Nightshade

by Andrea Cremer

  “Thanks,” I murmured into the folds of his leather jacket before we sat down. Bryn sank into the chair on the other side of me.

  “Hey guys.” I smiled at the other wolves. “Good to see you.”

  “Hey Calla,” Dax said.

  Sabine smiled briefly. Cosette spoke too quietly for me to hear her over the buzz of the bar crowd.

  “Fey.” I glanced at my packmate as I settled into the chair. “Mason said Dax gave you a ride here.”

  “Yeah.” She edged her seat closer to Dax.

  I opened my mouth but thought again and kept quiet. Better to see how this plays out.

  Ren looked toward the stage, his eyes settling on Shay.

  “Your fan club arrived earlier. He’s been waiting for you.”

  I bit the inside of my cheek. It will be a miracle if I make it through this night.

  “Ansel invited him.”

  “I’ll have to thank him for that,” Ren said with a smile full of knives.

  “I think it’s a good thing,” Bryn said, sounding a little defensive. “Logan wanted us to look out for him. Calla shouldn’t have to do all the heavy lifting. It’s a pack responsibility.”

  “Of course.” Ren’s irritated tone faded. “We should help her take care of the kid.”

  “We’ll see if he can hold his own outside of school.” Dax grinned.

  Fey whispered in his ear and he laughed loudly.

  “Something you’d like to share?” I leaned over, catching her wrist in a vise grip.

  She tried to twist out of my grasp. “Not really.”

  Bryn drew in a hissing breath and Fey stopped struggling.

  “Sorry, Cal. I didn’t mean any disrespect,” she said quickly. “It was an inside joke.”

  “I understand.” I stared her down until she looked away. I dropped her wrist when Ren squeezed my shoulder.

  “Easy now,” he said. “It’s our night off. Dax, go get another round for the table.”

  Dax nodded, patting Fey’s thigh before he went to the bar.

  Ansel, Mason, and Shay settled into the other chairs at the table.

  “Hey guys.” Ren offered them an easy smile. “Glad you could join us, Shay.” I tried not to notice the sudden sharpness of Ren’s expression, that of a wolf on patrol.

  “Isn’t that the bartender from Eden?” Bryn’s eyes were on the stage.

  Two men had ascended the platform with Neville. I recognized the Bane from the club, but now he had a bass slung over his shoulder.

  “That’s Caleb,” Mason said. “And yeah, he works at Eden. He’s a good friend of Nev’s.”

  “Who’s on the drum kit?” Ansel asked.

  “Tom,” Mason said. “He owns this place, and he likes to sit in with the local musicians who play here.”

  Neville spoke into the mike. Even amplified, it was tough to hear his quiet voice over the din.

  “Sabine. We could use you. Why don’t you get up here and bring your chair.”

  My packmates all looked at her with surprised expressions, while the Banes just smiled at each other. Ren dragged my chair even closer to his, slipping his arm around my waist. I met Shay’s eyes for a moment before looking back at the musicians, feeling like I might as well be the rope in a tug-of-war.

  Sabine went to the stage, dragging her chair along. Nev handed her a tambourine and put a mike in front of her.

  “What’s going on?” Bryn asked.

  “Sabine sings backup for Nev. Sometimes they do duets,” Ren said. “She’s got a great voice.”

  “Really?” Bryn said, grabbing a handful of peanuts. “Who’d have thought?”

  Cosette glared at her.

  “Evening.” Nev’s voice drew our attention. “I’m Nev. Caleb’s on bass, you all know Tom, and the lovely Sabine is gracing us with her presence tonight.”

  The only applause came from our tables. Apparently the other bar patrons weren’t here for the music.

  Neville nodded at Tom. The bar owner and Caleb exchanged a quick glance and in the next moment, bass and drums had set off at a slow, grinding rhythm. A smile ghosted across Neville’s lips; his fingers moved over the guitar strings, and he began to sing.

  Mason flashed a grin at me and I nodded. Yeah. I get it now.

  Sabine took up the harmony. Her voice was sweet and dark like the first shadows of twilight. The music poured into my veins, a mixture of grit and silk. Subtle and intoxicating.

