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Pain flashed across his face. “If I’d known this is where we’d end up, I wouldn’t have wasted all those years. You have to believe me, Za-Za.”
I gave him a sad smile, because hindsight was a useless superpower. It was too late for that. I’d never be that Zaley Cuppencia I could have been if the guys had stayed. She was dead and gone.
I plastered a smile across my face, because I hadn’t meant to bring down the mood. “I believe you, Will. Now let's go—you promised me food and dancing. I hope you’ve gotten better. Though I wore my boots so my toes are safe, just in case.”
“Ha fucking ha. I’m not that bad.”
I grabbed my jacket off the coat hook. It was the first thing I’d bought once I got my purse back. Sure, it was old fashioned as hell, but a necessity. You couldn’t survive up here without a good coat, fashion be damned. “You nearly broke my toes doing the chicken dance, Will. The chicken dance!”
Will grumbled as he held open my door, and the smile that stretched my face was real now. In moments like this, it was like we’d traveled back in time to Zaley and Will, best friends for life. I wanted to hold onto that feeling as long as I could.
There were no parks in front of the bar, so I knew it was going to be a big night. Will pulled into the back, in the staff parking lot. As I slid from the passenger seat, I could hear the steady thump of bass in the air, and the loud chatter of people smoking in the garden bar.
“Wow, it sounds crazy in there. Should we be working?” The staff roster wasn’t huge—Vic and Will took on most of the work themselves—but there were four casual waitresses and the guys also pulled in a couple of seniors to bus tables on the weekends.
“Nope, it’s my weekend off, and we have all the staffing covered. It’s just fun times for me and you tonight, Cupcake.” They’d all called me Cupcake for as long as I could remember, because none of them could say Cuppencia when I’d first arrived. So I’d been Zaley Cupcake, and eventually just Cupcake.
He hooked his arm around my waist, pulling me tight to his side. I tried not to read too much into it, even if it felt like I was being claimed. They’d always been a touchy bunch, always hugging me, or holding my hand, or wrapping an arm around my shoulders. They were always easy with affection and quick to show appreciation, another gift from their mom.
Still, eyes followed us as we stepped into the bar. Girls looked pissed, gossips looked interested, and men averted their eyes completely. Well, that was weird.
Will directed me toward the bar, and Victor’s face lit up when he saw me. Honestly, that smile made my heart race, and I couldn’t help but mirror his happiness back at him.
“Zaley, you look like a fucking wet dream.” There was heat in Victor’s eyes that had nothing to do with my fashion sense and everything to do with the way this dress bared my thighs. I was wearing thigh-high stockings for a bit of added warmth, and although I was pretty sure he couldn’t see the lacy tops, he still looked like he wanted to strip me bare with his teeth.
My cheeks flushed, and I darted my eyes from his, in case he saw how badly I wanted to jump the bar and ride him behind there. “Thanks, Vic. It’s packed in here tonight,” I called over the noise. He slid a glass of vodka and cranberry juice across the bar at me, waving away my money. Leaning across, he kissed my cheek, before moving down the bar to serve customers.
Xander appeared with a woodfired pizza in each hand, dropping one in front of me and Will. It had extra anchovies and olives, just how I liked it. These guys still knew me, or hell, maybe I was just predictable.
“On the house,” he yelled, moving to the other end of the bar and dropping the other one several seats down. I watched his ass as he moved away. Fuck, he was fine.
Will cleared his throat, and my cheeks went from flushed to bright red. “Are you checking out my brother, Za-Za? Because you know, my ass is nicer. Just saying.”
I patted his hand. “Of course, Will. Your butt is nice too.” I used my high-pitched baby voice, the one you used for toddlers who’re getting wound up to throw a tantrum.
He rolled his eyes and grabbed a piece of pizza, holding it to my lips. I dutifully took a bite, unable to drag my gaze from the intense way he watched me. Who knew eating pizza could be an erotic pastime? But there was no doubt in my mind that this was some kind of Alpha-Omega foreplay. The way my blood buzzed, and the rest of the room faded away until there was only the Alpha in front of me? It was Omega magic.
Someone grunted, breaking the moment. I looked back over the bar at the disgruntled face of Xander. “It’s really fucking hard doingyourjob with a fucking boner, asshole,” he growled at Will, who just gave him a shit-eating grin. Xander flipped him off. “Go and dance and get away from the fucking bar until I get the iron bar in my jeans under control.”
I looked at the cheese carb load in front of me. “But my pizza…”
“I’ll make you another one and hand-feed it to you when we get home, Zaley,” he purred. He reached out, wiping away a piece of cheese that was stuck to my cheek. “Too fucking irresistable.” Shaking his head, he stepped away. “Now both of you fuck off. I have orders backing up.”
Will saluted, lifting me from the stool as I stuffed another slice of pizza in my mouth, and half walked, half carried me to the dancefloor. There were half a dozen couples two-stepping to the three-piece band in the raised platform in the corner, as well as a group of women obviously celebrating something, given how drunk they were and the way they were spinning in the middle of the dancefloor.
I was still taking everyone in when Will spun me around and into his arms. We danced slowly, despite the fact the song was upbeat. “Umm, I don’t know what song you’re dancing to, but it isn’t this one.”
Will just held me closer until my body pressed right along his, and he rocked us from side to side. “You seemed attached to your toes, so this makes more sense.”
I couldn’t argue with that. I didn’t say it out loud, but I quite liked this slow, rhythmic shuffle that seemed like foreplay again.
Maybe it was me. Maybe everything was foreplay now.
Dancing? Foreplay.
Chewing? Foreplay.
Scratching their balls? Definitely foreplay.
