An hour later, the guys asked if we wanted something better to drink than just sodas, and when we tried to explain we’d rather stick to non-alcoholic drinks, they still brought us beer instead of the sodas we’d asked. And they also bought more company. I was glad about that, because it was a group of four omegas, all of them much prettier than me, and the three alphas were all over them. Payton still got some attention, but after a while, I assumed it was safe for us two to leave and go find a mafioso to talk to.

Payton nearly jumped up from his seat when I asked him if we should get going. I grabbed my stuff as well and stood up, but Dennis noticed us.

“You’re not leaving, are you?” he asked.

“Sorry, we need to get going,” I told him, but he was still looking at Payton.

“Come on. Stay. The night is just about to start!”

“There’s someone we need to find,” I said vaguely while taking a step away from the table, but the guy grabbed Payton’s hand.

“We just bought you drinks, too!” he said, and while he kept his voice light and he was smiling, I was getting uncomfortable.

Payton tried to be kind when he pulled his hand away, but Dennis was very reluctant when he let go of him. I was ready to push him back if needed, but he didn’t try to grab Payton again. He did stand up, though.

“Come on. I just want to get to know you better,” he said.

“Sorry, we really need to go…” Payton said, and took a step away, but Dennis kept following him.

“Well, what if you go find your friend and come back? The more the merrier!”

“We’ll think about it,” I said, grabbed Payton’s hand, and pulled him with me.

“Come on, don’t be like that. I thought we were having fun,” he said, and reached for Payton again, but I pulled him back.

And we both immediately hit something big and solid.

“Everything all right over here?”

Even I had to crank my head back to see a tall, wide alpha hovering above us. He had blue eyes, blond, wavy hair, and a nice tan. Thirty-something. Looked strong as a bull. And he was wearing mafia clothes.

He gave us both a friendly smile, but his eyes turned cold when he turned to Dennis.

“Everything is all right,” Dennis said, stepping back. He couldn’t really hide the annoyance on his face when he stared up at the mafioso.

“Hmm,” the big alphas said, and turned back to us. “Why don’t you two go get something nice to drink, hmm? Tell the bartender that Lucas is paying.”

“Thank you, but it’s all right,” I said, feeling a little breathless when the man looked at me.

“I must insist,” he said with a kind tone, and gestured to the bar.

“Okay…” I muttered. “Thank you.”

“We actually need someone to talk to,” Payton said while I was too smitten by this alpha to even remember why we were here. “We have a small problem.”

The man – Lucas? – peered at both of us, then gestured to the bar again.

“Go get your drinks and wait for me there. I’ll see what I can do,” he said.

“Okay,” I mumbled, while Payton took my hand and led me to the closest bartender.

I looked back at the big mafioso, who stepped closer to Dennis, crossing arms over his chest. Dennis shrunk a little in front of him, and his annoyance faded when fear took its place.

“We do not tolerate harassment in this bar,” the mafioso said.

“I wasn’t harassing anyone! I just wanted to make sure they knew we enjoyed their company and wanted them to stay!”

“Come…” Payton told me, looking very uncomfortable.

I couldn’t hear what else the two alphas said when we reached the bar counter, but only a moment later, it looked like Dennis and his group were leaving.

“Looks like Dennis did us a favor,” I muttered to Payton, and smirked.

“It does seem like the best way to get the mafia’s attention is to get in trouble with drunk alphas,” he muttered back.

We got new sodas and told the bartender that a man named Lucas was paying for them. She simply nodded and moved on to serve the next person, while Payton and I stepped aside to wait for the mafioso. It took him a few minutes, but at least he’d not forgotten us.

“So you need someone to talk to?” he asked after he pulled us to a quieter corner behind the bar counter.

“Yeah… We uh…” I really didn’t want to tell him the truth, but lying to him was going to come back to bite us in the ass. Besides… He was kind of hot, so… I didn’t want to lie to him. “We were part of a looter clan, but we left two days ago because of what happened at Clover Hill.”

Payton gave me a concerned glance while I spoke, but I ignored him. I kept my posture straight under this mafioso’s pale blue eyes and waited for his reaction.

“Right…” he said slowly. “You were here with… Kent, was it?”

“Yes. We already spoke to a guy called Atticus, but things have… escalated… since then,” I said, letting my hopes up. “We want to get into the homeless society. We won’t survive on our own without a place to stay, but they can’t help us because we were looters.”

“Right,” he said again, but slower. He still wasn’t saying anything else.

“We need our names cleared so they can help us,” I said, pleading. “We’re staying at a hotel, but we can pay only for one more night, and then… We have nowhere to go.”

I couldn’t tell what he was thinking when he watched me. His silence made me nervous.

“Please. We left the clan because of Clover Hill. We left because we don’t want to have any part in what the clans have become. Kent has gone mad. I think they all have.”

“Kent wanted us to start working as prostitutes. We can’t… We won’t…” Payton said, but his fear and worry took the best of him, and he fell silent, shivering.

“Right…” the mafioso said for the third time, but quieter now. “I’m afraid I can’t do much about that.”

I honestly wanted to just start crying. It felt like this man had just taken our last hope.

“But…” he continued with a sigh. “You said you have a place to stay for the night?”

“Yeah?” I said, the hope rising again.

He let out another sigh. “Come back here tomorrow. I’ll see if I can arrange something.”

Payton actually started crying at his words. I put my arm around his shoulders and held him tightly.

“Thank you,” I told the mafioso. “Lucas, was it?”

“Yes,” he said.

“I’m Joni,” I said, smiling a little while holding back my own tears. “And thank you. Even if you can’t do anything for us… Thank you. This means a lot. We don’t seem to have any friends left in this city…”

“Rules are rules…” he said quietly, apologetically. “You come back tomorrow, okay?”

“We’ll be here,” I promised.

“Good. And if you’re hungry, you can ask Lana to get you something to eat. My treat,” he said.

I peered at Payton. I kind of was… We hadn’t eaten anything since morning. Payton sniffed hard and wiped his face dry while taking deep breaths.

“You can also ask her to find you a quiet room where no one will bother you,” Lucas continued. “Or you can take the food with you if that’s better. It’s up to you.”

“We, uh…” I did consider staying, but I was sure Payton needed rest, and I was in pain and uncomfortable in my heat. “I guess we should head back to our hotel.”

“Yeah…” Payton agreed quietly.

“You two look like you’ve had some pretty rough few days. You should get some rest. I’m sure tomorrow is a better day,” Lucas said softly.

“Thanks,” I said again.

“Go talk to Lana,” he said, and gestured to the bartender lady. “And I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow,” I replied and watched him walk away before I turned to Payton. “You all right?”

“I’m just so tired…” he muttered, sniffed, and laughed a little. “I didn’t mean to cry like a baby…”

“It’s been a rough few days,” I said gently. “Come. Let’s go talk to Lana.”

“Yeah…” he said and followed me.

He seemed to be feeling better now. And so did I. I tried to spot Lucas in the crowd, but he’d already vanished. I smiled a little.

Lucas, huh…?

 *****

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