“Shame.” His smile doesn’t reach his eyes. “Pretty girl like you could have a real good time here if you had the right people to show you around.”
The conversation has taken a turn I recognize all too well. I’ve been navigating men like Aaron Keenan since I was fourteen and my body started changing in ways that made directors’ eyes linger too long. There’s a playbook for this: be polite but firm, don’t antagonize, find an exit strategy.
“I’m sure.” I take another drag, scanning the street for an escape route. The bar door is six feet away, and I’m already calculating if I’m fast enough to get there first. “Unfortunately, my schedule’s pretty tight.”
“You don’t seem so busy right now.” Aaron moves closer again, backing me against the wall without actually touching me. “How about a drink? I’ve got a bottle of the good stuff back at my place. Private party.”
My heart rate kicks up. Not fear, exactly—I’ve dealt with worse than Aaron Keenan—but awareness. The street is quieter than I realized, the bar’s windows facing away from where we’re standing. If I screamed, someone would probably hear, but the calculation of whether that’s necessary is already running in my head.
“I appreciate the offer, but I should get back to my group.” I keep my voice light, my smile fixed. “They’ll be wondering where I went.”
“Let’em wonder.” His hand comes up, not quite touching my face but hovering near my cheek. “Pretty little omega like you deserves better company.”
“I’m just going to head back inside?—“
His nostrils flare slightly as he moves closer. “You smell expensive. Better than something off the top shelf.”
“I’m not interested.” The words come out sharper than I intended, the smile slipping.
His expression hardens. “Didn’t ask if you were interested.”
“Is there a problem here?”
The new voice cuts through the tension like a blade. Deep, steady, with an undercurrent of authority that makes Aaron’s head snap up.
One of the alphas from the bar stands a few feet away. Up close, he’s even more imposing: broad shoulders filling out a flannel shirt, work boots planted like he’s grown from the concrete, blue eyes that hold Aaron’s without blinking.
“No problem.” Aaron’s smile turns ugly. “Just having a friendly conversation.”
“Looks like the conversation’s over.” It’s not a suggestion.
Aaron’s jaw tightens. For a moment, I think he might actually try something—might throw a punch or pull a knife or whatever it is that men like him do when their dominance is challenged. But something in the newcomer’s stance makes him reconsider.
“Sure thing.” Aaron pushes off the wall, shooting me a look that promises this isn’t finished. “I’ll see you around, Phoenix.”
The way he says my name makes my skin crawl. Like he’s tasting it. Claiming it.
“Not if I see you first,” I mutter as he stalks away.
The newcomer watches him go, tracking his movements until Aaron disappears around the corner. Only then does he turn to me, those ocean-blue eyes softer now but still intense enough to make my pulse jump.
“You okay?”
“Fine.” I take another drag of my cigarette, trying to look more composed than I feel. “I’ve dealt with worse.”
“I’m sure you have.” He doesn’t move closer, respecting the bubble of space Aaron violated. “But that isn’t the kind of guy you want to give a second chance.”
“I’m getting that.” I study him openly now that we’re alone. He’s handsome in that rugged, weathered way that speaks toa life lived outdoors. Not polished like Atticus or refined like Mason, but solid. Real. “I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced.”
He shoves both hands in his pockets, lips quirking in the smallest of smiles. “I’m Judah Daniels. Pretty sure everyone in town has already figured out who you are.”
His acknowledgment of my notoriety doesn’t feel threatening like it did with Aaron. If anything, he says it like we’re in on the same joke.
“Thanks for the rescue, Judah Daniels.” I gesture with my cigarette toward the space Aaron vacated. “Though I could have handled it.”
“I don’t doubt that.” His mouth quirks in what might be the beginning of a smile. “But I didn’t come out here to rescue you.”
“No?” I raise an eyebrow. “What, you followed me for an autograph?”
