Carson snorted. “Every inch of your body language says you want to. And even with the scent dampeners, I could scent a bit of her. I don’t blame you a bit.”

Suddenly I was on my feet and I didn’t know how I got there, the feral urge to protect against the threat of what was mine.

Laughing, Carson just stood and clapped me on the back. “Thank you for proving my point so thoroughly. Now, I have to go show off the tattoo.”

I started to put away my equipment. No one else had even spoken to me about ink tonight, and now I had another motivation. As much as it annoyed me to admit Carson was right, he was. I didn’t want to be stuck doing a tattoo when I could be closer to a bunch of lilacs.

The smart thing would be to walk away. Pack up the equipment, go home, tell the guys about it and maybe try to meet her the way someone like her should be met. With flowers and courting gifts. Showing her everything we had to offer and laying everything on the table.

Then again, I was one hell of a tattoo artist, but I never claimed to be smart.

Stowing my equipment in the secure space left for the vendors and performers, I took one long, deep breath. The air was filled with a hundred mild scents, all knocked down because of the scent dampeners in the air. All but one. A sweet thread which called to me, pulling me like it had me on a leash.

There was no point in trying to resist. I was already moving, searching for the scent of lilacs and tea.

Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

________

ESME

The night air was cool, fresh, and a hell of a lot easier to breathe. Even with the occasional cloud of cigarette smoke floating around, this was still better. Clearer. I wasn’t being driven out of my mind by non-existent cupcakes.

What the hell was that?

And why did I want to go back inside, haul him close by his shirt and bury my nose in it?

I shook my head, leaning my back against the railing. Just more proof coming to this party had been a bad idea. Not even ten minutes inside and I’d already made a fool of myself. They’d all probably burst into fits of laughter after I left.

“Stupid,” I muttered, ignoring the heat of embarrassment I now felt. In the cool, scentless air it was easy to see how I’d been reacting to the scent of an Alpha. Who the fuck hallucinated about the scent of cupcakes? And never mind that, the universe could have at least given me the saving grace of having him be a troll. Or a monster. Not a tattooed god who looked like he could bench press me with one hand.