  The Banes leaned forward in unison, drawn into the pulse of Neville’s song. My own limbs felt like they were humming with the bass line.

  I could see Bryn’s feet sliding over the floor, moving along an invisible river of sound. She looked at Ansel, eyes alight. “So I was promised there would be dancing.”

  “Already?” Ansel objected. “I’d kind of like to just listen for a while.”

  Her lips cut into a thin line, but Shay spoke up.

  “I’ll dance.” He turned to my brother. “If you don’t mind.”

  “Ladies’ choice.” Ansel gestured to Bryn.

  Bryn couldn’t quite hide her startled expression, but she quickly offered Shay her hands and a playful smile. “Let’s go, then.”

  Shay led her onto the uneven floor. A few interested glances from bikers passed over the two of them as they began to move together in front of the stage. Neville nodded, smiling as Shay slipped his arms around Bryn and guided her body with his.

  “Huh,” Ansel murmured. “He’s good.”

  “Nervous?” I laughed.

  He grinned at me. “Hardly. She’s not the one Shay’s after.”

  “I wonder where you got that idea.” Ren’s hand tightened on my waist.

  Ansel cowered. “Sorry, man. I wasn’t thinking.”

  “I suppose he’s a decent dancer.” Ren’s dark eyes flashed. “But I think we should show him how it’s really done.”

  I tensed but was more than surprised when he turned to Cosette. “Feel like dancing?”

  Her large eyes went even wider, but she smiled shyly and nodded. He took her hand and they left the table. Dax grabbed Fey’s arm and they followed the other couple.

  I couldn’t stop my frown.

  “That was weird,” Ansel said. “You okay?”

  “Fine,” I said, trying to ignore my irritation at Ren’s sudden departure with Cosette.

  Is this what it will be like after the union? Will he go off with other girls whenever he feels like it?

  “Don’t worry about it, Calla,” Mason said. “Shay’s a thorn in his paw and he’s trying to make you think he doesn’t care.”

  “Never mind,” I said, embarrassed by their concern. “I don’t need to dance with Ren.”

  Mason tapped out a quick rhythm on the table with his knuckles. “But you do need to dance.”

  He stood up, offering me his hand.

  “Great, the only one without a partner,” Ansel said as I rose. “Where’s Sabine when I need her?”

  “I think Sabine might bite you before she danced with you,” I said.

  “True enough.” He grinned. “I’ll just wait for Bryn to remember she likes me.”

  “Good plan,” Mason said, pulling me away from the table.

  We’d barely made it alongside the stage when the music took a decidedly slower turn.

  “How romantic.” Mason kissed me on the cheek.

  I laughed, following his slow circles over the bumpy floor.

  Mason’s arms suddenly dropped from my waist, and another set of hands moved along my hips.

  “I’ll take it from here, Mason,” Ren said from directly behind me.

  “Of course.” Mason inclined his head.

  Ren turned me in his arms.

  “That was rude,” I said, more irked by his earlier abandonment than the interruption. “You could have waited.”

  He just smiled. “No. I wanted to dance with you now.”

  “Fine. We’re dancing. Are you happy?”

  “Almost.” He brushed his lips agains
t my forehead. I focused on not tripping over the slanted floor.

  “Don’t you want to know what would make me happy?” he teased.

  “I’m not sure.” The stormy darkness of his irises made my skin crackle, electric.

  “Let me give you a ride home tonight.” He reached into his pocket. “I want to show you something.”

  “What?”

  There was a flash of silver before my eyes. Keys.

  “Our house.”

  I stared at him and then at the keys again. “Our house?”

  “At the new compound. It’s ready. I asked Logan if I could take a look and he just handed the keys over. I’m sure I could get you a set if you want.”

  “Our—Our house?” I stammered again.

  “Yes, Calla.” He grinned. “It’s that place we’ll be living together after the union. When we’re the alpha pair. Remember how that works?”

  “You want to go there tonight?”

  “Just to check it out.”

  “And Logan said it was okay?”

  “Logan doesn’t have to know I brought you along.” He jangled the keys in front of me. “Besides, aren’t you curious?”

  “A little.” I was even more curious about what Ren wanted to do when we got there.

