Page 42 of Frenzy
Dominic
Iwas walking down the hall—well, slinking actually, because it was a habit now. Stick to the shadows, stay low, even within the confines of a house filled with people I trusted and respected.
The sound of Courtland’s voice, that I almost knew better than I knew my own, slowed my steps. “Do you like that, sweet Beta? You aren’t all sweet though, are you?”
There was a heady moan, and when I tiptoed out of the shadows, I caught the flex of Courtland’s hips as he fucked Radic in a darkened corner on the top floor. They were so caught up in what they were doing in that darkened corner, they hadn’t even heard me walk up.
Cocking my head, I made sure there was no one on this floor who shouldn’t be here. The kids were the next floor down, so that was fine. The men that were left were on the ground floor, the first line of defense.
Up here on the top level? There was just us, and apparently Courtland was making good use of the privacy. I couldn’t hear what he was murmuring in Radic’s ear, but I could smell the raw primal perfume of their sex and it made me hard as a rock.
But this wasn’t my playtime, so I dodged around them as quietly as possible. I could have been a marching band with how much attention Radic was paying to his surroundings, but Courtland’s head snapped toward me.
I winked and made an entirely inappropriate thrusting motion, making Courtland grin. That smile meant everything to me. Way more than it should. I moved down the hall on silent feet, listening to the rest of the household settle down for bed. Well, if I listened hard enough, I could still hear the dull thud of Courtland’s hips against the hard muscles of Radic’s ass too.
I paused outside my room, a discontent settling in my bones. I didn’t want to be alone tonight. Turning, I walked over to the door three down from mine. Bonnie’s room, now that she didn’t have to bunk in with the babies.
Knocking lightly on the door, I heard her soft voice telling me to come in. I pushed open the door and realized our errant Omega had beaten me to it. Lying on her bed under the covers, the television paused in the background, I found Bonnie and Pryce snuggled together.
“Am I interrupting something?” I said, waggling my eyebrows.
Bonnie snorted and threw a pillow at my face. “We are watching The Shawshank Redemption, Dominic, not porn.”
I grinned, giving a stern mental talk to my fluttering heart, and telling it to calm its tits. “Is there room for one more?”
Bonnie smiled at me widely, scooching closer to Pryce so there was space on her other side. I skipped over and started peeling off my clothes.
“No funny stuff tonight, Dominic. We’re just watching a movie.”
I pressed a hand to my chest like I was a silver screen damsel. “My fair Bonnie, I had no intention of getting up to anything deviant at all. Just some good old-fashioned Pack snuggles.”
In that moment, I found it was the truth. I just wanted to cuddle into Bonnie’s warm body, brush my fingers over Pryce’s strong forearms and justbe.Wasting no more time, I bundled Bonnie into my arms until she was pressed to my chest. I threw my leg over hers until my foot was brushing Pryce’s calf muscle.
This was perfect.
“Anyone ever told you that you’re a bed hog?” Bonnie protested, but I didn’t miss the way she rubbed her cheek over my chest, scent marking me.
“Can’t say I’ve snuggled in bed with anyone before.”
Bonnie reared back to stare at me. “Really?
I nuzzled my face into her hair, mostly so she’d stop looking at me like that. “Not much time to snuggle during my previous career choice. Or people to snuggle with.”
Bonnie raised her eyebrows. “Not even Courtland?”
I snorted. “Especially not Courtland.”
We were silent for a little while, just watching the movie. I’d seen this one before of course—it was a classic—but it was interesting watching Pryce’s reaction to it. Bonnie’s thumb rubbed absently over my forearm, and I was somewhat regretting my promise not to initiate any funny stuff.
“How did you come to be in Courtland’s… group? Gang? Cartel?”
I shifted slightly so I could look at them both properly. “Someone left me with Courtland’s dad as collateral for a shipment. Needless to say, they didn’t pay, and Court’s Abuela raised me.”
It wasn’t really a big deal. Where we came from, people were a commodity. Did I hate whoever had disregarded me with a bunch of drug dealers without a thought? Absolutely, to my very marrow.
Did I get lucky that Courtland’s family were who they were, and not someone with far, far worse intentions? Absolutely, and I thanked the Goddess it was them every day.
I looked down into Bonnie’s horrified face. “It's not that bad, babe, I promise. I had a good life, filled with violence and fucking.” I gave a small, mirthless laugh. “It's not what I’d want now, but it wasn’t a bad life. I had Courtland, and his family. My family. I was mostly happy, or at least too stupid or drunk to realize I wasn’t happy.”
