’fucka, you are more than capable. Fetch your own Hennessey, shit.”
Max shook her head and said, “I told you.”
“Told him what?” Low gripped the back of her neck. “You running your mouth behind my back?”
“Yeah, now get off me!” Slapping his hand off, she sipped the bitter alcohol once, then gulped. “Oh, this is my song.”
There was no way Max would sit down while Janet was on. Getting to her feet, she held out a hand. “Low, get your fat ass up and dance with me.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Are you telling me no?” Her eyes narrowed.
“Girl—”
She grabbed hold of his t-shirt and pulled him down to her level. Smiling, Max flicked his ear and hissed. “Be good, and I’ll let you taste it in the bathroom.”
“Fine, you wanna dance, let’s dance. Damn, baby. All you had to do was ask.”
She snickered and looked at Red. “Watch my purse.”
“You not giving me orders.”
“I just did. Unless you plan on letting someone steal my shit.”
He snarled, and with that, Max dragged her man to the middle of the living room.

The show put AB in a mood; their two step wasn’t so PG. Moving ass and hips, they were in sync. It was an erotic waltz AB appreciated. Max had soft curves Low handled with finesse.
Frothing with jealousy, AB growled, wanting them. It was a familiar sensation he remembered with fondness. For a time, bedding two or three at once was commonplace.
Prey excited him, up until getting what he wanted. This pair would get two or three nights tops before AB called it quits. At the moment, he wanted to touch something. To wedge himself between them and make music of their own.
Low took Max from behind while she did the impossible;twearked with jeans on. The tight denim barely stayed on her ass. Ohhhh, how he filled with glee knowing she was real. Every inch supple and untouched. Dimples and cellulite.
He grunted as the vision gave his dick a start. AB had to get the hell away from them before coppin’ a brick.
Rising, he yanked the female’s handbag and pushed people out of his way. In a foul state, booze and a blunt would do him well. He cleared the steps in a single bound and trekked back toward the foyer, but kept onward.
Ines had bleak taste in decor. Grays, blacks, and polished ash. On the way to where he slept on occasion, morbid, monotoned paintings of mutilated bodies winked at him. Grotesque shit. To be fair, Ab killed many. He occupied various jobs in his lifetime, and not all were above the line. Some required homicidal acts.
As a pureblood, he welcomed a carmine-soaked chaotic profession. Alas, the wonder and joy turned to static, as did everything else. Food, sex, money, and shit had long ago become white noise. Though he did love a lengthy shopping spree annnd okay, getting his dick sucked brought about massive doses of pleasure. Plus, yeahhhhhhh, his dogs made him happy. Okay, maybe AB wasn’t that broody, but life grew stagnant on occasion, god damn it.
Stopping at his bedroom door, something sparkled against the high gloss floor. “Ooooo.” He plucked the small button and gleamed. “I like this one.” The brushed metal had a shimmery quality he adored.
“I did it.”
AB stashed the button in his pocket, and Ines showed his face. When AB entered, he crossed the vacant womb of a well-dressed guest suite.
“You did what?” AB asked. Tone scalpel sharp, he tossed Max’s bag in an armchair.
“I got you a meeting with Paola.”
“Good.” He smiled and wheeled around, making sure not to touch the Afghan with his soles. “That’s great news, bro, it’s your fucking job after all. What she say?”
“You think she talked to me?”
“Where am I going?”
“She’ll be at your place on Saturday.”
Stupid bed whench was throwing her annual fit. “Sure, I’ll be there.”
Willing the glass wall open, he wished for a ripple, a whisper of cool air, but there was no breeze to be had. At least the crescent moon grinned from above. Ab sauntered onto the patio and longed for company. “Aye, go get my guests.”
“You’re really gonna bang the fat bitch?”
Facing Ines, with his turned-up nose and judgment, Ab sneered. “Why do you have to be so disgusting? Why does she have to be a bitch?”
“She’s fat too.” Ines grimaced.
The male had a preference, fine, cool, whatever, most people did. As stated once before, AB did not. If there was a hole, he’d fill it. What they looked like mattered naught.
In passing, he frowned. “When has a woman’s size ever mattered to me, Ines?”
“Yeah, you love pounding the fatties.”
Ab meandered down a hallway flanked by his-hers walk-ins. He peeked in his, then stepped into the washroom.
“Do you feed them when you fu—”
Snapping his fingers, AB killed Ine’s prattle. AB was done. “Shut your god damn mouth and do what I said. Now!”
