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“I’d rather you dressed up a little when you meet everyone.” Max held the dress out to her with a hopeful smile.
“It’ll show off everything I have if I bend over.” Devin took a step back from the otherwise pretty clothing with a shake of her head.
Max made a considering noise, holding the dress in front of Devin. “I don’t believe you. I think you should try it on and show me.”
“That’s rude.”
“Can’t blame a man for trying.”
“You’ve already seen everything I have,” Devin muttered as she snatched the hanger from his fingers, grimacing at the slip of a skirt and the open cleavage of the bodice. She’d be on display, no doubt about it. The fact he was okay with that bothered her on some level. Turning on her heel, she met his hazel eyes straight on. “You really want your people gawking at my breasts?”
“If one of them so much as thinks about those, I’ll rip their hearts out.”
Max remained relaxed against the wall he leaned against, but everything else about his demeanor changed. The warmth of his green gaze chilled, becoming icy and glittering. The presence of him swallowed the room, suffocating Devin by degrees before she nodded quickly in understanding. It was easy to forget he ruled a territory and had the power to keep his position. Max was so easygoing, amiable in his affections and generous in his attention. He struck none of the primal fear as Kahler had. Perhaps it was the size of the territory he ruled, one directly responsible for the other, but she had no idea how big a space Max held, and Kahler’s reach extended almost daily according to the rumors Max told her about.
Breath leaving her in a hard gust, Devin gave another slower nod and held the dress to her body to signal Max needed to leave before she changed. Once he was gone, she made the concerted effort not to think about anything while she slipped into the smooth satin and lace.
Instead she admired the cut of fabric, the way the violet clung to her lush curves and black lace fluttered at the hem and collar. Delicate picot trim that gave it a wistful air. The man picked out nice clothes, though without the extravagance and thoroughfare of Beau. Devin could appreciate it, though she missed picking her own clothing out like Rey had allowed.
Sniffling hard, Devin tried not to think of Rey. If she did that now, she’d ruin the evening. Max might not say anything otherwise, but this meant something to him. He wanted her to accept his inner circle as much as him. There was no other reason for her to meet them.
She knew some of them stayed at the clubhouse in the other rooms, though they’d all been careful to keep their distance. She’d seen them in passing as Max took her outside multiple times during the day, letting her soak up the sun as he chatted amicably about anything and everything. He shared more about himself, twisting dandelions and clover together to form a flower crown he set upon her hair with a lopsided grin.
It still sat on the bedside table, more than a little wilted and sad, but holding strong.
She shouldn’t be enjoying any part of this, yet she found so much comfort in his presence. Every minute she was away from him became increasingly difficult until she needed him like air. His nearness was tied to her comfort, and it was unfair. How was she to make any kind of decision while feeling like this?
Perhaps that had been the trick all along, but he hadn’t taken advantage of it. He slept on the couch the night before and made no move to join her the next morning when Devin finally roused to find him purring once again. He left her only long enough to get coffee and food, talking quietly to her as Devin sniffled her way through waffles. It was only once she’d regained some of her composure he’d suggested going outside, just for a walk around the grounds. They’d gone outside twice more, having an impromptu picnic for lunch and only a little while ago before all these people began arriving for a dinner she was to be a guest of honor for. Devin could still smell the sun in her hair melding with ginger and lemongrass.
Rising from where she slipped on the short heeled boots at his perfunctory knock, she met him at the door. Staring up at him, she didn’t feel the fear to meet his gaze, noting the warmth that bloomed through them.
“You’re making this hard,” she whispered, settling her hand on his arm to feel the prickle of hair against her palm and the warmth of him spread through her.
“That’s the point, Devin,” Max murmured, leaning down to bring their lips a hard breath from each other. Using her name as a sultry weapon against her, his woodsy scent washed over her.
She found herself going up on tiptoe, closing the distance between them before she realized what she was doing and came down hard enough the crackling jolt as the heels connected with the floor snapped through her spine. Swallowing hard, she gave a terse shake of her head, blaming instincts and hormones.
For his part, Max acted as if nothing had happened. He gave her the same easy smile as he held his arm out for her. “Shall we?”
There were far too many people packed into the large common room. From one wall to the next, broad shoulders and tall forms reigned supreme, a scattering of shorter individuals with flowing locks taking up all the available space in between.
Devin’s steps faltered at the entry, her hand tightening over Max’s arm as she came to a hard stop. She didn’t want to go in there. It reeked of Alpha violence and Beta brutality. The raucous din of so many voices deafened her.
“These are friends,” Max said quietly though he made no move to force Devin forward. In fact, he turned his back to the gathering, blocking her view of the terror laid out before them to cup her jaw in his warm, rough palm. “No one here will hurt you.”
“There’s too many…”
“I’ll be right there with you the entire time. I won’t leave your side.”
“Is Ashley still mad?”
“She won’t be bothering you anymore,” Max said, pushing back a sweep of Devin’s curls with a small smile.
Devin didn’t get a chance to ask him what he meant by that.
“Hey! Shut up, the lot of you. You’re scaring her with your babble,” a female voice rang out through the overwhelming noise, the thump of heavy footsteps on wood echoing through the sudden quiet. “And you best be on your best behavior or so help me, if he doesn’t kill you, I will.”
“Calm down, Raegan,” a male voice nearby muttered.
