Focus (The Crescent Chronicles, #2) (7 page)

“
You sure?”

“
Yeah.” I certainly wasn’t
going to cause a scene at the party. I’d try to keep my distance
from Bryant though.

After dessert was cleared away, Levi
touched my arm. “You ready?”

“
Where do we go for the
meeting?”

“
You can’t
guess?”

“
Wait, is it at the
hotel?”

“
Of course.” He took my
hand. Hailey was talking to the guy next to her, who I recognized
as the bouncer from Bruno’s, but Levi interrupted. “You coming,
Hailey?”

“
I’ll meet you there.” She
smiled, so I just waved.

I let Levi lead me out with a hand on
my back. The valet pulled his car around as soon as we reached the
front.

Levi opened my door for me, closing it
before going around to his side.

“
So what did you think of
dinner?” He turned on the radio to some rock station, adjusting the
volume to a barely audible level that made me wonder why he
bothered with it at all.

“
It was really
good.”

“
Are you going to tell me
what’s wrong?”

“
No.”

He took his eyes off the road to look
at me. “I love your honesty, Al, but I need to know.”

“
I’ll tell you after the
meeting.” I knew he wouldn’t give up, but I didn’t want to rile him
up before something important.

“
Back at my place?” He
smiled sheepishly.

“
You do realize I’m not
coming over, right?”

He let out a deep breath.
“Unfortunately, I’m painfully aware. I figured that out when you
stopped after one glass of wine.”

“
Very
perceptive.”

“
I’m always perceptive when
it comes to you.”

Not always. He’d totally missed Bryant
coming on to me.

He pulled up out front of the hotel in
a spot that seemed to have been left open for him. I walked in,
relieved that Billy, my friend who worked as a bell boy, wasn’t
there. I hadn’t been back since school started, but I’d spent the
whole summer working at the hotel my dad owned. My friend, Alex,
was working at the bar, and he just shook his head when he saw me
walk in with Levi. I waved, pretending I didn’t notice his
disapproval.

We walked over to the elevators, and I
followed Levi in. I waited as he pushed the button for the
basement, inserting a key card that allowed us to go to a floor of
the building that didn’t officially exist. Knowing we were about to
enter pitch blackness, I grabbed on to Levi’s hand. He’d be able to
see perfectly. Levi squeezed my hand as the doors opened, and we
walked out into the blackness.

Chapter Six

So much had changed since the last time
I’d walked down the marble floored hallway of the basement. Now I
knew Levi was a prince, and that I’d become some sort of princess.
I was glad to have his large, strong hand wrapped around mine as we
walked into the chambers. It made the entrance at least a little
less intimidating.

Owen and Jared both stood up as we
walked in. We’d barely taken two steps into the room when they met
up with us.

Levi turned to me. “I have to sit with
my dad, so you don’t mind sitting with them, do you?”

I was okay as long as he wasn’t leaving
me alone. “No, it’s fine. Hopefully Hailey will get here
soon.”

“
Aw, missing me already,
roomie?” Hailey joined us.

“
I miss you every time
we’re apart.”

“
The feeling’s mutual,
babe. Completely mutual.” She linked arms with mine, and I waved
goodbye to Levi as we followed Jared and Owen over to a couple of
stone seats that were part of a circular pattern with multiple
levels of stadium seating.

The chamber was cold and the bare skin
of my legs against the cool stone wasn’t ideal. “Next time, we’re
wearing pants.”

Hailey laughed. “Agreed.”

I looked around for Levi, but I
couldn’t find him. Jared leaned over to talk to me. “He’s going to
enter with his dad.”

“
So it’s different from the
ball then? Because shouldn’t Allie be with him?” Hailey turned to
Jared.

“
It’s completely different.
This is business.”

“
Ball?” I asked.

“
Yeah, there’s an annual
ball each winter.”

“
Oh.”

“
Trust me, you’ll hear all
about it. I’m sure Helen’s already planning your dress.” Hailey
crossed her legs.

“
My dress?”

“
Of course.”

I decided to ask the question on my
mind even if I got made fun of for it. “Does Levi usually just
bring random dates?”

Jared laughed. “You jealous,
Allie?”

“
No, just
curious.”

“
He always went alone. It
wouldn’t have been appropriate for him to bring someone other than
his mate,” Hailey explained.

I tried to ignore the flood of relief I
felt. “Oh, cool.”

“
Levi’s going to love that
you were jealous.” Owen tried to stretch out his long legs. In
addition to being cold, the stone seats were cramped.

I crossed my arms, half out of
annoyance and half from the cold. “Come on, I was just
curious.”

Jared arched an eyebrow. “Keep telling
yourself that.”

“
Whatever.”

The room grew quiet and everyone stood
up. I followed their lead, looking toward the doorway. A procession
of men filed in. Then Levi came in, followed by his father. They
took seats in the center of the room. As soon as they were seated,
everyone else sat too. “Levi usually sits behind him,” Jared
whispered.

“
What’s
changed?”

He pointed at me. “You.”

“
What’s that supposed to
mean?”

“
Taking you as his mate let
his dad know he was ready. He’s letting him transition into
leadership. Levi is now his senior advisor. He’ll eventually take
over, of course.”

“
Levi never told me
that.”

Jared leaned back in his seat. “Not
surprising.”

Levi looked over to where we sat and
smiled at me. I smiled back. I had to admit there was something
cool about being with someone in such a respected
position.

I jumped as I heard a loud bang. “It’s
just the doors closing and locking,” Jared explained.

