There was no mistaking the fear in the woman’s eyes or the concern in the guy’s. They were terrified of him. Alex was going to have to make the first move. It was either that or sit there and stare at them until they panicked and ran.
Sliding out of the booth, Alex slowly walked over to the couple, keeping his hands in plain sight and trying to project a sense of calm. As he got closer to the stage, the man in the hat stepped forward, taking up a defensive position in front of the woman who Alex realized now must be his mate. The guy in the back kept working on his drums, completely oblivious to the drama at the front of the stage.
“We’re not here to cause trouble,” the woman said, ignoring the warning look her mate threw her way. “We just moved here with our kids because we thought it would be a safe place to live.”
Alex frowned. He was a cop. If these two were in trouble, he would help them. It was as simple as that. “Safe from what?”
The man and woman exchanged looks, silent communication passing between them. Yeah, these two were definitely betas. Alex could tell by the way they moved closer to each other for support. If they’d been alphas, they would have moved further apart to make it easier to attack him from two sides.
“From the hunters,” the guy said finally. “They’ve always been out there, but it seems like they’re becoming more aggressive. A lot of people like us have been killed lately.”
Alex’s jaw dropped. He knew what hunters were—at least in the general sense. Cooper had mentioned that Everly’s family had been involved with a werewolf hunter years ago over in France after a rogue werewolf had attacked and killed her mother. But he’d thought hunters were something that were limited to the Old World. The idea that there were people running around the United States killing werewolves was crazy—and disconcerting.
“So you came here looking for protection?” he prompted.
They both nodded.
“Every werewolf in the country has heard rumors about the huge pack of alpha werewolves all living together in Dallas.” The man glanced at his mate. “Season thought that maybe the hunters would think twice before coming here and messing with us.”
“We were hoping this is a place we could raise our kids without having to worry about them all the time,” Season explained. “If it was just Allen and me, we would have gone on the run, but kids need a place to call home. They need friends and a good school. I swear we weren’t trying to move in on your territory.” She wet her lips nervously. “You are part of the alpha pack, right?”
Alex nodded.
“But if your pack doesn’t want us here, we’ll leave,” Allen said quickly. “Like Season said, we’re not looking for trouble.”
Alex couldn’t imagine being in the position these two betas found themselves in—terrified to come to Dallas and risk a pack of alphas attacking them, or staying away and risking the hunters finding them.
“There won’t be any trouble,” Alex assured them. “I’ll have to let my alpha know, but I can promise you that he’ll do everything he can to keep you and your family safe. He’ll want to meet with you, though.”
Allen and Season exchanged looks again, and Alex got the feeling that they were a little hesitant to deal with a werewolf someone his size answered to, but in the end, they exchanged phone numbers and gave up the location of the apartment complex where they were living.
“If you see anything suspicious, call,” Alex told them.
When he got back to the table, Lacey was already seated, waiting for him.
“Sorry,” he said as he slipped into the booth and sidled up close to her. “I didn’t see you come back.”
“No problem. I take it you know those two?”
“Not really. They just moved into the area, and when they found out I was a cop, they wanted to know if I thought Dallas was a safe place to raise their kids.”
He figured that was a close enough synopsis of the conversation he’d just had—minus the whole werewolf part.
She smiled. “That’s sweet of you, going out of your way to help people you just met.”
He chuckled and slipped his arm around her. “That’s me—Officer Friendly.”
It turned out that Season and Allen’s band was good—really good. Soulful with a little bit of melancholy and a whole lot of hope. Alex could almost close his eyes and picture the lives the two werewolves had led. The running, the worry, the hope that tomorrow would be better than today.
He and Lacey sat listening for a while before she wordlessly took his hand, pulling him out of the booth and onto the dance floor. This wasn’t the kind of music that required elaborate dance steps. With the blues, you just got close, then let the rhythm move you. That was fine with Alex. He liked holding Lacey close.
Lacey rested her head on his shoulder, wrapping one arm around him possessively, holding his left hand with her right. Alex slipped his right hand down to her lower back, letting his fingers graze that perfect curve right at the top of her ass as he pulled her hips tighter against him.
The music all but faded into the background as Lacey’s scent enveloped him. His cock hardened immediately at the feel of her firm breasts coming into contact with his chest. She wiggled her hips a little, grinding against him as she swayed to the music. His claws were behaving right now, thank God, but being this close to Lacey and smelling how aroused she was had him so turned on that it was taking everything he had to keep his canines from slipping out.
Lacey suddenly lifted her head off his shoulder to gaze up at him. One look at the sensuality in her eyes, and he was completely undone. His mouth was coming down on hers before he even realized what he was doing. Her lips eagerly parted for his questing tongue, the hunger in her kiss pushing him further toward the edge of his control.
Alex wasn’t sure how long the kiss lasted—maybe a few minutes, maybe a few songs—but when they finally broke apart, he was absolutely sure he’d never experienced anything like it before. He couldn’t believe how much he wanted to strip off Lacey’s clothes and make love to her right there on the dance floor—or at the very least take her back to his place and hold her captive in his bed for days on end.
