Oh God. How did I end up here? I rubbed a hand over my face and then caught my reflection on the mirrored wall behind the bar. The guy standing there looking back at me was utterly naive, but outwardly he didn’t look that much different from the rest of the people at the bar or in the room. Can I do this? Can I turn off my insecurities for a few hours and let go?
“I know that look,” Brayden said, and I caught his eyes in the mirror as he looked at me. “You’re curious. I see it, so don’t even bother denying it.”
Staring back at my reflection, I dared myself to try. Then I swallowed the rest of my beer as a slow smile crept across Brayden’s mouth.
“All right,” I said, as the alcohol made its way through my veins. “Lead the way.”
“How many are we expecting tonight?” I looked across my desk to where Trinity, my club’s manager, stood clad in leather pants and a matching black corset with a clipboard in hand. It had just turned ten o’clock and the doors to the den had opened up for newbie night. Or as I liked to think of it, the night when all the little pups come to play at Salvatore Wolfe’s den.
“We have twenty-five new faces to keep an eye on, and the usual cast of characters.”
I sat back in my chair and reached down to pat the head of Faolán, my wolf dog and ever-loyal companion. “Basically, we have twenty-five new bodies to either corrupt or terrify, is what you’re saying.”
Trinity’s lips quirked up at the side as she tossed the clipboard on my desk. “If we’re doing our job right, then yes.”
I looked past her to the curved wall behind her made from glass, and watched as one patron after another entered the main floor of the den. We were currently in my office, which was a circular space located directly behind the bar, unbeknownst to my guests, which was just the way I liked it. Where they thought they were looking at a wall of mirrors, they were looking in at me, and I…well, I was most certainly watching them.
Trinity turned to look in the same direction, and as a chuckle left her, I got to my feet. “Is something amusing?” I asked as I walked around my desk.
“I was just thinking how this night is my favorite every month.”
“Oh?”
She turned to look up at me, my six-foot-five frame dwarfing even her six-foot stature, and she moved a strand of her short jet-black hair from her scarlet lips as she gave a slightly maniacal grin. “Of course. Don’t tell me you don’t get off on watching all these sweet things coming to your den, Wolfe. Others might buy it, but I know you too well.”
“Yes, but the difference is, I don’t touch.”
“Yes. Yes, I know. Which is another reason tonight is my favorite. The odds are in my favor with you out of the picture.” She looked back out the glass and indicated the main door with a tilt of her chin. “I can see Jade letting more in now, so I better head down to the second floor. You going to make an appearance tonight?”
I slipped my hands into the pockets of my Armani pants, still undecided. “Perhaps. I have a few phone calls to make. After that, I’ll see how my mood is.”
She winked at me and then slipped out the hidden back door, the one that led down a private staircase that accessed all floors of the club. Other than the two of us, no one else could enter, which meant I could come and go as I pleased without notice. Just the way I liked it.
Beside me, Faolán was still and alert, his yellow eyes trained on those on the other side of the bar. After punching in a number and hitting the speaker button, I reached down to pat Faolán’s head.
“There, there,” I murmured, my gaze roving over the fresh, eager faces grabbing drinks at the bar. “We’re not on the hunt tonight.”
The line had begun to ring for my liaison in Australia when Faolán let out a high-pitched whine and trotted over to the glass.
“What’s wrong, boy?” I said, as he paced back and forth, continuing to whimper. Hitting the end button before it could connect, I rose from the chair and went over to see what had gotten him so worked up. Kneeling down beside him, I rubbed beneath his chin as he focused on me again. “See something you like?” I asked, to which he let out a noise and looked back at the glass. I followed his gaze to two young men who’d just walked up to the bar, one dark-headed with a cocky arrogance only money could provide, and the other—