Page 56 of Alpha Gray

“Can I get you another?” Judd asks, gesturing to my empty glass. He doesn’t even wait for me to answer before he leans over the bar, waving to get the bartender’s attention.

“Sure,” I breathe, throwing my hair over my shoulder and sliding my glass onto the bar. This is why I rarely wear my hair down; it always feels like it’s in the way.

While Judd orders my drink, I steal another glance around the bar. Gray’s still sitting with his back to me, but surely he knows I’m here by now. I’m a little annoyed that he hasn’t come over to say hello yet, but I guess that wouldn’t be ‘casual’. I’m not going to be the one to approach him, though- if he wants me, thenhecan come tome.

Judd shoves a fresh vodka cranberry in my direction, and I take it from him with a smile. “Thanks,” I say, stirring it with the swizzle straw before taking a sip.

Judd grins, like he should receive a damn award for buying me a five-dollar drink. “Don’t mention it. Always happy to buy a drink for a beautiful woman.”

I want to gag at how cheesy his line is but force a smile instead. “That’s sweet,” I say, taking another long sip of my drink.

“Hey!” Vienna chirps, approaching Judd and me. “Are you gonna come dance or what?”

Judd gazes at me, nudging my arm. “I’m down to dance if you are.”

Ugh. I was kinda hoping that this would be an out from my conversation with Judd, but it looks like he’s planning on sticking to me like glue tonight.

“C’mon, Fallon!” Vienna urges, tugging at my arm.

I sigh, rolling my eyes. “You’re relentless!” I laugh, allowing her to pull me from my spot at the bar.

We weave through the crowd, Judd following closely behind me. I catch sight of Hannah on the dance floor and as I pass by her she scowls and stares me down. I just look away- I don’t know what her fucking problem is, but I’m not dealing with it tonight.

Vienna finds our other friends in the crowd and steers us over to them. Davis and Casey are basically dry humping on the dance floor, while Brooke and Shay dance together and Boyd and Connor bop on the periphery.

Brooke catches sight of us and waves us over, and the four of us girls form a little circle to dance with one another. I start swaying my hips to the music, careful to hold my drink steady so I don’t spill it all over myself as I dance. I feel Judd’s presence behind me as he slides a hand onto my hip, trying to dance with me. Brooke and I lock eyes and she tilts her head questioningly, her gaze darting from Judd to me. I just shrug, lifting my glass and taking a sip of my drink. I guess there’s no harm in sharing a dance with the guy.

It’s kind of a pain to try to dance with a drink in my hand, so I finish it quickly. Shay takes the empty glass from me as she heads to the bar for another, right as the song changes to one of my absolute favorites. I cheer, throwing up my hands and swaying my hips back and forth to the bass beat. Apparently, Judd takes that as an invitation, because he presses closer to my backside, his hand still on my hip.

Ah, what the hell. I love this song, and it’s just a dance. I spin around to face Judd, throwing an arm over his shoulder. He’s got the biggest, goofiest grin on his face as he slides both hands to my waist, displaying some truly terrible dance moves. The guy can’t even find the beat!

I whip my hair back, dancing a little wilder as I get lost in the music. I spin back around, arching my back and grinding my ass against Judd while his hands find their way to my hips again. I’m really getting into the dance when I suddenly feel a hand on my arm, fingers locking around in a tight grip, pulling me sideways.

“Wha…” I start to ask, but my breath gets caught in my throat when I snap my head around to see who has a hold on my arm and I’m met with Gray’s icy stare. He doesn’t say anything, just yanks me away from Judd and starts stomping through the crowd toward the door. I follow- not like I have any choice- he’s got my arm in a death grip.

He doesn’t let go until we’re outside and the door swings closed behind us. I immediately bring my hand up to my bicep, wincing. “What the hell?” I ask, my eyes thrown wide.

Gray takes a few steps away, then turns to face me, his eyes dark, swirling with golden flecks that tell me his wolf is close to the surface. “What the hell was that?” he growls, stalking toward me. I back up until I’m met with the cold wall of the building and then he crowds me, slapping one of his palms up on the wall to cage me in.

“Dancing?” I ask, arching a brow.

Is he serious right now?This guy’s fucking lost it.

“Likethat? Withhim?” His steely gaze slices through me.

I push at Gray’s chest, forcing him to take a step back. “What’s your fucking problem, Gray? I was just dancing, what’s the big deal?”

Gray scowls, stabbing his fingers through his hair. “I saw you chatting him up at the bar.”

“Yeah, so what? It’s no different than you and that waitress,” I scoff.

That trips him up a little. He narrows his eyes, tipping his chin, considering. “Who, Kelly?”

“Oh, sothat’sKelly,” I say, my tone accusatory. The puzzle pieces in my brain click together- Hannah mentioned a girl named Kelly that night in the dining hall. My instincts about that waitress were spot-on.

Gray shakes his head. “She’s just a member of my pack.”

“And Judd’s just a friend, another trainee. Come on, Gray, do we really have to do this?”

---