Page 22 of Big Knot Energy (Shadowverse)

“No. I’m–”

“Yes. She is,” Enzo said, all playfulness missing from his face as he cocked a brow at me. Because he wanted me to put Amir at ease or because I once again denied that I was a member of their pack?

“When can I meet the other two?”

“You saw one of them on stage,” Enzo said, that sexy smirk back on his lips.

Amir turned to me and raised both brows.

“He was the alpha who threw the shirt at me after he was done dancing.”

“Oh, damn. He smelled amazing. Or at least his shirt did. Who’s the third?”

“Cyrus. He’s been behind the bar off and on, but I can text both of them to meet us in here. Unless you two would be more comfortable out there–”

“No,” I blurted. And I wasn’t quite sure why I was suddenly reluctant to leave this room.

Part of me felt as though every single person out there would instantly know that I’d screwed a stranger in the office. The other part of me didn’t want any of those people out there to so much as get a glimpse of this incredibly beautiful omega.

Mine.

I was only a beta, yet I was ready to stake my claim on the man, to rub against him like a cat to leave my scent on him, but also to smother myself in his.

I couldn’t exactly mark his flesh like an alpha, but I sure as hell could find other ways to stake my claim.

CHAPTER 8

Ax

“Did you know she could dance?” I asked Cyrus as we hurried to Cyrus’s office where Enzo, Issa, and the omega waited for us.

“How would I know that? I’m still surprised we even got her out of the house. And how the hell did you convince her to wear that dress?”

We had all taken plenty of time filling her closet and drawers with new clothing after she’d agreed to stay with us.

Issa hadn’t been given the opportunity to live her own life because of her fucked up parents, who had been killed by Enzo’s brother and his pack, and that apparently included being allowed the luxury of a full closet. She wore whatever they deemed appropriate, or what her piece of shit alpha, whom she’d been forced to bond with, wanted to see her in.

Neither Issa nor her sister Corazon seemed the least bit phased their parents were dead, but they still had a lasting effect on both women … especially in the way they saw themselves when they looked in the mirror. Issa was beautiful and majestic, yet we could tell even though she tried to hide it that she didn’t believe she was worthy of true affection from anyone.

I knew I wasn’t the only one struggling to restrain myself around the gorgeous beta. We were constantly visiting each other’s rooms on a regular basis. From the moment the gorgeous dark-haired beta filled our home with her soft, clean scent, I’d walked around with a chubby.

But she needed time to heal. The last thing I or the others wanted was to make her uncomfortable by pawing at her or for her to think she owed us a damn thing.

As far as I was concerned, she was already ours, whether she carried our mark or not, whether she ever allowed us into her bed or her body or not.

“You know they fucked on your desk, right?” I teased as we pushed through the crowd of dancers. A few people patted me on my shoulder or back and told me I’d done a good job on stage. And yep – I ate that shit up. I would never deny I was a bit of an attention whore, but I also really loved to dance.

And might have intentionally asked Issa to watch me rehearse a few times under the guise of needing her opinion when really…I was hoping to make her want me.

Enzo had texted us letting us know where he’d found Issa and with who and that they’d both appeared as though they’d had the fucking of their lives. Arousal and jealousy crashed through me. But if this omega was half as tempting as Enzo had declared through our group text, then there would hopefully be a time – hopefully sooner rather than later – that I would get the chance to feel him under my hands. And if we could talk Issa into joining us? All the better.

From the corner of my eye, I caught Cyrus adjusting himself as we neared the door. I knew the feeling; I’d been hard as stone since I’d watched Issa shower like a fucking voyeur.

I don’t know why I kept flirting with her. Nah. I totally knew why – I was hoping to get her to see me as more than the guy she lived with, more than the alpha who’d helped her after she’d escaped her abuser. I wanted her to see me as her packmate, as her alpha.

As we neared the closed office door, the heady, sweet smell of chocolate and strawberries tickled my senses and sent blood rushing straight to my cock.

“Damn,” I muttered under my breath.

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