Chapter 6
Ciara
Oh, for fuck’s sake. I sent a scathing glance in the direction Jason had disappeared as we climbed the stairs, but he wasn’t watching me, so the heat of my glare was lost on the crowd.
“So exciting, Key-Key…” Taylor sounded like she could barely contain herself behind me.
I wanted to hold onto my anger, but how could I? This evening was for Taylor. Wholly for her, and for all of the shit she’d put up with for me over the years, I owed her this.
I squashed down my outrage—no matter how fucking righteous—at the vampire who just couldn’t seem to stop ordering me around and expecting me to accept whatever shit he chose to dish out.
What the hell had that been down there? I stomped harder up the steps but I still couldn’t hear my anger over the sound of the singer filling in the club with her incredible voice.
No man had ever defended me to anyone. Well, no man except Conri.
And it wasn’t something I would have ever expected—especially not from a vampire.
So what was he up to? No one ever did anything without a pay-off. What reward was Jason expecting? I waited for the shudder I expected to seize me at the thought of rewarding that man in any way, but it never came.
I sighed. I already wasn’t supposed to be here. Nightfall was a club for supernaturals. I’d gotten in as Taylor’s guest and on the technicality of being Conri’s sister and part of his pack, but the doormen had sneered in my general direction.
But in here, I definitely wore my humanity like a badge of shame.
The knowledge of how little I was clung to me.
To everyone else here tonight, I was worth nothing.
But I couldn’t show that I knew or that it affected me.
I was so much better than their opinions of me.
I tightened my hands into fists to force resolve through myself.
It had been no surprise to hear the usual insults from the pack. These days I didn’t expect anything else. The names had ceased to matter.
That was what I told myself, anyway.
Only with the way Jason had grabbed Brad, it seemed like the names mattered to him. And that was confusing when it was none of his business at all. None of his concern.
What would Conri say? Not only would the news reach him that I’d come here, but also the news that Jason had held Brad by the throat. It was almost an act of war…except that Conri was hand in hand with the new vampire king. Or would be as long as I kept them honest with the deal.
That thought brought fresh memories of Jason. Him sitting opposite me in the main pack house. Him fucking lying to my face. Him defending me for something he perceived as a slight.
How far would he have gone with Brad if I hadn’t said to let him go? Would he have choked him until he stopped breathing? I shook my head. It didn’t matter. It hadn’t come to that. I’d prevented all out inter-species war.
That’s what I’d tell myself, anyway. Even as a random warm glow filled me at the memory of how Jason had defended me.
The warm glow turned cold as I glanced at Taylor’s butt, eye-level in front of me as she made her way up the stairs, her excitement obvious in the way she almost bounced from step to step.
It was great that she was so happy to be here—and made happier by suddenly being VIPs, although Jason was probably just trying to turn the negotiations in his own favor, but she should really have been at the service for her mother, no matter how much I understood her need to be somewhere entirely different.
I glanced around Nightfall, taking in the low-key but high-standard décor, the lights that were barely there but shone like stars, the velvet quality of the shadows… these vampires had done this well. They knew how to run things and…tempt people.
Just like the rest of the pack would probably say I’d tempted Taylor to come here tonight.
I’d known this would be a bad idea—I’d told myself as much, but Taylor had needed me.
I grimaced. Somehow, it would end up my fault that she’d missed the ceremony for her mother.
Somehow. The people who would seek to blame me always wanted things to be my fault.
It almost made me wonder how things would end up. Would they start taking grievances, even false ones, to Conri? That was always a possibility. And if they could make him doubt me or make others question his loyalty to the pack, then they’d force me out.
So yeah, probably being here at all wasn’t a good idea. And that was before I’d even known I might come face to face with Jason again. I hadn’t prepared for that.
Because as angry as he’d made me with his lies, there was something else, too. Something that piqued my interest, that made my skin tingle, and my breathing a little more out of my control.
Taylor stopped at the top of the steps, and she looked around. “Where would you like to sit?”
I instinctively shrank back from the curious gazes of the people already on the balcony. They didn’t look for long—apparently the VIPs of Nightfall had some degree of discretion, but they’d probably already clocked me as human.
