39. Chapter Thirty-Nine

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Gio

E nzo heads backstage with Arrow and Jack, while I get up and lead Beth out of The Terrace.

The band that replaced Jack's onstage a few songs ago is awful enough to make a few groups of people leave, so we're in a line to get to the door before we actually get out into the fresh air.

Away from the screeching sounds of the speed metal band's vocalist, I feel a bit more relaxed, and I can tell Beth feels better, too. Even if she still looks a little tired.

"So where are we headed?" I ask, while we drift away from the main entrance.

I fully intend to wait for my pack before I take her home, but I can tell she's ready to go.

She's not sure about something, and I'm guessing that has a lot to do with her awful ex.

The shiner he gave Jack looks painful.

Clearly, he's got a violent streak.

I don't like what that implies.

I might not know anything about what happened between them, but I know I don't want him around her. I don't want him coming anywhere close to my pack ever again.

Once I know who he is, and I'm sure she's well protected, I'll hunt him down and make sure he knows what I'll do if he tries to hurt her, or anyone else in my pack, ever again.

I realize Beth hasn't answered my question, and I can see she's lost in thought from the hesitant expression she's wearing once I've led her away from the small crowd of people exiting the bar.

We stop walking by the side of a closed down restaurant, and she looks up at me.

"Fun date, huh?" she jokes, cracking a smile that doesn't reach her bright eyes. "I fall asleep in a bar, and you end up having to delay a hospital visit to walk me home."

"Well, it's not one I'm going to forget anytime soon," I confess, though that's probably not for the reasons she's thinking. Well, maybe it's a little for the reasons she's thinking. Her crazy ex did start a fight with one of my mates, and she did look pretty cute curled up sleeping in the spot Enzo usually sits in when he's sating Arrow's carnal urges in our regular booth.

Still, neither of those things are what I'm going to remember most about tonight.

It's the night I met my third, and I'm certain, final, fated mate.

That's what I'll never forget.

"So, where am I walking you? Where do you call home in this big, bad city?"

Wherever it is, she's not going to be calling it home for much longer.

"Oh, um … I stay close to your restaurant. I mean, Esposito Brothers. That's you and Enzo, right?" Her tone is a little hesitant, and I can't figure out why, exactly.

"Sort of," I start. "We're pack brothers. Since we're both Alphas we had to choose a pack leader, and I ended up with that pleasure. So, we use my surname as a pack."

"Makes sense," she murmurs, before she gives me a smile. "I'm guessing we're waiting for them. We'll pass the restaurant to get to my … well, it's my sister's place, actually. I'm just staying there for now. Long story."

"I've got time," I assure her.

"By long, I meant boring," she adds quickly. "Repairs are being done on my dorm room, basically."

"So, you're a student."

"Yup," she confirms, her gaze moving to my right.

The relieved look she gets makes me wonder what she doesn't want me to know about.

"Your pack brothers are on their way over," she tells me.

Right, and we get to walk with them, which makes it even easier for her to let the conversation die.

I turn and she lets go of my hand as if she just realized she was still holding it.

Damn. I'm guessing her stay with her sister is about more than dorm room repairs, but I doubt she'll give any details while we're walking back toward the restaurant with my pack.

Jack stops when he gets to us, leaving Enzo trailing behind with Arrow.

"Hey," he says, looking from me to Beth. "Do you guys' mind if I walk with you?"

"Of course not," Beth tells him, before I can open my mouth.

Oh, she's definitely relieved about his presence.

I just hope he takes a hint and waits for me at the restaurant when I ask him to.

Beth might like us both, but I don't want to do anything that might push her back.

Jack wasn't around when I was talking to Enzo about taking things slow with our new mate.

Hopefully, Enzo filled him in while they were backstage.

And hopefully, he listened.

If there's one thing Jack is bad at, it's following instructions.

It's one of the reasons Arrow refers to him as a Delta.

There's no official legal definition for someone who's half Alpha, half Beta, but Arrow insists it's a real sub-type that the government don't want to have to deal with, hence why Delta isn't legally recognized as a designation.

He's not wrong that Jack has some Alpha qualities.

It's the single most frustrating thing about him.

He smiles at me, and I reach out to lift his hair back from his eye.

"Mio dio," I murmur. "Don't tell me that doesn't hurt."

He shrugs, and I hear Beth gasp softly beside me.

It's bad. The skin around his eye is swollen and the purple-red bruising is painful to look at.

I've seen worse, but not on one of my mates.

"It looks worse than it feels," he tells me. "But maybe you should keep a lookout for the guy while I walk with Beth. You know, just in case he's lurking around near the restaurant, waiting for us to come back, or whatever."

I draw him a look as I let his hair fall back to cover his injuries.

He doesn't think for one minute that the guy who did that to his face is still hanging around.

If he did, he wouldn't be so blasé about it.

Not while we're still with Beth.

"Fine. As long as Beth doesn't mind."

She shoots me a guilty look. "I don't mind."

"I'll walk ahead of you," I tell them, before I make a start homeward bound.