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As they ate, Alexis wondered if Magnus felt the same pull toward her that she did for him. She wasn’t looking forward to leaving him, but maybe this was a one-and-done kind of situation.
However, every time she glanced up, she caught his eyes intently watching her, wanting her. She could sense it, and the intensity of each moment made her shiver.
She briefly imagined giving him her phone number, wondering what the protocol was for these kinds of events. Would it be completely out of line to ask to see him again? Or maybe this was the kind of party where people didn’t exchange contact information.
Before she could get too far into her head about it all, she glanced over and spotted Lillian and Chloe sauntering into the banquet hall. Their eyes darted all around the room, searching for something.
She waved, catching Chloe’s attention, and the woman in question made a beeline for her. Lillian followed behind, snaking her way through the throngs of people who were milling about, chatting, and eating.
“How was your night?” Lillian asked, giving her a playful smirk.
“Amazing,” Alexis said, a grin spreading across her face. “You?”
“I cannot wait to tell you about my night,” Lillian replied, slipping into the recently vacated seat across from her.
“Did you have fun, too, Chloe?” Alexis asked. Chloe pursed her lips but said nothing, turning her head away slightly. Alexis’s grin grew wider, and she pointed a finger, jabbing the air. “I knew it. You met someone, didn’t you?”
“Not telling,” Chloe said, miming zipping her lips.
“Okay, you’re going to spill the deets one way or another,” Alexis said. “You can’t leave us hanging.”
“Happy birthday, by the way,” Chloe added, changing the subject. “I know it’s over, but I hope you had a good time.”
“I did. I can’t wait to tell you about it. This is …” She turned to introduce Magnus to the other girls, but he had disappeared. “Oh, well, never mind. I was going to introduce you to the guy I was with last night, but he seems to have vanished into thin air.”
“You can look for him after breakfast,” Lillian suggested. “Let’s go get some food,” she said, nudging into Chloe. “We’ll be right back. See if you can find Fiona while we’re gone.”
The two of them disappeared back into the already thinning-out crowd, and she pulled out her phone to text her friend.
U still here? If you can tear yourself away from whoever you are with, we are in the dining room. You won't believe the spread they have! she texted Fiona.
No response. She pulled up her work app and texted her assistant, asking to postpone a work meeting.
Chloe and Lillian appeared with plates full of food and sat with her, eating and chatting about their night, though both were quite coy about who they ended up with.
“This was incredibly fun,” Alexis told them. “Thank you guys so much for coming with me. You made my birthday even more special.”
“You can bring me to a shifter masquerade like this any time,” Lillian said, winking at her. They giggled, and Chloe rolled her eyes before letting out a chuckle as well.
Once the three of them were finished, Alexis stood, determined to find Magnus. Even if this wasn’t the kind of party where information was exchanged, she still wanted to at least say goodbye to him. After all, he did make her birthday quite memorable.
As she looked around, she spotted another handsome man eyeing her up. Maybe she should start going to shifter parties more often. Who knew that parties like this were such a hot commodity in the shifter community?
He had dark, hazel eyes and slicked-back blonde hair, a sharp jawline, and full lips. She glanced around once more for Magnus as the stranger approached and smiled, the corners of his mouth quirking upward.
“Hi,” he said, approaching with long strides. “I’m Carvin.”
“Alexis,” she replied.
“What’s a beautiful woman like you doing all alone at a place like this?” he asked, raising one eyebrow.
“Just looking for my friend,” she said.
“Allow me to escort you then,” Carvin said, winking at her. “We can find her together.” He led her toward the exit, helping her avoid the throngs of people still milling about. “Do you see her yet?”
Not wanting to get too far from the girls, Alexis glanced over her shoulder to see Lillian and Chloe returning to the table, plates filled with steaming food. Her stomach growled.
“No,” she answered. “Thank you for helping me, but I’m going back to the table with my other friends.”
