Page 81 of Cold and Broken (The Titans of Founder's Ridge 1)

“Thanks, Griff.” He’s in gray trousers with a crisp white button down, the top couple of buttons undone. “You look pretty good yourself.”

“I was sent in here to see if you two were ready to leave? The car is downstairs.”

“We are.”

He throws his arms over our shoulders and walks us out to the living room. “Finders keepers.” He says as the other three guys look up at us.

Connor and I lock eyes and it feels like I’m locked in the gaze of a hungry predator. His dark hair is styled perfectly and shining almost blue-black under the lights of the penthouse. He’s wearing black trousers, a black button down with the sleeves already rolled up, first few buttons undone like Griff. He looks like danger with straight up feral sex appeal oozing out of him. I feel his gaze like fingertips running up my bare legs, over the curve of my hips, grazing my breasts, and then locked on my face.

This must be how a deer feels right before being ambushed by a wolf. Locked in place by the intensity of the hunger reflected in the hunter’s eyes. I can’t move, frozen as the air around us thickens and nothing exists aside from him and I.

Then he’s stalking across the room and pulling me flush against him. Despite the desire raging in his eyes he kisses me gently. “You look like all my perfects,” he whispers against my lips.

In that moment I know I’m finished. I will never find another person who makes me feel the way Connor Volkov makes me feel. He infuriates me with his arrogance. He ignites my desire with his touch. He slays me with his words. My heart fills with that deep green gaze and I want to drown in it.

He softly kisses me again and then I am pulled away by Levi.

“My turn to oogle the beautiful ladies, Volkov.” He wraps me up in a tight embrace, almost as comfortable as a hug from Zion, who pulls me away next.

“We’re sending a picture to ma,” he holds his hand up to take a selfie of us. “You look gorgeous.” He kisses the top of my head and we hear a rumble come from Connor’s chest. Z does it again for good measure, getting chuckles out of Lev and Griff.

Connor grabs my hand and tugs me away. “Time to go.”

I walk out sandwiched between Connor and Z. Ivy has her arms slung around Lev and Griff’s waists. When we walk out into the lobby there’s a limo with black SUVs on either side of it. The security team is larger tonight with three guys in each SUV. Connor slides into the limo first and when I try to sit beside him pulls me into his lap instead. He presses a kiss to my bare shoulder.

“You guys are gross.” Lev makes a gagging sound. “Seriously hood rat, when did you have time to take his balls? This is not the Connor we’re used to.”

Connor and I give him the finger in tandem and everyone laughs at our unintended synchronicity.

“Is all this security really necessary?” I ask quietly while everyone else talks amongst themselves.

“Our dads think so,” he replies with a shrug. “They’ll hang back when we get to the club.” His fingers ghost up my thigh. “Are you enjoying your birthday weekend?”

“It’s alright.” I try and fail to hold back my smile.

Ivy interrupts us to take more pictures and immediately posts them to social media making all our phones blow up with notifications.

We pull up to the back of the club and a bouncer and a guy in a navy suit open the back door for us. I’m guessing it’s Grant because he smiles wide and opens his arms when he sees the guys.

“Welcome to Indigo.” He shakes hands and does the man pat hug thing with Connor, Griff, and Levi. “It’s been forever since I’ve seen you assholes.” He looks beyond them at the rest of us. “Who did you bring with you tonight?”

Connor holds out his hand for me to take as he pulls me to his side. “This is my girlfriend, Lilith. Lilith, this is Grant.”

Grant’s eyes go wide when he calls me his girlfriend.

“That’s Levi’s step-sister, Ivy.” Connor points her out and then gestures at Z. “This is Lilith’s friend from Chicago, Zion.”

“I can’t believe you just used the word girlfriend. Hell must have frozen over.” He leads us inside down a dark hallway, the bass from Dance Monkey by Tones and I vibrating through the walls. We step into a large industrial space with a circular bar on one side and a crowded dance floor on the other side. A DJ is spinning off to the side of the VIP area. Two bouncers open blue velvet ropes and we walk up a small set of stairs. There’s blue velvet banquet seating and 60s style lucite chairs around low tables. An ice bucket sits on one table with top shelf vodka, tequila, and whiskey. There’s also a bottle of champagne in another ice bucket on a different table.

“I have to go take care of some business in the back but I’ll be back to hang out in awhile,” Grant says as he walks away. He stops a server in a blue lace bodysuit before she comes up to us.

Griff pops the cork on the bottle of champagne and pours glasses for Ivy and me. I notice Ivy glaring daggers at someone and look over my shoulder to see Levi leaning down to flirt with our server. He notices us looking and moves a piece of her black hair off her shoulder. When I turn back to Ivy she’s slamming her glass of champagne back and holding her glass out to Griff for a refill. He and I exchange a look and he shrugs he shoulders.

Connor and Z have their heads together talking but I feel Connor put his hand on my lower back. It’s like he can’t handle me being near without touching me. If I wasn’t in denial, I would admit that I love it, him staking his claim on me all the time.

“We’re going to need to go out on the dance floor,” Ivy says, still sending a death stare at Levi and the server. “Think we can tell the guys we’re going to the bathroom and hit the floor instead?”

My smile grows wide. “Yes!”

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