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“Alpha,” Max greets, pushing open the back door to Jokers nightclub before I can even reach it and swinging it wide to allow me entry. The surveillance cameras must’ve alerted him to my presence when I parked in my spot behind the building, prompting him to come down to meet me. “Didn’t know you were stopping in tonight.”
“Figured I’d swing by and see how Jason’s getting on,” I grumble, stepping past him and into the dingy concrete hallway. Ordinarily, I don’t often make personal visits to the establishments that our pack owns and runs in Denver. I trust my guys to keep the operations running smoothly and bring anything urgent to my attention, but since Jason was only promoted to manager of this club yesterday, I thought it’d be best to check in on things myself to ensure the transition has been seamless.
I glance over at the concrete staircase to my left, pointing a finger upwards to indicate. “Is he upstairs?” The manager’s office here is on the second level, with a private entrance through this stairway in addition to the main one.
“He was out on the floor the last time I saw him,” Max provides. He’s been working in our pack-owned nightclubs for years, which is precisely the reason I appointed him to the position as head of security for Jokers, our newest acquisition. I know he runs a tight ship. “The bartenders are slammed tonight, so he was helping restock.”
I nod, satisfied with that answer. Too many people think they’re above doing grunt work when they ascend to management status. Those aren’t the types of people I want managing my businesses. The best managers will step up to assist on nights like tonight, when the staff is drowning and it’s all hands on deck.
“Want me to find him for you?” Max offers, throwing a thumb over his shoulder toward the entry door for the club.
I give a little shake of my head. “Nah, I’ve got it. Everything been going alright so far?”
“In general, or since that prick Evans was kicked to the curb?”
“Both,” I chuckle. Seems Sam wasn’t the only one who had a problem with the prior manager.
Max nods slowly, shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his black slacks. “Yeah, I think so. There’s always growing pains with a new club, but we’ve sorted through a lot of the issues. And if the line outside is anything to go by, it’s only gotten more popular since we took over.”
“Glad to hear it,” I cluck, clapping Max on the shoulder. “I appreciate your efforts. Keep it up.”
Max grins proudly, giving me another nod as I move past him toward the entry door for the club and push through. As soon as I do, the music booming from the speakers assaults my ears and I fight the urge to throw my hands over them to block it out. The back entrance is right by the DJ booth, so I can barely even hear myself think until I get a few paces away from it. Max was right- this place is slammed tonight- and it takes me several minutes to work my way through the crowd and get to the bar.
As soon as I do, I see Jason coming in from the back storage room clutching a case of gin in his arms. He lifts his gaze as he approaches the bar, and when his eyes meet mine, they widen in alarmed surprise.
“Al… Cole!” he exclaims, remembering at the last second to avoid addressing me by my title since we’re in mixed company. He sets the case of liquor down on the edge of the bar with a clatter, wiping his sweaty brow with a forearm.
“Jason,” I greet, moving around the back of the bar to meet him. “How’s it going?”
“Good, real good,” he stammers, sweeping his gaze over the crowd of people clustered around the bar as they wait for service. “As you can see, business is booming! We can’t keep the liquor on the shelves.”
“That’s what I like to hear,” I say. “Any issues or concerns?”
He shakes his head adamantly. “Nope, so far, so good. And again, I really appreciate this opportunity. I won’t let you down.”
I smile. Jason’s a good guy and an even better worker. He’s a motivated self-starter, and if it wasn’t for how well Jerome was managing Club Zodiac, I would’ve promoted him to manage that place long ago. It was just a matter of waiting for the right opportunity to come up for Jason, and I know he’ll step up to the challenge here and crush it.
“Are you sticking around for a while, can I get you a drink?” Jason asks eagerly. “We’ve got a couple of VIP booths open in the balcony, I can send Kiara up with a few bottles. Sam’s around here somewhere, too. Came in to meet up with his girl.”
That gets my attention. “Shay’s here?”
“Yeah, came in with a few of the guys about an hour ago,” he replies smoothly. “Along with some blonde that AJ won’t stop flirting with.” He raises his voice when he says the last part so AJ can hear him, and the bartender looks up from the drink he’s pouring for a customer nearby.
“Whatever, man,” AJ laughs, but I’m no longer looking in his direction. Instead, I’m scanning the faces of the clubgoers gathered around the bar, my hackles raising. Jason and AJ know the members of our pack, being part of it themselves, meaning the mystery blonde here with Shay tonight isn’t pack. And I have a pretty good guess as to who she is.
My suspicions are confirmed when AJ finishes mixing up the cocktail and delivers it to the other side of the bar.
I should’ve known after her display in the kitchen this morning that Juliet Anderson is nothing but trouble. The girl has been a constant source of frustration since I first laid eyes on her.
She beams at AJ as she reaches out to take the drink from him, smiling sweetly and batting her long lashes. I can’t hear what she’s saying, but she’s clearly playing him like a fiddle, tossing her hair back and laughing in response to something he says. Her lithe fingers graze his arm, the sequins on her dress glittering under the club lights. No money changes hands, so she’s clearly just sweet talked her way into a free drink, one she’s not even legally old enough to consume.
“Keep up the good work, Jason,” I mutter absently, my feet carrying me away from him and around the bar, my gaze locked on the blonde temptation I should be steering clear of.
The energy I exude has people scampering out of my way to let me through. Humans may not be aware of our existence, but they instinctively react to alpha energy all the same. I prowl up behind Juliet just as she’s spinning around with her drink in hand, a bright smile spread across her face.
I block her path, snatching the glass from her grasp. Her smile falls and her eyes ping up to meet my own.
“Hey!” Juliet protests as I raise the drink to my lips and toss it back, downing it in a single gulp. I grimace in response to the overwhelming fruity sweetness of the cocktail on my tastebuds, reaching an arm around her to slam the empty glass down on the bar top.
