Chapter 16

Devin had no idea what she’d gotten herself into.

Two weeks of constant male attention, and she’d lost her mind. That had to be the reason why she wriggled her way into the glittering gold dress with the loose strings of beads caressing her back. No bra, no underwear. She felt strange and oddly naked without them. It wasn’t as if she’d never gone without, but under Beau’s orders made it something so different.

Exhaling a shaky breath, Devin stepped into the four-inch-tall boots. Similar to the ones she’d worn that first night in Wicked, she couldn’t help but chuckle as she zipped them up to her knees.

Turning to view herself in the full-length mirror, Devin nodded her head side to side. Gold wasn’t really her color, but it was what Beau laid out on the bed after shaking her awake. He’d demanded she get up, shower, and dress. Devin decided she looked good, the light catching the gilded material to make her sparkle. She bubbled like champagne. Though she had no idea what was going on, she delighted in all the heated thoughts flitting through her mind. Maybe she would dance for them, though the tease would be short-lived with nothing beneath the glittering sequins.

Leaning towards the mirror, Devin fixed the line of deep red lipstick and stepped back to do a slow turn, taking in the sight from all angles. The dress didn’t even hit mid-thigh, and one wrong move would flash much more than the fact she wasn’t wearing anything beneath the clinging fabric. Her ass looked exquisite in the heels, though, as did her legs. Calves taut, thighs elongated, they looked delectable.

Devin snorted at the thought, glancing towards the closed bedroom door. Rey couldn’t see her, but the idea of delicious legs had to have come from him.

He’d relaxed. A lot. While no less possessive or demanding, he didn’t seem so intent on forcing it. Far less interested in crushing her beneath his will… unless it was during some debauched scene they worked out for her to play in. It was even stranger since he was sharing her with Beau, but no more than she shared him with Beau. Watching them come together, seeing the power of Rey bending Beau to his desires, was thrilling. Rey seemed to feel the same way. He was always harder, rougher, after watching Beau with her.

She’d given up rationalizing it. Stopped pretending that it made any sense at all. Two Alphas together was unheard of, but sharing a mated Omega between them was blasphemy.

There was only one thing Beau was never allowed, and they were all in silent agreement.

“How much longer,” Beau shouted through the door, the panel shuddering under the force of his impatience.

“Just a minute!”

“She said that twenty minutes ago.” It had to be Beau’s fist that slammed into the wall, his low rumble that followed.

“Women need to do more than shave,” Rey said, laughing at Beau’s expense, though Devin heard their footfalls fade down the hall.

Checking the smoky gold eyeshadow and the line of her lipstick one more time, Devin headed towards the formal living room. She almost never entered that space. Rey greeted the men reeking of violence and danger there. The sitting room was hers and being called to the other gave a sizzling thrill that shimmered under the surface of her skin.

If she thought about it much longer, her thighs would start slipping against each other.

“Well?” Devin hated the note of insecurity in her voice as she performed a lazy twirl for the seated Alphas. She remembered not to bite her lips, but only at the last second.

“Absolutely not,” Rey snarled, shoving against the arms of his chair to come at Devin. He reached for her, baring his teeth as she took a quick step back from the force of his rage.

“Come on, Rey!” Beau stalked behind Devin, stalling her mincing retreat so that he caught her between them.

“I can put something else on if you don’t like it,” Devin stammered, blinking hard as she ducked her head. She’d thought she looked okay, but maybe not. Sniffing, she stomped down on the ridiculous urge to cry. It stung that Rey’s first reaction was to deny her this small moment, whatever it was Beau had planned.

“You’re fucking hot, baby, ignore him.” Beau brushed Devin’s hair from her shoulder, laying the tight line of his lips against her.

“You look too good, sweetheart.” Sandpaper rough, Rey’s voice scraped over her as he tipped her head back to accept his kiss.

“It’s just the fucking club, Rey. No one’s going to mess with her there, and we’ll be with her the entire time.”

“It’s okay, I’ll just…” Devin didn’t know what she planned to do. Scrub away every hint that she’d thought she was pretty, maybe even a little sexy. She felt stupid now as she shrugged free of their abhorrent comfort, the click of the heels ratcheting up her spine to bow her shoulders.

