I groan, my head falling forward as I tell him everything – from scooping Kate up outside that shithole of a club to convincing her to come back here for hot chocolate. He scowls when I describe her frigid, gutted house, his angry growl turning to a satisfied hum when I add that I unleashed Perry on her scum of a contractor. The only part I gloss over is her scent, since that’s part of a conversation I can’t have with him sucking my brains out of my cock. Fuck, but he’s a picture right now, chest heaving and eyes hooded with hunger, even while he drains me dry. “You should feel her, Corbus,” I taunt him, pressing my thumb against the pounding pulse in his neck. “All thosesoft curves spilling over your lap while she licks and bites your neck…”
He groans, and the vibration in the back of his throat sends me over the edge. I’m vaguely aware of his own dick jerking in his pants as I grip his head and spill in endless, quaking waves. It’s a lot, but he swallows me down, stroking my knot until he’s taken the last drop. But as he pulls back, the engorged flesh is still throbbing, and I can’t stop the frustrated groan that tears out of me.
“You need more,” he says as he comes up off his knees in a graceful move. “You should go to them; spend the night in their arms. It’s what you want, yes?”
“It’s early days.”
“But…?”
Corbus might not pick up on everything, but I’ve always been truthful with him. “I want all of you,” I say slowly, still trying to catch my breath as I stuff my knot back into my trousers. Corbus has released the pressure, but the need is still there, a hot red ache that throbs all the way to my pounding chest. “But it can only work if we’re all in.”
He tilts his head, his gaze thoughtful as he touches a thumb to the edge of his swollen lips. “Then we should invite her to stay. Get to know each other better, yes?”
I’m not sure what I expected him to say, but something settles inside me, warmer than the orgasmic glow still humming under my skin. “Yeah, we should. I think it would be good for all of us.”
That wicked light returns to his eyes as he taps my chest, stroking right over my skipping heart. “Then we’ll have to come up with an offer she can’t refuse.”
CHAPTER EIGHT - KATE
“Aren’t they going to wonder where we are?” I ask Dash as he leads me down a carpeted corridor, his hand clasped tightly around mine. His alphas went off to sort drinks, and the next thing I knew, Dash was inviting me to see his dance studio. As captivating as I found the view from the terrace, the chance to see his inner sanctum was too good to miss. “I don’t want them to think I’m being rude.”
Corbus especially, since I’m already tongue-tied and awkward around him. My knees almost buckled when the elevator doors opened and I saw him standing next to Dash, his cedarwood scent rising off his skin like a perfume made just for me. My heart thumped so hard I could feel it against my ribs, but he just gave me that same polite smile from the hotel, like I was no more interesting than the potted palm in the hallway.
“They’ll sniff us out,” Dash assures me, pushing open the door to his studio. I follow him inside and he turns in a half-pirouette to give me a dazzling smile. “Enough mirrors for you to work your magic?”
I snort, hanging the garment bag over one of the three ballet barres in the room. It’s fitted out with everything a dancer mightneed, including hardwood floors, dimmer lights, and a state-of-the-art sound system mounted above the wraparound mirrors. They provide a perfect view of Dash’s lean form as he joins me beside the ballet barre, his left leg lifting in a sensuous stretch. I try not to ogle the long line of his thigh muscles or the graceful arch of his back, but I’m pretty sure I fail miserably.
“Corbus converted it,” he tells me as he starts to stretch his right leg. “Saves me from running across the city every day to practice.”
“They take good care of you,” I murmur, crossing the room to look through the big bay window at the courtyard below. The entire building is an Art Deco homage, and I tell myself that’s why I feel a pinch of envy at Dash’s good fortune. It has nothing to do with the way his alphas cater to his every need, or light up every time they catch sight of him.
“Yep, but they also look after each other,” Dash says, and when I turn towards him, his eyes are gleaming in the low light. “Ineveryway, which is probably why the hot chocolate never materialized.”
“You mean… they’re together?” I can’t hide my surprise – or the arousal that tingles through me. I’ve always been fascinated by pack dynamics, but it didn’t occur to me that Dash’s alphas might also be intimate. “Lee never…”
I swallow the rest of the comment, because what would Lee know about it, anyway? He always had a vicious competitive streak when it came to his friends. In fact, Lachlan was a common target in college, and more than once I heard Lee bitching about being beaten by a beta. At the time, I thought it was just football rivalry, but now I realize that Lee is threatened by anyone who can see below his glossy surface.
“Hey, are you okay?” A gentle hand touches my arm, and Dash looks at me with concern. “We don’t have to do this now.”
“No, I’m good,” I reassure him as I grab the garment bag. “But keep in mind that it’s just a mock-up at this stage. I’ll need one more fitting before it’s ready to wear.”
He nods, and I unzip the bag, pulling out the test garment. I’ll only cut the final fabric when I have the precise measurements, so for now I fit the muslin jacket over his torso, making sure my hands don’t linger on his bare skin. Not that I need to be touching him to be affected by his nearness. Dash exudes the kind of charisma that’s jaw-dropping on stage and mouth-watering up close. It takes every ounce of my professionalism to work around him, measuring and pinning, while he follows my movements with his dark, intense eyes.
“I’m glad you’re here,” he says when I’ve made the last adjustments and slipped the mock up back into the garment bag. “Are you really okay to stay the night?”
I smile as I scoop my sewing kit off the floor. “Bram kind of insisted. My place is getting a remodel, and he didn’t think it was safe.”
I glance up to catch Dash’s scowl and realize I’m still crouched at his feet. Flustered, I stand too quickly, my head spinning at the rush. I’m not sure who reaches out first, but then Dash’s arm is around me, his smooth chest warm against my palm. It’s suddenly hard to catch my breath, especially when he touches my chin, tilting my face up to his. “Then I get to keep you. For tonight, at least.”
I nod, watching in a daze as his lips descend towards mine. I want that kiss with every atom in my body, but my conscience forces a hand between us, his mouth landing on my palm. “I’m sorry, but I need to tell you something. About Bram.” I’ve been dreading this moment, but now the words come out of me in a frantic gush.“I climbed on him in the car and sucked his scent gland.”
Instead of looking angry, Dash’s dark eyes dance and I can feel the vibration of his laughter on my palm as he asks, “And did he return the favor?”
I flinch, because why would he? No one wants to look at the scar tissue on my throat, let alone touch it. “He didn’t do anything wrong. It was all me.”
Dash’s slender fingers encircle my wrist, but instead of pushing me away, he draws my hand over his shoulder and around to the back of his neck. His silky hair tickles my fingers, as he leans down to my ear and murmurs, “There’d be something wrong with you if youdidn’twant to suck on him. He’sdelectable.”
“He is.”
