23. Anders

Chapter twenty-three

Anders

I 'd been avoiding the little kitten since the incident a week ago. It was surprisingly easy since it appeared she was avoiding all of us as well. Levy had been recalcitrant all week, refusing to see me. I knew she would cause problems, I warned Erik this would happen, but he never listened to me when it mattered. That power of hers… I didn't like it one bit. The chill it had left under my skin refused to go away. When she'd hit me with… whatever it was, it was like I'd been drugged. The noises of the world had faded away, leaving this aching hollowness in my chest. It had dulled me, slowed me. It was dangerous, whether Erik believed me or not.

Despite my misgivings, we still had appearances to keep up. I went to a boutique close by and picked up a new shirt for Levy and one for myself, as well as a suitable dress for Grace to wear. She was one of us, at least right now, so she had to look the part. Up until King Sr. called, I'd almost been having a decent time, but that man, like his son, knew exactly how to push my buttons. I considered ignoring him, but in the end, he'd just show up at the house, and that was a headache I wanted to avoid.

"Yes?" I answered, shifting through a set of hideously pink club outfits.

"Did you and my idiot son have something to do with the Harding girl going missing?" he demanded, foregoing the tedious preamble and getting straight to the point. At least, that was something I could get behind.

"She's missing?" I asked, moving to a section of blue dresses instead. Much less painful on the eyes. I heard him sigh, and he sounded remarkably like his son in that respect.

"Don't play coy with me. You've got your nose in everything. So did my son take her or not?" he snapped.

"I think I would be aware if there was a kidnapped woman locked in my house," I mused, practically hearing his teeth grinding over the phone. "You could always ask Jesse, he's much more knowledgeable about Erik's female companions than I am." I pulled out a midnight-blue dress that would suit Grace's coloring nicely, listening as King Sr. grunted something unintelligible. Figuring we were done chatting, I hung up, dialing King Jr. next to fill him in.

Erik might irritate the living shit out of me, but he was the King I grew up with and, despite his many flaws, he was a reasonable person. His goals aligned with mine, for the most part. Plus… he was understanding. He'd helped me out more than once when my lack of social skills had gotten me into trouble, and he'd let me stick around when it became clear that we worked well together, despite our differences. He'd never asked questions about my relationship with my father, and I'd always had a place to hide out when I needed to escape the confines of my fractured home. So, Alejandro King could bluster all he wanted, but my loyalties would always remain with his son.

Driving home with my new purchases, I made the mental checklist of things we needed to get done before we left tonight. Levy normally required some more motivation in order to leave the house, whether it was a bribe or mild intoxication. I figured a bribe would suffice tonight as there would be alcohol at the event. Sebastian Carrow… my lip curled as I adjusted my hands on the steering wheel to the proper ten and two position. He was a slippery bastard, hiding behind honest money and an expensive last name. He let thugs like us do his dirty work so he could keep his nose clean and his halo shiny. But he was a good connection and an ally we'd need when we broke from King Sr. As long as he could keep his hands off our new pet, tonight should go swimmingly.

I pulled into the garage and carried my purchases inside, bringing Levy's shirt upstairs first since I was sure he'd be moping about as usual. Sure enough, the bed creaked as I walked into the room, and I could feel his blood pumping harder as I approached. "For tonight," I announced, laying the shirt on the bed. "You can take this to the kitten downstairs," I laid the dress beside it, and he sighed audibly like an obstinate brat.

"Why are you avoiding her? What did you do?" I asked, walking around the bed to corner him. I caught his arm as he tried to move past me and pushed him against the wall.

"Why are you avoiding her?" Levy muttered, and I raised an eyebrow at his audacity.

"I don't trust her," I replied, narrowing my eyes at him. "What's your excuse?" He didn't answer, and I smirked, letting go of his arm. "Take that down to her, now. And get your shit together. You need to protect her tonight, do you understand? Erik and Jesse will be busy working, and I don't care enough about her to make the effort. So it's up to you to keep her safe. Can you do that? Or should I leave you at home?" I snapped. I felt him stiffen in front of me, letting out a sigh.

"Fine," he mumbled, and I nodded curtly, stepping out of the way so he could leave. Giving him a sense of purpose always seemed to help when he got into a funk like this. At least, with him gone, I could have the bathroom to myself for a while.

I turned the shower on to the optimal temperature and waited until it warmed up before stepping in. I sighed and set about washing my hair, checking my face to see if the stubble I'd grown was worth shaving again. Once I was clean enough for my liking, I braced a hand on the shower wall and steadied myself, taking a few deep breaths. For just a moment, I let myself feel.