“Happy now?” Beau’s caustic voice drifted down the hall as Devin slipped into the bedroom and closed the door silently behind her.

She really had gone insane. Though she had no inkling of Beau’s plan to take her to Wicked, she had thought Rey would at least enjoy the outfit. Her being all made up, the slinky dress clinging to her every curve, the high arch of the heels keeping her almost on tip toe. Not so. His anger resonated through the bond even now. He’d hated seeing her like that.

In the fragile privacy of the bathroom, Devin swiped at the streaky charcoal tracks marring her cheeks. She’d lost her tenuous grip on her emotions after all, though she hoped neither had seen it. Reaching into the stall, she turned the hot water on full blast. Intent on ridding herself of the pathetic creature looking back at her from the mirror. After removing the boots, she ripped the dress off. A sob caught in her throat when a string of beads snapped, sending them scattering across the cool tiles. Each ping reverberated through her skull as she scurried into the shower.

It didn’t matter that she’d done this a mere two hours before. Devin picked up the fluffy pouf and scoured her skin. Scalding heat and furious strokes turning her bright pink. Red-rimmed eyes rubbed with frantic palms to be rid of the heavy layers of powder she’d put so much effort into. None of it came to her naturally. She wasn’t one to wear makeup all the time, even before all of this. Each painstaking execution swirled down the drain with a gurgling hiss.

Devin shuffled away from the cold eddies of air invading the shower as the door opened. She kept her head bowed under the pounding spray as a warm body pressed against her back, ignoring the quiet rumble of a purr, the heat of callused hands smoothing down her arms.

A body blocked the water, an icy finger scratching at her spine and prickling her skin. Rey. The deep golden amber of his skin doused in water, the tiny rivulets cascading down the hills and valleys of taut muscle to verge together in thick streams. He caught her slack hands, pressing them low on his abdomen. The coarse hair sprinkling his skin scratched at her palms.

“We’re going to go out and have a good time,” Beau murmured at her ear before scraping his teeth over the trembling pulse below her jaw. “But first you’re going to spread and take his big cock in your tight pussy. Can you do that for me, baby?”

Devin’s brows twitched, drifting towards a frown before Beau snarled. The vicious sound clenched around her spine as he bent her forward, stealing her breath on a quiet whimper when his large hands closed over her legs. Folding her up, Beau lifted her. Presenting her to Rey like a gift wrapped prize.

“I asked you a question,” Beau hissed. He caught the tender skin of her unmarked shoulder between his teeth, adding pressure until Devin whined and trembled.

This wasn’t how it went. Not anymore. Beau was rough, yes, always, but he didn’t soak up her terror. The cruel reminder of what came before twisted through her. Icy fingers clawing at her despite the heat pooling through her belly at Rey’s savage call.

“It’s okay,” Rey whispered, sensing her unease with the sudden change. Running his hands up her thighs, his thumbs teased against the delicate skin on either side of her entrance. Leaning close, he brushed his lips against hers. “He’s got an image to uphold. You need to be a little afraid of him tonight, sweetheart.”

“I don’t w-want—”

“What you want doesn’t matter,” Beau said through a low growl, a snap of his hips rocking Devin forward and impaling her on Rey’s thickness before she was ready.

Beau’s implacable grip countered Devin’s attempt to writhe as she gasped at the painful stretch. Keeping her still and open for the slow glide of Rey’s cock as he leaned into her. The brutal ache when he bottomed out forced an airy cry from her throat.

“It’s got to be quick, sweetheart,” Rey groaned and drove Beau back into the tiled wall with his next hard thrust. Ramming deep into Devin. His head rolling along his shoulders as he breathed in her warbling keen.

“You like it,” Beau husked at her cheek, digging his fingers in to pry her wider for Rey’s vicious assault. “Dirty little bitch, you want to be fucked hard, used for whatever we want.”

Devin shook her head in denial, but it was no use. It was them. The cruel betrayal of her body completed as she opened to Rey’s assault. The bond surged through her, easing the pain away every time Rey impaled her. Shoving his cock as deep as it would go in her awkward position, trying to grind in further as her body refused to accept all of him. Despite the deep scratches Beau left on her pale flesh, his thumbs ran a constant circuit. A soothing touch, even as he stretched and pulled at her.

