Chapter 45 #2
“You’re not supposed to be in here.” My voice was calm, good for me.
I tried to recall my last gym session with Dixon.
He’d teasingly grabbed me from behind and then, after I’d flailed around for a while, he’d given me pointers on taking down someone bigger than me.
I’d not paid very good attention, because who would be stupid enough to attack an Omega with four Alphas at her side?
“Whoa-ho-hoooo,” he slurred, leering down at my legs. I tried to pull the skirt over my skin, but the mile-high slits had a purpose, and they weren’t failing. “You the afterparty, doll?”
“Not your afterparty,” I bit out. “Please leave.” I looked around him, trying to see if any of the, apparently useless, security guards were nearby.
He blinked—his second eye momentarily opening to reveal how bloodshot it was—then grinned wider. "Feisty. I like that." He lurched forward.
I looked once more past him through the doorway. The song was almost finished. No one was even glancing in our direction. I could yell, hoping to be heard over the din, but by the time anyone got here, he'd probably already have his grimy hands on me.
Nose.
Groin.
Throat.
What else had Dixon said? I was not going to get a gold star in self-defense.
The bumbling, liquor-soaked Beta was too close for comfort now. I started to back away, but my legs hit the sofa. I’d be damned if this asshole pushed me down on it. So, I stepped forward, bringing us even nearer to one another.
“Change your mind, baby?” He wiped spittle from his chin after asking the impertinent question.
“Nope,” I said firmly.
And then I cocked back my fist, prayed I didn’t miss, and I punched up into the bastard’s nose as hard as I could manage.
My aim could have been a little better, but it was enough.
The man staggered away, slamming his own hand over his nose and crying out.
Blood spurted between his fingers seconds later and he dropped to his knees on the carpet.
I did quickly step away now, putting distance between us.
Then I watched in morbid fascination as he crumpled onto his side, writhing on the carpet, howling like I’d broken more than just his stupid nose.
The last song of the set finished.
And the man was still yelling.
Security guards finally did their job, rushing into the room.
They were quickly shoved to the side by my Alphas, revved up with adrenaline.
Dixon growled at the guards for being fucking useless.
Catalina came in last, taking in the situation before giving me an approving nod of head and walking back out.
After firing every guard in sight, which I wasn’t sure he could do, Dixon bellowed, "Fuck yes, Tessa! You took him down!" He raced to me, grabbing me up into a bear hug that made my feet dangle above the floor.
I laughed, slapping his chest. “Put me down. And don’t praise me. I totally wasn’t listening to your whole self-defense speech the other day.”
He placed me back down, grinning wildly. “You must have learned something.”
"She did, because she’s bad ass," said Tray, sidestepping the moaning Beta and giving him a disgusted look, “What a pathetic slob.” When he reached me and Dixon, he wrapped his arm around my shoulder and kissed my cheek.
Mac took his time approaching, pausing long enough to uncharacteristically drop his cultured facade and give the moaning Beta a quick, sharp kick to the tailbone.
The man’s howling intensified. "You’re lucky she handled it instead of us,” he huffed at the man, before straightening his jacket and becoming his normal self again.
When he joined us, he placed his palm against my face affectionately.
Ryder hung back, arms crossed, mouth twitching between a smirk and a snarl. For a second, I thought he might attack the drunkard, but then he strode over and pulled me into a quick, fierce embrace.
"I'm proud of you," he whispered into my hair.
“I’m proud of me too,” I whispered back.
Security, though ‘fired’, went into action and started dragging the Beta out of the lounge. The guy kept screaming about a lawsuit, but nobody was listening. The audience cheered as the troublemaker was tossed out of The Vault and forbidden from coming back.
Catalina’s voice carried over the crowd a few moments later. “We want to thank you again for your amazing donations and for attending tonight!”
“Encore! Encore! Encore!” It only took one person to start the chant, and it grew exponentially in a matter of seconds.
Ryder grinned at me, then at the others.
"Let's finish this right," he said, grabbing my hand and towing me toward the stage.
I tried to protest, but Dixon and Tray flanked me on either side, effectively boxing me in with a wall of Alpha muscle.
The moment we stepped back into the spotlight, the crowd erupted.
Mac gestured to a mic and Ryder pulled me forward, standing behind me like a shield.
Dixon draped an arm over my shoulder, still sweaty and wild-eyed.
Tray bounced in front of our pack, raising and lowering his hands to try and quiet the fans. The uproar began to fade. He put a finger to his lips, signaling the few in the crowd still carrying on. When The Vault was quiet as a tomb, Ryder spoke into the mic.
“This is Tessa Fortune,” he said, voice ricocheting off the walls. “Our Omega. She’s the reason we could play our hearts out tonight. The reason we wrote “Sinner’s Kiss”. The reason we aren’t all losing our damn minds.”
Cameras flashed.
Excitement exploded.
I wasn't ready for the swell of applause.
I wasn't ready for the way the guys moved to create a half-circle behind me.
But for the first time in a long time, I didn't feel like someone who should be dead.
Not a ghost. I felt real. I looked out at the shadowed faces and felt the intoxicating energy.
I thought about my family, about everything I'd lost, and about everything I'd regained somehow.
I thought about Ryder, Dixon, Mac, Tray. I thought about Josie.
Mostly, I thought about the dumb, perfect joy of being alive.
“I'm ready,” I whispered, so quietly only I could hear it. “I'm ready to truly be theirs.”