Page 134 of The Villain We Tempt

“For the record,” Dad chuckles, “Bill Nye is a goddamnstud.”

Papa grins, then glances at me. “Everything okay, Lina? You're quiet tonight.”

Zane coughs into his glass as he takes a sip of water. “Boyfriend.”

Dad’s head whips around to look at me with sharply arched brows. Papa chokes on his Diet Coke as he does the same.

What. The.Fuck. Zane?!

I turn and level a withering look at his smug, grinning face, and my cheeks heat as I drag my gaze to my parents. “Idon’thave a boyfriend.”

“That’s not how it sounded when I overheard your little friends gossiping about it yesterday,” Zane grins.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” I hiss at him through clenched teeth.

“Hey, I’m just worried about my baby sister winding up with the wrong?—”

“Who is this guy?” Papa growls, his voice like stone scraping over gravel.

I give my brother another venomous glare before I turn back to Papa. “Idon’thave a boyfriend.”

“Okay, fine. Situationship, fuck buddy,” Dad mutters. “Whatever your generation is calling it.”

I groan as I slump down in my chair. “I donothave a boyfriend. I donothave a situationship. Ireallydo not have a…” My lips purse. “That. Okay?!”

Papa’s still frowning. Dad looks skeptical.

Goddammit, Zane.

Also, I’m extremely curious what the hell he heard.

“Who were you spying on?”

He rolls his eyes. “I wasn’tspying, I was existing. Tell your friends to discuss your personal life in private next time.”

Papa frowns. “Okay, okay. In all seriousness…” He shrugs. “Is there anything we need to know?”

“Anyone we need tomeet?” Dad growls, a sinister edge to his tone.

I roll my eyes. “No. Andno!” I whip my head around to glare daggers at Zane. “I have no idea what you think you overheard, but I can promise you?—”

“Oh, you donotwant me to repeat it,” he grins.

“Please do!” I throw back. “I have nothing to hide!”

My brother's jaw works a second before he sighs. “Okay,fine. It was nothing. They were just saying you seemed distracted recently.”

Thank. Fucking. God.

I haven’t told my friends anything about The Ghost Prince, but I know they’re not clueless, and there’s no way my day-to-day behavior hasn’t been at least a little affected by this whole thing with Ghost. I’m sure Idoseem distracted.

Yeah, because you’re daydreaming about getting railed by a guy in a mask…

Papa frowns. “Distracted. That’s what they said?”

Zane shrugs.

Papa sighs and turns to me. “So…no boyfriend?”