Tessa
The clubhouse risesout of the dark like something dragged up from the frozen earth, rough timber and stone blending into the landscape as if it grew here on its own.Security lights slice through the night, carving harsh shadows that make the place look more fortress than home.
Blade’s bike rumbles to a stop in front of me, Hannah on the back of it.A second later, Vex pulls up beside them, and I climb off his bike, my legs unsteady from more than just the ride.
I don’t want to be here.Every cell in my body is screaming this is a mistake...but the moment my boots hit the ground, a memory slams into me.
There was a time I would’ve given anything to be on the back of Vex’s bike.
To be the one he reached for.
To be his, before I found out what he truly is.
That want is long dead...or it should be.Because standing here now, the truth presses against my ribs and the heat between my thighs reminds me I once longed for him.
And I hate that a part of me still feels it.
I don’t want to be here.
Every cell in my body screams at me to run, but Hannah’s hand finds mine, squeezing gently.“You’re not alone,” she murmurs, and I want to believe her, but the fear is a living thing in my chest, clawing its way up my throat.
The front door swings open before we reach it, spilling warm yellow light and the smell of leather, smoke, and cooking meat.Music thrums from inside, it’s classic rock, loud enough to feel in my bones.A wall of sound that should be comforting but isn’t.
Blade goes in first, Prophet close behind.Vex moves to my side, not touching but close enough I can feel the cold radiating off him, a reminder of what he is.What they all are.
I cross the threshold, and every conversation dies.
The main room is massive, all exposed beams and stone fireplace, pool tables and worn leather couches.But what makes my breath catch are the men.So many men, all turning to look at me with eyes that see too much.Some curious, some wary, some hungry in a way that makes my skin crawl.
“Everyone,” Blade’s voice cuts through the silence like a blade.“This is Tessa.She’s under Kings’ protection.Nobody touches her.Nobody even fucking looks at her wrong.We clear?”
A chorus of assent, some grudging, some eager.My fingers dig into the strap of my duffel bag hard enough to hurt.
Then one voice rises above the rest, rough and mocking.“Blade bringing home strays now?What’s next, a petting zoo?”The speaker is lean and wiry, with a face that’s seen too many fights and a grin that’s all teeth.His eyes rake over me in a way that makes me want to take a shower.“She looks like she could use some warming up.I’d be happy to volunteer for—”
The temperature in the room drops ten degrees in an instant.
Vex moves so fast I don’t see it, one second he’s beside me, the next he’s across the room with his hand wrapped around the other man’s throat, lifting him off his feet.The man’s face goes from cocky to terrified in a heartbeat.Vex’s eyes are white, glowing like ice under moonlight, and when he speaks, his voice is so cold it burns.
“Rooster.”Each syllable is precise, deadly.“Tessa isoff-limits.You don’t look at her.You don’t talk to her.You don’t even fuckingbreathein her direction unless she asks you to.Because if you do, I will rip out your throat and feed it to you while you’re still alive enough to choke on it.Do we have an understanding?”
Rooster manages a strangled nod, eyes wide with fear.Vex holds him there for another heartbeat, long enough to make his point crystal clear then drops him.The man stumbles back, gasping, one hand to his throat.
The room is so silent I can hear my own pulse thundering in my ears.
Vex turns back to me, and his eyes are still white, still predatory, but when they lock on mine, something shifts.The cold fury banks, replaced by something hotter, more dangerous.Something that makes heat pool low in my belly even as fear tells me to run.
“You’re safe here,” he says, and somehow his voice is gentle despite the threat still coiled in every line of his body.“I promise you that.”
I want to believe him.God, I want to.
Blade clears his throat.“Prophet blessed the clubhouse years ago.The wards will slow the creature, but they won’t stop it completely.The mark gives it a direct line to you.”He nods toward a stairway at the back.“You’re bunking next to Vex’s room.He’s the only one fast enough and strong enough to reach you if something comes through.”
Of course.Of course I am.
Hannah squeezes my hand again.“I’m staying tonight,” she says firmly.“I promised I wouldn’t leave you alone the first night, and I meant it.”
Small mercies.
