Page 54 of Follow the Rhythm
“Who’s ‘we’?” I asked.
“Me, Jess, and Austin. Ellis was supposed to come too, but Bea showed up,” Grace grimaced.
“Jess is going? Out?”
“Yep, we are gonna get wasted and make horrible decisions,” she said brightly.
“I’m coming,” I said grimly. Jess wasn’t going out with just Grace and her Beta sibling for protection.
“Oh, what a surprise! I wonder what changed your mind?” Grace asked with faux innocence, which told me she knew exactly what she was doing. “Meet us in the lobby at nine!”
I was waiting in the lobby at half eight, determined not to let them somehow sneak out without me, even if Grace seemed eager for me to come
Right at nine, they emerged from the lift Grace was wearing what looked like a cut-off tuxedo jacket, and her sibling Austin was in a white t-shirt, the sleeves rolled up like a character from a fifties film, and jeans. Jess brought up the rear, and my heart almost jumped out of my throat. She was in a skin-tightblack dress that ended at her mid-thigh and left nothing to the imagination, and heels that made her a few inches taller.
I stood as they came towards me, and Jess stopped in her tracks.
“Goddamn it, Grace. You didn’t say we were going to have a chaperone.”
“Oh yeah, sorry, I forgot to tell you,” Grace replied flippantly. “Come on, our ride is here!”
Jess gave us both a scathing look, then stalked ahead.
“Hey, man, good to see you,” Austin said.
“You too,” I said, shaking their hand.
“She’ll get over it,” they said as we followed Jess and Grace out the doors. “Or she won’t, and she’ll shave the rest of Grace’s hair in her sleep.”
I let out a surprised laugh. “Or mine.”
“You should watch your back,” they agreed.
Grace directed the driver to a place called “Pulsation,” and I swallowed my anger. They’d been planning to go to a club without an Alpha?
When we arrived, there was a line of people out the door. Relief coursed through me. Maybe we’d go somewhere else with fewer potential threats to Jess’s safety.
“Jess, come here!” Grace yelled, gesturing to the bouncer. As we walked up to him, Grace pushed Jess to the front of our group.
“Back of the line, guys,” he said, bored, then did a double-take at Jess. I bit back a growl. He beckoned our group forward.
“Could you let us in?” Jess asked brightly, in a voice I’d never heard her use before. She bounced a little on her toes, and the bouncer’s eyes were glued to her breasts. “It’s my friend’s birthday!”
“Yeah, sure, have fun, gorgeous,” he said. “Maybe I’ll come find you after my shift?”
“Maybe,” she said, smiling, and led us inside. As soon as we got inside the door, she gave a full-body shudder. “Ugh, you guys owe me for that.”
Grace laughed. “Men. So dumb.” She looked at me. “Sorry.”
Jess ordered a round of shots for the three of them at the bar. I noticed she got served immediately.
“Do you want anything?” she yelled at me over the loud drum and bass music.
“A soda with lime,” I said to the bartender and handed over my card for the tab.
“Ooh, drinks are on Kieran!” Grace screeched. “Give us two rounds, then!”
They downed their shots, and I smiled despite myself, watching them laugh. Jess was always beautiful, but when she smiled, she was nearly incandescent.
