Page 33 of Trick Me
“Not when it comes to you.”
A slow smirk touches his lips. It fades quickly.
“What’s it like?” he asks. “Your magic. Because right now it feels like I’ve got a live wire running through my whole body. Every nerve is humming. And I feel so much colder than usual.”
I snort. “And the sensation of having something alive inside me feels freaky.”
He chuckles as if he agrees. A dark sound, low in his throat, and it does something to me. My toes curl inside my heels.
His hand finds mine again, fingers threading through like he owns it. As if he owns me. His grip is firm. Possessive. And when we step onto the stone path, he pulls me closer to his side.
“I’m not letting you get away from me,” he murmurs, voice hot against my ear.
My pulse skitters. I don’t pull away.
Because part of me doesn’t want to be anywhere but at his side.
And the wolf inside me? He’s already home.
Ash doesn’t let go of my hand as we move through the side garden, taking us on a path to the front of the mansion. Leaves crunch under our feet. The pulse of the party vibrates through the ground, the thrum of music, laughter, distant howls of wolves. I glance down at myself and wince. The jacket I’m wearing falls just below mid-thigh and hangs loose on my frame, gaping enough to flash cleavage. But Ash walks like he owns the damn place.He’s on a mission, as am I, to find a way to switch our powers back.
We enter the mansion through a side door, and I’m immediately reminded of how opulent this place is. A few people stare at us… me in nothing but a man’s jacket and heels, him in a shirt that is scratched and streaked in blood. Yet, he holds his head high, hand firmly holding mine, absolutely zero fucks given about our appearance.
A true Alpha, even without his wolf.
“Erynn! Oh my gods!” Sera’s voice cuts through the ballroom’s noise like a siren, and suddenly she’s in front of us, eyes bulging as she takes in our appearance. Her dress is slightly askew, her elaborate hairdo has fallen to one side, and there’s a hickey on her neck.
“Walk of shame, party edition,” she states, her gaze sweeping over us. She’s practically vibrating with excitement, bouncing on her toes. “Like, where is your dress? That beautiful blue number I spent an hour helping you into? Or did he go all animalistic on you? Did he rip it off? Because that’s fucking hot. Girl, he is HOT.”
“Sera, breathe,” I manage, face burning hotter than Phoenix Fire.
“Hello,” Ash says with amusement in his tone. “And everything here is for Erynn only.”
“Possessive already? I love it.” Sera claps her hands. “Rich! Rich, come see! Erynn got laid!”
My face might be bright red. “Please stop talking,” I beg.
Rich appears beside her like smoke, taking us in. He’s got a new bruise on his jaw that wasn’t there earlier, and his knuckles are split. We aren’t the only ones who got into a fight.
“Rich,” Sera declares, wrapping herself around him like a vine. “This is Erynn’s… friend.”
“Ash,” Ash supplies, offering his hand. The men shake, and I watch them do that thing where they try to establish dominance through grip strength.
“You look like you’ve had an interesting evening,” Rich observes, taking in our disheveled state with barely concealed amusement.
“Halloween brings out the interesting in people,” Ash replies smoothly, pulling me closer to his side. I love how he does that, casual but deliberate, like he needs me within arm’s reach at all times.
“Let me get us all drinks,” Rich offers, pressing a kiss to Sera’s temple that’s surprisingly tender. “You two look like you could use something strong.”
“Give us a moment,” I say quickly. “We need to find someone first, then we’ll come back for that drink.”
Sera blinks at me. “You’re voluntarily leaving a social situation with me… to go find someone? That’s new.”
“The night’s been… educational,” I say, which is the understatement of the century.
“I’ll bet,” she smirks. “That’s a lot of education written all over your neck.”
I touch my throat automatically, feeling the tender spots where Ash was particularly enthusiastic earlier.
