I played with the bottle. “Sorry. It just sucks to always be the one without a date.”
My stomach clenched with the immediate sadness my words brought me. I hated admitting how lonely I was.
Or how badly I wanted to fall in love.
Bren leaned forward. “Ceel, you have a killer body and are smarter than hell.” He grinned. “You’re also beautiful. And you don’t even f**king know it.” He reclaimed the beer, took a swig, then handed it back. “But you know what your problem is?”
“I scare people?”
“Yes. Shitless. But that’s not what I meant.” He sighed. “You haven’t found anyone who can compete with the strength of your beast.” His smile faded. “You need to find your equal, babe.”
I glanced back at Taran and the wolf she’d so easily enthralled. “What if I can’t?”
Bren didn’t answer me. He may not have known how much I longed to be in the strong arms of a man who wanted to share his life and passion with me. But he did know better than to give me false hope. I downed my beer and went to the bathroom. When I came out, Bren’s floozies were once again throwing themselves at him. I didn’t want to continue to bug him, so I left the bar area to check on my remaining sisters.
Shayna ripped it up on the dance floor. She laughed as she moved, totally showing off. Koda surprisingly kept up with her. He appeared to be having fun, but I still wouldn’t have jumped for joy at the sight of him in a dark alley. When a couple of guys stopped to watch Shayna, one glimpse from Koda sent them scurrying toward the exit.
Emme and Liam faced each other along the far wall. They weren’t dancing, but they stood pretty damn close. Liam stroked the side of her cheek and spoke softly while she smiled shyly at him.
Liam didn’t appear threatening, but I didn’t want Emme to forget he was a were. I slunk around a few guys dancing until I reached Emme. She jumped when I tapped her shoulder. I barely blinked before Liam took a protective stance in front of her. He laughed, and patted my head when he saw it was just little ol’ me.
I would have drop-kicked him had it not been for his next comment. “Sorry, kid. By the way Emme jumped, I thought someone was trying to hurt her.”
I couldn’t believe it. Liam had only just met Emme, and he was already prepared to stomp ass in her defense.
Emme peeked around Liam’s big body. “Hi, Celia.” She frowned when she caught my surprised expression. “Is everything all right, sweetie?”
She was obviously in safe hands with this wolf. “Um. Yeah. Listen, I’m hot. I’ll be out by the lake if you need me.”
Emme nodded, but appeared concerned. Liam patted my head. Again. “Don’t worry, kid. I’ll watch out for her.”
“You’d better,” I said in a low growl that clearly meant business.
Liam laughed and turned back to Emme, whose eyes widened with alarm at my “I may have to pummel your date’s ass” scowl. I didn’t gut Liam only out of respect for Emme, but that didn’t mean I’d wait around for another pat on the head.
And what did he mean by “kid”? I stormed away. Patronizing a**hole.
The music switched from the floor-shaking “In the Ayer” to the soft, aching melody of “Lightning Crashes.” From where I stood, Shayna beamed expectantly at the mountainous Koda. Surprisingly, the smooth wolf dancing so effortlessly moments before glanced down awkwardly at my beautiful sister with the dazzling grin. He froze, his eyes searching hers, but failed to act.
Shayna carefully slipped his mammoth arms around her slender waist. Koda hesitated briefly before smiling softly and bending forward. Shayna encircled his neck. And just like that, they became one. It was a perfect choreographed moment in time. One that shouldn’t have been so difficult to watch.
But it was. Regardless of how much I didn’t want it to be.
I could have come to the club in one of my many slip dresses or in a nice pair of jeans and a sweater. Instead I’d allowed Taran to dress and accessorize me like a ridiculous Barbie doll.
And it hadn’t made a difference.
I walked out of the club and into the night.