Focus
Page 4We finished our drinks, tossed the cups, and walked back through the house and out onto the front lawn.
“Are you sure they’ll be there?” I asked as Hailey led us down the street. It’s not that I really wanted to talk to those guys, but I didn’t need Levi scaring away every male on campus.
“Yeah. I guarantee they’ll be at Bruno’s.”
“All right.” I tried to stay calm. Being mad at Levi was nothing new, but it didn’t get easier. It’s hard to deal with a guy who you both love and hate.
“But isn’t Bruno’s nineteen and up?” Anne asked. “I don’t have a fake.”
“You don’t need a fake. It’ll be fine.” Hailey picked up her pace. She was clearly anxious to confront the guys.
“Nineteen and up, isn’t that random?” Tiffany tugged on her skirt. I guessed it was shorter than what she usually wore.
“It’s to keep freshman away.” Hailey pulled her hair clip out, letting her long, red hair spill down her back.
“Meaning us...” I trailed off.
“Technically.” She smiled.
“Geez Hailey, what would we do without you tonight? First you tell us what drinks are safe at a frat party, and now you’re showing us how to get into a nineteen and up bar.” I nudged her arm.
“Shut up. You know you love me.”
“Of course I do.” Hailey and I had gotten even closer over the few weeks before starting school. I adamantly refused to go to anything Society related without her, and I’d turned to her when I didn’t think there was anyone else to trust. She was definitely the silver lining in all the craziness that was my life.
“IDs,” the bouncer asked as we walked up.
Hailey looked him straight in the eye. “You don’t really need them.”
I tensed, waiting for Hailey to use some Pteron power, but she did something even more surprising.
“I’ll say it again. You don’t really need our IDs, do you?” She leaned in closer to him.
He smiled. “All right, Hailey, I’ll let you in, but don’t make it a habit of trying to sneak your friends in.”
“I won’t.” She smiled again, flirtatiously. “My brother’s here, right?”
“Yeah, they’re in there somewhere.” He unabashedly checked Hailey out.
“Okay, cool.”
“See ya.” I turned around and he was definitely staring at Hailey’s ass.
Anne and Tiffany looked to me for answers about what just happened, but I could only shrug. We followed Hailey in through the crowd.
***
“Hey girls, how was the party?” Owen laughed. We found all three of them sitting at a table with two girls, both blondes.
“It was great until you ruined it.” Hailey’s voice was cold. I was glad that I wasn’t on the receiving end of her anger.
“You scared everyone away.” I looked directly at Levi as I spoke. He leaned back in his chair, blatantly ignoring the blonde that was hitting on him.
“Oh, heaven forbid we stop guys from hitting on Levi’s fiancé.” Jared smirked, turning his attention back to the girl next to him.
“Fiancé? You’re engaged, Allie?” Anne asked.
“You’re wearing my ring.” Levi looked back at me, challenging me to argue.
“I can’t get it off.” At least that part was true.
“So you broke off the engagement?” Tiffany looked back and forth at the two of us.
“We were never engaged.” My fingers went to the ruby ring, more out of a habit than anything else.
“Then why are you wearing his ring?” Anne shifted her weight between her feet. I’m sure all of that walking in heels was wearing on her.
“It was a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding?” Anne arched an eyebrow.
Hailey thankfully moved the conversation off me. “We weren’t the only ones you messed with. You screwed stuff up for our friends too.” She gestured to Anne and Tiffany.
“Oh, hello there.” Jared turned back to us again.
“The rules, Jared,” I reminded him none to gently.
“Seriously?”
He’d already turned his attention to Tiffany. If I had any doubts before, I knew for sure that Jared went for the blondes. I figured that’s where the girl currently pawing Levi came from.
“Are you going to join us or stand there all night?” Levi asked.
“There aren’t enough seats available.” I nodded toward the blonde closest to him.
“My lap is always available.” He grinned.
“That again? I thought we settled that a long time ago?”
“A lot’s changed since then.”
“Yeah, the offer is less appealing.” My purse started to slip off my shoulder so I fixed it.
“You can go now.” Jared didn’t even look at the girls as he spoke. He was still eyeing Tiffany.
“He doesn’t want me to leave,” the girl next to Levi cooed.
“Leave.” Levi had moved his attention from my face to my legs. He wasn’t even trying to hide it.
“Did you not hear the part about this being his fiancé?” Owen asked the girl.
“She said she wasn’t.”
“She is. It’s just a game we’re playing.” Levi never took his eyes off me.
“What?” I took a deep breath, having this fight in front of my new friends wasn’t smart. I already had a lot of explaining to do.
“But what she can’t seem to understand is that I always win games.”
In the weeks after tricking me into becoming his mate, Levi had tried a number of tactics to get me to forgive him. He tried being ultra-attentive and sweet, but we both realized how horribly that act worked. Next he tried to be aloof like he didn’t care, but he crumbled after about a day. I wasn’t just a girl to him. His position as the king of The Society depended on us being together. No pressure or anything.
“Fine. This is boring anyway.” The two girls got up and walked away. I realized they were older than I originally thought, probably in their mid-twenties. I guess Jared didn’t discriminate on age. I couldn’t help but feel a little satisfied watching them leave. I might have been angry at Levi, but I didn’t like the thought of him with anyone else—not that he could be. Giving me his family ring and consummating our relationship meant that if he as much as kissed another girl he could lose everything. I had to admit he was taking it pretty seriously.