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“I can’t,” I state and then glance at Eos. “But I do have an idea on how you can help.”

She narrows her eyes. “I’m listening.”

When Yue and I arrive together at work two nights later, the club is closed.

“What the hell?” she ponders when we enter, passing a sign about the club’s closure; something that has never happened.

The main floor has been transformed. Tables are pushed to the walls. Candles line the stage edge. The enchanted ceiling is active, rippling in slow waves above us, like the underside of water. The bass pulses lower.

"They did all this?" Yue says beside me.

I look down at her before walking to the bar and reaching behind it. Without a word, I hand her a small package. “Can you put this on?”

She stares at me, and her mouth moves like she plans to speak.

“Please, Yue.”

She sighs and spins around, walking toward the back. Minutes tick by, and my heart rate increases with every second. Yue is my mate. I need this to work out. Yue appears a few minutes later, changed into a dress that exposes parts of her onyx flesh. Fabric clings to her hips and rides high enough on her thighs that I can see her panties. Her white coils are loose, fuller than usual, shining in the candlelight. My jaw aches the longer I stare at her.

"Adwin and Desmond set it up," I say. "Eos is handling the ceiling."

“For what exactly?” she ponders, twisting her hands in front of her.

Yue doesn't get nervous at the club. This is her territory, but tonight the space is different. She's not the bouncer. She's the date.

I reach for her hand, and she lets me take it.

"Relax," I murmur, pulling her toward the center of the floor.

"I am relaxed."

"Yet your grip is tight enough to kill."

She loosens her grip slightly, and we sit at a small table near the stage. Staff members are scattered around. Adwin waves from across the room, moving toward the back. Ashari follows a little afterward. The twins are nowhere to be seen, which means they're probably watching from the upper booth. The room clears, leaving Yue and me all alone. The music shifts, and my heart thuds inside my chest. Air tightens in my lungs, and the bass deepens into something slower. It’s a track I picked specifically for tonight.

My legs bounce, and I exhale before standing.

"Where are you going?" Yue asks.

I don't answer. Instead, I wink at her along my walk to the stage. From there, I step up onto the platform and grip the pole. I look at her. Yue sits forward in the chair, watching me with her dark brown eyes. With her eyes on me, I start to move.

Not the stage routine I do for the crowds. It’s none of the flashy shit that includes the splits, grinding, and arrogance. This is slower. I roll my body against the pole, my abs flexing with each action. My locs swing across my shoulder blades as I turn. I grip the pole with one hand and trail the other down my own chest. It moves over my stomach, to the waistband of my jeans. Tonight there is no crowd. There's only her, and that’s enough.

I drop to my knees on the stage, crawl forward to the edge, and look down at her. Yue extends her hand, and now, she's close enough to touch. Her lips are parted. Her chest rises and falls with shallow breaths. Her ample breasts move against the thin fabric of her dress, and her nipples pucker. Yue’s bra isn’t helping with shit. Extending my hand, I hold it out for her. She can choose to take it or not.

She does, and I pull her onto the stage. She doesn’t resist, surprisingly.

"Dance with me," I say.

"I don't dance."

"You do tonight."

My hand finds the small of her back, pressing her against me. My palm touches bare skin. Warmth floods under it. Smoothness greets me as she trembles in my arms. Yue refuses to look at me while we dance. The tremor in her body is like a current. I roll my hips against hers slowly. My dick fills, thickening in my boxer-briefs. The bass drives the rhythm, and I move her with me. My thigh pushes between her legs, and my hand moves from her back, landing on her chin. I tilt her face up so she has no choice but to look at me. This only makes her quiver more. Fuck I would kill to be able to smell her or hear her heartbeat like a phoenix or dragon shifter. Gargoyles can only fly and resist injury under extreme circumstances.

Yue’s pupils flash in the light, completely blown. Her breath hits my chest in short, hot bursts.

"Ekon," she says like a prayer.