he kissed one side of my neck, then the other, I shivered, my lips parting on a heavy exhale.
“Now hurry up.” He pulled away, smacked me on the ass, and thumped down the stairs.
Fucking tease. I rolled my eyes before fixing my lipstick and grabbing my clutch off the bed.
Tyler’s left hand rested on my leg, playing absentmindedly with the tulle, while his other scrolled through messages on his phone. Alec had a firm, unmoving hand on my other leg as he looked out the car window at the dusky sky.
Apparently taking a limo for just the three of us was overkill, but we couldn’t possibly drive ourselves, so we were on our way to Manhattan in an Aston Martin town car driven by the same driver who had taken us to the gala. His name was Joe.
Important people were flying in from all over the world—we couldn’t not throw a fancy event for them, although this would be much more low-key than the gala. Only about 150 guests were expected.
“So how come they’re all coming here?” I asked. “Why aren’t we flying off to Geneva or something?”
“It’s New York,” they both answered at the same time, as if it were obvious. Joe’s shoulders shook with silent laughter.
“Americans . . .” I sighed. “You know there are cities just as vibrant and just as important as New York. And probably more convenient to get to for most of these people.”
“I’d like to remind you that you’re also American.” Alec turned to face me. “And there’s nowhere in the world like New York.”
Tyler gave me a more serious answer. “Melior Group is hosting the event. Our HQ is here. It made sense. Plus, it gives us the chance to make sure it’s well protected, allows us some control over who’s invited, and puts us in a leadership position before any of the conversations have even started.”
He stuffed his phone into his jacket pocket and smiled in a way that reminded me of our study sessions, when he was waiting for me to understand something complex, already believing without a doubt I’d get it.
I nodded. The choice of New York wasn’t just arrogance—making everyone come to them; it was strategic. I should’ve known.
Joe pulled the car into an alley and then . . . stopped. I frowned, craning my neck to look out the windshield. It was just a dark and dingy alley, complete with trash cans and back entrances.
But the guys both got out of the car. Tyler held his hand out to me, and I let him help me out, still confused.
“Stay close, Joe,” Tyler said to our driver as Alec went to a nearby recess in the wall. It was so dark I couldn’t tell if a door or a vampire was in the shadows. “It’ll be at least two hours before we can leave, but we may want to leave early.”
I had no idea why Tyler would want to leave early when we were here to gauge the other leaders, but I’m sure it was part of his master plan.
“Yes, sir.” Joe nodded and drove off toward the other side of the alleyway.
“Uh, where exactly are we?” I finally asked.
“Dammit.” Tyler huffed and reached into his pocket, pulling out a hundred-dollar bill. He handed it to a smug, smirking Alec, who promptly pocketed it.
I just got more confused and crossed my arms over my chest.
“I bet that you would hold yourself back from asking any questions until we were in the building.” Tyler sighed.
“I bet that you’d crack before we made it inside. I won!” Alec looked a little too pleased with himself.
I rolled my eyes at them both. Betting money on me. The nerve.
As another set of headlights illuminated the dirty alley, Tyler guided me toward the dark recess in the wall, his hand at the small of my back. Alec pulled a heavy steel door open, and we all walked into a brightly lit corridor.
A team of agents stood on the other side, in suits but fully armed. They nodded to Alec and Tyler and waved us past.
Alec took the lead, stopping at a set of elevators and pressing a button. The fabric of his perfectly tailored suit stretched over his muscular shoulders. He was in all black, as usual, but the simple suit and shirt—no tie—fit him perfectly. I was pretty sure it was the same one he’d worn to the gala.
Tyler, on the other hand, was in a beautiful gunmetal gray three-piece suit, the