Alpha Mine (The Alpha Council Chronicles) by Brenda Sparks Page B

beautiful you look.”
    Kat smiled a wide grin that reached the sparkle in her eyes. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”
    The Alpha leader quirked one dark brow. “Hardly the compliment I was going for, but it will have to do.”
    The questioning look on Katrina’s sweet face made Marcus push into her mind to glean the cause. He found her thinking how funny it was Stephan would care about a compliment when surely he knew how gorgeous he looked. She couldn’t understand why, with the confidence and power he exuded, he would question her attraction to him. She found him unbelievably attractive, in his custom tailored black tux slacks and crisp pleated shirt with the black neck tie that hung straight to emphasize his flat stomach.
    T-M-I. Did NOT need to know that. Marcus pulled from her mind, regretting his curiosity, and turned this attention on Stephan.
    He knew his sire well. Knew what the look of awe and wonderment on his face meant. It was the look of a man who could get lost in the human woman standing before him. A man who wanted to know everything about her, like her favorite color or perfume, or even the color of her toothbrush. Stephan looked at her as if she had curled herself around his heart to become a part of him. And that was something Marcus could relate to.
    A sad smile came to his face. His emotions churned in his gut, a mixture of happiness and sorrow. Happiness that Kat and Stephan seemed to be in love. Sadness because when they finally admitted it to one another, Marcus would be relegated to the third wheel, the odd man out. He knew Stephan would not tolerate another male near his woman, even if that other man had been her friend long before Stephan came into the picture.
    Marcus cleared his throat. “I hate to break up this beautiful moment,” his voice leaden with sarcasm, “but don’t you think you should be going?” He tapped the watch on his wrist. “The curtain goes up in fifteen.”
    “He’s right.” Stephan dropped Kat’s hands. “We should be leaving.”
    Stephan held her coat as she slipped her arms in, then he shrugged on his black jacket. Marcus watched the Alpha lay his hand on the small of her back and escort her out of the door without so much as a goodbye or see-you-later. Alone, Marcus’ heavy sigh was the only sound in the quiet home.
    ****
    They arrived at the theater as the curtain was being drawn and quietly made their way to their assigned green velvet chairs. Kat’s gaze swept the room, taking in the grandeur of the theater from the hunter green drapery that hung along the walls to the ornate crown molding framing the domed ceiling. She looked around at the men, outfitted in dark evening attire and the elegant women dressed in gowns of silk and chiffon. Katrina felt utterly regal sitting among them.
    She quietly gasped as the ballerinas entered the stage. A smug grin of male satisfaction graced Stephan’s face when he looked at her, obviously having heard the intake of breath. He looked so self-assured and confident. Sexy. Kat quickly looked back at the stage when her cheeks flushed.
    The dancers wore white fluffy tutus with white feathers that circled their heads like halos. They pranced gracefully on their toes. The arms of the ballerinas fluttered elegantly while the premier danseur , dressed in white and gold, twirled the prima ballerina in his strong arms as she stood on point.
    Never had Kat seen anything more graceful. Swan Lake was her favorite ballet, and that alone would have made the evening enjoyable, but the joy she felt while she watched them perform it expertly made her heart soar.
    As the ballet continued, Kat observed the sorcerer, von Rothbart, capture the Princess Odette and turn her into a swan by day. Completely engrossed, her fists tightened in her lap. She wept softly when Prince Siegfried became smitten with Odette and vowed to save her.
    Katrina sat mesmerized by the charming performers and felt a little bereft when the curtain lowered on