Valentin didn’t seek happiness. Or a partner. Nothing as pedantic as that. At most, he sought pleasant hours and the gratifying feeling of pounding into another man.
Tonight, when he’d first peered down at the dance floor, he experienced his typical indifference. Did he want to find someone to fuck? Was it worth the hassle?
He coolly scanned the bodies swaying to the music. His cock twitched at the sight of the magnificently uninhibited men—he was an alpha after all—but he remained unmoved.
Until he laid eyes onthem.
The beta couple’s seductive movements captured his attention. They writhed together, heads tilted inward, lips close enough to share breath, yet not quite kissing.
Valentin’s mouth watered as an unfamiliar heat invaded his veins. Something so long buried he’d forgotten the sensation.
Stalking them with his gaze, he catalogued the taller one’s lean body and dark crimson locks as he closed his eyes and meltedinto his partner. That partner, shorter but broader, had shaggy black hair and deep bronze skin accentuated by a few days’ worth of scruff.
Valentin’s urge to taste another man’s jaw had never been stronger.
He swallowed, his pulse speeding up as he watched the couple dance, mesmerized by how they touched each other with care, but also with a roughness that spoke of trust. His inner alpha surfaced, a churn of raw need invading his gut. When the couple began grinding together, his throat vibrated with a low rumble.
He wanted to watch them kiss, wanted to command them to do so.
Metallic flashes on their fingers caught the light, and Valentin realized the men were married. It figured. They moved so perfectly in sync, it was hard to tell where one body ended and the other began. He knew he should divert his attention, find an available man, but he couldn’t look away.
He rubbed his slacks over his thickening cock and imagined being in the middle of that beta sandwich. The thought was alluring, but he wasn’t a homewrecker.
It wasn’t until the couple left the dance floor that Valentin noticed the way their eyes kept darting around the club.
At the bar, the dark-haired man clocked every person in his vicinity. The other man waited at the high-top table and did the same thing.
Valentin felt it the moment the red-haired beta’s gaze landed on him. He glanced up, fixing his eyes on the window, and Valentin was helpless to do anything other than stare back.
His husband returned to the table carrying water bottles. Seconds later, they both looked up. Valentin slunk into the shadows.
The couple had obviously been searching forsomethingamong the clubgoers. But what? His cock stiffened furtherwithin the confines of his boxer briefs, as though in hopeful reply.
He considered the possibility that the husbands were in an open relationship.
Valentin had witnessed it before. Couples seeking thirds. While polycules still carried some social stigma, the practice of couples finding other men to share a night or two with wasn’t particularly frowned upon. As long as no one discussed it in polite company.
He smiled wryly. If the beautiful betas were seeking a third for a bit of bedroom fun, he would gladly volunteer for the assignment. This was the first spark of attraction he’d felt in months, and he wasn’t about to let the opportunity pass, assuming it was what they were after.
Only one way to find out. Even if it meant enduring Xan’s stupid eyebrow.
Valentin pictured the couple moving together on the dance floor. He wanted to be part of that, if only for a night. Perhaps they had come to his club because the universe knew his inner alpha needed to come out and play. Perhaps he could lose himself for a while. Let go of his past for five fucking minutes to bask in pleasure and primal instinct.
He’d scribbled a few sentences on a piece of paper for Xan to show the couple, hoping his missive successfully navigated the line betweenmysteriously aloof and desirableandtoo much of an alphahole to consider.
Pacing in the shadows so he would not be visible, he watched his guard deliver the note. The dark-haired beta seemed skeptical at first, but then he saw his husband’s fiery look. Valentin hadn’t been mistaken. They’d made a connection tonight.
The men followed Xan to the staircase.
Moments later, a knock sounded at the door.
Xan poked his head in. “Here are the gentlemen you requested to meet.” With a sardonic expression, he added, “I explained that you probably wanted to ask their opinion on the music.”
Rolling his eyes at Xan, Valentin stepped back as the couple entered the office. They were even more incredible up close. His alpha buzzed beneath his skin.
“Walkie if you need anything,” Xan said. “I’m going back on the floor, so the upstairs is all yours.” He backed out and closed the door with asnick.
A heavy silence descended.