Revea
The night fell into one of those rare evenings filled with laughter and way too much pasta.
Seeing as we’re off the grid, Kaiden had to drive nearly an hour to get the takeaway of my choice.
I didn’t realise until he came back. When I pointed it out, he just shrugged like the drive meant nothing, then kissed me like it had been much longer than that.
During that hour, Val and Luc introduced me to Lyana, my PR lead, who explained the basics.
Don’t read the comments.
Don’t watch the news.
Don’t react publicly.
Sylvan spent most of the time monitoring everything online, occasionally glancing up from his laptop to confirm something with the twins, or mutter statistics under his breath. And every so often, even through his fixation, he’d break just long enough to give me a small, soft smile.
After that, I rang Margret and my brothers back to let them know my plan to return to the salon tomorrow. Margret seemed relieved, but my brothers were not, deciding they would meet me there first thing in the morning.
Unfortunately, the emotional turmoil of the last few days finally caught up with me. Once a copious amount of creamy pasta had been consumed, I sank onto the large sofa, surrounded by warm alphas and their combined scent.
The last thing I remember is being carried up the stairs.
Now it’s the next morning.
Thankfully, I’m able to escape the sleeping alphas surrounding the bed. They barely fit, but they’re all here. I smile, giving myself a few seconds to enjoy the scene before heading to the bathroom.
In terms of hair, I couldn’t have become famous at a better time.
I’d touched up my roots and colour just before the LA convention, the pale pink fresh, no blonde peeking through.
I take time to wash and blow-dry it, adding rollers, and while they cool, I stare at the small selection of clothes in my suitcase.
Eventually, I decide on a black dress I wore for a sit-down panel. It hits mid-thigh but looks businesslike with a collar and fitted shape. I throw on a pair of sleek heels that look good in photos, but kill after a couple of hours. My makeup is simple, dark around the eyes, subtle everywhere else.
And I’m ready.
The bedroom is empty when I emerge, giving me ample time to practise walking until I’m satisfied.
Downstairs, the living room is empty too, but there’s a low rumbling coming from somewhere.
Is that... music?
I follow it to a staircase that heads down, the walls shifting from wallpaper to cool cement as I descend.
Cars appear first. Large black 4x4s with personalised plates reading N3XU5.
Then I spot the alphas.
Looks like I wasn’t the only one preparing.
I lean against one of the cars and watch.
With the music echoing, they haven’t noticed me. Luc is singing along while tightening the sides of his brother’s vest. These look bulkier than the ones they normally wear, more padded, with extra pockets that Val is filling with a range of equipment.
When he shouts something over the music, Kaiden effortlessly tosses something black and rectangular to him.
Sylvan passes a string of wires to Val, helping him insert a small earpiece. When he moves to Luc, Luc tries to dance with him instead, singing dramatically while rolling his hips. Sylvan frowns, trying to thread the wire through Luc’s vest and out the bottom.
Val starts laughing as he watches, now slotting things into his combat pants before lifting the cuff to slide a knife into a band around his ankle.
And Luc is still dancing with Sylvan, who’s now trying to wrap the wire around Luc’s waist while avoiding being spun again.
Kaiden sits beside Val on the wooden worktop, showing him something on a screen that makes them both laugh. Then the music abruptly changes, the tempo quickening, something lower and sexier.
Luc whistles before grabbing Sylvan’s hand and forcing him into a spin.
Halfway through the turn, he spots me.
Sylvan opens his mouth as he’s spun back to Luc. Luc frowns at him, leaning in closer, then his head snaps to me.
And that smile of Luc’s slips for a second.
I can’t hear him, but he looks like he’s groaning, staring up at the ceiling, shaking his head before dropping it again and sauntering towards me.
Literally sauntering, while singing along to the Spanish lyrics.
God, he’s gorgeous.
“I can’t dance in these!” I shout over the music, pointing to my shoes.
He cups his ear. “No entiendo.” He smirks, slipping his arm around my waist.
Even in these deadly heels, out of habit, my feet follow his.
His expression flickers rapidly from confusion to delight. “You dance?” This close, I just catch his words.
In response, I spin under his arm and pull him by the waist towards me. “Sí.”
He doesn’t stop dancing as he throws his head back, Spanish mutterings spilling out quick and sharp, and then his mouth is on mine.
It’s very hard to kiss and keep this type of footwork going, especially with the way he’s kissing me, forcing my back to arch from the intensity.
“Where did you learn to dance?”