  He smiled, sliding his arm back around my waist.

  My eyes narrowed. “And you’ll take me right home after we see it?”

  “If that’s what you want,” he said softly, running his thumb along my cheekbone. “But I’d be tempted to see if I could convince you to stop acting like the proper lady your mother wants you to be.”

  “So you did hear her.” I groaned, blushing. As if I want to be a lady. All it means is that I have to pretend I don’t feel anything but a sense of duty.

  “I can’t blame her for wanting to protect your virtue,” he said, grinning. “I’d like to be in her good graces, but maybe I could have a little slumber party with you at our new house. It would be our secret. I promise I won’t kiss and tell.”

  I kicked his shin lightly. “I can’t believe you. Just stop it.”

  “Or maybe that would spoil the anticipation,” he continued, eyes merciless. “I’m pretty limber. I’m betting I could get onto the roof, swing down, and sneak in through your bedroom window. Surprise you some evening in the near future.”

  I froze in his arms. “You wouldn’t.”

  “No, I wouldn’t.” He laughed. “Only if you asked.”

  My heart’s rapid drumming countered the slow rhythm of Nev’s song.

  “This is where you belong, Calla.” He pulled me closer, tilting my chin up. “Be with me. Tell me it’s what you want.”

  I couldn’t tear my eyes from his. “What I want?”

  “Yes. Anything, everything you need, I’ll give you. Always. I promise. Just tell me one thing.”

  “What?”

  “That you want this, us.” His voice dropped so low I could barely hear him. “That someday you’ll love me.”

  My hands began to tremble where they rested around his neck. “Ren, you know we’re going to be together. We’ve both known that for a long time.”

  He gave me a hard look. “That’s not what I’m talking about.”

  “Why are you asking me this?” I tried to pull back, but he held me against him.

  The glimmer of a smile appeared on his lips. “Why not?”

  My temper flared. “Are you trying to say that you love me?”

  I meant it as a challenge rather than a serious question, but his eyes seemed to catch fire.

  “What do you think?” He touched his lips to mine, softly at first, gradually building pressure, parting them. Startled, I stiffened in his arms. But he continued to caress my lips with his own, gentle and measured, but insistent. I sank into the kiss, drowning in Ren’s warmth, moving slightly against the weight of his hands on my waist, knowing it would make him pull me closer to his body.

  The crash of wood and shattering glass brought me back to the room.

  Damn it. I knew this was a terrible idea.

  I whirled, expecting to see Shay charging toward us. But he wasn’t looking at us. No one was.

  The music had stopped. The table where the young wolves had been sitting was turned on its side. Glasses lay broken on the floor; those that remained intact were rolling along the slanted hardwood into the far corner of the room. Dax held a fistful of Mason’s shirt and stood snarling at him. It looked as though Mason had caught Dax’s other fist mid-swing, and he now grasped the larger boy’s hand in his own, pushing it away from him. Fey stood alongside Dax. Ansel’s hands dug into Dax’s forearm, and he struggled to pull the Bane away from Mason. Shay stood just behind Ansel, muscles tensed. Bryn had half risen from her chair and glared at Fey.

  Ren pulled away from me. “What the hell?”

  He bolted toward Dax, with me at his heels.

  Mason’s face was twisted in a scowl. “You have no right.”

  “And you need to learn to keep your mouth shut.”

  “Stop being an ass.” Ansel tugged on Dax’s arm but didn’t manage to move him an inch.

  “He’s right, Dax,” Shay said. “What’s your problem?”

  “Shut up and stay out of it,” Fey snapped.

  Neville shoved his guitar at a startled Sabine, jumped off the stage, and came to Mason’s side. He glared at Dax. “Knock it off, man. What do you think you’re doing?”

  Dax ignored him.

  I glanced around the bar, worrying we were about to get booted. But the rest of the patrons had returned to their drinks, unconcerned by a run-of-the-mill brawl.

  Ren gripped Dax’s shoulder. “Let him go, get outside, and wait for me. Now.”

  Dax released his hold on Mason’s shirt, throwing one last angry glance at him before turning and walking out of the bar. Fey took a few steps after him.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” I blocked her path.

