Page 82 of Savage Hope

I smile, shrugging as I pretend my cheeks aren’t practically glowing. “One and the same,” I admit, and his stare turns to a glare as his lips pinch.

“And you couldn't have told me that the other day?” he grunts, and Wylder plants a hand on his shoulder, his other hand still wrapped tightly around mine, squeezing in comfort as he takes a step forward, separating us.

He huffs a laugh, trying to alleviate the tension growing. “That was my fault, asshole. Leave her alone.”

Lincoln offers the same intense stare at his friend before turning back to me. His jaw ticks as he taps at his chin. “I need to talk to you,” he states, but Wylder interjects before I can speak.

“Not now. I won. She's mine for the night. You can talk to her some other time,” he insists, stepping around his friend as he pulls me along after him.

Torn about what I'm supposed to do, I automatically fall into step, surprised to find Lincoln right beside me as he grumbles under his breath with a sigh. “Whatever, everyone is waiting over here.” He slips back in front, taking control of the situation as he forges a path through the crowd to where a wrought iron set of stairs rises against the far left wall. They lead up to a cordoned-off area with a security guy at the bottom, separating what seems to be the elite from the commoners.

Without a word, the security guard moves out of the way, dipping his head at Lincoln and Wylder as he lifts the rope, allowing Lincoln to pass while we follow quickly behind him. The stairs rattle as we make our way up to the top floor to find velvet drapes hanging around the upper level, shielding them from the rest of the party, while the wrought iron continues around the edge, offering a balcony to spectate the dance floor below.

Leather seats line the walls like large booths with circular tables dotted around the space, and a bar sits along the far edge.It's cute. It's relaxing, but it's not the wolves’ Moon Party vibe. There's something different in the air. I just can’t pinpoint what.

Lincoln guides us toward a table, and I'm relieved to see that Bryony is already sitting with them. She looks cute in her little matching skirt and shirt set that she insisted on wearing, which has an extra button missing and the collar sitting wide, revealing the valley between her breasts. Not that she's trying to get anyone's attention. It seems she's caught in a conversation with the girl I saw beside Lincoln the other day in the dining hall.

She's in a two-piece as well, except her top isn’t as revealing. It's a sheer material with black lace over the top and see-through on the arms. With her smokey eye makeup, it has the same sultry effect as Bryony’s outfit.

Beside her is Asher, wearing a pale-blue shirt with the top three buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He’s deep in his cell phone, paying no mind to anyone around him. I can’t fight the soft smile that curls my lips as Tatum comes into view in a simple black fitted tee and matching fitted jeans.

He looks good; relaxed and calm. It suits him more than the darkness that seems to follow him like a second shadow.

Since I'm taking a moment to take everybody in, I give myself a second to stare at Lincoln now that the initial shock has worn off. It doesn’t feel like a surprise to find him in a pair of fitted trousers and a white button-up shirt with wolf face cufflinks holding his sleeves in place.

Wylder, on the other hand, is in a pair of shorts and a white t-shirt, fresh from the shower he took after we had our…fun.

As if sensing his presence in my thoughts, Wylder squeezes my fingers once again before releasing my hand. I watch in awe as he makes his way around the table, accepting congratulations from his friends. The situation seems familiar to them. I use the moment to step over to the far side of the space toward the balcony so I can look down at the sea of people below.

The difference in the vibe becomes obvious from this vantage point.

It's noticeable not just in the air, but to the naked eye as well: no quadrants are mixing tonight. The vampires, the witches, the humans, and the wolves are all congregated among themselves…apart from us.

I gulp at the thought, uncertainty churning inside me at the expectation of being kicked back down to Earth at any moment. Not that I'd blame them, and not that I'd be sad about it, but the fear of embarrassment is an emotion I can't seem to let go of.

Maybe being up here isn’t a good idea. Maybe everything that transpired in the locker room wasn’t?—

“Hey, Polaris, right?”

I tilt my face to find the girl who was with Lincoln at the dining hall the other day smiling wide at me. She clamps her hand on my shoulder. Weirdly, there's a comforting sensation and no animosity like I initially expect.

I nod and her smile only strengthens.

“Hi, I'm Minnie. Come and take a seat with us. Bryony was telling me all about you,” she says with a wink, and my lips purse, unsure of what it is Bryony could possibly say, but the reassuring smile I get from both the girls fills me with a bit of confidence. It’s with that I realize I’m making far too many assumptions about these people tonight, and as much as I need to be alert and safe, overanalyzing everything isn’t what this evening is supposed to be about. “By the way, I’m Lincoln's sister,” she says as she links her arm through mine and drags me toward the table, but my steps falter at the information she offers.

“Sister?” I repeat. My question is soft among the music, but she still nods eagerly. There’s a smile on her face, one filled with pride, as I take the seat between her and Bryony. I take a moment to glance back and forth between the siblings and theslice of jealousy I felt mere days ago disappears. Their eyes are the same bright blue and they hold themselves in the same way. It's a mixture of ready to go to war and an air of refusing to take anybody's shit that naturally exudes from their very beings.

I don't want to compliment Lincoln since he was a bit of an ass before. Although, he didn’t take the news terribly, I guess, so I offer her a smile. “I don't know if I should apologize to you or something?” I say, earning a chuckle from her and a glare from her brother.

“He’s nice for the most part,” she states, a warm glow taking over her face as she looks at him. “I mean, he did save you from taking a football to the head on your first day, right?” she adds with a wink, making my cheeks heat to another level as Bryony frowns.

“He did what?” the latter pushes, giving me a side glance as I internally die. The idea of recalling that moment is unbearable, and I regret skipping that part of our first interaction like the last time the topic came up between us. Still, I'm saved from being the one retelling the story as Minnie leans around me.

“It was hilarious. This poor girl had barely stepped on campus. God knows what she's just been told about us all because Florentines live a different life, right? And here she is, taking it all in when a football gets hurdled in her direction with meteoric force. Before anyone can react, Lincoln is off in wolf form, ready to save this girl before he collides with her, knocking her to the ground and shifting back into a human. A naked one at that. With his little penis pressed against her thigh.”

She’s cackling by the end of it, the sound infectious as Bryony clamps a hand over her mouth, and I look to the ceiling, praying for the blood kin curse to take me now.

“There is nothing little about my penis. Do not make me pull it out right now,” Lincoln grumbles, swiping a hand down his face, irritation evident in his eyes.

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