"What the heck," she squawks, but I'm already moving, striding through club, past startled shifters. A few turn and point, hands slapping over their mouths at the sight of me carrying a struggling skirt from my office. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Grizz. The huge bear shifter shakes his head.
"Trey! Put me down right now or so help me-"
"Keep screaming, sweetheart." I laugh, freeing my right hand to give her sweet ass a smack. "Make sure no one in the place misses the show."
"I'm going to kill you!" Sheridan bellows, her fists beating my back. She's strong, but I'm stronger.
"You can try. We'll call it an audition. We're thinking of getting some more women fighters in. Maybe have 'em mud wrestle, naked. I'd pay to see that."
"You, you-" her voice disintegrates into a growl as she digs her nails in to my ass. The sting shoots straight to my dick. Goddamn Sheridan, causing me pain, my dick just loves her more. She could cut me off at the knees, and I'd still fucking cum.
"That's it, baby, take a chunk outta a me. I like it rough," I mutter as I hit the door and step into the night. Sheridan growls, but she stops struggling so hard. I enjoy the last few strides across the parking lot. I head past a gang of curious bikers straight to Sheridan's car. The white Mercedes convertible that her dad got her as a graduation present. A perfect gift for his perfect little angel.
I drop her right into the front seat, as gently as I can, before backing away quickly. Don't want to get my dick punched. "Where are you staying?" I have to ask-nothing will stop the need in me to take care of her-make sure she's safe.
She looks up at me, hair tousled and cheeks flushed and eyes glowing with rage and... something more. "I rented an Airbnb on Meyer Street. Over by the convention center."
I can't focus on her words because the scent of her arousal hits me and I trip backwards. Oh fates. She's turned on.
"Well, check out of it, sweetheart," I tell her. "Don't come back."
She drives out in a spray of gravel. I stand, unflinching, as the stones shower my jeans. The sting is nothing I don't deserve.
"Trey." A tall dark shape emerges from the murky shadows around the bikes. My best friend, Jared, prowls forward, his forehead wrinkled in disbelief. He hooks a thumb in the direction of the retreating Mercedes. "Was that…"
"Yup," I answer and turn on my heel to stalk back into the club. I don't want to talk about it.
Sheridan Green. Fuck.
TWELVE YEARS AGO
Sheridan
"I HEARD you've been hanging out with the Robson boy." My mom brings this up casually over dinner, knowing full well it's going to get my dad's attention.
He stops chewing his steak and puts his fork down. "Pardon me?"
I roll my eyes and shove a forkful of steak in my mouth. "I hang out with a lot of kids." Not a lie, but it is a pretty cowardly response. Trey means more to me than other wolves. And we're not just hanging out-he's my boyfriend.
My friends don't get it. Trey isn't alpha material. His mom is basically omega of this pack, and she's lucky our alpha even let her stay in Wolf Ridge after her drunk of a husband caused all kinds of trouble with the human police.
But I know the truth. Trey may look like a rebel with his pierced lip and multitude of tattoos. He may seem like a thug because he's quick to jump into fights with his buddy Jared, but he's not a punk. He's quiet. And, I've learned, thoughtful. And super smart. Still waters run deep.
Definitely underappreciated.
Maybe I have a penchant for fixing broken things. Maybe I'm just fascinated by the pull of his soulful blue eyes, the ones always watching me. The ones that turn silver under the moonlight.
Or maybe there's just no explaining the attraction-our wolves like each other and we're just following along for the ride.
Either way, I know Trey's the one.
The guy I'm going to give my V-card to.
"I don't want you spending time with him or kids like him," my father pronounces, reaching for the bowl of steaming baked potatoes and serving himself two more.
"Why's that?" My voice comes out colder than I mean it to, which is a mistake.
My dad looks up sharply, reading into it, knowing what it infers. "Because they're trouble, and you know it. Those kids aren't going to college. They aren't going anywhere. And they're way beneath you."
"You think every wolf's beneath me, Dad."
"Because most are. And you should be focused on college right now. Keeping your grades up and your nose clean."
I make a show out of looking around the dining room in bewilderment. My little sister, Ruby, snickers. "Have my grades slipped? Am I ever in trouble?"
My dad presses his lips together.
"No," I answer for him. "My GPA is 4. 2, I'm still in the honor society, Varsity math team, editor of the yearbook and-"
"I know," my dad cuts in. "I just don't want you to lose your focus. Not when you're so close." My parents have a lot riding on my success. My brother used to take the brunt of their ambition. Now it's all heaped on me.
I glance at my mom for help, but she shakes her head. She doesn't like the idea of me hanging with Trey either. Both my parents would prefer to see me with the prince of a neighboring pack instead. A royal match.
"It's my senior year of high school. I've already aced the SATs. My college apps are turned in. I think I'm allowed a little fun. You can't tell me you two didn't at least try to enjoy your youth before it was over?" They've told me enough stories about their high school romance for me to know they had plenty of fun.