“Yes, you do. Filthy bitch!” Beau hissed, tugging her legs back until her hips groaned in protest.

Slick dripped from her in a constant stream, glistening on Rey’s shaft as it reappeared. Forced to look while Beau attacked the back of her neck with savage kisses, Devin dragged in a ragged gasp. The deep bronze of his skin ruddy with the hammering pulse of his heart, Rey’s greedy strokes worked her to a frothy perfection. Coating him in thick, milky smears of it before he plunged deep to pummel her cervix. As if punishing her for making him so needy, so damn eager.

“Like that Alpha cock? Yeah, you fucking need it. Want all your holes dripping with his come, don’t you?”

The heat simmering low in her hips radiated outward. Teasing touches of pleasure singeing through her veins as she took in the sight, the sound. Gods, the smell! It inundated her, laying waste to her reluctance on a single shaky breath.

“Fuck. Gods.” Rey bared his teeth, chest heaving with his ragged breaths. Curling his fingers over her hips, he pulled Devin into every wild thrust, the furious tempo becoming erratic.

“Seriously,” Beau said with a breathless laugh, ducking his head to hide his grin against Devin’s neck. He bit her shoulder at her confused whine. “Hear that, baby? That tight cunt is too much for him. Now you make it real good or you’re going to regret it.”

Devin had no idea if he was serious, what he might do to her. It was enough to send a shuddering thrill through her body. Slick muscle clenched tight around the driving power of Rey’s length. Throwing his head back, Rey roared. Threatened to force his knot inside of her before he dropped a hand to grip it. Knuckles blanching as he squeezed it tight, filling her pussy to overflowing with his come.

“No,” Devin wailed, her hips barely twitching under Beau’s relentless control. It couldn’t be over. She wanted so much more.

Beau cursed under his breath, dropping Devin to the small bench at the back of the cubicle. Diving between her splayed legs, he attacked her pussy. He groaned against the swollen folds as his tongue lashed at the pert nub of her clit. Devin squealed and pulled her legs wide. Spreading for him as the excruciating pleasure threaded through her limbs. Trembling muscles drawing tight as heat suffused her. Rough fingers delved deep inside of her, and abraded sensitive flesh as Beau used them to fuck her at the furious pace her body craved.

Rey’s shadow fell over her as he came to her side. Still wringing his knot, he aimed the pearlescent fluid across Devin’s breasts and stomach and growled with every thick pulse.

Whining low in her throat, Devin reached for Rey. Tangled her fingers in short, blond hair as she directed Beau’s tongue, aiming his sucking lips to take her clit in their violent kiss. It built deep within her. The fierce roar of pleasure consuming her with every frenzied flick of his tongue. Stroking Rey’s shaft, pulling him to her, she swallowed all that he offered. Relishing the decadent, dark taste of him.

“You fucking come now, bitch,” Beau roared, jamming three fingers into her. Stretching them wide, filling her. Biting down hard on her clit.

Devin gave a shattered scream as the violent pleasure tore through her. Bucking and shuddering as the cresting wave crashed over her head. The wet, rippling contractions of her pussy strangled Beau’s fingers. Vision sheeting to white, the glorious roar of it drowning out all but the hammering of her heart.

Devin drowsed as they picked her up from the bench. Gentle hands cleaned away the spatters of milky fluid clinging to her cheeks and chin, the rest they rubbed into her flesh. Rey’s scent coated her in hazy warmth. A comfortable blanket in the middle of a winter storm.

Inexplicable tears sprung to her eyes as they helped her from the shower, her gaze drawn to the ruined dress.

“Shh, sweetheart. He’s got another one for you,” Rey said through the rich purr. Petting her hair with careful hands as he tipped her head back for his kiss. “It’ll look even better on you, too.”

“He’s saying that because it’s red,” Beau retorted from where he kneeled at Devin’s feet, buffing her legs dry.

“He likes red,” Devin hummed, leaning forward to nuzzle Rey’s chest. Taking in his scent, fresh and strong. She was drunk on him, wanted more of him on her tongue, inside of her. “Likes teal, too.”

“You were beautiful.” Rey ducked to catch her dreamy gaze, answering her tentative smile with his own.

“Should have led with that,” Beau muttered.

