Page 13 of Savage Trap

Cam rumbles a low-level laugh while Link’s jaw ticks in a way that has me smiling on the inside.

But before I can enjoy my victory too much, my dad slaps his thighs and gets to his feet. “Sounds like a great idea. I’ll just nip next door and grab my suit.”

Rory barely waits until he’s left the room before he starts to chortle, but it’s Link who reaches over and punches Cam lightly in the shoulder. “You should see if he wants a massage too, brother.”

Elvi

“Do you think Daddy Ferrier would be pushing us out the door if he knew about the last time we went to a club?”

I look over at Rory, who’s biting the tip of his tongue and giving me devil eyes. Since the night sky is clear, and we’re all feeling rested from our post-swim nap, we’re walking the two short blocks to the Leon’s club. Which means Rory looks unbelievably hot as he struts along in his fitted black jeans, green-toned Oxford shirt, and Chelsea boots. The guy could wear a trash bag and make me pant, but that shirt is doing amazing things for his electric green eyes, and he cackles at the expression on my face.

“What happened the last time you went to a club?” Nate asks quietly at my side. Link elected to stay in the hotel and go over some feeds – code, I think, for listening in on the alpha-only dinner - but Nate was a last-minute addition to our party. And while his brother is striding out ahead, deep in conversation with a couple of the other pack heirs, the younger Leon has hung back with us.

Which means he’s once again in earshot of things he probably doesn’t want to know. “Oh, um…”

“Elvi went into heat and Rory and me were lucky enough to help her through it,” Cam says in a voice that is about two octaves lower than normal. “It kind of kicked things off for us, as a pack.”

Kelly is tucked on my other side, and I feel a trickle of laughter through our bond as I almost choke on my tongue. Yes, Cam’s technically correct, although he left out a bunch of details, including the fact it happened in the Red Poppy, a notorious Dark River Pack club, and that Arben was also in attendance.

But I’m distracted by the way Nate’s pupils blow wide as he looks from Cam to me and back again. “Wow,” he says quietly. “I’m not sure tonight can live up to that.”

Rory sidles up to the beta and gives him a friendly nudge. “Wanna bet on it, little lion?”

I expect Nate to get flustered and blow him off, but instead, he arches a brow at my grinning mate. “When it comes to money, I rarely lose.” His gaze drifts over Rory’s face, then flicks back to Cam and me. He starts at our hands, which are clasped together, then runs up our bodies, lingering on our mouths. There’s nothing subtle about his inspection, and I feel Cam’s fingers flex around mine, a hint of alpha arousal leaking into the air. But I still can’t gauge what Nate is thinking until he says, “Although, in this instance, I might pay to see a repeat of that.”

Now I’m tripping over my feet as well as my tongue, my alphas looking at the beta like it was the last thing they expected to come out of his mouth. It takes a beat for Nate to wonder if he misspoke, his face flushing as he quickly lowers his eyes. But I’m not having any of that bullshit, elbowing Cam out of the way so I can link my arm through Nate’s. “Well, I can’t promise that, but maybe you’d save me a dance?”

“I like to dance,” he admits with a small smile, then glances back at my alphas again. It gives me a close-up view of those bruises on his neck. They definitely fit the grip of a large hand, and I feel a flicker of rage pulse through me. Whoever’s been hurting him doesn’t want to try that shit while I’m around. When he turns back to face me, I’m relieved his eyes linger on my lips instead of reading the anger in my eyes. “But I don’t think you’re going to be short of partners, Elvana.”

Probably not, but I’m getting the sense Nate hasn’t really seen how a close-knit pack works. We like our space, our one-to-one time, but mostly we want to be together. And that applies to dancing, just like everything else. “Let’s just see how things go,” I tell him, but keep a firm grip on his arm as we sweep into his family’s club.

It’s called Roar, which isn’t surprising given the leonine theme they’ve got going on in this city. Located on a side street in River North, the entrance is through a door with a bronze engraving of a giant lion’s mouth. Parker has already taken care of the arrangements, so we’re swept inside and straight up to a VIP area.

Everything is decorated in shades of the savannah, including gold wallpaper, dark marble, and sleek brown leather chairs. A mahogany bar runs the full length of the room, but servers are already standing by with bottles of Cristal and Diva. Glasses are filled and when the servers have retreated, Parker holds one aloft in a toast. “Welcome to Chicago, heirs. Anything you need, just ask.”

I murmur my thanks along with a couple of the other pack heirs, but I’m looking around for Nate. Despite my best efforts, we got separated on the stairs, and he’s retreated into the shadows. The rest of us are sitting on those long leather couches, Parker on one side with his pack brothers and the heirs, and my mates seated with me. When I catch Nate’s eye and wave him over, his brother shakes his head at me.

“Nate’s not really social,” Parker says, watching him over the rim of his glass. “And this definitely isn’t his scene.”

The alpha beside him chortles, and I feel my hackles rise. Without a word, I put my glass down and rise to my feet. Kelly immediately joins me, and every alpha in the section rises, but I wave them down.

“We’re just going to chat to Nate,” I tell Parker, and gripping Kelly’s hand, head in the beta’s direction. He watches us with wide gray eyes behind his glasses and I hesitate, wondering if all this attention is the last thing he wants. But then his lips curve into a small smile and Kelly tugs me the rest of the way.

“We’re thinking we might go dance,” I tell him as soon as we reach his side. “Will you come with us?”

His lashes flutter like he’s not sure I’m serious, and Kelly holds out his hand. “As soon as the alphas get a couple of drinks into them, they’ll be all over the dance floor. We should probably get in a few moves while we can.”

Kelly is unusually tall for an omega, but he’s the perfect height to meet Nate eye-to-eye, and I watch as the beta looks him over. Kelly is, quite simply, the most beautiful guy I’ve ever seen. Rory is sexy, Link is striking, and Cam is all man, but Kelly has one of those faces it’s hard to look away from. He’s almost androgynous with his translucent skin, full lips, and almond eyes, but he was a rugby player before he presented, so his chest is broad, his body sculpted. And then there’s the fact he’s a natural dancer who can hypnotize you with a single shimmy of his lean hips…

“Sure,” Nate says, clearing his throat as he takes Kelly’s hand. “Let’s dance.”

I shoot our alphas a glance as we head to the stairs. The first song is ours.

Cam nods, but Rory just waggles his brows at me. Go show the little lion what you’ve got, tiger.

The main part of the club is a lot more crowded than the VIP area, but the night is still young, so there are only a few hardcore dancers on the floor. We find a spot where we can move without any unwanted attention boxing us in, but then the music changes and a remix of Promiscuous rolls across the club. I arch a brow at the DJ, who’s grinning at us from his perch above the dance floor, and blow out an annoyed breath. I’m trying to include Nate, not send him bolting for safety. But to my surprise, he just starts to roll his hips, completely comfortable with the vibe. I raise my brows at Kelly, but he just twirls me around and walks me directly into Nate’s path.

Dancing with Kelly is one of the most sensual things I’ve ever done. And as he fits himself along my spine, his hands drawing circles on the legs of my black pantsuit, I feel our perfume rising off us in a tantalizing wave. Nate clearly senses it; not the way an alpha might, but enough for his pupils to blow wide again, magnified by his dark-framed glasses. “Is this okay?” I ask him.

---