Fight Dirty (Black Rose Kisses 1)

“We picked out the dress.” Rory grins down at me, heat warming his green irises. “But you really bring it to life. Let’s call it a team effort, shall we?”

My lips twitch in a smile, and I roll my eyes and shrug. “Whatever. Are we going?”

“We’re going,” Sloan confirms, taking the lead toward the door without a backward look. Levi moves to follow him, but not before letting his fingers brush against the small of my back, the feeling a little electric since my back is basically bare in this dress.

Rory does a gallant “after you” bow, and I fall in line, feeling the burn of his gaze as he checks out my ass and the curve of my back while we walk.

For once, I don’t even really mind all that much.

The easy, light mood carries over as we drive to the party, and we pull up to a large house on the edge of town. It’s twice as big as the one the guys live in, with a sloped driveway and manicured lawns. Lights twinkle from the windows, and even though it’s a fancy place, the music playing is the low, thumping kind that I associate with house parties at much less nice houses.

These are gang members, after all. They can dress up nice and live in mansions or whatever, but they still know how to get down.

The place is already pretty packed when we get in, and I can feel eyes on me as we push through the crowd of people to one of the center rooms. There’s a woman standing behind a wet bar, twirling bottles as she pours some into a shaker for the amusement of the people waiting for their drinks.

Unlike at Sapphire, the guys don’t seem to want to peel off on their own to hang around on the fringes looking menacing. They stay around me, forming almost a triangle of protection as we make our way over to the bar.

“What do you want?” Levi asks. He has to lean in for me to hear him over the music and chatter, and his breath brushes against my ear as he does.

I swallow hard, trying to keep it together and not get all melty five minutes into this party.

“Whiskey sour,” I say, thinking about one of my dad’s favorite drinks.

He gives me a look that’s a little impressed, and I flash him a smile as he steps up to get drinks for us.

Sloan moves to take his spot, not saying a word to me but staying close. Anyone who seems like they want to come talk to me takes one look at him and suddenly they have somewhere else to be.

It would be annoying as hell if it didn’t feel like… well, like they’re trying to protect me. I don’t know any of the other Black Rose members, can’t say what kind of people they are or what they might want, and it’s clear Levi, Sloan, and Rory want to keep an eye on me.

Levi comes back with drinks, and he hands me mine with a little wink. I take a sip, and the whiskey burns against the tartness of the lemon, but it’s good. Strong and sour and it reminds me of my dad.

Rory laughs and leans a bit closer into my side with his own glass in hand, something clear and fizzy with a lime shoved in the glass. “Gorgeous and you can hold your liquor,” he teases. “What can’t you do?”

He’s close enough that I can feel the heat of his body against my bare arm, and that plus the drink brings a slight flush to my face that hopefully will go unnoticed in the dim light of the room.

The song changes while we stand in a tight knot, and I watch Sloan knock back whatever he’s drinking with one smooth swallow. He glances over, catching my look, and then tips his head in the direction of my half empty glass like he’s asking if I want another one.

There’s a little challenge in it, the way there always is when it comes to Sloan, and I follow his lead, finishing off the first drink and nodding at him to get me another.

He doesn’t smile because he’s Sloan and I’m convinced he doesn’t really know how, but he does nod back and move through the crush of people to get to the bar once more.

“What is this party for?” I ask Levi, stepping a bit closer to him to let a group of women go past us.

He shrugs his shoulder. “Nothing in particular. We just like to unwind every once in a while.”

I can’t tell if he’s being cagey about what it’s actually for, or if the Black Roses truly just decide to throw nice parties every now and then. Everyone seems relaxed, drinking and talking, disappearing up the stairs and into other rooms to do who knows what.

Gavin Kennedy isn’t here tonight, or at least, I haven’t seen him. Just like the night at the warehouse, this gathering seems to be primarily for the younger members of the gang. There’s no tension in the air like someone’s spoiling for a fight, and no one’s talking about hunting down members of the Jackals or anything, so maybe it is just a chill party to relax and have fun.

That’s definitely how the guys seem to be taking it. Sloan comes back with two drinks in hand, and he passes mine to me, the same whiskey sour as before.

“Thanks,” I murmur. Our hands brush a little when I reach to take the drink from him. A spark of electricity jumps between us, but Sloan turns away before I can tell if he feels it too.

“Hey. Sloan, there you are,” a tall man with a neat beard says as he comes over. “I need to talk to you.”

Sloan nods and glances back at Rory and Levi for a second before following the man off to some remote corner of the party so they can talk business or whatever.

It’s not long before someone comes and does the same to Rory, roping him into an impassioned conversation as the two of them drift away into the crowd.