Page 6 of Running on Empty

“Drink?”

Rock produced a flask, taking a swig from it before offering it to me.

My wolf whined at this. She didn’t like it when I drank or did anything else, because she was a simple creature. She wanted to order these guys to back the car up until we were back in the car park, her paws moving us towards Ash and the rest of the Kelly boys if I wasn’t going to do it. She paced back and forth inside me, smelling these strange alphas and hating every minute of it.

But I didn’t listen to her. I couldn’t.

Don’t get too drunk, Ash had ordered, so of course I was going to do just that.

“We pre-gaming?” I asked, then shrugged, taking a sip.

Pure whiskey hit my throat, making me want to splutter but I swallowed it down. She hated that too, knowing how it dulled my instincts, washed away my feelings, but that’s exactly why I did it. I was rewarded by that feeling of warmth spreading, making it so much easier to ignore her. Rock smiled at me, then nodded, encouraging me to have another slug. I got it down, trying to savour the harsh taste of smoky peat, but instead my eyes started to water. I passed the flask to Blaine who just took my hand in his, bringing the flask up to his full lips. I could imagine how they’d feel on my skin as he tipped our hands upwards, and my eyes followed the shift of his Adam’s apple, watching the way his tattoos shifted.

“What about a smoke?”

My wolf grew more agitated at that, barking insistently at me, trying to make clear her thoughts on the matter, but I just ignored her. He produced a little metal pipe, the resinous scent of weed filling the car.

So we were moving things right along then. I should’ve said no. I’d barely even spent a few minutes with these guys, so getting fucked up wasn’t smart.

But neither was getting into cars with strange alphas.

They were all vetted heavily before they could post a profile on Howlr, but that didn’t mean bad seeds didn’t get through. I knew this, had a strong, sensible part of me that objected to this whole night in far stronger terms than Ash ever had, but… t was a part of myself that I kept tamped down, right up until I couldn’t. It was like I saw the path to righteousness in front of me and I walked the other way.

Because why not?

I tried very hard to be the opposite to my mother, paying my rates, my electrical and water bills on time, turning up to all my shifts, collecting my wages each week and paying my taxes.

But sometimes Iwasmy mother’s daughter.

I’d grown up in chaos and some part of me felt like that was still my normal. So when a strange alpha whose name I’d only just learned offered me drugs, I smiled, liking the way his pupils flared and his eyes turned silver. I leaned in and he didn’t know where to look, at my lips or the swooping neckline of my top.

This was what made me feel powerful. This. He wanted me: I could smell the scent of that, dense in my nose. If I slid my hand up his thigh, I’d find him hard, thick and throbbing. I needed that base form of validation like it was air, because every fucking day I was forced to face rejection in one form or another from the Kellys. And damn me if I didn’t want to take a break from that.

His hands moved without him even looking down at his actions as he packed the pipe, then put it to his lips to light it. A small bit of bud crackled as he sucked a breath in, acrid smoke curling upwards lazily from the end of the pipe. His eyes flicked shut as he held the smoke in, then flashed open to stare into mine again as he reached over and drew me closer.

This was what I was here for. A firm hand, one that brooked no argument. He hauled me up where he wanted me. As my lips drew closer, I flicked out the tip of my tongue, wanting a taste of him. He pulled my mouth towards his, but kept me hovering there as he waited for me to part my lips. When I did, he blew a thin stream of smoke between them, and I sucked it in readily.

My head spun as I held my breath for a second. His fingers bit into my flesh, keeping me in place. His eyes catalogued every tiny expression on my face, a smile spreading across his face when I finally exhaled the smoke, my own lips curving to do the same.

“That’s good shit,” I croaked, blinking now, my eyelids feeling way too heavy. My smile was wide and sloppy, but I didn’t really care.

And that was the point.

Blaine watched my eyes shine silver, my fangs sharpen.

“Well, look at you, wolf girl,” he said. “We’re gonna make you howl tonight.”

And the Stevie I was now? She didn’t care about his cheesy lines or his bullshit, because she wanted it, all of it.

“Yeah?” I was an omega and we needed our alphas to prove themselves over and over before we’d finally submitted. “Show me.”

Chapter4

“Fuck…”

My voice was little other than a whisper, my head spinning as I flopped back against the seat of the car, my body terribly aware of the press of the two muscular bodies into me. My hand felt too big, my pulse racing in my ears as I lifted my arm and brushed my palm against my suddenly slick forehead. That’s when I caught Jack watching me in the rearview mirror. His eyes seemed to focus way too much on me and not enough on the road, and I felt a hysterical need to point that out rise in my throat, although it was shouted down by a similar urge to not say a damn thing. But then the car swerved left, slotting into a park just outside a discreet looking club painted all in black.

It was unobtrusive, with only the thin red line of neon light around the door showing you the way. Everyone spilled out of the car. As I moved, my ankles felt like rubber, my cute strappy sandals somehow becoming a liability rather than an asset. But strong hands grabbed hold of me, hauling me upright and into someone’s side. My eyes closed for just a second at the feel of it.

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