The Artist And His Alpha

by Lisa Oliver

  Caden nodded. Sean was being so sweet, and Caden did feel safe with him. But he wasn’t sure if that feeling of safety was going to be the same when they left the apartment. He just hoped nothing happened to upset Sean’s plans. Felix had gotten rid of that photographer at the gallery, and Caden couldn’t see any reason why there would be any at the club. None of his ex-pack were likely to have tracked him all across the country. He would be safe.

  He kept telling himself that, as they left and locked up the apartment. He chanted it in his head as Sean drove his posh car through town. Caden had pretty much got himself convinced that everything would be okay by the time they had pulled up outside of a white three level building. The building had few windows, and they were covered with red soft looking curtains. There was a big wooden door with two big men standing on guard outside of them, and a line of people stretched around the block, waiting to get in. Sean parked in a reserved parking space and turned off the engine.

  “Ready, sweetness?”

  “There’s a long line to get in. Maybe we should come back on another night,” Caden said, trying hard not to be nervous and failing miserably.

  “You won’t be waiting in line. You’ll never have to wait in line to get into our business establishment. Sit tight a minute.” Sean got out and came around the car, opening Caden’s door and holding out his hand. Caden could feel his blush heating his cheeks as he took it and stepped out of the security of the car – not easy to do when the car was so low slung, but Caden’s legs were strong enough to manage without falling on his face.

  “If you’re nervous, just keep your eyes on me, and let me guide you,” Sean whispered in his hair, after he’d locked the car. “I do want to introduce you to the staff so that they know who you are, but honestly that won’t take long.”

  Caden managed to nod. Staff. Wow. Although Sean had talked about his business quite often over the past two weeks, it wasn’t until he and Sean swept past the line, heading straight for the door, that it actually hit him – this was Sean’s business. He had staff. He was a business owner.

  “Rocky, Bruno, I want you to meet Caden Wolfe. He’s a well-known artist, and my fiancé. You’ll be seeing a lot of him around here, so make sure he gets looked after.” Sean’s firm voice broke through Caden’s thoughts and he mutely held out his hand as it was engulfed by first one calloused palm, and then a second. He managed a small smile.

  “Nice to meet you.” That was polite enough, right?

  Rocky and Bruno nodded. “Nice to meet you too, Mr. Wolfe, and congratulations. If there’s anything you need, and Sean’s not around, you come and see us and we’ll take care of it for you.” Rocky had a deep voice that seemed to stem from the bottom of his chest. A big chest that seemed to match an equally big body. No wonder the guy was a bouncer – he looked like a human wall.

  “Thank you.” Caden wasn’t sure what he could possibly want, or why Sean wouldn’t be around, but maybe these two guys didn’t know that, or maybe they were simply being polite in front of the boss. What would Caden know?

  “Come on, Caden, I’ll introduce you…” Sean had slipped his hand around Caden’s shoulder and was about to lead him inside when a loud voice shouted.

  “Sean. Yo, Sean. Hey, remember me from last month? Blow job with special extras? Should have been good enough to jump the line, don’t you think?” Caden peered around his mate to see a dark-haired, slim man, jumping up and down in the line trying to get Sean’s attention.

  “They could have let you get in the door first,” Rocky said to Sean, flashing Caden a quick look of sympathy. “Shall I show Mr. Wolfe around while you take care of motor mouth over there?”

  Caden made to move away from Sean, who’s grip tightened around his shoulder. “I won’t be dealing with him,” Sean said firmly, a grim smile on his face. “That’s what I pay you two for. This is my fiancé’s first night in my place of business, and I don’t want any trouble from anyone – do I make myself clear.”

  Bruno gave him a half salute, and a quick smile. “On it, boss. Enjoy your evening.” Caden could hear the motor mouth had started yelling again, as Sean led him inside.

  “Do you get many problems like that?” He asked, as he took in Sean’s pride and joy. It was a nice-sized place, big white walls, red curtains that were velvet, just as Caden had suspected. The ceiling had exposed wooden beams in a dark wood, and the floor was carpeted in the same red as the window coverings. All of the tables and chairs were wood, as was the large bar area that took up one entire wall. There was an area of wooden floor on the other side of the room, and Caden could see some young guy with ear phones on messing about with technological equipment in the corner.

