“Could it be too good to be true?”

She frowned. “What is the matter with you? Do you think I’m just a piece of ass on his to-do list? I’m sensing a lot of hate here.”

“No, no, not hate,” I said. “He’s just … he’s dangerous, Kate.”

She laughed. “Oh, seriously? What, is he in fight club or something? Oh wait. We’re not supposed to talk about that.”

“I am serious, Kate,” I said firmly. “Look, just be careful.”

“Why do you want me to stay away from him so badly?” she asked, folding her arms over her chest. “Do you like him?”

“No! You know that’s not true. You know how I feel about Will.”

“I’m sorry, but I just don’t understand.”

The truth was, I couldn’t explain it to her. Maybe it was because immortal reapers descended from Fallen angels didn’t make good boyfriends because they had centuries’ worth of serious baggage. Maybe it was because they didn’t know how to function in the real world and didn’t understand human beings. Or maybe I was just talking about Will.

“Will told me,” I said hesitantly. “He wouldn’t really explain. He just said that Marcus has been in some trouble before.”

Kate rolled her eyes and huffed. “You don’t believe that story Marcus told about getting his scar in a knife fight, do you? Unless you tell me that he’s killed somebody, I’m going to keep seeing him.”

I thought better of responding to that. Chances were pretty good that Marcus had killed someone—many someones—since he hunted demonic reapers with Ava.

Ugh. Ava. I still hadn’t told Kate about what I’d learned. “Do you remember that girl Will was hanging out with who you convinced me to follow a couple weeks ago? Which, by the way, was a terrible idea.”

She grimaced. “Yeah, his ‘old friend.’”

“Well, my suspicions were right,” I admitted.

Her eyes bulged. “No! He cheated on you?”

I shook my head firmly. “He never cheated on me. We weren’t together. But he and this girl, Ava … they’ve slept together.”

“I’m sorry, Ell. They aren’t still, are they?”

“No,” I said. “It was a long time ago.”

“Ell.” Kate sighed. “I hate to break it to you, sweetheart, but you’re very naïve. People who are ‘just friends’ have sex all the time. Friends with benefits—ever heard of it?”

The sick feeling was beginning to swirl through my belly again. “Well, he said he had never wanted even that with her, that he was going through a horrible time and it was a mistake.” I wasn’t going to tell her that I was the reason behind his dark period.

Her expression became more sympathetic. “Mistakes definitely happen. You can’t hold it against him.”

“It just makes things so awkward,” I said. “I can’t be mad at either of them, obviously. I’m just … jealous of her, I guess.”

She nodded and her expression softened. “I understand. Nobody wants to be around their boyfriend’s ex, especially if she’s gorgeous.”

“Will isn’t my boyfriend,” I corrected her. He never had been in reality, but describing him as my boyfriend to people in the real world helped explain his constant presence in my life. “Which makes it even harder for me to be jealous.”

“Same diff,” she said. “Whether he’s your boyfriend now or last month or whenever, it still hurts. I’m sorry you have to deal with her.”

I shrugged. “Yeah. She hangs out with Will and Marcus all the time.”

Her eyes darkened. “She’d better not touch Marcus.”

I laughed in an attempt to ease the tension in my body. “She doesn’t. They work together. Kind of.”

Kate sat up and grunted. “Well, girl better keep her claws off both our boys. Marcus and I are going back to his place after the party. And no, I’m not going to sleep with him, so get that out of your head. I’ve only known him for a few weeks.”

Maybe Kate would be fine. Marcus was dangerous, but I didn’t think he was a danger to her specifically. I loved Kate like a sister, but I had to trust her judgment. And if Will didn’t seem concerned either, then things might just turn out okay. I still wanted to talk to Marcus one more time and get his story straight.

As if he’d heard me say his name in my head or, more likely, he’d heard us talking about him the entire time, Marcus entered the room from the hall with a very cocky grin on his face. He’d definitely heard us talking about him.

“Am I interrupting anything?” he asked.

“Talking about you, of course,” Kate said.

He laughed. “I figured. Come join the party. Ellie, your Will looks very exhausted from fighting off girls all night. Might you want to rescue him?”

I rolled my eyes. “All he does is scowl and ignore them. The whole thing is hilarious. I have no idea why they keep harassing him.”

“Because he’s hot and has tattoos,” Kate offered, looking at me like I was an idiot. “Why wouldn’t their hands be all over him? Speaking of, why aren’t your hands all over him?” She took my hand. “Ready?”

“Yup. Onward.”

We headed back out to the dance hall when one of my favorite songs began to play. I spotted Will just where I’d left him, standing there patiently and looking a little bored.