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It was definitely something we needed to work on though.
“I think it’s obvious my brother is having a hard time with all this,” Kyle was saying. “He’s never been this way with anyone before. I hope you aren’t too angry at him. He’d be devastated if he thought he embarrassed you or scared you.”
I glanced over at Kyle and smiled. When he wasn’t being all Alpha himself and protecting his brother, he really wasn’t a bad guy.
“No, I’m not embarrassed or scared. I know he’d never hurt me. And I’m sure these people have seen much worse.” I looked around at Raquel’s guests, who included several rock stars and people I’d seen on various TV shows produced by Valleywood Studios. I read the newspapers and social media, so I knew the reputations of most of these individuals, and they weren’t all that great. In fact, some of the people most known for their partying, drinking and drug use were in attendance here tonight.
Kyle offered me his arm. “Let’s go find Dominic before he has an aneurism because he lost sight of you.”
I grinned and we walked inside to a large ballroom area, where live music was playing. There were a few stylized, red colored Christmas trees in the corners of the room, but mostly the lighting was dim, and coming only from wall sconces around the room. Everyone seemed to be on their feet, either standing and talking in small groups or dancing to the loud music from the small stage at the far end of the room. It was really loud, and smoke hung heavy in the air—and not just from plain old cigarettes either.
I saw Dominic across the room, talking to Raquel and a few other people I didn’t know. She still held tightly to Dominic’s arm, and he was bending solicitously toward her to hear what she was saying. His handsome profile stirred up intense feelings of longing and possessiveness in me that actually surprised me. I wanted his attention to be all on me.
My grandmother had always been good to me, but I’d never had anyone want me in the way Dominic Bousset seemed to. I knew it wasn’t really me, but more a biological thing, yet it still satisfied some need I didn’t even realize I had deep inside me. To be the center of a man like Dominic’s focus—to be showered with his attention—that was proving to be the best feeling I’d had in…forever. Maybe this mate thing wasn’t so bad after all.
He glanced up, saw me with Kyle and gave us both a relieved smile, and I knew he’d been worried when he lost sight of me. Raquel glanced up at us too and laid a hand on his arm to recapture his attention. I wanted to smack her.
Kyle was going to take me closer to their little group, but I pulled back and shook my head.
“No, he told me he had some business to attend to with Miss Ramon. Let’s leave them to it. He’s going to come and take me to dinner as soon as he’s done.”
Kyle nodded and steered me over to one of the tall tables on the side of the room. The walls were lined with these tables and people were leaning on them or just resting their drinks on their surfaces. When we got to one, Kyle signaled a waiter walking around with champagne flutes on his tray, and he came over. Kyle plucked a couple of glasses from the tray and handed one to me.
I sipped at mine, enjoying the taste of the expensive champagne, but I wasn’t much of a drinker. The music wasn’t all that great to me, so I just began to people watch. So many of the big names in Valleywood were there, including the soap opera Blazing Inferno star, Zach Gibbons. But the room was too dim and the flashing lights around the band began to give me a headache, so I leaned over and told Kyle I needed to go outside for some fresh air.
He nodded and put his glass down to go with me. “You don’t have to come,” I yelled near his ear to make sure he heard me, but he shook his head and took my arm to lead me toward one of the balcony doors.
The crowd had grown even larger while we’d been there listening to the music, so it took us a few minutes to navigate our way across the room. The cool, night air when Kyle opened the balcony door felt wonderful on my heated skin, and we stepped outside and went over to the cast iron railing to gaze out at the gardens.
They were beautiful and lit from underneath the plants, in that fancy way that rich people do, and a few people were walking down the paths that meandered through the large area. It was a beautiful night and the moon hung in the sky like a silver ornament, with the stars all around it, looking like fairy lights.
I heard a loud laugh from behind us, and looked back to see Raquel, standing near the balcony doors with her hand on Dominic’s arm. He must have been heading out to talk to us, but she’d caught him near the exits, and she was leaning in, way too close, in my opinion. She had pulled him around to face her and I saw her hands on his lapels, pulling his head down to hers. She brushed her lips over his, but it was my own face that felt like it was suddenly on fire.
I must have made a little noise because Kyle glanced over at me, looking uncomfortable.
“I saw that too, but don’t get the wrong idea. It doesn’t mean anything, Jax,” he said. “It’s just the way these entertainment people do business.”
I gave an incredulous little laugh. “Yeah, right.” I turned around to face the gardens again, trembling with anger. I knew he hadn’t initiated the kiss, but he hadn’t tried to get away very hard either.
It wasn’t that I cared. I barely knew the man, after all. But how rude to be on a so-called date with me, and then kiss someone else? He’d been sending me flowers all day and acting like he cared so much, but I could see the true depth of his feelings easily enough now. And how typical of an Alpha—to demand all of my time and act jealous when anyone paid me any attention, and then go and do exactly as he pleased with the likes of Raquel Ramon. It was infuriating.
“I think I’d like to go home now, Kyle.”
“Aw, Jax, won’t you talk with him about this first?”
“No, I don’t believe I will. I know you have to stay for him, so I’ll call for a ride. Don’t worry about me.”
“No, Jax, really. I know Dominic will want to talk about this. He’ll kill me if I let you go.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t want to talk to him. Not right now.”
“Please Jax. Wait right here and let me go get him. It will only take a minute.”
I blew out a breath and nodded. “Okay, go ahead.”
He disappeared quickly through the double doors, and I gazed after him. I could no longer see any sign of Dominic or Raquel nearby, so I figured she’d dragged him into another room. Her bedroom, probably, from the way she was hanging all over him. And again, it wasn’t like he’d didn’t seem to want her attention.
I just needed to get out of there and not wait around for Dominic to come charging over and try to charm his way out of this. I seemed to be a pushover when it came to him, and I needed to let him know from the onset of this that I wasn’t going to take a backseat to anyone else. I needed some distance.