  “Not as many as you would imagine,” Sean said. Then it was as if the man forced a grin – it wasn’t Sean’s true smile at all. “Tell me, what do you think of the place? Do you like it?”

  “Yes.” Caden nodded his head quickly. If Sean was upset with something, and Caden could only hope it was the jumping in line guy, then he wasn’t going to do anything to worsen Sean’s mood. “It has a cozy yet professional feel to it.” To be honest, Caden didn’t have a clue what he was talking about. Rising Moon was the first club he’d ever been to, but Sean didn’t look quite so tense now so he must have said something right.

  “The food is amazing, if I do say so myself, and we stock a wide range of drinks which goes down well among the patrons.” Sean stood, surveying his domain, and Caden had a sudden thought that he wasn’t the only one who didn’t know how good looking he was. Or maybe Sean did. Caden noticed that Sean’s eyes were lingering on some people longer than others. Men, all of them. Various types. One thing common in all of them – the look of hunger in their eyes when they knew they had caught Sean’s attention, however brief.

  “So what are the chances of someone else trying to cash in on the fact you’ve fucked them before the night is over?” Shit. Did he honestly say that out loud? Gods, Caden wished the floor would just open up and swallow him.

  /~/~/~/~/

  Damn it – his little Omega was very observant. Sean felt his face flush as he realized he’d not only been caught, he’d been called out on what he was doing. After the tiny incident at the door, Sean didn’t want anything else to rattle his nervous mate, so he had been doing a mental catalogue of who he’d been intimate with among the current club patrons. He probably should have learned not to shit where he ate, because the number was a lot higher than he had expected.

  “Someone trying to cash in on us being here, virtually nil. Someone who might try to embarrass you or me? That will depend on the individual and how much they might have had to drink.” Maybe this wasn’t the best place for their first outing together, but Sean had made a promise to Liam and Felix, and he honestly did want Caden to feel more comfortable in his club.

  “Come on,” he added, when Caden didn’t say anything and seemed to be casually looking at who was standing around. “I’ll introduce you to Wendy and Clifford who are working the bar tonight, and then I’ll take us to our table. Liam and Felix shouldn’t be too far away.”

  Wendy squealed when Sean introduced Caden as his fiancé. The little red-headed woman, who had more spunk and a bigger temper than many men Sean knew, came flying around the bar, grabbing hold of Sean for a quick hug and then enveloping Caden in one as well.

  “You are a sneaky bastard,” Wendy said to Sean. “How could you not tell me you were thinking of getting married? And where’s this pretty boy’s engagement ring? You can’t tell me you’re too cheap to get him one.”

  “I’m having them custom made,” Sean said, mentally wiping his brow at his quick thinking. Sometimes life would be so much easier if humans understood the idea of mates. But then they’d have to know about shifters too and that would not be a good idea. “Caden is an artist, so I wasn’t about to give him some mass produced crap.”

  “You’re that artist fella that Mr. Liam was talking about, aren’t you? Are you gonna be doing a mural
for the club?” Clifford was a big man, with bushy hair and an equally wild beard. When Sean had first seen him, he was sure the man was a bear shifter, but Clifford was pure human – a bear in some ways, but human all the same.

  Caden smiled, looked down, then up, and then across at the walls. “They could probably do with a bit of color, but I rarely do commissioned work,” he said and Sean was pleased that Caden had managed to work it so he wasn’t saying yes, but he wasn’t giving a flat out no either.

  Sean caught sight of Felix and Liam heading in. “My brother’s here, with his partner, so if you’ll excuse us, we’ll be at the table. You know what to bring for drinks, Wendy. I’ll see you over there.”

  Wendy hurried around to the working side of the bar, but not until she’d elicited a promise from Caden to show her the ring when he got one. Oh well, they could go and get one ordered tomorrow – Sean didn’t want to look like a liar, and he didn’t want Caden made out to be one either.

