After we checked into another hotel once we entered the city, we’d eaten dinner and rested some more—on Cian’s orders, which had just made me smile at his possessiveness. When we arrived at the club, there had been a massive line stretching around the side of the huge brick building. After the bouncer had spoken into his radio, he ushered us inside, where another man—a vampire, presumably—led us away to a side door where we were cut off from everyone else.
The hallways we walked through all had the same black and red aesthetic I noticed through the entire interior. And then we came to a halt in front of massive double doors. The man in front of us knocked twice before a deep, echoing voice boomed from the other side. He pushed one of the doors open and stepped aside, staring at me with a bland expression on his face, because he felt no threat coming from my way—but I didn’t miss the tightening of his body as he stared at Cian.
I followed Cian inside and felt his hand tighten against my waist, his protectiveness fierce and moving around me. We both stopped in the center of the room as we stared at Adryan, who sat in this throne-like chair behind a massive desk. I couldn't help it… I snorted at the sight. What an arrogant asshole.
As if he read my thoughts, he grinned and winked before standing and walking around the desk toward us. That was when I saw the biggest fucking dog following right at his heels, the beast of a canine so large that his head damn near came up to Adryan’s upper thigh. His golden coat was thick, and the hair around his face looked like a lion’s mane.
“I am so fucking glad you two could come to my club,” Adryan said and stopped a few feet from us, clapping once as if our presence had just brightened his day. But I wasn’t fooled by the sociopath.
Cian, once again, kept his body partially in front of mine in a protective stance but allowed me enough room so that I could see what was happening.
“Come on and check it out since last time you and Odhran had sticks up your asses.” He looked between the two of us, his grin still wide. I wondered if he bothered shielding those smiles among humans. It would be impossible to hide those massive fangs he sported. Then again, with this day and age, I assumed most probably thought he was one of those people who had a vampire obsession and wanted to be like one.
They just wouldn't believe he actually was one of those creatures. He wouldn't seduce them like they’d want. No, he’d rip out their throats and bathe in their blood.
He didn’t wait for us to respond as he turned and made his way toward the wall behind his desk, which was nothing but glass. I could tell it was tinted, probably one of those two-way mirrors to allow creepy-ass Adryan to spy on his customers like the psycho he was.
Cian looked down at me for a second before squeezing my waist and ushering me forward. He kept his body between mine and Adryan’s as we stood in front of that massive glass wall and stared down at the club below. Neon flashes of lights and lasers arced through the huge room.
The space looked industrial with the open metal beams crisscrossing the ceiling, the place one open area as if the interior of a warehouse had been gutted to accommodate the hundreds of bodies that writhed and danced sexually against each other.
“I haven’t spoken tae Odhran,” Cian finally said, breaking up the cold, fragile silence that surrounded us.
It was the kind of silence that was like a sheet of ice, cracking with the barest pressure, those standing on it too afraid they’d fall right through.
“And I’m staying stateside with my mate until Odhran finds his female.” I could tell how hard it was for Cian to say those words and knew it was because he was worried about my safety. “As much as me and my wolf hate risking our female and possibly having her in harm's way with these fookers, my Evie is strong and determined and wants tae stand by my side. And I canna deny her anything.”
Adryan hummed. “Females… mates… such a weakness.”
I looked over at Adryan to see he was still focused on his club below. I, too, looked back at the club, staring at the massive bar that encompassed one entire wall.
The glowing neon lights behind the mirror made it seem as if you could walk right through, the illusion of a bigger space, a less claustrophobic atmosphere, I presumed. I wondered what the humans would do if they realized the people they danced with, the bouncers, staff, the bartenders, and so many others were actually creatures they thought were from myth and lore, from movies and Hollywood.