I don’t even realise the music has been turned down until I hear Val’s voice behind me, his hands settling on my hips, swaying slightly to the beat.
“Oh, now you want to dance?” Luc says to his brother over my shoulder before tutting.
“Your deep background check needs improving if you’re asking me that.” I spin slowly in Luc’s arms to face Val.
His dark hazel eyes trail all over me, from the pointed toe of my heels up to the soft wave in my hair. He steps closer, and suddenly I’m sandwiched between two incredibly hot Spanish men.
“Your mother,” Sylvan calls from his seat on the worktop.
I nod, smiling at him for remembering. “That’s how she met my dads. They were at an army base, and she was teaching a tango class at a local bar. My dad, Shea, thought it would be funny to go.”
I shake my head, the corner of my mouth lifting. “I don’t think they ever imagined meeting my mum.”
He was always the stubborn one. Once he decided something was happening, that was it. Even my pack dad, Maddox, couldn’t change his mind.
“If they hadn’t been stationed at that army base, if my dad Shea hadn’t convinced them to go… that one small moment in time...” I shrug softly. “He said he knew she was the one the second he saw her. Said it was an instinct.”
Sylvan’s brows pull together as he steps closer. “The name of your salon...”
“You’re so damn clever, Sylvan.” I smile at him, and something in his expression shifts as he tries to match it. “Shea… his instinct, and the ‘r’ is for me. Shear Instinct.”
My expression softens. “He was my biggest supporter. Even when it was just an idea back in school, before...” I swallow. “So the name is like the two of us together.”
For a moment, no one says anything.
I clear my throat, shifting slightly in Luc’s arms. “Do you dance, Sylvan?”
“No.” He moves in, his hands joining the others already over my hips and waist. “Teach me.”
“Oh, suddenly we all want to dance,” Luc scoffs, but he winks at me.
I shift to seek out Kaiden. “What about you?” I ask with a smirk.
His grey eyes sweep over me, up and down, across his packmates, before landing back on my face.
“I’ll watch.”
That look. His voice. The way he spreads his legs a little and my eyes can’t help themselves, dropping down. By the time I look back up, he’s smirking.
Then his gaze flicks to his watch. “We need to go.”
Val grumbles something, Syl’s fingers twitch, Luc brushes his mouth over my temple, but they all step away.
“I’ll bring the car round,” Luc calls, spinning the keys above his head on his finger as he slips under the partially lifted garage door.
“I’ll lock upstairs,” Syl says, already heading towards the stairs.
“I’ll do a sweep of the grounds.” Val grabs something else off the workbench before ducking under the same garage door.
Kaiden places his earpiece in, then beckons me to him with the slightest tilt of his head.
The sexy bastard.
He studies every step I take towards him, the sharp click of my heels echoing through the cavernous space.
A piece of dark hair has fallen over his eyes, and when I stop between his large legs, I find myself reaching out to sweep it back, then I’m gathering half of it up. I use the band I took from him all those days ago and swiftly tie it.
“I forgot to give this back.” I fiddle with the bun I’ve made, but the second I step back to survey my work, his large hand fills my lower back, stopping me.
“I’m so grateful for your dad,” he murmurs against my lips, brushing his mouth over mine in slow, grazing touches. “So fucking grateful.”
He kisses me like he’s tasting me, his tongue slipping between my lips, gently easing deeper. A groan rumbles in his chest as he pulls me even closer, gripping the back of my neck to hold me steady—
I jump as a loud honk and music blast from outside.
“?Súbete!” Luc shouts, and the garage door starts to rise.
Kaiden sighs against my lips, nudging my nose once. That small touch is somehow just as intimate as the kiss.
When he takes a deep breath, I copy, breathing in his rich, soothing scent. Our eyes lock, and we both smile before parting.
***
There are so many people.
I stare out the tinted window of the car, heart pounding, eyes wide. Flashing cameras, people holding placards, vans with news station names. We pull around the back, but even there, there are people. Not as many, mainly ones with cameras and microphones.
“Bravo team clear a path,” Kaiden orders, pressing his earpiece.
Shit. This is actually happening.
Two identical cars pull up, parking either side of us. The men who exit are dressed similarly to my alphas, flooding out in a synchronised movement, pushing back the smaller crowd until there’s a direct path from my car door to the entrance.
Kaiden places his arm around the back of his seat and turns to look at me. “We don’t stop moving until you get inside. They’ll call your name, shout questions, take pictures, but we don’t stop. Understood?”