  As they headed over to the reserved table that was always kept for him and his brother, Sean saw Caden looking at his walls, with a gleam in his eye that Sean had only seen when the man was painting. It was possible the club might get their mural after all, but Sean wasn’t going to bring it up. Hopefully Liam wouldn’t either. He fussed over Caden, getting him seated, a drink and put in the order for their food. He and Caden had barely been out of bed in the past two days, and had been subsisting on takeout food and whatever Sean could rustle up in a hurry. Sean needed a couple of steaks and he figured Caden would too.

  /~/~/~/~/

  Caden was feeling quite overwhelmed. It’s not as though he hadn’t gone out to eat before – Felix took him to restaurants regularly. He knew how to use a napkin, which knife and fork to use, and how to leave his plate so the waitress would know when he was finished. What he wasn’t sure how to cope with was all of the attention that Sean was getting from other men.

  The tall, slim Native American Indian with long black hair, who rested his arm on Sean’s shoulder while he served the drinks at the table. The wink was bad enough, but the hand copping a feel of Sean’s pecs was unnecessary. Then there were a group of men who looked to be in their mid-twenties at the table next to them. Were they being deliberately loud in their appreciation of his mate, or was it just his wolf hearing. Caden wasn’t sure, but he was getting sick of it. Especially when Sean didn’t seem to notice.

  When the group at the next table was joined by another larger man, who started ‘whispering’ about how large Sean’s cock was, and how the man liked to use it, Caden decided a trip to the bathroom was in order. Otherwise he might be tempted to do something he’d never done before – slap someone in the mouth simply to shut them up. He glared at Sean when the man asked him if he was okay, and excused himself from the table.

  /~/~/~/~/

  “Might not have been your brightest move, bro, bringing Caden here. He’s got eyes and ears, just like the rest of us.” Sean didn’t need to be a psychic to know what his brother was talking about.

  “It’ll blow over,” he said, throwing a glare at the men at the other table. The guy with the big mouth gave him a wink and a wave, which Sean ignored, turning back to his brother.

  “It’s first night stuff. Once word gets round I’m engaged to be married, they’ll find something else to gossip about.”

  “You don’t seem to have the same problem, lover,” Felix said to Liam. “You can’t tell me you were a monk before we met.”

  “I wasn’t. But I knew better than to take up any of the offerings here. I don’t mix business with pleasure. Besides, you’re big enough to make any gossips think twice.” Okay, Liam didn’t have to sound so smug about it, but he was right about Felix. In his business suit, the human gave off a look of power that only confident men could pull off. Caden on the other hand.

  “Are you doing a twofer tonight? Only I’d like to be next on your cock now you’ve got rid of the tiny blond.” The man leaning over his shoulder and whispering in his ear was probably aiming for seductive, but it came across as pure slime, and Sean’s wolf bristled under his skin.

  “Caden is my partner, fiancé, and simply visiting the bathroom. He more than takes care of my needs. Now fuck off.” Sean hissed back, not even bothering to look at who was accosting him. It wouldn’t make any difference, his answer and his anger would still be the same. He got an undignified snort in his ear for his trouble.

  “That tiny little thing can’t give you what I can. My ass is built for pounding and word in the club is you’re the man for the job. I’m sure you’ve got an office here we can use. Once you’re inside of me, you’ll forget what you ever saw in that little pipsqueak.”

  “That little pipsqueak, as you called me, is standing right here and your fat ass is blocking my seat. Now move it.” Crap. Caden did not sound happy, not that Sean could blame him. He just wondered how much his mate had heard.

  The pressure on his shoulder lessened, as Mr. Annoying turned, probably to view Caden. “I’m having a conversation with the King of Cocks here, buddy. If you plan on sticking around then you’d better get used to the fact that your fiancé is no more capable of being faithful, than getting pregnant. He’s a well-known man-whore and he’ll clearly stick his dick into anything.”

  Sean heard Caden let out a long breath before saying, “You really shouldn’t have said that.” Mr. Annoying’s weight suddenly fell from Sean completely as the man let out a sickening groan and crumpled into a heap on the floor. Over his shoulder Sean could see Caden step over the prone man and sit down. Only a slight shaking of a thin hand that picked up a glass of water showed how upset Caden was.

