Chapter 25

Chapter

Twenty-Five

Evelyn

T he cue ball cracked against the striped orange ball, sending it careening toward the far corner pocket. I held my breath, willing it to drop. At the last second, it caught the edge and bounced out. Damn.

Rowan's low chuckle sent a shiver down my spine. "Tough luck there, Strawberry." His blue eyes sparkled with mischief.

I winked at him. "Don't get too comfy."

Rowan shook his head as he circled the pool table, sizing up his shot. The dim lighting of the pub cast shadows across his chiseled features. Something in the way he carried himself made my insides liquify. It couldn't be summed up as mere confidence. It was more than that. It was raw power barely contained. Like a shaken up Coke. I wondered what would happen if I popped that tab.

I tossed my hair over my shoulder, hoping nobody would notice my blush. "Are you wearing any jewelry, Rowan?"

He grunted. "Don't distract me."

"Oh, I'm not trying to distract you." I leaned low over the side of the pool table, knowing exactly how much of my bra would be peeking out of my shirt right about then.

Rowan's eyes flicked up. His hand tightened on his pool cue. Without breaking eye contact, he said, "Seven. Side pocket." He took the shot and sank the ball. My mouth went dry.

My stomach swooped, and adrenaline pumped through my veins, making me heady. The air between us practically crackled. As a lone wolf, I was used to keeping others at a distance, but Rowan drew me in like a moth to a flame.

I knew it was mostly the bond to blame. Mostly. I also knew if I held out long enough, that would start to fade. I'd intended to do just that. Stay away from him. Focus on finding Callista. Get back to Seattle. But now…

Rowan straightened up and flashed me a devastating grin, his eyes burning into mine.

I exhaled and reached up to my right ear.

His smile faltered. "Earrings don't count."

"They sure as hell do count," Mia called out.

Rowan shot her a look. "Whose side are you on?"

Mia pointed at me, and I laughed, setting my earring on the closest table. "Keep that safe for me."

"Both." Rowan tapped his cue on the floor.

I frowned. "What do you?—"

"If earrings count, it has to be both."

I reached up and took off my second earring. "Fine."

Rowan nodded, satisfied, then took his next shot. It was ambitious, and he missed.

I swallowed hard and picked up my cue, determined to wipe that sexy smirk off his face. Game on. I stepped up to the pool table, my focus narrowing to the colored balls scattered across the green felt. The cue stick felt solid and smooth beneath my fingers.

I leaned down, took aim, called my shot, and struck the cue ball. It connected with a sharp crack, sending the three-ball rolling toward the corner pocket. For a breathless moment, I thought it wouldn't drop, but at the last second, it toppled over the edge.

Whoops and cheers erupted from the pack members clustered around the pool table as I bent to line up my next shot. Their raucous encouragement only stoked the flames. I wanted to beat him.

"Take it off, Rowan!" Jace hollered, his grin wolfish.

Heat flooded my cheeks. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to see him. All of him. Which caught me off guard. After Nathan, the idea of being intimate with anyone shut me down like pressing a power button on a computer. But after Rowan had spent time discovering nearly every inch of me in the cabin, my screen was suddenly back on.

I felt safe with him.

That in and of itself was a miracle. He'd had every opportunity to force me to submit to him, and he'd never taken advantage. He had a damn mating bond in his pocket—a justifiable reason to push me—and still, he'd allowed me to be the one in control.

Ironically, that only made me want to move over and let him sit in the driver's seat.

As Rowan reached over his back and pulled his shirt over his head in one smooth motion, my breath caught in my throat. Sweet moon above. I'd imagined Rowan shirtless countless times over the past few days, but the reality put every fantasy to shame. Golden skin stretched taut over chiseled muscle, his abs so defined they deserved their own zip code. And those tattooed sleeves hugging his bulging biceps...I wanted to trace every swirl and whorl with my tongue.

And the way he undressed? That was stupid hot. I suddenly didn't want to be in this packed pub.

I wanted him to do that again.

Just for me.

Rowan looked up, and by his devilish grin, he knew exactly what effect he was having on me. My wolf was panting, and he could feel it.

I kept my eyes fixed firmly on the cue ball, trying to ignore the heat between my thighs. Hard to do when I had to walk up to the table.

Rowan chuckled, low and dark, as he braced his hands on the polished wood. "Two can play at this game."

"I don't know what you're talking about." I forced my eyes to stay put and then sucked in a breath as a wave of heat pulsed through me, flooding from my head to my toes. Holy shit. My eyes snapped up. "What the hell?" I hissed.

Rowan smiled innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about."

I swallowed hard, trying to clear my blurring vision. Never in my life had I been this turned on before. I could feel him—sense his longing through our solidifying bond—and I was not equipped to handle it. Images of him throwing me onto the pool table and claiming me right there in front of everyone flashed in my head, and I couldn't make them leave. Didn't want to make them leave. I was going to combust. That or throw my cue down on the floor and jump him like a wolf in heat.

I jolted as something ice cold hit my neck. My eyes closed involuntarily as Rowan's hand ran an ice cube up and down the ridges of my spine, slipping his fingers beneath the fabric of my tank top. "It's a bit hot in here, don't you think?"

"Mmm." I could barely make my voice work. My breath came in quick bursts as the melting ice dripped down my back.