Devin agreed, but kept her thoughts to herself. Standing naked in the foggy bathroom, she tried to piece everything together in the warm syrup of her thoughts. It appeared she was going out after all. Not just a private dance for them in the house, but out to the club. Even if she had to sit in the office the entire time while they worked, it’d be good.

They didn’t leave her to dress this time. Both males standing at the ready to hand her brushes, comb, slide the expensive silk stockings onto her legs. The dress was deep crimson, an incredible blue-red that suited her much better than the gold. A narrow strip of cloth at her neck held it up, the cutout leaving her shoulders and most of her collarbone bare. Rey’s vicious mark was plain to see. Smothered in his scent, there would be no question who she belonged to.

Snug in the backseat of the sedan a few minutes later, Rey laid out the rules of the evening.

“You will stay by my side. If for any reason you aren’t with me, you will always remain in sight of Beau. If he tells you to come to him, you go to him. No back talk, no complaining.” Rey’s hands tensed over the wheel, the leather groaning under his flexing fingers.

“It’ll be fine, man.” Beau glanced back at Devin with one brow cocked. There wasn’t a question deep in the pale blue of his gaze. It was a promise. A dangerous one.

“It’s stupid and insane,” Rey said through a growl. “Don’t talk to anyone, either!”

“I understand.” Devin crossed her hands in her lap, trying not to let them show her nerves. It was the first time she’d been out since all this began, really. She didn’t count when Rey had to drag her everywhere with him. Didn’t want to think of the thin scar slithering down the inside of her wrist.

She didn’t understand this sudden change in him, but she hoped it was the beginning of something. Things were… not terrific, but on their way to better. In an attempt to be optimistic, she could only pray to the Gods that it would continue.

Devin was bouncing in her seat by the time they arrived at the club. It must have been packed. A line snaked its way from the neon lit front doors around the block, the crowd a snarling mass of impatience to gain entry.

Rey’s hand appeared before her on a vicious swirl of freezing air as he offered it to help her out. Sliding her palm across his, she refused to touch the bond rioting within her chest. So sure his protective jealousy would infect her, she patted his chest before sliding around to his opposite side. He couldn’t shove her back into the car now. Linking her arm with his, she grinned up at him, petting his arm as she squeezed it against her side.

Her bravery faltered as the back door opened for a strange, dark-haired woman. The female Alpha lifted her head in a rough nod of greeting before she bent over the cigarette she jammed between her lips. The flame of her lighter cast eerie shadows over her strong features.

“How’s it going in there, Margo,” Beau called as he moved to block the woman’s view of Devin.

“Fuckin’ madhouse. Better get double time for this shit.” The woman, Margo, grunted, planting her sole against the brick wall as she sucked down a plume of smoke. “Tips have been fuck all.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Rey ushered Devin inside, a growl emanating from deep in his chest. Between the deafening bass thumping through the entire building and the din of hundreds of voices, Devin felt it more than she heard it.

“Why are there so many people?” Courage burning to ash, Devin clung to the sturdy strength of Rey’s arm. No longer to appease his possessive rage, but to calm the spiral of panic rising through her chest.

“We can leave. Right now.” Rey’s other arm came around to crush Devin to him in a circle of implacable protection.

“No, we can’t.” Beau glanced from the back door to the upper level before crowding close enough Devin couldn’t help but breathe them both in. “I can take her if it comes to that, but you’ve got to be here, Rey. We can’t afford for you not to be.”

“What do you mean?” Devin started to turn, but they’d caged her in, locked tight in their combined embrace.

“The big boss sent some outsiders to us to work out new deals,” Beau said at her ear, still having to almost shout as the music became even louder. “We’re hosting this huge ass party so they get lost in the shuffle. The locals have already seen you, so you’re here to prove Rey is strong enough to flaunt his mate.”

Rey snarled and shoved at Beau’s shoulder, not pleased with their business being shared with Devin. She was glad of it, though, and took a deep breath to wrangle her frayed nerves back under control. They weren’t going to take her out into the press of writhing bodies where no one would ever hear her scream. It would be somewhere far quieter, away from prying eyes. Devin nuzzled Rey’s chest, purring though she had no idea if he would hear her over the chaos.