Need washed over me, wild and uncontrolled like a forest fire. I thought about Levy, moaning behind a gag when I'd left him tied up on my bed. I bit the inside of my cheek, tasting blood when I remembered how close I'd been to Grace that evening, how easy it had been to part her legs, how good she'd smelled when I'd leaned into her. My cock was hard and leaking as I hissed out a breath between my teeth and cranked the water to full heat. The burn was excruciating, and I allowed it to eat its way through my muscles, into the marrow of my bones as I shoved all of those feelings back inside, deep down where they couldn't control me.

My skin ached by the time I turned the water off, but I felt good. I was in control. I shaved again and slicked back my hair, using gel to hold it in place. I took the pins out of my new shirt and tried it on, surprisingly pleased with the cut. I buffed an errant mark out of my shoes and considered my cufflink options for several minutes before deciding on a sterling silver pair.

A door slamming nearby told me that Jesse was ready to go—he got careless when he was excited. I headed downstairs, smoothing my hair back idly as I looked for the others. Erik was already having a drink, sitting on the couch and rumpling his dress shirt. I rolled my eyes at him, and Jesse nodded at me. He, at least, cleaned up well, although the ridiculous man bun diminished it somewhat. Levy cleared his throat, flickering briefly into view before disappearing once more, saving his energy most likely.

"Where is Grace?" I asked, checking the time. Jesse grimaced, and I signed the question, but he just shrugged. "For god sake, did any of you bother to check on her?" I snapped, and they shook their heads. I rolled my eyes and headed to the basement. I'd drag her ass upstairs myself if that was what it took. Or better yet, she could stay here and out of trouble.

"Kitten, we are late!" I snapped, throwing open her bedroom door. I stopped, staring at the scene in front of me. Grace was in her dress—the color was perfect, I'd been right of course—but she had it hiked up to her hips, her foot propped up on the footboard of her bed as she struggled with her shoe.

"Unless you want me barefoot, you can fucking wait!" She seethed at me, looking surprisingly angry for such a timid creature.

"How hard could it be, it's a fucking shoe," I replied, storming over to her and kneeling at her feet. She straightened hastily and yelped as I snatched her foot, quickly grabbing onto my shoulder for balance.

"The piece is bent, the strap won't hold," she muttered as I looked it over, gripping her calf to steady her. Her skin was warm in my hand, and I glanced up to find her blushing at the awkward position.

"It's fixable. Watch," I explained, moving the little piece back into place and shifting the strap so I could fasten it on. "Easy," I told her, glancing up. There it was, that goddamn menace of a power of hers. It practically oozed out of her, infecting my skin and dulling my senses. I dropped her foot and stood quickly, catching her elbow before she could topple over.

"Let's go," I bit out, leaving her to follow after me as I strode up the stairs and out to the car. Everyone else met me on the driveway, Erik taking his usual place beside me as the rest of them climbed in the back. I ignored their conversation as I drove, focusing on the route I'd mapped out before we left. We'd been to Sebastian's house a few times, but I never bothered to memorize the route, since it wasn't a place I enjoyed going to.

Of course, Seb had valets on hand to deal with the guests' cars, he was well known for throwing raging parties. I pulled up to the front where some idiot in an ugly vest was waiting to take my keys. Levy flickered into view as I parked, looking pale and uncomfortable in his new maroon shirt. Jesse was grinning like an idiot, oblivious to the tension in the car. He hopped out as soon as we stopped and helped Grace out of the car, walking her over to Erik, who held out his arm for her to take. Of course, we all had our roles to play now. I tucked my glasses in my pocket and stepped in behind them, Levy at my side as we walked up to the mansion.

The party was already well underway, judging by the amount of drunks in the pool. I didn't bother with the fake smile like Jesse and Erik—people knew me well enough to leave me alone for the most part. Of course, some would recognize my last name and try to ingratiate themselves with me to a certain extent. Some women would even try to catch my eye, flirting in a painfully obvious and simpering way that made my lip curl.

Someone with a tray of drinks greeted us at the door, and we each got a glass of champagne shoved into our hands. Mine would go to Levy as usual, I rarely drank, one of the benefits of being the designated driver. It allowed me to stay in control in these sorts of situations.

Grace seemed nervous, glued to Erik's side like he was some kind of lifeline. We were tethered to him like puppets, following him as he wandered through the sea of guests, greeting every moron who wanted the chance to introduce themselves to us.

None of them even bothered to interact with Jesse, and I knew Erik took note of that, taking personal offense to everyone who wrote Jesse off because he couldn't easily participate in their banal conversations.

Eventually, Erik was pulled away, a hand on his elbow as someone dragged him off to talk business, leaving our little kitten adrift. Jesse followed Erik, acting as his right hand, as usual.

Now that her two watchdogs were gone, I was excited to see how the kitten handled herself in this den of diamond-encrusted wolves.