Page 55 of Wanted Beta

He closes the door behind his back quickly and keeps his hand on it.

I take in the tattoo on his forearm — a black heart and arrow design — and I tell myself inked skin isn’t the slightest bit attractive while I bite back the urge to ask what the design means to him. It’s not my business, and I’m not into his whole rock star vibe.

Even if the way he looks at me makes my stomach feel fluttery and I might spend the night drawing and redrawing that tattoo on paper I’m supposed to be using for studying, all the while thinking about the sexy fun-times I could be having with him if I hadn’t already made one too many mistakes with men.

He clears his throat, and I realize my gaze has drifted to his crotch.

Oops.

Blinking slowly, I adjust my focus to his face, giving him an expectant look.

“I’m playing tonight,” he says. “I mean, my band is. You should come.”

Oh my God, is he asking me out?

“Um … sure,” I somehow manage to stammer.

Shit. What did I just agree to?

“Great!” He smiles as he slips his free hand into his back pocket.

He hands me a hot pink piece of card, which turns out to be a ticket for entry to a bar called The Terrace. I haven’t been there before, but I know where it is. It’s not far away.

No way! You’re not seriously considering this.

Beth, you can’t go around following strangers into bars.

No matter how attractive they are.

Pull yourself together.

I put the ticket into my purse, telling myself it doesn’t mean anything.

Maybe I’ll go, maybe I won’t. No big deal either way.

Liar. You’re so going to go. Don’t even try to deny that.

“Um, so you work here, I guess?” I ask.

“I do,” he admits. “I also live here.”

“Oh, cool. Does that make you one of the Esposito brothers?”

He laughs. “Sort of. In a manner of speaking. We’re not brothers by blood. We’re pack.”

“Pack?” I ask, thinking of Secret’s mates and realizing what that probably means.

The realization smacks me in the face like a bucket of ice-water.

This guy must have a mating bond with at least one of the guys I just saw … together.

Maybe he’s even with them both.

I don’t see a mating mark, but that doesn’t mean much.

The throat might be the obvious spot for them, but there are plenty of other more hidden places where a mark could be given. There are also a few cosmetic solutions available to hide a mark from sight. No visible mark doesn’t necessarily mean no mate.

“I’m Jack,” he introduces himself, holding out his hand. “You just walked in on my Alpha and Omega brothers inside. Lorenzo’s the chef here. He probably thought he’d locked the door. We’ve been having some trouble with the mechanism. Arrow’s our host, but that’s a temporary thing. In case you hadn’t noticed, it’s kind of a hazard to have a perfuming Omega around. The scent can be like a drug to some people.”

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