I shudder as he thrusts me towards a door, but I’ve barely stumbled into the alley before another man is stepping forward and gripping my arm. He’s not as big as the alpha behind me, but he’s holding a gun, and his scent is so strong it makes my skin crawl. He looks over, then focuses on the alpha behind me. “You can tell Carrillo that Luscious says thanks for the delivery.”
I try to glance back at the alpha, but the one holding my arm swings me around and thrusts me towards an open car door. It’s long and black, with dark windows and leather seats, and when I duck my head inside, the stench of alpha almost brings me to my knees. I try to scramble back, but a large hand lands on my butt, the fingers pinching the flesh so hard I shoot forward with a cry. The door slams shut behind me, but the front window is open enough for me to hear the bigger alpha say, “What the fuck?You can’t just take off with his property like this.”
“We’re only borrowing her. And Luscious said to tell you to come along. She wants to offer you a backstage tour of Sultry Studios.”
The alpha pauses, a new note of interest in his voice. “Yeah?”
“You ever been behind the scenes at a porn studio?”
“I’ve beeninporn, man. But that was in a shitty basement back in Queens.”
“Well, Luscious doesn’t spare any expense. Her omegas are all top-tier and so ripe, they squeak when they walk.”
The alpha grunts, but I catch him peering in at me as he ducks towards my window. “Got to admit, that sweet piece in your backseat has me riled up.”
I stiffen, because it’s clear he’s talking about me, and while I’m not sure what it means to be riled up, I know it can’t be good.
“Yeah, well, she’s off-limits.” The alpha pockets his gun and slaps the other man on the shoulder. “But you can take your pick from the rest.”
“Any of them?”
The alpha who pinched me chuckles. “Any luscious lady that catches your eye.”
The other alpha licks his lips, his scent thickening until I can taste it on the back of my tongue. “I guess we can make a detour, then.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
The only thing that stops me from throwing myself out of the car is that the two alphas sit on either side of me, blocking my access to the doors. Their bodies are overly warm in their black suits, and one of them has eaten something with onions that lingers on his breath. It’s like being wedged into the middle of a meaty sandwich, and my head throbs with the need to purge their cloying scents.
But other than the occasional brush of their arms as they readjust themselves, they ignore me. Instead, they talk over my head, first going into detail about their favorite porn stars, then trading insults about sporting teams I’ve never heard of. Both conversations are confusing, but it doesn’t take me long to work out what a “porn star” does for a living.
I want to squeeze my eyes shut and pretend none of this is happening, but Dex once told me he has to take his chances where he can find them. Good things, for some people, don’t just fall into their laps, and sometimes you have to invent your own luck. Which means listening to the conversation around me and looking out the windows for landmarks I can rememberlater. None of it’s familiar, which makes me wonder about my life before the center. Was I born here? Did I walk these streets with my family before I presented as an omega? The fact I can’t answer that is overwhelming, but I refuse to give in to panic. If there’s any hope of getting away from these men, I need to have a plan of my own. I can’t wait for Dex or Kane to wake up and save me, so I take shallow breaths and watch the streets flash past.
“Here we are,” the alpha with the gun says sometime later, the car pulling off the road and through a pair of elaborate gold gates. They’re like nothing I’ve ever seen at the center, especially because they’re flanked by a row of female statues, each one curvier than the last. I blink as I take in their nude forms, but the men chuckle, and I slink down further into my seat. Their scents only thicken as we approach a huge pink building with black lettering scrawled across the side:Sultry Studios - the home of heat.
“Home sweet home,” the alpha with the gun says. They introduced themselves during the ride, and I’ve learned that his name is Marcus, and he’s one of Lily Luscious’ top security guys. The alpha who dragged me out of the clinic is called Royce, and he works directly for Donny Carrillo. I’ve heard his name before, but now I know he’s some kind of gang leader, with connections to The Serenity Center. I’m guessing this means they’re about equal in the world of alphas, but they still seem like ugly little bullies next to my mate.
I’ve tried hard not to think of Kane, since I can’t trust my body to hide my reaction. The last thing I ever want to do is perfume in front of a pair of alphas whose favorite porn is something calledWet and Willing. But Marcus barely looks at me as he pulls me out of the car, marching me towards the pink building with Royce bringing up the rear. He enters some digits into a keypad on the wall, then pulls the door open and shoves me inside.
“Come meet Lucious,” he says to Royce, steering me down a black corridor with splashes of hot pink on the walls. “I’ll set you up for the tour after.”
Royce just grunts, but there’s no missing the growing eagerness in his scent, and I grit my teeth. He’s almost panting behind me, and I can feel my stomach working its way up my throat. Where Kane’s arousal made me drop my thighs open and beg for his knot, these alphas make me want to don a slick suit and bury myself under a slab of concrete.
“Luscious, we have your delivery.”
Marcus’ bulk is blocking my view, but now he grabs my arm and drags me forward. The large room is an assault to my senses, and I gape around at the black marble and pink furnishings. There is an alpha statue on either side of an ebony throne –black muscles rippling, and both alarmingly erect - and so many feathers and frills, it feels like we’ve tripped and landed in a giant pink nest. Music is being strummed on a rosewood harp in the corner, and a group of beautiful omegas are sprawled on big, pink cushions in front of the throne. The air is practically pulsing with omega perfume, and it’s as overpowering as the scent of the alphas behind me.
“Bring her to me,” the woman on the throne orders, and I’m nudged forward until I’m standing right at the edge of the field of cushions. I gaze up at the woman, who is a stunning blonde with hair like a golden waterfall, her black dress so thin and silky I can see every inch of her curves, including the dark peaks of her nipples. Her eyes are the pale blue of a collector’s uniform, and her lips are so red and shiny, they look like two slivers of wet candy. “Well, she looks almost as good as she smells.”
The woman’s voice is musical, but I can hear an undercurrent of hostility that makes my spine stiffen. She might think my appearance is appealing, but for some reason, that’s not going to work in my favor.
“My name is Diana,” I tell her, but she waves it aside like it’s irrelevant.
“Was she touched?”
Marcus jolts at the question but then shoots a thumb over his shoulder. “This is Royce Anderson, one of the Carrillos’ guys. He found her at a walk-in clinic.”
I wonder if either of them is going to mention the dead nurse, but the woman now looks Royce’s way. “Well?”