“
Locking?”

“
No one’s allowed in or out
until the proceedings are completely over.”

I shivered. The chilly temperature of
the room was only accentuated by the fact that I was locked in a
room with paranormal creatures. The thought scared me more than a
little. I wrapped my arms tighter around myself.

Levi glanced at me and got up. “What’s
he doing?” I said to myself as he walked directly over to
me.

Stopping right in front of us, he took
off his blazer and put it over my shoulders. “This should help.” He
kissed me on the cheek before taking his seat. His father gave him
an approving smile. I wondered if the chivalrous display was really
about helping me, or if it was for appearances sake.

“
Welcome all.” Robert stood
and addressed the room. “The Autumn meeting is officially in
session. We will follow the usual schedule tonight. Before I turn
the floor over to my advisors, I want to emphasize the importance
of discretion. Nothing discussed tonight may leave the room.” He
continued to describe the rules and introduced his advisors.
Listening to Robert, I could have been in a trance. He definitely
had the gift of public speaking.

Each advisor took turns making
presentations, but none really caught my attention until Jett
Florence stood. I knew he was head of security, but I didn’t
realize he was also an advisor. It seemed to be setup kind of like
a president and his cabinet.

“
The threat of the
Blackwell’s has grown. We have reason to believe they’re planning
to take out the Laurent line from within.”

A few gasps filled the room. “We will,
of course, determine the reliability of this intelligence, but
until then, I urge all of you to use caution. If you have any
suspicions, you need to report them to my department
immediately.

That brings me to my next point, the
need to increase the security force. I want to take on an
additional officer within the next year.”

Robert interrupted. “I assume Jared
will be taking that position.”

I looked over at Jared, his face was
emotionless.

Jett cleared his throat. “I am not sure
he’s ready for the job.”

“
How can you say that?”
Levi lashed out. I had to admire his loyalty to his
friend.

Jett’s expression didn’t waver, even
when Levi directed his anger at him. “Bryant and I aren’t sure he’s
prepared.”

“
What?” I hadn’t realized
I’d spoken out loud until I felt Hailey’s hand on my
arm.

“
Do you have something
you’d like to say, Allison?” Robert asked.

I don’t know what came over me, but I
remembered how rude Jared’s brother and dad had been earlier.
Bryant was coming on to Levi’s mate, and Jared wasn’t
ready?

“
Yes, I have something to
say.” I slipped my arms through the sleeves of Levi’s
coat.

“
What are you doing?”
Hailey whispered.

Robert looked amused. “You have my
permission to address the assembly.”

I swallowed and stood up. “How can you
say that Jared isn’t ready?”

“
Is there a reason you
think my judgment is unsound?” Jett asked, his face a mask of
stone.

The whole room had turned to look at
me, but no one said a word.

“
Jared saved my life.
Doesn’t saving the life of your prince’s mate count for
something?”

I didn’t realize it until after the
words were out, but that was the first time I’d admitted I was
Levi’s mate.

Robert chuckled. “Yes, it does. So I
take it you support Jared’s installment as a security officer after
his graduation?”

“
Yes. It’s no secret Jared
and I haven’t always seen eye to eye.” There were some laughs. “But
I wouldn’t hesitate to trust him completely.”

Robert nodded. “Thank you for sharing
your opinion. It will be taken into consideration.”

“
Thank you.” I pulled
Levi’s jacket tighter around myself and sat down. I risked a glance
over at Levi, and he was grinning at me. Evidently, he
approved.

“
Who are you, and what did
you do with my best friend?” Hailey whispered loudly.

I just shrugged.

Jared leaned over. “I have no idea
where that came from, but thanks. I owe you.”

“
I’ll remember
that.”

Jared made so much more sense to me.
His arrogance was at least somewhat explained by his jerk of a
brother, and anyone whose dad could publicly degrade him like that
deserved some understanding in my book. I wondered what Jett would
think if he knew about the way Bryant had treated me.

I tried to pay attention to the rest of
the proceedings, but I was still dealing with the post adrenaline
rush from having spoken against a man like Jett Florence. I had a
feeling I was one of the first.

The night wore on, and it had to have
been at least three o’clock by the time Robert closed the meeting.
The doors finally opened.

“
Want to just stay upstairs
and take the streetcar to class?” I asked Hailey.

“
Oh yeah, you still have
your room.” Hailey nodded enthusiastically. “That sounds
great.”

I stood up with everyone else as Levi
and his father left.

“
Levi will probably be a
bit, but we can wait for him upstairs,” Owen offered.

“
Can you just tell him
Hailey and I are staying in my room here? I’m too tired to go
anywhere.”

“
Sure, want us to go up
with you?” Jared was looking at me differently. He was probably
trying to figure out why in the world I defended him.

“
I think we’ll make it.” I
moved out of the way as people maneuvered around us to reach the
exit.

“
All right, sleep well.”
Jared looked relieved that he didn’t have to worry about me. I’m
sure he was exhausted too.

“
We will.” Hailey linked
arms with me again, and I let her lead us to the elevator. Her
super vision came in handy.

Once back in my room, I gave Hailey
some extra clothes, and changed into a t-shirt. I was glad I’d left
a few things in my dresser. We barely said anything before we both
collapsed.

I woke up groggily when I heard a noise
coming from the main sitting area. I doubted Hailey had left the
other bedroom in the suite, so I got up to check.

I wasn’t surprised when I saw Levi
standing by the open balcony door. He was shirtless, and his wings
were still extended. He must have just landed. He retracted his
large, black wings.