Whether he heard it or not, some of the tension left his shoulders. Large palm pressing against the small of her back, he tugged Devin close for a moment before he turned them all to the stairs. One glance at her, and Rey steered their little coterie towards the elevator at the end of the hall.

“I could have managed,” Devin whispered, bumping Rey with her hip.

“Probably, but I couldn’t watch your ass for an entire flight and not bend you over.” Rey stooped to nip her ear, pressing a smile to her cheek before he straightened. Smoothing his expression, his shoulders squared. The doors hadn’t even opened yet, and already he was becoming cold, distant. His lips twisted into a not-quite scowl as his shoulders rose, expanding his chest, making him appear even larger than he was.

Beau did the same.

They dwarfed Devin as she stood between them, and the very real risk of this little escapade hit her with the full force of a landslide. A mere look could be enough to send Rey into a rage, a careless touch to have blood spilled. Beau had become possessive in his own way, though she wasn’t certain he would lose all control if something happened. He might though, and that was enough that the pace of Devin’s breathing picked up, the fine hairs at the back of her neck standing on end in response to the aura of danger building around her.

“Deep breaths, baby. You get all nervous on us now, and shit will get bad,” Beau murmured, hanging back with Devin as Rey led the way to the raucous noise spilling out of the larger party room.

“I need a drink. Something strong.”

“You need to catch up to him. Now.”

The click of her heels was loud to her, but all the laughter and growling voices drowned it out as Devin rushed to take her place a step behind Rey. With her head bowed, the fall of her curls hid her face from view.

In the middle of her pep-talk to remain calm, submissive, the perfect mate, a hoarse shout threw the train of her thoughts off the rails. Moans filtered past the bulk of Rey’s body. The airy trills of women. Alpha musk came to her on warm currents of air. Sex and violence.

“Still got the best bitches this side of the bay, Beau,” a man said through a pattern of heavy grunts Devin could imagine all too well.

“I’m glad you’re all enjoying the amenities,” Beau said, smooth as silk, as he breezed past Rey. A snap of his fingers brought a trail of women in tight, revealing costumes parading past Devin. They carried trays of drinks, good bourbon and whiskey.

She didn’t even see where they came from. Fingers fluttering in the warm space at Rey’s back, she considered telling him no. Begging him to let her leave, that she couldn’t do this after all. A glimpse of steely blue eyes had her hand dropping back to her side. Beau was right. Rey would try to leave with her. No, wouldn’t try to. He would leave with her, and whatever this was, it’d be ruined because she was scared of a bunch of men.

She’d faced down Alphas before. Got herself out of more than one predicament mostly unscathed. This wasn’t that different, and she had Rey to look out for her now. She just had to play by the rules. Devin took a steadying breath laden with cheap perfume and Alpha musk and squared her shoulders.

At some unseen signal, Rey entered. He went straight for a chair set apart but facing the rest. Leather sighed as he sat, a tip of his chin directing Devin to sit on the wide arm of the seat. Thankful for the heels now that she didn’t have to hop up onto it, Devin curled one leg up just enough for balance and slid her hip as close to Rey as she dared.

Keeping her eyes averted from the lewd scenes playing out in front of her was much harder. She knew those sounds and what they meant. A spark of curiosity made her wonder if she sounded like that, and she couldn’t help how her cheeks warmed at the thought. Her fingers fidgeted on her lap as she tried to banish it.

“I know you’re enjoying yourselves, but the sooner we can get this done, the sooner you can get on with your nights.” Rey twirled two fingers in the air, and the simple gesture was enough to have the women up on their feet, a veritable stream of them flooding out the door.

“Don’t worry, they’ll be ready for you when we’re done.” The twist of Beau’s lips was a cruel, edged thing. “And I’ve got a few party favors I’ve been saving just for you all.”

Something Devin remembered well, a thing she feared. She’d seen it all too often in the chaotic jumble of drug hazed memories. How could she have forgotten it, the terror it incited? All these weeks lavished with his attention didn’t undo that damage, yet she’d accepted him without balking.

How had that happened? An acrid cocktail of panic and anger clawed at her throat, threatening to spill out. Devin edged closer to Rey, fingers skimming the smooth wool of his sleeve as an anchor before her thoughts could carry her away any further.

“Let’s get this started,” Rey said.