"No."
Cherine and Mitchie pouted at me over the dress they picked out. Staci and Lexi were causally sitting in the lounge chair, sipping on a glass of wine. Somehow Mitchie and Lexi met us at the mall and going shopping for a little bit of clothes turned into a lot of clothes. Who's paying for this?! I made sure to send an apology to the person who's credit card is being massacred.
Cherine glared at me and then said, "Put it on!"
I squeaked, snatching the dress and walking back into the dressing room. All of the outfits they bought me where good but that nagging in the back of my head about who was paying for it kept popping up. "Hey, Cherine?"
She poked her head in the dressing room and then walked in whistling and helping me zip it up. "What's wrong? It's a nice dress."
"That's not it," I bit my lip. "Who's paying for all of this? I don't have the mon—"
"Oh that? Joel handed me his credit card before he left for his meeting," she said nonchalantly and then stepped back to stare at me. "Mm if I was a guy..."
Joel did what?!? I opened my mouth to say something but she just held up her hand. Her face told me everything. I wasn't going to win this argument with her or with Joel so let it happen. I turned around and looked in the mirror. As much as I love my baggy clothes and sneakers it felt...nice to dress up. I saw Cherine smile behind me. "You like it?" She asked.
I nodded.
"Good. Take it off and meet us at the cash register," she instructed as Staci stuck her head in and threw a black dress at me.
"Put that on. It's already paid for," she said quickly before pulling Cherine out of the room. I stared after them before pulling off one dress and then looked at the one Staci tossed at me. It was a Chinese styled dress with a really long slit and a silver dragon on it. It would be leather...I quickly put the dress on and looked at my reflection in the mirror and shook my head. This dress was really tight in all the right places. Something my older sister would wear. "Staci?" I said loudly with a hint of panic in my voice. If I walk the streets with this thing on it will cause a whole lot of trouble. The door opened and when I turned around it wasn't the girl I thought it was going to be. It was Joel, dressed in an all black suit and looking at me with eyes of a predator. I shivered backing up as he walked forward.
"It's good to know my money is being put to good use," he said in a husky voice before his eyes met mine.
I bumped into the back wall and he gave a small smirk. The bastard! He knew what he was doing! His hand reached out and I flinched a bit before I realized he was pulling on my hair tie and taking my hair out of its ponytail. My hair fell around my shoulders and he ran his hands through my hair to smooth it down and then flipped it to one side. I couldn't hide the moan that escaped my lips and I knew he heard it when he stopped.
Joel dropped his hands and then got on his knees, his hands running an invisible trail on my leg and stopping at my feet. He clearly liked the little noises he got from me because he chuckled while taking off my socks. "I haven't even really touched you yet," he said reaching behind him and pulling out a pair of black sandals.
I blushed. "What makes you think I want you to touch me?!" I hissed.
Joel snorted and then looked up at me. "Say you don't."
Cocky bastard! His huge form unfolded as he stood up straight and then opened the door. Joel extended his hand to me and his playfulness was gone. "Let's go. We have been assigned a mission tonight."
•••
The "mission" was at a Cuban owned nightclub which was the reason for the dress. Our team had all of the Mason siblings, Mitchie, Devlin and myself. The club was hot and there was a lot of touching and grinding. If someone touches me I swear to God—
"Justine, you go with Joel. Our target is a sucker for curves like yours," Cherine said smacking my ass. I yelped, jumping a bit and landing right into Joel's arms. Everyone split up into twos and when we were alone, Joel grabbed my waist and pulled me towards the bar. He nodded at the bartender and pushed me against the bar and leaned down to whisper, "The man we are looking for is an informant for Valentine. He will be wearing the Spalding insignia on his jacket. It's a wolf."
What? "The Underground wants him?" I whispered back.
"That's what we told your friends," he pulled back a bit. "My father wants him."
"Why?"
He looked down at me, "You aren't going to let this go until I tell you, huh."
I nodded and he rewarded me with a smile. The bartender came back handing Joel a drink and then whispering something in his ear. Why would General Mason want someone who works for Valentine? I remembered Valentine's words about testing on me and shivered. That's probably what this is about. Joel's arm snaked around me again and pulled me close. "Your eyes are changing color," he whispered.
Oh? Maybe it's because I'm afraid of being someone's pet frog!
"Look at me, Justine."
I turned slowly at Joel and he looked down at me sternly. His grip on my waist tightened as he said, "I won't let anything happen to you. Neither will my brothers or sisters. You are safe."
His words were so comforting and actually helped me relax. When the tension in my body left, Joel smirked at me and took a sip from his drink. "That's my girl."
