MY STEPBROTHERS, MY MATES

TO THE PARTY

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

JACE

I didn't know why I asked her.

I stood in the kitchen watching her face while she turned it over in her head.

I told myself it was just because I didn't want her sitting alone all night replaying those comments. That was it. Nothing more complicated than that.

I'd seen the post earlier and gone through the comments one by one.

They were horrible. Genuinely horrible.

I'd typed out a response twice and deleted it both times because responding would just pour more fuel on it and she'd wake up to twice the chaos tomorrow.

So this was the only thing I could do. Get her out of the house. Get her out of her head.

She was still giving me that conflicted look when she said, "Fine. I'll come."

I smiled. "Good decision."

"Don't make it weird."

"Go and change. I'll wait downstairs."

She disappeared up the stairs and I dropped onto the sofa and stretched my legs out and pulled out my phone.

My phone pinged and I brought it out of my jacket to see a notification message from Alex.

*Hey buddy, still no sign of you. The party started.*

A photo dropped in immediately after. I opened it. Alex was surrounded by four girls in tight dresses, faces covered in heavy makeup, and wide smiles on their heavily painted lips.

Another message: *I can see you're online. Are you still coming? The omegas are with me already man, what's keeping you?*

Realization dawned on me. The girls in the pictures were the omegas Alex had promised to bring to the parties.

I stared at the screen.

I remembered I'd agreed to this party specifically because of Jayden's drink collection and the omegas Alex was bringing. That had been the entire plan as of this morning.

And now I was sitting on the sofa waiting to escort my stepsister to the same party and I'd just mentally committed to staying by her side all night.

"s**t," I muttered and raked my hand through my hair.

I typed back hurriedly: *Something came up. I'm coming but I'm bringing Violetta. I need to stay with her tonight. Can you pay the omegas off?*

Three dots appeared instantly.

Alex: *I'm going to need a full explanation for this when you get here.*

I closed the phone as footsteps on the stairs.

I stood up and looked at her.

She's putting on tight fitting jeans and a black hoodie. She looked up and my eyes moved over her once. I stopped that thought immediately.

"You're wearing that?" I asked, surprise etched in my tone.

She looked down at herself. "Yes. Why? Is anything wrong with my dressing?"

"You do realize we're going to a party right?"

"If you don't like it you can go ahead without me. I'll stay here and watch a film."

I looked at her face. She meant it. Or she wanted me to think she meant it so I'd tell her to stay home. She'd have an excuse to do exactly that... stay home and sit with the phone all night reading comments.

I beckoned toward the door. "Come on."

The party was at Jayden's place, ten minutes across town. She sat in the passenger seat with her knees pulled up slightly and her elbow on the door. Her face turned toward the window.

She didn't even have her hair tied as she usually did. And somehow she looked hotter than the omegas in the pictures. I kept my eyes on the road.

Alex was waiting outside when we pulled in. He had his hands in his pockets and his hockey jacket on — which I was also putting on because we agreed to it. He spotted us the second we stepped out. He crossed over and clasped my hand.

"Finally," he grinned. Then he looked at Violetta. "Hey, Violet."

She smiled. "Hi."

He slung his arm around her shoulder casually. "I'm Alexander. Alex for short. I'm Jace's best friend and the better-looking one between us."

She laughed. "Noted."

We went in. Eyes landed on her immediately. I saw it happen... the recognition, the whispers starting up at the edges. Thankfully Alex's arm was still around her shoulder.

**********

Alex found me at the keg a few minutes later while Violetta stood nearby looking around the room.

"Alright," Alex said, keeping his voice low. "Explain."

"Have you seen PackLink's latest post tonight?"

"No, let me check." He pulled out his phone immediately.

I watched him scroll.

His eyebrows went up slowly. "This is f****d up, man."

"Yeah." I poured two cups. "That's why she's here. She didn't want to come but I couldn't leave her at home alone with that so I promised I'd stay with her."

Alex looked across at Violetta and then back at me. He was quiet for a second. Then he said, "Well. I've already sent the omegas home. Might as well stay with you both."

I looked at him. "Thank you."

He shrugged. "Don't mention it. You owe me though."

We walked back over and handed Violetta a cup. She took it and sipped and looked between us.

"What took you so long? I was starting to think you'd both abandoned me."

Alex grinned. "We're gentlemen. We don't abandon pretty ladies."