Towels, tissue—whipping around, AB glared at Ines, who had yet to move.
“Okay, okay.” Palms raised, the bastard retreated and left him alone.
This space looked nothing like the rest of the house. Light gray instead of black, plush instead of flat. He preferred lighter hues and comfy over style. Although the twain met at his place of residence.
AB slipped back into the room and found himself at a tiny wet bar. Hennessey, Remy Martin, Courvoisier, Gautier, Pierre, d’Ussé, Frapin, Hine and Martell. There were over two hundred brands of cognac; he had a lot to choose from, but four at present. He went with Hine.
Just as drops of brown trickled down, the door flew open. “I know you better have my purse, I specifical—oh, thanks.” Max had a baaaaad habit of speaking before thinking. “Wooow, this is nice. What is that cherry blossom? This ain’t nothing like whatever funhouse shit he got going on out there. Dark and moody. I like it in here.”
“It smells and looks like Home and Garden vomit,” Low added. “This is a middle-aged suburban mom’s wet dream. I’m getting heavy Cape Cod vibes.”
“That’s what I was going for,” AB said, turning on the sound bar.
Zapp and Roger.
“You don’t know nothing about Slow and Easy, white boy.”
“You’d be surprised by what I know, Maxine Bernice Bissette.”
With derisive laughter, she ambled toward the revelatory. “Yeah, I’m sure you do, pop pop. You got on those leak barrier depends tonight?”
Low cackled from outside, as a thick cream curled in the night. Of course, he threw in his two cents. “Got some Fixodent in your pockets, granddaddy?”
“Nah, but I got a heavy dick you can suck.”
Max re-entered and ripped her shades off. “Well, god damn, you are feisty. You right, Low.”
“I told you, baby. One can’t be gentle with a muh’fucka like him.”
Their back and forth sparked curiosity. “I love how you talk me about when I’m not around. Please do go on.”
Max settled into the armchair, while Low filled out the chaise. Her eyes traced AB’s frame; he relished the attention.
In their imperfection, her eyes were unique and fiery.
“So Max…” After knocking back the rest of his liquor, AB set his empty glass on the bar and started. “You mind answering a question for me?”
“Depends.”
Giving Ms Bissette his full attention, he crossed his arms and asked, “Did you know your father is laundering money through your tattoo shop?”
Kindling lust evaporated. “Wha—I don’t—I don’t understand.” Her lids peeled as she diverted to Low. “No, no. He’d never do that to me.”
AB shrugged and sighed, venturing toward the chaise. He claimed the spot next to Low, who shared her disbelief.
“I’ve been digging for days now,” AB continued. “It’s not hard to figure out. Your father is a year away from jail time. He hasn’t handled whatever it is he does well.
“Shady property buying, the businesses that aren’t making enough money. I mean shit…” Dragging his gaze to Low, AB bit his bottom lip and wasn’t sure if they’d stay after this.
“There has to be another explanation.”
“Nope. A shit ton of money is coming in, and not enough going out.”
Max dropped her purse on the floor as the mood soured with her expression. Now he felt kinda bad. The uncomfortable sensation intensified when she choked.
Head falling into her hands, Max sobbed. “I can’t take anymorrrre. Oh…oh, my goddd.”
AB grimaced and tried to think of something worth a damn to say.
Think, think, stupid. ‘Haaay, there there’ no, fuck. ‘Let’s not be punk about—no!
While he ran through several responses, her wails intensified. She turned hysterical. Sobs spun out of control and almost resembled laughter.
Yeah, like giggling?
Max lifted her head and dropped the act. Max cackled like a lunatic. Confusion racked his brain until she stopped on a dime.
Her pristine arched brows knitted. “You thought you did something, huh?”
“Wait, what?”
“My Daddy is laundering money through my shop, because I let him.” AB recoiled. He would have never suspected such a thing. “You couldn’t leave well enough alone.”
The female stood and closed the distance between them.
Her short ass loomed in front of him.
“All I wanted to do was fuck,” Max said. “Why you have to go and ruin it?” She shook her head and stepped outside. “Now that you figured us out, what you plan on doing with this information?”
The muzzle of a gun grazed his temple. “Are you serious?”
AB growled at Low, who held the steel steady. He definitely used it, more than once.
“Deadly,” Low said. “Ain’t nobody finna pull my shorty card, Red. And I like you, I do. It’s sad, and wasteful, ‘cause you fine as hell. But I got a full clip of halo bullets, and wouldn’t think twice about putting your pretty ass in a motha fuckin’ casket.”