Wanted by the Alphas(10)

“OK, OK, it’s not as if I’m going to rifle through your lingerie.”

She stands there until he uncurls his body from the couch and makes to leave. Lucien stands there, watching this exchange with a slightly amused look of understanding.

“Shall we go?” Lucien proffers his arm to her.

She takes it. His clothed arm is warm to her hand.

“You ready to go?” Lucien asks, smiling.

“Yes.”

This exchange is noted sourly by Jared.

“Should I be waiting up?” he says to Shannon.

She tears her gaze away from Lucien and eyes him squarely in the face. The two of them cannot be more different as night and day.

“I shan’t be waiting up for you, for sure, brother.” The challenge is unmistakable. But sometimes she is so tired of always having to cater to his demanding ways.

“Fine then.”

“Fine.”

“Have a good time,” Jared says as a parting shot.

“We will,” Lucien says, turning her to face the other way and to walk down the short corridor of suites to the elevators which will take them downstairs.





THE DATE





You will never see this man again after tonight, Shannon tells herself. You are a conquest to him, nothing more. A body for him to toy with and discard. So it’s up to you. You can put out and have a good time, or play it coy and leave both of you wanting.

Either way, he is not for keeps and you both know it.

So does she want to go all with the way with him tonight and just take it as it is – a treasured experience with a very handsome and charming man who would never want to take it further?

But she is entitled to a good time just like anyone else. So she lifts her chin and tells herself to stop overthinking things and to not have an inflated ego of her own charms. After all, he might not want you that way.

But the protective warmth she feels from his arm is nice, and from the way his blue eyes light on her now and then – with interest and desire – she doesn’t think so.

He leads her out of the reception. A mustard yellow Mustang awaits them outside. Lucien opens the passenger door for her.

“After you, beautiful lady.”

“You have two cars?”

OK, of course he has more than one car. His family owns the hotel, right? Once again, she feels as if she is in over her head.

It’s just a date. Don’t make it more than it really is. By tomorrow, he won’t even want to know you.

She gets in, and he closes the door behind her. He goes around to the driver’s side and enters the Mustang. Thank goodness it has stopped raining.

“Do you like Italian?”

“You mean food?”

“I’ll take that as a yes. Sorry I don’t fulfill your wet Italian dreams, but I assure you I can whip up a mean rigatoni.”

She flushes. She is acting like a schoolgirl around him, and she does not quite know why he does that to her. Maybe it’s because he’s so huge. She feels positively tiny compared to him.

Then she remembers the darkening of his eyes and wonders if there is much more to his size than meets the eye.

They drive down the hill, the Mustang circumnavigating the bends on the road as if it is glued to the asphalt.

“Do you always drive this fast?” she asks.

“Always. You scared?”

“No.” Then she remembers the white Merc swerving onto their lane and she says, “I’ll take that back. Yes.”

“Don’t be. So what are you and your brother doing in a town like Dolphin’s Bay?”

She replies cautiously, “We came here to start a new life, make ourselves a home.”

“Where do you come from?”

“Arizona.”

“Why did you decide to leave?”

She glances at his perfect profile. “The usual. Fell out with my family. Jared lost his job in a downsizing exercise and so we decided to start afresh.”

Her voice trembles slightly. She is not very good at making up stories. But that was what she and Jared had agreed on as a cover when the locals asked them why they left.

“In Dolphin’s Bay?” He eyes her quizzically. “You’d be better off in Arizona.”

“Jared wants to try something new. Maybe something to do with forestry. He has always loved the forest. He’s taking a break now, but he will find something eventually.”

“If he’s interested in forestry, he has come to the right place. We are surrounded by nothing but forest. And of course, the ocean.”

“I know. We did our research on Dolphin’s Bay before we drove here.”

“What about you?”

“Me?”

“Yes. You look as if you’ve left college not too long ago. Do you work?”

She hesitates, wondering how much to tell him. “I trained as a physiotherapist. I work with people.”