Chapter 32
Konstantine
“That was so hot!” Penelope gasped as Arax took a bow.
Cyrus scowled at her.
“Oh calm down, Beta,” she said, scoffing at him. “Look around you. There isn’t one person here who is totally turned on.”
Cyrus shrugged. I scanned the crowd and saw Penelope’s assessment was correct.
Most were standing around, a healthy dose of liquor fogging up the brains.
Others were whispering about the grey-eyed, noir-haired stranger among them.
Shortly after Arax had turned up again, I had my officers, a few head guards, and a number of lead warriors mindlink the pack, giving them the directive to stay vigilant and leave her alone while she was on property.
This meant no shifting, no talk of anything related to our kind, and nothing conspicuous that would give away who we were.
To most who didn’t know her true origins, Arax was passed off as an old friend of Penelope’s from college, whom she’d wanted to invite to the party.
No one would question the choice, especially if the friend had been vetted by her brother.
From what I was hearing, however, the partygoers were in current need of a reminder.
“Don’t worry,” Drake said, mindlinking me—reading my mind. “I already had the guards repeat orders. They’ve got it under control. Vallon and Jason are keeping an eye out too.”
I nodded at him gratefully and noticed he was alone. I raised an eyebrow.
“Where’s your new friend?” I asked out loud.
“Beats me,” he replied, then grinned. “Where’s yours?”
“Yeah, where is Arax?” Vallon asked, her eyes clouding over.
I looked toward the stage. The band was taking a break, and my mate was nowhere to be found.
Seeing what she could do had been… extraordinary.
Penelope was correct in her other assessment as well.
There weren’t too many people with that spur-of-the-moment, unrehearsed level of showmanship, none that I knew of anyway, short of actual rockstars.
“Dorian says he saw her go through the back of the stage, toward the castle,” Vallon said.
“If you’ll excuse me,” I said to the five of them and walked away.
“Go get ’em, tiger!” Drake’s voice infiltrated my head. “But never forget, I loved you first.”
“Do you ever get tired of yourself?” I replied and put my block up, not too interested in what Drake considered a witty repartee.
I thought to freshen up her drink first, then headed in the direction of the castle, on alert for her scent.
Generations before me had planted jasmine flowers in every corner of the property.
They were in full bloom tonight, and their fragrance was everywhere, but Arax’s scent had a sweet earthy uniqueness, making it easy to distinguish.
I picked it up when I entered the castle and knew where it was leading me. I went up the stairs and through the kitchen, onto the deck.
She was there alone with her forearms crossed on the railing, lost in thought.
I took a moment to take her in, and I realized that before tonight, I hadn’t had the opportunity to fully appreciate her and all of her beauty.
Her depth. The extent of the talent she had kept hidden.
Watching her on stage had been something else.
She was a woman transformed. I knew others could play instruments and sing just as well, but there was a purity to her when she performed.
She clearly felt the music deep in her core.
It lit her from within and was magnificent to behold.
I walked to her almost reluctantly, not wanting to disturb her moment of solace, but my legs had a mind of their own.
She came to and stiffened, sensing the intrusion.
“You disappeared,” I stated, handing her the drink and leaning on the railing next to her.
She took it gratefully and savored a sip. “I needed a second to decompress,” she said quietly. “That was a bit much.”
“You have a gift,” I said with a grin, complimenting her. “One you don’t seem too keen on sharing with the rest of us.”
She laughed. “I didn’t have much of a choice tonight though, did I? Brother and sister are very persuasive.”
“Family trait,” I said. “You’re a natural on stage. You should think about playing professionally.”
She shook her head. “Danny used to say the same thing, but I love teaching and the behind-the-scenes aspect more.”
I heard the most minute of tremors in her voice and lowered my eyes to her hands.
They were trembling, clasped together with a white-knuckle grip around her glass.
Sliding closer, I fished the drink out of her grasp and set it down, taking both of her hands in mine.
Hers were icy, palms bedewed from her nerves.
I ran my fingers along her knuckles, and the sparks from our bond stilled the shaking, warming her skin and torching mine.
“I’m not sure I believe that,” I whispered to her. “You underestimate yourself, Arax.”
She stared at me, then slowly, her gaze went to our fingers, which had collusively intertwined.
Though it was the smallest in measure, I felt her tighten their hold, and the exhale she let out released what had remained of her jitters.
