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“You’ll never be bored here. We’re about due for an alien invasion. Centurions handle the big threats, but they play well with others. We have a pretty healthy amount of street vigilantes, but you can barely walk a block without—“
“Being lured into a dark alley and attacked by a snake woman?” He laughed. “Vanguard isn’t boring.” He gave me a once over. “And it’s getting more interesting by the minute.”
EO was a player. I had seen the type. Hell, Iwasthat type. There was no point in being coy when you found somebody who got a rise out of your lil’ sidekick. I was about to ask him about his plans for later when I caught the shimmer of a wedding band on his finger. I wasn’t one to judge, but I had a rule about married men. They came with baggage. When they could hurl cars, I avoided drama at all costs.
“Married?”
“Happily,” he said. “He should be here shortly.”
“Hero?”
“Yeah, but we don’t partner together most of the time. We want to make our own names in the industry.”
“How noble of you.”
“Jealous?” he asked. There was a particular type of married man, the one comfortable with the ring around his finger and the protections it offered. They talked a big game, but at the end of the night, you knew who they were going home with. I had been a guest star in more than one relationship, but more often than not, it got awkward.
“Not even a little,” I lied. I grabbed another bottle of beer, popped the cap, and set it down next to him. “Don’t forget to tip your bartender,” I added with a smile.
“Just the tip?”
Touché. He knew how to get my engine running. It was going to be a long night of teasing, but this hero had met his match. If we were going to play this game, it was him that’d need rescuing.
He pulled out his phone. With a quick scan of a text, he opened a portal to his side. It took a second before an overly muscular hero emerged. Okay, there had to be something in the water in Guardian City to produce these two studs. Maybe they fell into the same vat of dangerous chemicals? Either way, I could see I was going to have myself a fun night of flirting.
“Stonewall,” he gestured to his partner, “meet…”
“Alejandro.” I handed him a beer. “EO has been telling me all about you.”
The edge of his lip turned up. “So you’re the sexy bear he rescued.”
My face went from warm to hot. Had I met my match?
* * *
A couple months ago, all but one superhero had been depowered. How? I don’t know. It had something to do with a demon. But since then, heroes had been cagey about going out. Tonight, however, Midnight Alley didn’t have an empty table, and the staff moved with a purpose. It wasn’t standing room only, but we were getting close.
While I mixed my millionth “Cape Chaser” cocktail, I split the shaker in two, pouring one, two, three drinks into chilled martini glasses. The Furies, a trio of magical heroes, applauded as I pushed drinks across the bar.
“Alejandro.” Alecto bent over, sipping without lifting the glass. “We fought Hades tonight, and yet, you’re the hero.” The other two followed suit, eyes wide as they savored my handiwork. I lived for the admiration. While they saved the city, I did my best to reward them for doing what I couldn’t.
“Maybe if Hades had a few drinks in him, he wouldn’t be such an uptight blowhard.” I shot the ladies a wink.
They giggled, leaving money on the counter and heading toward the music. Like always, the Furies wanted to be as close to the DJ as possible. With a quick wipe of the rag, I was ready for the next patron to order a drink.
By the entrance, Bruno guarded the door, keeping out the riffraff. I gave him a chin nod when he pointed to his eyes with two fingers. He then pointed across the club. The frantic motion meant urgent, and I followed until I caught the source of his panic. Eclipse and Scarlet were seated in a booth, talking.
We had seen Scarlet stare down the biggest powerhouses in the industry. Even as a petite woman, she had the fortitude of a titan. If she didn’t want to speak with Eclipse, she’d have pivoted away with grace. When grace didn’t work, she’dmakehim go away. She had a serious face as the two of them talked. Nothing good would come of it.
I eyed Bruno again, trying to shove all the confusion into raised eyebrows and a disgusted frown. Bruno shook his head before doing the finger thing again. This time he gestured wildly, almost pointing at me. I put a hand on my chest, trying to make sense of his inefficient communication system.
“Alejandro, how’s it going?”
Oh, Bruno meant for me to turn around. We needed to work on his hand signals. I didn’t need to see him to know the voice. Lars, no real superhero name. It was hard to pick a single reason why I didn’t call him after our first encounter. There were many. So damned many.
“Lars,” I feigned a smile. “What can I get you?”
As I turned, he leaned on the bar in his signature blue spandex suit with a plunging neckline that almost reached his navel. His chest was just as hairy as I remembered it, and I fondly remember running my hands through it. But that’s where the evening took a turn for weird.