I’d worked so hard to tell myself that being human didn’t make me unworthy, but every so often, in situations such as these, it didn’t matter what I’d told myself. The reactions of everyone around me told me everything I needed to know. My genetics had let me down. I wasn’t a shifter.
I was only human in their eyes.
And—to them—that made me unworthy.
“Somewhere over there.” I gestured to one of the darkest corners, and Taylor’s face fell as she didn’t even try to hide her disappointment that I’d chosen the absolute worst spot for people watching.
“Come on now.” I made my tone cajoling. “How many more pack members do you want to see you here when you should be at the ceremony?”
She shrugged but a frown line formed at the bridge of her nose.
“I think probably enough damage was done when your pet vampire grabbed Brad by the throat, but…” She trailed off, her last word spoken in a sing-song tone as she headed to the booth I’d just indicated.
As soon as she sat down, she patted the soft pleather beside her.
“Come sit down and tell me all about him.”
It was my turn to wrinkle my nose. “Who?”
“The vampire. There’s obviously a thing between you for him to defend you like that. But be honest… it’s the trouser snake you like, isn’t it?”
My mouth dropped open. This was Taylor with relatively little drink already inside her. She’d always believed in the power of a predrink drink.
“What?” I sounded both exasperated and frustrated as I replied to her ridiculous question.
She grinned, her eyes alight with sudden mischief. “Milking the trouser snake, then?”
I laughed, the sound half horror, half shock. She enjoyed making me uncomfortable—especially in public, where people could overhear. The only human in the wolf pack was still a virgin, and Taylor knew it.
“Come on… give me all the goss. Is my little girl finally growing up?” She nudged against me, and I laughed. Typical Taylor.
But I shook my head. “Nope. We won’t be trading sex tips any time soon.”
She was disappointed again. “Well, shit. My hope burns ever brighter. You can’t stay a virgin all your life, right?”
“Taylor,” I hissed as a waitress approached us.
“What can I get for you?”
Taylor’s eyes lit up. “Ooooh…A cocktail?” She glanced at me. “Margaritas to start?”
“To start?” I laughed at her again. “How long are you thinking of staying here? And we should at least take a look at the menu in case you turn the Duponts into paupers.” That wasn’t going to happen, but maybe the impossible idea would shove some self-awareness or some caution into her.
The waitress smiled at me. “Your drinks are on the house tonight.”
Before I could respond, Taylor nudged me.
“I think he’s definitely planning to show you his trouser snake,” she whispered. “And I hope it’s a fucking python. You deserve that much after being patient this long.” Then she turned to the waitress. “And yes, please, two margaritas to start us off, then.”
The waitress nodded and disappeared toward the bar.
“I’m not sure about this.” I shook my head as I spoke to Taylor. “I don’t like things that come for free.”
Her laugh was more of a bark of sound. “You don’t like free things?”
“You know what I mean. I don’t like free things off this vampire.” I didn’t like being beholden to people, and Jason Martin was definitely a man I didn’t want to be beholden to.
Neither did I want to give him the wrong idea—just in case Taylor was right about the whole trouser snake thing. My face heated at the image the phrase conjured.
But acceptance of small favors was an issue. Or it had been in the past. Leon had done nice things for me, and I’d let him before I realized, and even now he seemed to be hanging out, expecting more.
Conri had even told me he’d asked permission to date me, but luckily my brother had spoken to me first. I’d also been able to read his disapproval, but that was less the fact I was human and more to do with me being his sister—I’d gotten the distinct impression no one would be allowed to date me.
Ever.
But I’d explained my reasons for not wanting to date Leon—leaving out the playboy thing and the fact he might break me—and Conri had seemed to understand. More than that, he’d been visibly relieved.
I almost laughed at the memory of Conri’s face in that moment, and he’d even agreed to put Leon off so I wouldn’t have to deal with it.
So yeah, I’d taken the coward’s way out, but Leon was head of the pack guard and sought after by so many…
Although aside from that, and foremost really, Leon was my friend.
One of the few I had in the pack, and I didn’t want to spoil that.
He was also my trainer. Pretty much my one shot for not accidentally getting myself killed by an enemy shifter if our pack got attacked, and I didn’t want to do anything that might distract him from teaching me the techniques that could save my life.