“Well, if I see him coming, I’ll warn you.”
“Oh, look away,” she warned. “As if my chicken legs were the worst family trait.” She looked at the beer in my cup and made a face, glancing over at Ben who was still waiting for me to pay him some attention.
She leaned in to whisper in my ear. “So, what’s going on with Ben? Isn’t he the jerk who said all of that crap about you?”
“Exactly,” I whispered back. “Can you think of a better person to use to see just how possessive Seth is going to be about me moving on?”
“Don’t let that backfire. What if Seth doesn’t care? It’s a dangerous game.”
“Two can play it. Don’t worry. I’ll ditch him. He deserves it. But I can’t let some innocent guy get his face pounded, and this way, I know where I stand. It’s not like he’s getting anywhere.”
“Good. Because you can do so much better.” She tapped the side of my red cup. “Do you really think that’s a good idea? Aren’t you still on medication?”
“It’s fine. I took the last dose of meds earlier, and I barely have any beer. It’s mostly just for show. I’m taking it easy. I promise.”
She stepped back, and her shoulders slumped. “I think I’ll go see if I can find some better booze in the kitchen. If my brother loses that game, I’m going to need a stiff drink.” Before I could tell her to stay away from the Jell-O shots, she disappeared in the crowd.
“So, where were we?” Ben asked. He moved closer and put his arm around me.
“Do you have to do this all night?” He was guarding the keg as if it was his duty.
“Yeah, actually, I do for a while. But don’t worry. I’ll serve you as much as you want. And when I’m done, we can serve each other all night. You know what I mean?” He wagged his brows.
“Well, I tend to take it slow.”
“I like some things nice and slow too.” He was still making everything a suggestion, and he was just the kind of guy who would probably be into anything I offered.
I wished that Seth would hurry up and show. It was going to be a long night.
Chapter 28 Seth
I wasn’t sure how I got roped into a game of strip poker, but at least I still had all of my clothes on. All I had done was walk upstairs to find Micah and warn him that Britany might start a fight when I was called into the room by Thomas and Geoff and a crowd of Omegas who I couldn’t exactly say no to after beating Will’s ass.
The longer the game went on and as the girls took off their clothes, I came to my senses and realized I had left this former me behind when I met Avery. Now it just seemed so absurd. And a little like cheating. I had to bail while everyone was still decent.
“Look, I’d like to stay, but I am needed downstairs.” There was a crowd of others standing around watching, some fighting to take my place.
“Oh, boo,” said Stephanie Landry, who was just about to take off her bra. “Stick around for the fun. I was hoping to show off my latest piercing.” She licked her lips, her tongue ring sparkling. That wasn’t the newest one, though. Everyone knew about it.
“Have fun,” I said to Thomas Hammond, who was sitting in his boxers and socks beside me. He was so drunk he didn’t care, and by the girl on his arm, he was sure to get lucky, even if he lost.
“Come on, Seth. You have to play. You’re the best we’ve got, and I need help getting these girls naked.” Geoff was so drunk that he could barely hold his cards.
“Dude, if you need my help getting chicks naked, you’ve got worse problems than me leaving the game.”
His friends ribbed him as I made my escape. They were a fun bunch, and that was always why I had loved to party with them. I was one of the guys to them, someone to chip in on beer, and a magnet for hot girls attending their party. It wasn’t like I could score with all of them. I’d even been told that having a man-whore around had its perks.
But I was tired of being their prop.
I pushed my way through the crowd and made it to the hallway. That was where Will found me. “I talked to Britany, and she promised she wouldn’t start anything. I told her the repercussions if she did, but she does have her entire squad egging her on, and there’s always Lizzy in her ear.”
“Do you think they’ll fuck with her?”
“If they’re smart, they won’t. Avery could mop the floor with any one of them.”
“I just don’t want her to be ganged up on. Especially over all of this bullshit.”
“I hear you. I can talk to her if you want. I don’t mind explaining everything.”
“She needs to hear it from Britany. She’ll think I forced you.” And I didn’t want him getting too close to my girl.
“Well, I tried. But there’s something else.”
“Is Avery here?” I hoped I hadn’t missed her come and go. I had to make things right before they got worse, and if Omega parties had taught me anything, it could get a whole lot worse.
He looked away, rocking on his heels. “Yeah, about that. She’s with someone.”
My expression faded as my head seemed to grow hotter. “Like she came in with someone?”
“No, but she’s been pretty into him since she arrived. I think you should go see for yourself.”
Without another word, I turned and hit the stairs, pushing my way through the few people who crowded in the middle to chat. When I got downstairs, I was immediately greeted by