Her shoulders dropped, her body freed from the weighted prison of her mind.
“Danny is another instructor at your school, right?” I asked, needing to suss out their relationship. The other, the ex—Spence, Trent, Brent… however he was called—had been established as just that, a bygone of her past.
Arax blinked at me and nodded. “What did you guys do, take turns passing around that article or something?”
“It was a fascinating read,” I said. “You’ve done quite well for yourself.”
“Do you often read stuff printed in the odd small-town publication?” she asked, tapping the back of my hand with her thumb.
“When they have such interesting subject matter, yes.”
She tossed a wry smile my way but kept quiet. I lowered our arms, not letting go, and moved closer to her, taking up more of her space. She didn’t back away.
“Did you always know music would be in your future?”
She shrugged. “My dad encouraged it. I was an annoyingly energetic kid, so he basically threw me on the guitar when I could barely speak, and I picked up piano a few years later.”
“And the teaching?” I asked, needing to know more.
“I really do love it, you know,” she replied with a smirk.
“The school is small—was small, but it’s mine.
And I think… I think my dad would have been overjoyed to see me make that happen, had he lived.
That was his song I sang.” Her voice was sorrowful at any mention of her family, but I detected a hint of pride whenever she spoke of her music.
“Well,” I said, bringing her fingertips to my chest. “I enjoyed watching you. Thank you for sharing his music with us.”
She let them fold into the collar of my shirt. “You’re welcome. It’s always been my favorite.”
I paused. “Now it’s one of mine as well.”
She said nothing and turned her face away, her profile lit up by the moonlight. Coupled with her scent of jasmine, she was nothing short of a dark and mysterious creature. I found myself unable to resist her.
“Arax, would you—”
“There you are!”
I gritted my teeth. Penelope’s voice was an ill-timed arrow hitting its mark, felling the torrid ambiance between Arax and me. Her hands pulled back, and I stifled the groan in my throat before it could become a growl.
“Where’d you disappear to?” My sister shouted at Arax, skipping toward us. “We sent Stan after you, then lost you both!”
“Sorry,” Arax said. “I just needed to breathe for a second.”
Vallon came up and gave her a congratulatory hug. “You were amazing!”
Arax giggled in embarrassment and mumbled a low thank-you.
“Didn’t think you had it in you, kid,” Cyrus said. “Thought for sure you’d get up there and choke.”
“That’s about as close to flattery as you’ve gotten, so I’ll take it,” Arax replied.
“Anyway! Are you done breathing? Because this party isn’t over! It’s still my birthday, and I want to dance!”
Penelope grabbed Arax’s arm and pulled me along, too excited to notice what a moment she’d destroyed.
“To be continued,” Arax whispered to me softly, nearly tripping over her feet to keep up with Penelope’s rigorous pace.
Indeed, I thought.
My sister dragged everyone to the dance floor, but I hung back. I wasn’t much for dancing, but she made her way to me after a minute.
“Stan, stop being a wallflower. This isn’t some shitty human prom. Make yourself useful and go get Arax another drink. She’s been practically nursing the same one all night.”
“Anything else?”
“Then remove the pole from your arse and ask her to dance when you get back,” she commanded. “Step it up already!”
“What do you think I was doing before you rudely interrupted?” I asked bitterly.
“Well, do it here! After you get her a drink. Now go!” She shoved me in the direction of the bar.
Those in line for a drink stepped aside to let me go ahead. It was some unnecessary ass-kissing I tended not to encourage, but tonight it meant I didn’t have to wait to get served.
A pair of arms wormed their way around my waist from behind just as I got to the front.
“Who’s the twiglet?” Paloma asked.
At the same time, the bartender hurried to me. “What can I get you, Alpha?” She batted her eyelashes at me and I groaned, being accosted on both sides.
“Bourbon, double, neat. And drop the Alpha, please.”
“Right. Sorry, sir. Is that all?”
“Yes.”
“Is that for her or for you?” Paloma asked, her hands beginning to roam under my jacket.
“Paloma,” I warned, stepping out of her hold. I’d kept my distance from her after our atrocious afternoon in my office, but I knew better than to think that had been the last I’d be seeing of her.
Paloma crossed her arms over her chest. “Who is she really?”
I frowned at her. “I never ask about what doesn’t involve me. Please give me the same respect.”
“Is that the reason I was kicked out of your office the other day, so the beanpole with breasts could move in?”