  “What the hell did you do?” Sean was shocked, proud, and a tiny bit worried. He didn’t want his mate getting into trouble for assault.

  “Something you should have done. Been a lot more forceful in insisting the idiot fuck off.” Caden refused to look at Sean and so Sean turned to his brother, who was leaning back in his chair, his arm around Felix. Both men had huge grins on their faces.

  “That guy won’t be getting a hard on in a hurry,” Liam said with a smirk. “I’ve already texted Rufus to come and kick him out.”

  “Hells teeth, if you kick out everyone who’s had a piece of Sean’s cock, you won’t have any customers.” Oh boy. Caden was really pissed off, and Sean honestly didn’t blame him and it seemed his troubles weren’t over.

  “Mr. Black, Mr. Sean Black?” Sean looked over and saw a relatively non-descript man standing to the side of where Rufus was manhandling a still prone Mr. Annoying to his feet. “I’m Ted Elliott from the Daily News. I understand you’re engaged to Caden Wolfe, a well-respected artist. Is it possible to get a picture for our paper?”

  “Of course,” Sean said, putting his arm around Caden, who muttered and shook his head, trying to hide his face in Sean’s shoulder.

  “Just smile, baby, we can talk after. This is great publicity for the club.”

  “No pictures!” Sean didn’t know what Caden was getting so upset about, but he gripped Caden’s shoulder tightly, preventing the man from getting away and plastered a big smile on his face. A flash of light, a tiny click and it was all over.

  “Excuse me,” Caden said politely as he got up. Surely he couldn’t be heading for the bathroom again? Sean stared at him, trying to get his attention but Caden ignored him. And he wasn’t’ heading for the bathroom; it seemed he was heading for the front door.

  “Just a few questions, Mr. Black, if you don’t mind.” Shit, Ted was wanting an interview. But Caden. Caden had to come first.

  “My brother Liam will be happy to answer any questions you might have,” Sean said, hoping his brother would have his back. He stood up, determined to go and get Caden before the man disappeared again. He didn’t need his wolf to tell him that his mate was upset. To his surprise, Felix followed him and as soon as they were clear from the table, where Ted was talking to Liam, Felix pulled him aside.

  “You have to stop that photo being
published,” Felix said urgently.

  “It’s just a social piece, it’s no big deal.” Sean wanted to get to Caden, he didn’t have time for anything else.

  “Caden always told me he could never have his picture taken. If he did, then his life would be in danger. I always assumed it had to do with his past. You have got to stop that picture from being published.”

  Fuck, what? Sean stared at Felix for a moment. The man was deadly serious and telling the truth. Sean thought fast. “Tell Ted to do the piece about you and Liam instead. Get him to change the story. Tell him you two have eloped, shit tell him anything, but get the focus off of Caden. If we try and pull the story completely it will look too suspicious. I’ll go and find Caden.”

  “Try talking to him instead of fucking him.” Sean barely registered Felix’s last piece of advice as he hurried towards the front entrance. He had to find Caden, and fast.

  Chapter Eleven

  “I fucking knew it. He’s a fucking Alpha. They never listen. Never respect anything I’ve got to say. Fucking idiot.” Caden mumbled to himself as he paced up and down in front of the Rising Moon club. Rufus had called him a cab, but told him it might take a while to arrive as it was a busy time of the night. He knew the two bouncers were watching him, keeping an eye on him, but that didn’t make Caden feel any safer. Between the flirts, the slurs, the comments and then Sean’s total disregard for his safety, Caden felt strung out and ready to break.

  “Caden, thank God I found you.” And nope, having Sean suddenly there was not helping. But Caden was too pissed off to run away. He turned and walked up to Sean, holding his eyes and daring the man to do anything about it.

  “You’ve just fucking signed my death warrant, you selfish prick,” he whispered. He might be angry, but he would not disrespect Sean’s Alpha or boss status in front of others.

  “And if you’d explained that before we came out then I might have been able to handle it better. I’ve respected you not wanting to talk about your past, but if you’re in danger, then you should have said so. Now get in the car before I pick you up and put you in it myself. You’re going to tell me what you’re running from and we’re going to get this sorted once and for all.”