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T A I
Surprise flashesin Maddie’s eyes when she opens her door and finds me waiting outside. She frowns, but darts a glance up and down the corridor before pulling me inside.
“We havegotto stop meeting like this,” she jokes, but then the humor drains from her eyes as she frowns at me. “But seriously, we need to stop this. Antonio already knows we’ve been sneaking around, and he may not be the only one. I overheard the other Omegas whispering about catching your scent down here the other day.”
I take a step closer to her. “Danger is my middle name. What do you say, feel like being risky tonight?”
She chuckles. “Your middle name is William. But what did you have in mind?”
“I want to take you to my place.”
Her chin lowers and her eyebrows rise, understanding taking root. “You want to take me to a pub to play poker?”
“Yep.”
She hesitates for a moment, and she still seems wary, but then she drags in a deep breath and nods. “At this point, why not? You only live once, right? Lead the way, Danger.”
Laughing as I slide my arm around her shoulders, I lead her to the door, but I stop before I open it. “You should probably change.”
Her eyes widen as they dart down and she realizes she’s wearing her pajamas. Cheeks flushing that pretty shade of pink I’ve come to know and love, she nods again. “Yeah, that might be a good idea.”
Slipping out from under my arm, she spins to wag a finger at me. “Wait right there. I’ll be back.”
She saunters away from me, and I swear she adds a little extra sway to her hips to taunt me, but I don’t bite. I’m on a mission, and part of it is getting her to that pub.
After stopping at her wardrobe, she disappears into the bathroom. A minute later, she comes back out wearing a pale-pink sundress that would make even Kaz lose his shit. She hasn’t bothered with makeup, and her hair is still pulled into a messy knot on top of her head, but she’s so fucking gorgeous that I pull my phone out of my pocket and snap a quick picture.
“What was that?” she asks.
I shrug as I stash the device in my back pocket. “Nothing. Just checking something. And taking a picture.”
Her eyes widen, but then she laughs and shakes her head. “Well, I suppose at least it’ll last longer.”
I don’t respond to the statement as I open her door and check that there’s no one out there before we sneak out. Hurrying along the corridor and down the stairs, I lead her to the pedestrian gate. Exhilaration rushes through me once we’re out on the sidewalk.
“Our first escape together,” I say as I capture her hand and hold it firmly in mine. “How does it feel?”
“To be off palace grounds with you? Amazing.” She squeezes my hand, but then she looks around like she’s searching for someone. “What if the paparazzi are hiding in the bushes?”
“They’re not,” I assure her. “There are guards stationed at the beginning and end of this block because it borders on the palace. Besides, if they’ve never caught me coming or going from here before, there’s no reason they will be here tonight.”
“Except that it’s the Trials and everyone is super interested now that it’s getting to the pointy end of the competition.”
“Yeah, well, let them be interested. I’m not worried about anyone else tonight.” As we walk into the pub, I signal the barkeep for two beers, but I don’t stop at the counter to collect them.
When we walk into the back room, my buddies are already there. They do a double-take when she walks in with me, but no one comments on it. They simply deal us in, and since Kaz isn’t here, I clean up again.
Only tonight, I don’t give everyone the opportunity to earn back their winnings. If I lose the ultimate bet, I’ll let them win it back next time, but not right now. Maddie turns out to be an average player, but it’s only once the others have given up for the night that I reveal the true purpose for bringing her here.
“Poker is a lot like life, you know? You get what you get and you don’t get upset. The stakes are always high, and if you don’t call the bluff, you’re going to get fucked.”
“How profound,” she teases lightly until she realizes there’s something I’m not saying. “What is it?”
I rake all the cards in from around the table, shuffling the deck in my hands without looking, my eyes never leaving hers. “Draw a card.”
She frowns, but plays along, carefully studying them as I fan them out face down. “Okay, this one.”
Fingertips dragging the card away from the rest, she moves to flip it over but before she does, I put my hand over hers to stop her. “You made a deal with Kaz. Will you make one with me?”
