Page 50 of Alpha Chase

I give her a moment to catch her breath before peeling Vienna’s legs from my shoulders, setting her back on her feet and rocking back on my heels, gazing up at her reverently. Her face is flushed, lips puffy and hair mussed. A thin sheen of sweat clings to her brow as she draws shallow breaths, leaning her weight against the stack of cases behind her.

“Goddamn,” I murmur, rising to my feet in front of her. I reach out to cup her jaw, swiping the pad of my thumb across her swollen lower lip. “That was…”

She blinks up at me, dark eyelashes fanning out around those warm brown eyes. My own drop to her lips and I can’t resist going in for another kiss, my tongue sweeping inside her mouth so she can taste herself. This kiss isn’t like the others were- it’s slower, deeper, more intentional. Vienna whimpers when I break it, like she doesn’t want me to stop.

“That was so fucking hot,” I groan, gripping her hip with a hand and squeezing. I drop my other hand to my crotch, grabbing my throbbing hard-on through my jeans. “Fuck.”

Vienna’s eyes flicker bronze as she reaches for me, slipping her fingers into the waistband of my jeans and tugging me closer as her fingers scrabble with the button. Right when she flicks it open, the sound of a door closing makes us both freeze in our tracks.

Her eyes go wide as she snaps her head toward the locker room, her expression shifting to one of sheer panic.

“Shit!” she hisses, shoving me away as she dives for her rumpled uniform pants, stumbling as she struggles to pull them on. As she does, I catch sight of her lacy black panties still on the floor, bending down to pick them up.

“Forgetting something?” I ask, dangling them from a finger in front of her.

Vienna reaches out, but I snatch them back with a grin, shoving the panties into my back pocket. “Think I’ll hang onto these.”

“Give those back!” she whisper-screams, attempting to reach around me to reclaim them from my pocket as I twist out of her way.

The bang of a locker closing stops her, wild eyes going wide again as her head snaps toward the locker room, then back to me.

“You’ve gotta go.” Vienna grabs my arm, pulling me toward the door.

“This is the thanks I get for getting you off?” I tease, an amused smile pulling at my lips as she yanks the door open in a panic.

“Get out!” She shoves at my chest, sending me stumbling backwards out of the storage room.

“C’mon, pixie,” I chuckle. “Would it really be so bad for someone to catch you with…”

The door slams, a gust of wind hitting me in the face and rustling my hair from the force behind it.

Well damn.

Message received.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Vienna

Nessalacesherfingersthrough mine, tugging me through the packhouse as the loud thump of music bleeds into my ears. I’m not sure if it was a good idea for me to come here tonight, but my new roommate insisted on it, citing her belief that I need to get out and blow off some steam after everything I’ve been through lately. It has been almost a week since I packed a bag and went to stay with Nessa, and my mom hasn’t even so much as called me to check in. She probably hasn’t even noticed. It’s so fucking depressing that I keep trying not to think about it, but I know Nessa can tell it’s been weighing me down. Can’t get anything past her.

As we step past the staircase, I can’t help but remember the last time we attended a party here, when I watched Stasia drag Chase by the hand up those stairs. I’ve been up there myself, in Chase’s bedroom. I wonder how many other girls here tonight have. A heavy weight settles in the pit of my stomach at that thought.

Nessa tugs on my hand as we sneak past a group of partygoers standing in our path to the living room, weaving through the crowd like mice in a maze. There are more people here than last time, but it isn’t difficult to find Chase and his friends amidst the chaos. They’re clearly creatures of habit, posted up on the giant black sectional at the far end of the room, overlooking the large space. Chase is seated comfortably in his spot in the center of the U-shaped sofa, a broody king lording over his kingdom.

I get an immediate sense of déjà vu as I take him in- dark hoodie, long legs spread, whiskey bottle dangling from his fingers. Tonight, though, he doesn’t have that same vacant stare that he had last time. Tonight, as his eyes snap to mine, there’s something wild and alive sparking behind them.

“Hey, you made it!” Levi beams, springing to his feet and waving us over.

“Yeah,” I breathe, eyes pinging between Levi and Chase as Nessa and me draw closer. Levi steps around the coffee table to greet us, while Chase remains rooted to his spot on the couch, quietly observing. He hasn’t taken his eyes off of me, yet he hasn’t made any other move to acknowledge my presence.

Levi slips an arm around my waist, drawing me in to brush his lips against my cheek. I smile as he pulls away, still hyper-aware of Chase in my peripheral vision. “Thanks for the invite.”

“For sure,” Levi drawls, tossing me a wink. He throws his arm up, glancing over my shoulder toward the bar set up in the corner. “Yo Miles! Get these girls some punch!”

I shake my head, holding up my hands. “I’m staying away from the jungle juice tonight. I learned a hard lesson last time.”

Levi laughs, his devious blue eyes sparkling in amusement. “Good thing I made hunch punch tonight instead, then.”

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