Rowan pulled it from my skin, then waited until I looked up to place the half-melted ice cube on his tongue. He stood there in front of me and sucked on it. "It's still your shot."

Dead. I was dead.

"Don't you dare let him win, Evelyn!" a young wolf standing next to Mia called out.

I looked up to see we'd attracted not only the rest of the pack but plenty of mundanes as well. They clinked their glasses and egged me on. I turned back to Rowan. He was shirtless, and I was only missing my earrings.

I stood straight, reached into the glass of whatever the hell he was drinking and stole an ice cube, popping it in my mouth. I leaned in close and whispered, "Thanks for the reminder," then flicked my ice cold tongue against his neck.

Rowan reached for my waist, but I slipped out of his grip and lined up my next shot. I gritted my teeth, calling into play every crisis skill I'd ever utilized on an emergency call. With a sharp crack, I sent the cue ball careening into the six-ball. It dropped neatly into the corner pocket.

I straightened and shot Rowan a triumphant look. "I believe you owe me an article of clothing, alpha."

His eyes never left mine as he flicked the button open on his jeans. The women started catcalling, and my wolf growled. Mine. I shook myself. Not mine , I shot back. Not yet, at least. I was still planning to go back to Seattle. No matter how much I wanted Rowan Steele, I couldn't stay here. Not with Nathan less than twenty minutes away, and not when being with him could mean an all-out pack war. I wouldn't do that to him or his wolves.

But then his jeans were puddled on the ground, and that time, I couldn't keep my eyes on the pool balls. I scanned his body, taking in his tight, black boxer briefs and eeeeverything they were barely containing.

"Like what you see?" Rowan asked with a self-assured smirk that made me want to smack him. Or jump his bones. You know, options.

"One more shot, Evelyn!" Jasper hooted.

He was right. One more, and I would win…and Rowan would have to drop his boxers. I started to sweat. I lined up the shot, but my hands were shaking so hard I could barely hold the stick steady. I drew a deep breath and struck, but the cue ball missed my intended target.

Rowan brushed against me as he strutted over to set his glass down and pick up his cue. "My turn."

He didn't waste a breath before knocking the ten-ball into the far pocket. He stood, his eyes darkening as he nodded to my shirt. "No more jewelry?"

No more jewelry, damn it. I crossed my arms and tugged my tank top over my head. Cool air kissed my overheated skin as I tossed it aside, leaving me in just my black lace bra. Rowan had already seen my body, but it felt different here.

His eyes darkened to cobalt as his gaze drifted down my body, all the men in the pub cheering him on.

"He won't make the next one!" Mia jeered.

But Rowan wasn't messing around now. He lowered himself over the table. "Twelve. Back right." Crack. He sent it off the side wall, spinning right where he'd called it.

Heat bloomed beneath my skin as Rowan stalked toward me, his movements fluid and predatory. I stood my ground, refusing to back down even as my heart hammered against my ribcage. He stopped mere inches away, close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating off his bare chest. "Pants."

I undid the button on my jeans and pulled them over my hips, but Rowan stopped my hands. "I'll take it from here." He dragged the fabric down my thighs, over my knees and calves, then waited for me to step out. Once I did, he threw my jeans next to his.

My heart pounded in my chest. I stood in my lace boy shorts in front of an entire pub, and Rowan wasn't missing. "Rowan?—"

He stalked away from me and called another shot, then lined up his stick and?—

Missed.

My pulse fluttered in my throat. Rowan straightened, locking his eyes on mine. "Looks like it's your shot."

Had he done that on purpose? He'd just proven that he could make whatever shot he wanted, and then…

"Take him, Evelyn!"

"You only need one shot to win this!"

I didn't know who was yelling through the din, but I grabbed my stick and assessed the table. When I saw where the cue ball ended up, my eyes found Rowan's.

Did you set this up? I didn't realize I'd pushed my voice into his head until his eyes widened and his lips parted. How had I done that? When I'd tried before, it felt like I was hitting a brick wall, but now it felt like blowing water through a straw.

Why would I do that? I'm only in my boxers , Rowan sent back.

I glanced back at the table. He'd done this on purpose. I was sure of it. There was no better place for that cue ball for my next shot.

But why?

"Take the shot!"

"Bury him!"

Blood rushed in my ears as I bent over and called the shot, then struck. The ball sank, and before I could stand up, Rowan's hands slid around my waist, his touch scorching. Wolf whistles and cheers erupted around us.

"Why did you do that?" I whispered.

Rowan's voice was low. "You'll never have to wonder if I'll take the fall for you." He stepped back and dropped his boxers. The cheers were deafening, and my brain short-circuited. Rowan Steele, naked as the day he was born, in front of his entire pack. In front of the entire pub.

For me.

It was the ultimate display of vulnerability from an alpha. Of trust. My tough shell of a heart cracked wide open, every protective instinct surging to the surface. I wanted to cherish him, worship him, claim him as mine.

Right this second.

When our gazes locked again, the rest of the world fell away. Nothing existed except the two of us and the electric current flowing between us. I took a shuddering breath, struggling for control. "Can you give me a ride home?"

Rowan's mouth quirked. "Do you want?—"

"Now. Please."

His grin widened. He quickly pulled up his boxers and grabbed the rest of our clothes, then grabbed my hand and pulled me to the door.