The big man just shook his head and smiled, the love he held for his Luna written all over his face. Sarah sighed, wondering if she’d ever see a look like that on Gabe’s face. “I’m going to enjoy watching you try.”
“Five bucks says I get up there and leave you begging for more.” Belle’s chin lifted, her haughty stare challenging Rick.
Rick’s answer was a simple lift of one brow and a five-dollar bill slapped on the tabletop. Two seconds later Belle’s five was plunked down on top of it.
“Sucker,” Sarah snickered. The Wolf didn’t know it but that five was as good as lost.
“Why do I have the feeling you know something Rick doesn’t?”
Gabe’s whisper in her ear sent shivers down her spine. Ruthlessly she squashed them. She was nowhere near ready to forgive him yet. “You’ll see.”
Fingers tangled gently in her hair, a slight tug at the nape of her neck reminding her of who she was dealing with. “I guess I will,” was all he said, but his hand gave one more tug before landing on her shoulder. His fingers caressed the mark he’d left on her neck.
She could feel him studying her, watching the emotions that crossed her face. She lowered her lashes, not wanting him to see into her soul. That was a right he needed to earn.
Gabe stood, holding back a frustrated sigh, and held out his hand. “Let’s get you and Belle signed up for your songs.” He held out his other hand for Belle, helping her from her seat. “I’ll bring your mate right back, Rick.”
Rick shook his head at Belle and fingered one of the five-dollar bills still sitting on the table.
Sarah was smiling, but it looked forced. Maybe he’d pushed a bit, tugging on her hair that way, but he couldn’t seem to get her to focus on him, and he needed her to concentrate on him more than he needed to breathe. The only thing he could think of to do was be himself and just hope she would let him make everything up to her. He took Sarah’s hand, wanting the feel of her near him, hiding a wince when she tried to pull her fingers away. A little telltale glance at Chloe told him what the problem was. Apparently he had a lot of making up to do. Her reaction to his walking out of the club with Chloe hadn’t even occurred to him until he’d seen the look on her face. Maybe if she knew what they’d been talking about it would help ease the sting of his own stupidity.
He was so damn tired of seeing that bleak, hurt expression. He’d pulled away from Chloe the moment he saw it but by then she’d turned away. Turned to Jim. The fucker. He took a deep breath and reminded himself that Sarah wouldn’t appreciate Jim’s blood on her pretty dress.
“Anyone else?” Sarah’s voice dragged him away from his thoughts.
“Sorry, I couldn’t carry a tune if you put it in a bucket and painted the handle with crazy glue.” Everyone stared at Sheri. “What?”
Sarah shrugged. “Okay, anyone else?”
Surprisingly, Rick stood. He stared down at his openmouthed mate. “What are we waiting for?” He took her arm and led her over to the sign-in sheet.
Gabe shook his head and followed, Sarah’s hand clasped in his. He didn’t miss the wink Jim sent her, either. The little minx. That’s eight. He began cataloging ways to hide the vet’s body. It was all he could do not to snarl at the other man. “Do you know what song you want to sing?”
She flipped through the selection, studying each one carefully. Belle had already made her selection, as had Rick. “That one.”
Her selection shouldn’t have surprised him but it did. He grinned as she wrote her name and selection down and handed them to the DJ. “Sunshine Superman?”
“Mm-hmm.”
He led her back to the booth to wait for her turn to sing, hoping he’d be able to get her to relax and let him in, even a little bit. His first step was pulling her into his arms as soon as they were seated, refusing to allow her to move. The flush that stole over her cheeks was worth the amused, knowing looks his Pridemates sent their way. Now to set the record straight. “Chloe and I were talking about her mate.”
He felt her muscles jump under his hands. “Her mate?”
He nodded, his lips set against her neck. “Mm-hmm. She knows who he is but he doesn’t seem interested.” The music started back up. Unless he wanted to scream in her ear, he’d have to wait to give her any more information.
Having Sarah in his arms made everything worth it. He nuzzled her hair, ignoring the screeching of the half-drunk man on stage. He allowed the quiet peace of having his mate’s scent and warmth beside him to lull him, feeling serene for the first time in months.
I’m going to throw up. Sarah rubbed at her stomach and swallowed hard. She stared out into the audience as the first strains of her song started up, the knowledge that Gabe was there making everything ten times worse. Why, oh why, did I decide to do this? And how did I wind up singing before both Belle and Rick? They signed up before me! She took a deep breath, almost ready to bolt.
A pair of midnight blue eyes stared up at her from the edge of the stage. Gabe smiled, laughter lighting up his face. She could feel the rueful amusement coming off him and knew he expected her to suck almost as bad as the last person who had been up on the stage. The woman had missed every single note of her song, but she’d had so much fun that Sarah had clapped almost as loud as the girl’s boyfriend.
Sarah glared at Gabe, determined to prove him wrong. Her stomach settled down and the music began.
She saw her cue, the joy of the song pushing everything else from her mind. Sarah belted out the lyrics, staring into Gabe’s incredibly handsome face, seeing the astonishment and, yes, pride growing there.
What made it even better was the envy she could see on Chloe’s face as the woman stopped next to him.
Hah! Take that, man-stealing bitch! Now that she’d started, Sarah was having a blast. The lyrics matched her mood perfectly. Sheer possessiveness put an extra swing into her hips as she sang. “’Cause I’ve made my mind up, you’re going to be mine.” She made sure she was leaning over for that part, challenging Gabe before turning away from him to sing to the rest of the audience. When the instrumental part started she danced before picking up with the lyrics once more. “When you’ve made your mind up forever to be mine, I’ll pick up your hand and slowly blow your little mind.” She turned, shimmying her ass right in Gabe’s face, ignoring the hands he held up. Nine fingers. Oh, shit. My ass is going to be sore. She threw her head back and laughed, finishing the song with a flourish before accepting his hand off the stage.
The soft tap to her ass made her jump, a reminder of what lay ahead. “Little mind?”
The affectionate teasing threading through his voice reassured her enough to have her tease him back.
“All things considered, I’d dare to call it tiny.”
“Ouch.” He patted her rear. “Fine, score one for you.”
“Yes!” She marked a point on an imaginary scoreboard with her finger. Gabe’s love tap on her ass was a little sharper, but he rubbed the sting away almost immediately. Sarah was left blinking, fighting her sudden arousal when they reached the table.
Emma was clapping. “Way to go, Sarah!”
“Not bad, Sare-bear!” Sheri gave her two thumbs-up. Adrian merely smiled and nodded, his attention almost immediately returning to Sheri.
Simon and Becky both looked like they’d taken a drink of water and gotten a mouthful of good wine instead, but both high-fived her. Max, for some obscure reason, looked and felt smug, like he’d known all along that she could do it.
Gabe helped her into her seat and settled her between his legs, the bench allowing him to cradle her between his thighs. She allowed it, the feel of his arms wrapping around her waist and the praise of her friends drugging her senses with sweet warmth. Almost as wonderful was the feeling of contentment she could feel pouring off Gabe, like everything he’d ever needed was right there in front of him. Hell, he was even purring. She looked over at Chloe to find the other woman watching them with a wistful expression and a sad smile. Sarah turned away, unwilling to analyze why she felt guilty about Gabe cuddling her in front of the other woman.