Taming The Alpha - BBW Paranormal Romance (4 page)

“
Yeah,
well, so goes the game.” Lori got off the couch, stretching.
Her perky breasts pushed against her filmy robe and even though Nikki
knew she was here for other reasons, that little glimpse of her
friend set off a little thud in Nikki’s stomach.

Lori
walked over to Nikki’s locker, standing behind her, hands on
Nikki’s hips, fingers gently caressing her, sliding up beneath
her sweatshirt. “I know what the look means, princess.”
She lifted Nikki’s thick, dark hair, her lips on her neck and
then sliding up to nibble at her ear.

Before
Nikki could think, she turned into Lori’s embrace, their lips
meeting in a familiar kiss. There was a raw need in Lori tonight, a
vulnerability Nikki sensed that was rarely evident. Lori’s
tough-as-nails exterior dropped as their kiss deepened.

Nikki
felt the rising sense of arousal being with Lori always brought, but
in the back of her mind images of Jax rose up of his taut body
beneath hers in the brief lap dance, his mouth hot and hard against
her lips. She lost herself for a moment in the memories, thoughts of
Jax competing with Lori’s kiss for Nikki’s attention,
eventually winning. It wasn’t long before Lori broke away,
shaking her head.

“
You’re
a million miles away, kid. And I’m not going that far tonight.”
She took a step back, head tilted to the side, her eyes narrowed.

“
Lori,
I…I’m not…it’s not you.” Nikki
fumbled for the words, but she knew she couldn’t explain.

“
Hey,
don’t sweat it.” Lori walked to her locker, dropped her
robe and reached inside for a black lace teddy, tugging it up roughly
over her long legs, shimmying herself into the scrap of fabric.

Nikki
watched her friend, aching to reach out but unsure what to say. Lori
looked up, her face now set in a careful mask of indifference, but
Nikki could see the hurt in her eyes.

“
Hey,
I said drop it. Guys are guys. I’d do the same if I were in
your shoes. He’s a hot guy, even if he’s…whatever
he is.” She slammed her locker door, the sound echoing in the
small room. Nikki winced. She hated fighting with Lori. And she knew
Lori would never throw her over for a man.

“
I’ll
see you out there.” Lori was through the door, her heels
clicking on the scuffed linoleum floor, still tugging at the straps
of her teddy before Nikki could speak.

Nikki
let out a sigh, pulling out a red camisole and panty set she’d
planned to wear. She held them a moment, fingering the satiny
material. Was a guy really worth losing her best friend? Nikki shook
her head, shoving the clothes back into her locker.

“
Hey!
You’re here. You must be psychic, we’re short tonight.
You’re on in five.” Mack was already gone by the time
Nikki looked up, the protest on her lips dying unsaid.

“
Shit.”
She yanked her sweatshirt off, tugging the camisole over her head,
static crackling through her hair. She shed her jeans, pulled on the
red satin panties and the ridiculously high red heels that completed
the outfit.

The
lighted mirror cast a harsh light over her face. Most of her make-up
was in place, done at home, but she added another coat of mascara and
slicked a slash of red lipstick across her mouth. The hair she
couldn’t care less about right now. It would be a snarled mess
by the end of her set anyway.

Nikki
looked at her reflection, not really liking the girl looking back at
her. She was rarely given to deep introspection, but right now she
wondered what the hell had gotten into her.

She
took a deep breath, held it for the count of three and blew it out
sharply. Somehow she’d make it up to Lori. Now she needed to go
do her set, work the crowd, and try to at least pretend she wanted to
be here. The last thing on her mind was Jax.

Mack
had put on some odd music for her, not her usual. But her moves still
worked and she was still down on all fours by the end of the song,
pretty much on tempo and with the beat. The guys didn’t care as
long as she ended up more or less naked, gyrating and shaking what
she had. And she could do that in her sleep.

The
music ended and she knelt to retrieve her camisole, snatching it away
from some guy in the front who thought he’d get away with a
freebie. She’d lost more items if clothing that way. She shook
her finger at him, pasting what she hoped was a flirtatious smile on
her face.

