He’s white under his tan, deep grooves biting into the skin around his eyes. He makes a disgusted sound as he wipes the grit from his palms. “I’m fine. Just pissed as all hell.”
I bite my lip, furious on his behalf. Muggings in this city aren’t unusual, but there are special laws around alphas using commands as weapons, and I’m still shaking from shock. “I should have got their plate number, but I think I could describe him if you want to go to the cops.”
“For being sandbagged by an alpha?” He snorts, but his jaw pulses, like he’s grinding his teeth. “They’d laugh me out of the station.”
My eyes prick with angry tears, and I wrap my arm around him. “I’m so sorry that happened to you. Please, let me call Hector. Or we can jump in a cab and head home.”
“No way.” He nuzzles my head, then leans back to swipe a tear off my cheek. “It’s just my pride that stings, Katie, and I won’t let that stop me from spending time with you.” He looks down the block and squeezes my hand. “Come on, Dash’s theater is just up ahead.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, plus it’ll give me a chance to shake that asshole off.”
I gulp back more tears, and he clasps my hand tighter, likeI’mthe one who was hurt. I love the fact he’s trying to make me feel better, but I’m still sniffing when we reach the theater and give our names to a pretty beta on the door. She looks at me curiously, but then checks a list taped to the wall and shows us through to a small auditorium. Rousing music fills the air, and it’s not hard to pick Dash from the dancers flitting about under the stage lights. “It’s a full rehearsal day,” she tells us as shepoints towards some seats at the back. “But they’re nearly done, and I’ll make sure Dash knows you’re here.”
We murmur our thanks, and when she’s gone, sink into our seats. I’m still holding Lachlan’s hand, but now I rest my head on his shoulder, trying to draw his sunshine scent back to the surface. He’s so big and solid, he feels unbreakable, but I know that’s not true. Shame washes over me for all the times Lee took a swipe at him, and something shifts in my chest, like my heart is picking up the beat of a war drum.
Never again.No matter what it takes, I’ll do everything in my power to protect Lachlan from being hurt again.
I must have a pretty fierce look on my face, because when Dash suddenly bounds off the stage and heads our way, his eyes darken like thunderclouds. “What’s wrong? Lily said you were crying.”
“Nothing,” Lachlan says quickly, giving my shoulder a squeeze. “Just some asshole alpha curb crawling on our way here.”
“Damn,” he huffs as he bends down to kiss me, his nose sliding across my cheek. “You smell like someone tramped all over your garden, sweetheart.”
“We handled it,” I reassure him, because Lachlan clearly doesn’t want to get into the gritty details. “How is rehearsal going?”
Dash puts his hands on his slim hips, and it’s hard not to admire him in his tights and vest, which shows off a good portion of his smooth chest and muscled arms. He flicks his hair back and grins, like he knows exactly where my thoughts have gone.What am I supposed to do when he smells like a slick-scented candle?“Well, I’ve got another half hour to go, and then I’m done for the day. Do you want to stay here and watch? Or you can hang out in my dressing room, if you like.”
“And miss the chance to see you quarterback your team?” Lachlan drawls, giving Dash an appreciative look. “As long as we’re not distracting you, we’ll stay.”
“Oh, you’re distracting alright, but lucky for me, I’m a professional.” Dash shoots us a flirty wink as he pivots and struts back to the stage.
Lachlan chuckles under his breath, but as the dancers get back underway, it isn’t long before he gives a grunt of approval. Dash is balanced perfectly on the tip of his grounded foot as he whirls in a tight pirouette, his other leg lashing out in a rapid-firefouetté. He makes it look effortless, but there’s no mistaking the power and control coiled in his body as he spins under the hot lights. “Wow, he’sreallygood.”
I hum my agreement as Dash completes his final rotation and flies across the stage, his larger partner in pursuit. All the other dancers are gathered in the wings, watching, and I feel a pinch of disbelief that he’ll be coming home withus. “Have you ever been to the ballet before?”
“Nah. I guess I thought it was all classical music and dancing swans.”
The dancers aren’t in full costume, and the scenery is just a couple of placeholder props, but it’s easy to imagine them transformed for opening night. “Some of it is, but this is a contemporary ballet. A lot of companies are branching out, hiring new choreographers and commissioning productions that are tailor-made for their lead principals. From what I’ve read, this is basically a Dash Devereux showcase.”
“No wonder.” Lachlan slants me a glance. “Looking at him up there, he just might be worthy of my girl.”
I’d roll my eyes if his words didn’t wrap my heart in a warm glow. “I think you’ve got that the wrong way around, but as long as we leave together, I’m happy.”
Lachlan chuckles and drops a kiss on my cheek. His sunshine scent is back in full force, and as we watch Dash command the stage, I marvel at how easy it is to fall for your crush, even if you’ve only just discovered they were waiting in the wings.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN - DASH
Let’s get a wriggle on,I coax the conductor in my head as I come out of my final pirouette and flit across the stage. Of course, there’s no hurrying perfection, but I can feel my skin prickling with awareness as I work through the ballet’sgrand pas de deux. It’s the final dance sequence, where my character finds the crumpled body of his mate on the battlefield, and literally dances himself to death in his grief. As depressing as the things festering in my apartment’s refrigerator, but also a brilliant showcase of my particular talents, since I tend to shine in the more dramatic sequences. I’ll admit to being ateenybit distracted today, but I know I’ve nailed it by the hushed silence from the rest of the company as thecodadraws to a close.
“Shit, babe,” Nataniel, my Portuguese partner and co-lead says, as he peels himself off the floor. He’s only been with the company a year after headlining at the London Ballet, but from the moment he strode onto the stage, we meshed like an eighties leotard. “Dance like that when there’s an audience and you’re going to bring the house down.”
“Oh, there’s an audience, believe me.” I help him to his feet, admiring, as always, that a guy his size can move so gracefullyacross the floor. He does all the heavy lifting in ourpas de deux, which makes sense, because he’s an alpha. Something that might be a problem for us if he wasn’t very happily packed up with his own omega, who happens to be a dance instructor in our company. “You really okay with me running out on you?”
Afternoon rehearsals usually involve us working through our trickier sequences, but I’ve received a pass from our director to leave early today.
“Go,” he laughs, slapping me on the back as we head to the wings. “You deserve a little downtime after the hours you’ve been putting in.”