She laughed and finished the drink.

Then she looked around the room and her expression shifted. "Are there other interesting things one could do at this party or is it just an open spot for couples to make out?" She questioned but I noticed she's frowning hard at something to the left.

I followed her gaze to see couples lined up making out.

Alex sighed. "It's normal for them to engage in such an act openly."

She looked at me. "How is that normal?"

Alex answered, "Well, those are hockey players and werewolves."

Violetta turned and shot me a look, "How do hockey players and werewolves get to do with the whole point?" She spread arm vaguely.

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Hockey players are horny and werewolves are naturally polyamorous. This kind of behavior is just... it's common."

She stared at me for a full second. "Supposedly I wasn't here, will you both have been doing the same thing as them?"

Alex laughed. "It's the whole point of Jace agreeing to the party in the first place. But then he told me to cancel it."

Violetta returned her gaze to me. I scratched the back of my head suddenly feeling awkward and then glared at Alex for running his mouth.

Violetta looked down and shifted her foot, "I'm sorry you'd cancel your fun to be with me."

I shot Alex a look that said I was going to murder him later for this. I took Violetta's hands in mine and rubbed it gently, "look, it's fine and you needn't apologize. I wasn't interested in the party. And Alex had been the one to coerce me to come." I shrugged. "So it's like a blessing she interrupted it."

Alex steered us away from the corner and we found a group near the back doing flip the cup game.

Violetta looked at the game with suspicion and then with interest and then she was in it.

She teamed up with Alex and was so terrible at it.

Cup after cup she couldn't get the flip right and every time she failed she and Alex had to drink. By the fourth failed attempt her cheeks were flushed and she was giggling at her own failures which made her worse. Alex finally leaned over and whispered something to her. She conceded and let him flip for her. He got it on the first try.

I played a round with a girl called Sandra who was about as bad as Violetta and we took our share of cups before she finally got it. When we pulled away from the table Violetta was beaming.

"That was actually fun," she grinned widely.

Alex mouthed at me over her head: she's drunk.

I nodded and took her hand gently. "Alright, we should head back."

She pulled her hand back and frowned at me. "Why? I want more fun."

"Violetta—"

"I'm fine."

I looked at Alex for backup. He looked at the ceiling.

This was completely useless.

Before I could say another word she let go of both of us and turned and ran straight for the pool.

"Fuck... She's going to drown herself." I went after her.

We didn't get there in time.

She jumped causing a massive splash. Half the people nearby scattered back from the edge. She came up out of the water a second later, soaked through, hair plastered to her face, and looked up at us.

"Whoop!" she yelled.

I stood at the edge of the pool with my hand pressed over my chest and Alex beside me was already laughing.

We stood there and watched her for a minute. She swam in lazy circles, completely unbothered, face turned up to the lights above.

She looked so peaceful. Like a different person from the one who had stood in the kitchen earlier with red eyes and shaking hands.

"Violetta." I crouched at the edge. "That's enough. Get out before you catch a cold."

"No." She refused.

"Come on." I yelled.

"No, Jace." She refused again.

I looked at Alex.

He spread his hands. "You're going to have to go in."

I sighed and jumped in.

The water was cold and she immediately spun around and threw a handful of it directly at my face. I caught her around the waist.

"We're going home," I bit out.

She pouted against my shoulder. "You're a joy killer."

"Yes. If that's what it takes to stop you getting a cold, then yes."

I lifted her out of the pool and Alex handed her a towel from somewhere. We walked to the car with her wrapped in it and dripping on the pavement and not remotely bothered about any of it. I didn't look at the people watching us. I didn't care.

Alex walked us to the car and she waved at him from the window as I pulled out.

Halfway home she started singing along to the track I had playing loudly. Every word, exactly right.

I looked at her sideways. "I thought you were drunk."

She turned the volume up. "I am. The water shook it out."

I shook my head and drove.

Back at the compound I handed her dry clothes from the pile in the laundry. She changed in the downstairs bathroom and came out in my oversized shirt and dry shorts I'd handed to her with her damp hair loose around her face.

"I'm going to stay up and read," she said, settling onto the sofa and pulling a book off the side table.

I looked at her for a moment. She was already tucking her feet under her, completely settled, the tension from earlier completely gone from her face.

I leaned down and pressed my lips briefly to the side of her lips, breathing in the faint smell of jasper.

"Goodnight, princess," I said quietly.