She
stood as the lights flickered briefly, making her blink. They came
up, and she saw him. Standing in the back, as still as a statue, the
only man in the room not shouting drunkenly or trying to drag a girl
into a private room.

Even
though the lights were in her face, she knew he was looking into her
eyes, probably the only guy in the room who wasn’t staring at
her naked body. She hesitated briefly, then turned too quickly,
almost stumbling as her heels slipped on the stage. Music suddenly
blared and Eden came dancing onto the stage, colliding with Nikki.

“
Out
of my way, bitch. You’ve had your turn.” She brushed past
and the catcalls and hoots of the men swelled, the sound washing over
Nikki. And then, this was the last place she wanted to be. She fled
to the dressing room.

Who
was this guy? Was he anyone to her, someone she really wanted to see
now? Her hands were shaking and she sank weakly down onto the couch.
He was here for her. There was no doubt in her mind. But did she want
to be there for him?

Screw
the costume, Nikki pulled on her sweatshirt, tugging her jeans over
the satin panties, her sweatshirt over her head. It had been a
mistake to come here, to look for Jax. He was trouble, like he said,
all kinds of wrong. She was foolish to try to make something more out
of just a guy who thought she was a good dancer, just because he
cleaned up better than the normal crowd.

Cool
night air washed over Nikki as she opened the alley door. She hated
the alley more than anything, but Mack didn’t want them coming
through the club in street clothes. She usually tried to leave with
another girl or Sam, if he was headed out. Being alone in the alley
gave her the creeps, no doubt.

She
turned toward the street, clutching her purse against her body. The
sound of a car horn ahead made her jump and in that instant a hand
reached out from between the dented dumpsters that lined the alley,
closing around her wrist.

She
turned, half a scream forced between her lips, looking into a
pockmarked face of a man crouched in the dark.

“
Let
go!” Nikki twisted her wrist, but his grip was like steel. He
pulled her toward him, her heels skidding on the damp pavement.

“
Where
is she? She’s in there, right?” The man’s voice
rasped out between parched lips. Nikki’s eyes widened as she
saw the glint of a knife blade in his other hand. He waved it at her,
skimming it at her throat. She jerked back hard, the bones in her
wrist grinding together.

“
Who?
I don’t know what you mean.” Panic was bubbling up inside
Nikki and she had the surreal sense of everything slowing down. The
man’s voice dropped in pitch, garbled and indistinct. And then
she was falling forward, in slow motion, as he pulled her into the
darkness between the dumpsters.

Then
the world grew very loud and things were moving too quickly for her
to understand. She was in the alley, head down and stumbling
backward, feeling like she’d been catapulted from the space
between the dumpsters. There was a strangled cry, a loud clang as
something crashed into the dumpster and then quiet. She finally fell
to one knee, looking up in time to see a man on his hands and knees,
the man who’d grabbed her, another man standing over him.

Nikki’s
eyes went wide as she realized it was Jax. He grabbed the man, hauled
him upright and held him by the neck with one hand, as if the man
weighed nothing at all. Nikki noticed the man’s feet weren’t
touching the ground.

“
Jax!”
She found her voice, as she fell forward, her hands scraping against
the grimy alley, her wrist throbbing. Jax turned toward her, and in
the faint light of the alley, she swore his eyes were glowing red.
She blinked but then he had turned back to the man in his grasp, his
face held very close to the struggling man. There was a noise, like a
low growl, and then Jax dropped the man like a sack of garbage.

Jax
turned to Nikki, striding across the alley. Behind him, she watched
the skinny man scuttle from between the dumpsters on all fours,
scrambling to gain his feet, finally breaking into a shambling run as
he turned the corner onto the street.

Nikki
was trembling as Jax’s hands closed around her arms, lifting
her from the pavement.

“
Are
you okay? Did he hurt you?” Jax was looking at her intently,
his eyes roaming quickly over her face, down over her body.