  “Sorry, Cal.” There was a flash of steel in her eyes. “I’m with him on this one.”

  “Watch yourself, Fey,” I growled.

  She didn’t balk. “Do you have a problem with me?”

  “I’ll let you know when I’ve heard what happened.”

  “Fine.” She stepped around me, running after Dax.

  Neville started to follow them, his eyes livid.

  Ren grabbed his arm. “Get back onstage and start playing again. Whatever just happened, it’s over.”

  “But—”

  “I’m fine, Nev.” Mason put his hand on Neville’s shoulder. “We’ll sort this out. Go play.”

  With some reluctance Nev headed back to the stage, and a moment later, the music picked up again, though on a noticeably angrier riff.

  “Someone want to tell me what’s going on?” I asked.

  “It was nothing.” Mason helped Cosette right the table. “Like Ren said, it’s over now.”

  “It wasn’t nothing,” Ansel protested.

  “What happened?” Ren asked.

  “Really, let’s not make a big deal out of it,” Mason said, his face drawn. “He lost his temper, that’s all.”

  “I don’t think you can just drop it, Mason,” Shay said quietly. “It is a big deal. Dax was out of line.”

  I turned to Bryn. “What did Dax do?”

  She glanced at Mason and Ansel. “He didn’t like something Mason said . . . about Neville.”

  Ren’s jaw tightened. “I see.”

  He started toward the door, and I was right behind him. We were halfway across the room when he turned abruptly.

  “I’ll take care of it, Calla.”

  “I should be there,” I said. “This affects both of us.”

  He shook his head. “I can handle this. Dax already knows he’s in for it. It would be better if you stayed here and tried to convince the rest of them that it’s going to be okay.”

  “All right.” It was already happening. Ren was in charge now.

  I watched him leave the bar.

&
nbsp; How am I supposed to convince anyone that things will be okay? Nothing feels okay.

  I was so angry my muscles began to ache from tension. I hated being treated like an inferior. I’d always led my pack and suddenly it was as if all those years of being their alpha meant nothing. I was only Ren’s mate. I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to find Shay standing beside me.

  “That was pretty intense.”

  I nodded. “It’s a problem. Dax and Fey aren’t handling Nev and Mason’s relationship very well.”

  “I noticed that.” He glanced at the door. “What do you think Ren’s going to do?”

  “I’m not sure,” I said. “But I trust him.” Like I have any other choice.

  “You must,” he said, the corners of his mouth crinkling. “Well?”

  “Well, what?”

  “May I have this dance?”

  I blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

  “Ren had his turn on the dance floor,” Shay said. “Now it’s mine.”

  “I don’t remember agreeing to that arrangement.” I stepped back. “Besides, I have to talk with the others. Get things back to normal.”

  “That’s what I thought,” he said. “I’m going to help you.”

  I frowned at him, puzzled, as he put one hand at my waist and grabbed my other hand. He pulled me close while stretching our arms out, straight as an arrow.

  “What the hell is this?” I asked.

  “The tango,” he replied, guiding me across the floor with melodramatic, sweeping steps.

  “How is this helping?” I glanced at my packmates. They were all watching us, looking befuddled.

  “Music doesn’t soothe the savage beast, Cal,” Shay said, dipping me so low my hair brushed the floor. “Laughter does.”

  I looked toward our tables again, startled at what I saw. Shay’s plan was working. Ansel and Mason were already chuckling. Bryn giggled madly and even Cosette couldn’t stop smiling.

  Shay sighed and spun me away from him before jolting me back as if I’d been a coiled spring. “It would be much better if I had a rose between my teeth. Wouldn’t I be dashing?”

  I started to giggle. “That would be ridiculous.”

  “Ridiculously dashing.” He grinned. Even the bikers around the bar were laughing now, morphing their hardened faces from Sid Vicious to Santa Claus.

  I leaned into the warmth of Shay’s body. When he held me close, I could actually believe everything would be okay. I wondered if he knew how happy he could make me, despite my constant fears about the future. Regret suddenly constricted my chest, cutting off my laughs. Seeing me lip-locked with Ren earlier must have hurt Shay so much. He deserved better, more than I could ever offer him.