Oh please make me your girl! Joel looked towards the entrance and then put his glass down. I followed his gaze and sure enough, a guy wearing a black leather jacket with the wolf insignia was walking in the door. I grabbed onto Joel's jacket. "He's here," I whispered.
"He's looking for you," he growled and then nodded to Carter who appeared out of no where. "I'm going to walk away from you and I need you to try to get his attention and then lure him through that door," he instructed, pointing at a door all the way at the back. I felt myself start to panic.
"What if I fuck up?" I asked hesitantly.
"I'll be five steps behind you at all times," he whispered. "Just get him through that door."
I turned around and Joel was gone. If my job is to always be a decoy I want a fucking good pay grade. How do I catch the attention of a guy like this? I looked up to see the guy staring at me and I smiled at him. He may work for Valentine but he's still a guy. I shimmed my way through the crowd and made him come towards the dance floor. Even though I couldn't see them I knew for a fact Joel and the others were watching. The guy standing front of me winked and asked me above the music if I wanted to dance. Before I could answer him he had his hands on my hips and as naturally as I breathe, my hips started moving with his.
You want Joel to shoot up the place. Yep that's it, my subconscious grumbled at me.
Screw him because he shouldn't have left me on my own! I danced with my stranger until I felt the guy who I was waiting for behind me and his hands on my waist. "I'm borrowing her," he said and then smiled at me. He's attractive I'll give him that. He grabbed my arm and I pulled myself back.
"Do I know you?" I asked.
He smirked and pointed to the insignia on his jacket. "I represent the Spalding family. My name is John. I have a few questions for you, Justine," he said tightening his grip. He knows who I am!
I smiled and point to the door. "We should go through there so I can hear you better," I shouted over the music. He seemed to think about it for a minute and then nodded, pulling me in the direction of the door. Joel better be five steps behind me. When we made it to the door, "John" pushed me through it and I found myself against the wall in an ally way. Hard.
"So you are the little bitch who is causing so much trouble," he snarled. I raised an eyebrow. "There is a certain set of individuals who won't appreciate you speaking like that," I warned.
He scoffed, "Yeah. Joel fucking Mason. Valentine will have him dealt with soon."
What? "Why?"
"You don't trust the Mason family do you? They are after the same thing Valentine wants and they are using Joel to get to—"
John flew from in front of me and into a dumpster. I looked up at an angry looking Joel. Behind him were Jonathan and Carter who ran over to the guy. Carter frowned. "Dad wants him alive, Joel," he scolded.
"He keeps talking like that he won't need to worry about Valentine killing him," Joel growled and then looked at me. His gaze didn't soften either. He just glared at me.
"Good work, Jus," Cherine chirped from behind Alex. "We can bring this dick to pops and then head home."
That's it? I looked at Mitchie who nodded at me. She would fill me in on what I missed later. Jonathan put zip ties around John's wrists and picked him up. I walked over to him and frowned. "Why does General Mason want him?" I asked softly. John groaned and Jonathan looked over my shoulder, probably at Joel and then down at me.
"Do you trust us, Justine?" He asked. I hate people that answer a question with a question! I nodded slowly regardless.
"Then trust me when I say Joel and my father are doing this to make sure you're safe."
"Because of what happened the other day? Was that the genetic reaction everyone was looking for?" I asked. Jonathan handed the guy over to Carter and Carter dragged him off to the car. Jonathan shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at me. "Is it important that you know?" He asked.
I nodded.
Jonathan sighed and said, "The Underground has been doing the Titan Games for 240 years and you are the only one in that time who's had a positive reaction to venom. You are valuable to the Underground and our enemies. A lot of people will be looking for you."
He walked off after that and when I turned around Joel was standing behind me. Still glaring. "Alright, let's pack it up," he yelled to the others and then grabbed my hand. "You're coming with me."
•••
The drive back to the mansion between me and Joel was quiet. Why is he even upset? He's the one who left me by myself. I looked over at him and he was gripping the steering wheel pretty hard. So hard his knuckles were turning white. "Why are you angry at me?" I whispered.
"I'm not."
"You are."
He growled at me and the only thing he said after that was, "Dancing." So he was watching. I blushed and looked down at my hands. Getting a reaction out of Joel was almost like an accomplishment. He's such a difficult person to be around.
"I'm sorry."
"You should be. It was very distracting watching you and then watching someone else touch you," he snapped.
Might as well go down swinging. "Someone else who wasn't you?" I asked.
The car jerked a bit and I smiled knowing I got my answer. He shifted behind the wheel. "Be very grateful you aren't mine, mia luce, because that smart mouth of yours is going to write a check you can't cash one of these days," he growled at me.
Oh shit. I squeezed my thighs together, biting my lip. I felt so small in the passenger seat. Joel Mason is going to give me a heart attack.