“
No…just
my arm.” She held up her hand, an ugly bruise beginning to form
around her wrist. She stared at the purpling marks, and her trembling
turned into violent shaking, her teeth clicking together.

“
You’re
in shock, Nikki. Let me take you back inside.” Jax took a step
back, toward the door to the club, his arm around her shoulder. But
Nikki shook her head, her voice barely audible.

“
Take
me home…with you.”

*

Jax
opened the door to his room. The house had been quiet, Bec gone and
his room empty, with several other members apparently having left
with him as well. Jax knew they were friends of Bec’s, guys
he’d grown up with, and a few of their mates, some of them he
and Bec had known forever. But that wasn’t important now.

He
carried Nikki into his room, laying her on his bed, grabbing the
blanket and pulling it over her. She tried to sit up, struggling with
the blanket but he gently pushed her back down.

“
Stay
still. I’ll be right back.” He moved away from the bed
and she reached out, grabbing his hand.

“
No,
don’t go…please.” She looked up at him, her eyes
wide, almost too large for her face.

“
Just
getting a glass of water, right there. And something for your wrist.”
He pointed to the open door to the bathroom. “You’ll be
able to see me, or hear me, the whole time.”

Her
grip loosened and he patted her leg, before walking quickly into the
bathroom. As he ran cold water over a washcloth, he looked at his
reflection in the mirror. What the hell was he thinking, bringing her
back here? Even if she had asked, he shouldn’t have done it. He
could have just as easily taken her back inside, or to her own
apartment.

He
shook his head as he reached for a glass, filling it with water. What
the hell was he thinking?

Nikki
was sitting up against the head of his bed, legs tucked beneath her,
the blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She was still trembling and
her hands shook slightly, and she spilled water on the blanket as she
took a drink.

“
Here.”
Jax set the glass on the bedside table, sitting down beside her,
brushing away the droplets of water. He held the cold washcloth
against her bruised wrist.

For
a brief instant he caught a whiff of a strange scent, an animal
scent, almost wolfish but off somehow. He didn’t think it was
Nikki herself, and he wondered briefly if the man who had attacked
Nikki was a werewolf. He lifted her wrist closer to his face and
inhaled deeply. He was right, it wasn’t Nikki; it was on her
clothes. Jax shook his head. It wasn’t important now, he’d
worry about it later.

“
Thanks.” She was
looking up at him, her eyes fixed on his face. “You saved my
life. Thank you.”

“
I
was in the right place at the right time. Do you know the guy?”

“
He’s
an ex-boyfriend…”

Jax
drew back, frowning. Nikki reached out, her hand on his arm.

“
No,
not mine. One of the girls from the club. He’s been hanging out
in the alley for a few days, I guess, bothering the girls when they
leave, looking for China…his girlfriend…ex, I guess.
Drugs or something.” She took a deep breath. “I’m
rambling. My nerves are shot.”

But
Jax wasn’t listening to Nikki’s words. Her touch, her
hand on his arm, on his bare skin, sent an electric jolt through his
body. Beyond her touch, her scent was overwhelming him, the
complexity and depth of it amazing. He could still smell her fear,
sharp and acrid, lingering on her. That would fade, he knew.

Beneath
that was Nikki’s own scent, warm and rich, sweet with an edge,
like biting into an orange picked fresh from the tree, drenched in
heat, lush and juicy.

And
finally, the scent of her core, her being, her sexuality. Jax closed
his eyes, inhaling deeply, taking his fill of her, not able to get
enough. Beyond description, her scent started a chain reaction of
emotions and feelings in his body, everything spiraling out of his
control. He’d never experienced this with any woman, and as
much as it aroused him, it scared him. Control was everything to Jax
and this woman was quickly tearing that to shreds.

He
opened his eyes, caught Nikki’s look and saw reflected there
everything he was feeling, the fear from her attack fading, replaced
with lust and arousal. She started to shrug the blanket off her
shoulders and he leaned forward, pulling it away from her body. Even
in a faded sweatshirt and jeans, she was alluring, arousing, every
curve still very evident.