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“Fuck,” Andrik murmurs as I watch Jedrik stare at my neck. Our previous teasing about mating bites comes rushing back. Tension fills the tight space, and something in me wants to push the boundaries, knowing it wouldn’t take much to get the two alphas to give me anything I want right now.
Jedrik shakes off his thoughts and walks forward again. “If you want to see what the pegs are, we need to make sure you aren’t perfuming for us, gorgeous.” The compliment has me preening, and distracts me long enough to move further down the hallway without my pears spilling forth.
When we’re far enough away from the cloud, Jedrik pauses and Andrik turns off the light. “Pull the peg and look through.” It’s a good thing Jed is still holding me because I don’t think I could reach it otherwise.
The wooden dowel comes out easily, and I press my eye to the hole where a pinhole amount of light spills into the darkness. Before me is the parlor, where the kitchen staff keeps hors d’oeuvres in case we get hungry between meals. I spy a jerking movement that draws my eye directly to Matthew, who seems to be in some kind of standoff with Ry. Matthew has that same ugly sneer on his face as when he taunted the guys at the lake.
Suddenly, that waste of space, aka Moldy Knot, pushes my best friend. Ryland’s face becomes red with anger and he cocks his arm back before punching Matthew square in the eye socket.
Ry points his finger into the alpha’s chest, yelling at him. I wish I could hear what they’re saying, but unfortunately, everything coming through is too muffled to understand. Whatever he says has a dark look overtaking Matthew’s face before Ry storms from the room without a backward glance.
What the fuck happened? Ry isn’t the type to get into a fight like that. Something must have really set him off. With the amount of vitriol Matthew constantly spews, it’s entirely possible he got under Ryland’s skin.
There’s an uneasy feeling in my stomach as I return the peg to its hole. Andrik turns his light back on, illuminating the space once again. “Wait, does every single one of these give a glimpse into the rooms?” I ask.
“Yep,” Andrik answers. “Whoever built the place really enjoyed being able to spy on their guests. It has to be an espionage wet dream.” A shudder runs through me at the idea of that actually happening. I hope I don’t have dreams about a random stranger spying on me through the walls wherever I go. It would almost be worse than the cameras. At least I know those are there.
It’s not much longer until we come to another stop. “Let us know if the coast is clear,” Jedrik instructs me.
This time when I spy through the hole, I’m glimpsing into the pantry. A shadowy figure, one I’m assuming belongs to the kitchen staff, holds up two bottles of spices. He glances out the doorway to the pantry as if checking to make sure no one is watching him, then proceeds to open both lids. His back is to the opening, ensuring his movements are blocked from view if anyone comes upon him. This means I’m able to see everything as he pours one jar into the other and shakes it up before slipping the now empty one into his pocket.
That’s not sketchy or anything…
His head is on a swivel as he leaves the pantry. I wonder what he would’ve done if he was caught.
“Uh, that was strange. It looked like someone mixed two jars of spices and—“ I cut off and hold up a finger as someone else walks into the pantry, not wanting them to hear my muffled voice behind the wall. Their back cuts off my view of what they’re doing, and when they leave, a bunch of the spices are gone.
“And now someone else took the exact bottle from the shelf, along with a bunch of others.” I turn my head toward Jedrik, finding him frowning. The expression is made even more dramatic with the line shaved into his eyebrow, adding a hint of danger to his down turned lips.
“We’ll check it out later,” Andrik whispers. “After our date.” He presses a kiss to the side of my head.
“See anyone else?” Jedrik quietly asks.
I peer through the hole again and find the coast clear. “Don’t see anyone.”
The words are only out for a split second before Andrik presses what looks like a button. It must release the mechanisms in the door, allowing it to swing open. He moves to peek into the kitchen.
“Put the peg back,” Jedrik reminds me. I slot the wood in its hole and a sexual innuendo comes to mind. Okay, Verity... What are you? A twelve-year-old boy?
Jedrik slides me down his body once we join Andrik in the pantry. Spices, ingredients, jars, and baskets fill the shelves from top to bottom. My bad boy twin twists a knob on a light fixture set next to the doorway activating the closing mechanism, and I make a mental note of that probably being how you open it.
“Come on,” Andrik murmurs, reaching a hand back for me. I slide mine into his, appreciating how cool his skin is to the touch. He glances behind him, first at our clasped hands and then at my face. A worried glint crosses his eyes, but he leads me out of the pantry without saying anything.
As they mentioned before, we’re right next to the service entrance, which makes our getaway easy. We don’t pause, quickly making our way to the exit. We all act casual, not making a show of sneaking out.
A metal bowl tings against the counter, and I find Sheila watching me, a curious grin on her face. Noticing my attention, she waves, but I can tell she’s wondering where the fuck we came from. It’s all in the way her brows furrow together.
When I return her smile and wave, the motion catches Jedrik’s attention, who’s taking up the rear. He offers her a small quirk of the lips and a shoulder shrug before we step into the summer heat. Surprisingly, it’s not as hot as I expected. The air is just shy of muggy, a stark difference from the other day when we spent time next to the lake. I thought I’d be baked alive. Perhaps it’s because we’re getting close to the sun setting.
Andrik’s hand tightens his hold. “Ready to make a run for it?” he asks, glancing both ways, searching for any of the show’s crew who might spot us.
Chapter 30
Verity
Giddy excitement has me practically bouncing on my toes, knowing we’ll be completely camera free. Somehow knowing they’re constantly on me is like a heavy weight on my shoulders. Never knowing what moment they might use for a clip or soundbite... always having to make sure I watch what I say and do. It changes a person’s personality. It’s why I don’t like so many of the alphas on the show. I know how much the camera changes me, so I can easily see how much of a show they’re putting on.
Sure my guys watch what they say, and I’m positive if there wasn’t an audience they’d let their alpha personalities take over more often, there’s been lots of fisted hands and bitten tongues, but for the most part, there’s no doubt in my mind that they’re being genuine for me. I can’t say that about everyone.
