BEASTIE

Zeke's Pov

As the night went on, Zeke greeted most of his friends and family before he decided to catch up with Lorentz in the VIP section.

They became close during college and did some crazy shit together back then. Lorentz always had Zeke's back from day one and appreciated his loyalty.

Zeke spotted him when he came up the stairs, and he seemed to enjoy himself.

"Zeke, you did well! This place is incredible!" Lorentz shouted when he reached their table.

"Thanks, man. I appreciate it!" Zeke replied and glanced over at the blonde girl next to him,

"Right, Zeke, this is Jessie, Jessie. This is the club's owner and my good friend, Zeke," Lorentz pointed at him, and they shook hands.

"Hey, this place is amazing. My friend Jannie and I got invited by Jack, the manager?" Jessie said with a smile. She let her fingers slide through Zeke's palm when he pulled back his hand.

"Yeah, Jack mentioned that before. Welcome; it's nice to meet you!"

"Likewise," Jessie replied and winked.

Gosh, she looked smashing in that red dress.

"Jannie!!!" Jessie shouted and looked at someone behind Zeke.

Zeke turned around to see who she was talking to, and the air was knocked out of him.

Literally, because she crashed right into the chest.

Jannie's Pov

(Five minutes earlier)

"Hey, Jessie! I'm just gonna pop down to the toilet real quick!" Jannie shouted over the table, and she climbed over Daniel and Troy to get out.

"Wait, I'm coming with you," Jessie said and stood up.

"No, stay; I'm fine. I need a minute!" Jannie reassured her and swayed down the hall.

Shit, she was drunk. She could barely stand up straight.

That's the problem when she sat for too long while drinking: she could never tell when she had had enough.

Jannie had a very high tolerance for alcohol, nothing she was too proud of. She had a rough time in high school, where alcohol became a solid friend at fifteen.

Jannie wanted a fresh start in college and turned over a new leaf. But she quickly learned that Jessie and she had similar drinking habits and that Dorian, who became her boyfriend a year later, never turned down a drink. So Jannie soon returned to her old ways: drinking until early mornings.

However, she kept up with her schoolwork and was always on time to turn in a term paper.

Jannie was a quick learner with an identical memory, which gave her the upper hand.

She did her business on the toilet and then fixed her lipstick before checking on her phone.

Of course, Dorian had called ten times and sent twenty texts. She browsed through them quickly before deleting them.

It wasn't anything Jannie hadn't heard before, but she could tell he was getting more desperate with each text.

Whatever, she made her way back to the table on unsteady feet, and she was getting a bit cocky with herself for not tripping, which tripped her right into the arms of a massive, muscular man.

"I am so sorry!" Jannie said, excusing herself and hiding her mouth behind her hand as she tried to straighten herself.

But then she heard Jessie laughing and couldn't help but join in. They laughed even harder when Jessie slid down her seat and under the table. Jannie was grateful she had emptied her bladder beforehand; otherwise, she might have peed herself.

Just as she was about to trip again, Jannie felt a strong hand supporting her back. After wiping away her tears from laughter, she glanced up at the man beside her.

"I am very, very sorry about this. Hey, I'm Jannie," she said, trying to compose herself.

"I'm Zeke, the club's owner," he replied, looking down at her puzzled.

"Oh, right. Zeke. Thanks for having us this evening. This place is amazing," she continued, reaching for another shot from the table.

"I think you've had enough," Zeke said, grabbing the shot from Jannie's hand.

She was baffled; this guy must be joking with her.

"Haha, very funny," Jannie replied, laughing, as she tried to grab the shot back. But Zeke held it above his head, just out of her reach.

The atmosphere shifted drastically, and an awkward silence settled around them as Jannie tried to jump and reclaim the shot like a child.

"Let's go downstairs and join the dance floor!" Jessie said, climbing over Lorentz and grabbing Jannie's arm to pull them away from the situation. But Zeke held onto Jannie's other arm, pulling her back.

"What the hell is your problem?" Jannie shouted, trying to free herself.

"Yo, man, I don't know what's up with you, but you need to let her go," Lorentz added, placing a hand on Zeke's shoulder.

Zeke's Pov

"Right, sorry! I zoned out for a second. Have fun tonight, girls!" Zeke rambled awkwardly and let go of Jannie's arm.

"Are you alright, man?" Lorentz asked, inviting him to sit down at the table.

"Yeah, I just need to speak with Hazel quickly. I'll be right back!" Zeke mumbled as he spotted Hazel at another table.

"What's up, Beastie?" Hazel greeted Zeke, jumping up into his arms.

"I missed you!" she continued, pinching his cheek. "Who's a good boy?"

"Yeah, yeah," Zeke replied, pushing her down gently. "I really need you to sober up for a minute, Hazel. This is serious!" He communicated through the mind link.

"Wooow, come with me," Hazel said, dragging him to the bathrooms.

"You are overheating, Zeke!" she mumbled, wetting a paper towel with cold water and pressing it against his forehead.

"Are you sure?" she asked as he allowed her to read his thoughts. It was something only another pack member could do. Yes, she was a werewolf, the daughter of Zeke's father's Beta, Trey, who was the second in command.

"Yes, she has to be; I have never felt this way before," Zeke exclaimed.

"But she's human?" Hazel frowned, trying to make sense of everything, just as he was.

"Yes. I didn't sense anything supernatural about Jannie—that's her name. Other than that, she smelled amazing. I had to compose myself when I let go of her. But now, being up here while she's down there in the crowd, unprotected, is driving me wild."

"Hey, calm down, Zeke. You can't just go down there and claim her. Humans don't know about us, and that poor girl will freak out if you start acting possessive. She'll probably file a restraining order against you!" Hazel said, patting Zeke's forehead to help calm him.

"I honestly never imagined you would mate with a human. That's so strange. I know it's possible, but I never pictured you with someone so ordinary."

"She's not ordinary," Zeke growled, pushing Hazel back slightly.

"Wow, okay. Lesson learned: Never insult your best friend's mate!" Hazel replied, raising her hands in surrender. "Sorry... I don't know what's going on with me. I'm overwhelmed. I never thought I would meet her here tonight, let alone that she would be the most beautiful girl I have ever seen."

Zeke continued, and Hazel shrugged. "All I know is that you need to compose yourself. You can't storm down there and be all over her. You need to play it cool, okay? Buy her a drink and be charming. Human stuff! She doesn't feel the same way you do, and that's the tricky part with humans."

"Yeah, I get it now. But I need you to stay close by, just in case?" Zeke mumbled.

Hazel nodded. "Of course, I've got your back!" She smiled and gestured toward the door.