Chapter 12 #2
The table near the window was set for tea, but not in a fancy, stuffy way.
There was a three-tiered stand with finger sandwiches—cucumber, egg salad, pimento cheese.
There were scones and quiches and little tarts filled with what looked like lemon curd and berries.
On one side, a wooden board was covered in cubes of cheddar, slices of apple, and pecans candied in something sticky.
The plates were mismatched china, every cup painted with a different flower.
It was a world away from the crystal chandeliers and granite counters of Eyrie. The kindness of it nearly bowled me over.
A scuffling noise came from the kitchen, and a moment later, Oscar the prairie dog appeared, standing on his hind legs. He wore a plaid vest and had a small napkin draped over one paw. He gave me a deep, theatrical bow.
“Miss Harper. It is a delight to see you among the living.”
I blinked. “Uh…thank you, Oscar. That takes some getting used to doesn’t it? A talking animal, I mean.”
Aspen nodded. “He does. And if he gets a bit too much up in your business, just tell him so. He loves a bit of sass.”
Oscar wriggled his whiskers. “I only wish to serve,” he intoned, “and to sample the occasional sweet treat.” Then he scampered to a table, where he began to meticulously organize the sugar packets.
I sat at the table, feeling weirdly exposed by the sun streaming through the window. The girls arranged themselves around me—Aspen to my left, Maddie to my right, Parker across, one leg tucked up in her chair.
For a while, we just ate. Nobody asked me questions; nobody pressed.
Aspen insisted I try everything, and I did, even though my stomach wasn’t sure it wanted company.
The food was incredible—real butter, sharp cheese, soft bread, and quiche that melted on my tongue. I forgot I was supposed to be on edge.
When we’d demolished most of the food, Parker cleared her throat and leveled a look at me. “So, Harper,” she said, “you feel comfortable talkin’ about it?”
My fork froze mid-bite. “I’m sorry?”
Aspen shot her a glare. “Don’t mind Parker. She’s got the subtlety of a sledgehammer.”
Maddie squeezed my hand under the table. “It’s just… you don’t have to tell us. But it might help. Or not. Whatever you want.”
I looked at all three of them, expecting the usual hunger I saw in club girls when gossip was about to be served. Instead, I saw nothing but patience. I took a deep breath.
“My dad forced me to leave Jess,” I said, voice quiet.
“I grew up in a wealthy household in the Rising Moon Pack. Like, really wealthy. Jess was from the other end of pack territory. Where the blue-collar families lived. I didn’t really know him growing up because he was so much older than me, but I saw him one day after I’d turned 19 and we both recognized immediately we were mates.
He had already been in the military for several years, and I was committed to going to Juilliard.
I used to be a ballerina.” Considering where they’d found me, I could only imagine what they thought of me. But I continued.
“Jess was home on leave for a couple of weeks, and we saw each other every day. I knew my father would not approve. He’d had several high-powered wolves he wanted me to meet when the time was right.
Before Jess was set to deploy, I thought I’d tell my mother about him.
I had hoped she’d talk to my father and help me convince him that my happiness was what was important.
She told my father, and he lost his mind.
He told me if I wanted to go to Julliard I’d have to cut ties with Jess.
My plan was to make my father think I agreed and let Jess know we’d be together after I graduated.
But my father had me on a plane that night.
I didn’t expect him not to allow me to talk to Jess before I left.
He confiscated my phone, my computer, iPad, everything.
Jess deployed the next day.” I took a sip of my tea and then continued.
“I had no idea he’d told Jess I had rejected him. I was for sure that we’d be together again. But, he deployed, and I never saw him again.”
Maddie’s eyes got big and wet. Aspen covered her mouth with one hand, tears already welling up.
“I hated my dad for it,” I went on. “But I was too scared to fight him. I just kept telling myself it was temporary. Then everything went to hell when I was twenty-one. My father got caught up in a big Ponzi scheme. He’d invested heavily in it and basically lost everything.
He still had to defend himself in court, and I guess he was desperate for money.
No bank would lend him any, so he turned to the Alpha of the Morgantown Pack, Waylon Steiner, who, besides owning several successful businesses, is some kind of loan guy.
My dad was a hedge fund guy; you’d think he would have known better.
He loaned my dad I don’t know how much money, but there was no way he could pay it back.
I was still at school, and in the meantime my mom had divorced my dad and taken my younger sister to live somewhere in Europe.
I was home for summer break when I discovered my family had fallen apart.
” I continued with how Steiner had seen me and offered the deal of taking me in trade for his debt.
I explained how he threatened to take my sister instead since she’d turned 18, and I couldn’t let that happen.
“He told me it would just be dancing, nothing else, just until the debt was paid.”
Parker snorted. “Bullshit.”
I nodded. “Yeah. That’s when I figured out what kind of man my dad really was. But he said to think of Brie, and that was all it took. That’s why I went willingly.”
Aspen reached over and grabbed my arm, squeezing tight. “You poor girl.”
I shrugged. “It was hell, but my baby sister would never have survived it. I figured I could survive anything for three years.”
“But you think he wouldn’t have let you go?” Maddie guessed.
“Yeah. The ‘contract’ was just a lie. Steiner told me himself. Said I belonged to him now, and that if I ever tried to leave, he’d send someone to kill my family.”
There was a pause, broken only by the clink of Oscar setting a teaspoon precisely parallel to the table edge.
Parker said, “So you survived. You’re here now. You can do whatever you want.”
I laughed, but it came out like a hiccup. “Not really. Jess thinks I rejected him. I never did. I just… disappeared. He’s so angry. He won’t even touch me. He doesn’t want me now. And why would he? You have no idea what my life was like. What I was forced to do.”
Aspen’s face went stormy. “Don’t say that.
That boy is in love with you. He’s part of your soul.
He’s just been angry for so long. When you carry that kind of hurt for so many years, it just takes a bit to move past it.
You’re going to have to let him work it out.
He knows anything that happened in that club was against your will, sweetie. He knows.”
Maddie nodded. “He’s filled his life with sad imitations of what love should look like.
When you know your mate is out there, there is a void that simply cannot be filled with anyone else.
And believe me, there are plenty of women who have wanted to be the one to fill it.
But he’d never entertain that. He’s been no saint, but he’s never been with any woman long term. He’s been waiting for you.”
I blinked. “Are you serious?”
Parker laughed. “He’s an ornery idiot a lot of the time, but he’s loyal. If you want him, you won’t be able to keep him away.”
I thought about the look on Jess’s face when he saw me at the airstrip—the way his mouth twisted up like he was fighting back a scream.
I thought about the way he’d clenched his fists, like he could squeeze out the poison just by holding me tight.
I thought about the note he left me this morning, and how he almost wrote something else.
I wanted to believe them, but a tiny, poisonous part of me whispered that I’d ruined my only chance.
“He seems so enraged,” I said. “I just wish he’d reject me officially, so I could move on. If that’s what he’s going to do.”
Aspen shook her head. “Don’t say that, honey. Your wolf would never forgive you.”
She was right. Even now, the thought made my skin crawl. The idea of being alone—of never feeling the mate bond, was like staring into a black hole.
Parker grinned. “So what are you gonna do?”
I set my jaw. “I’m gonna go home, and I’m gonna tell him the truth. If he still wants to reject me, I’ll take it. But if he doesn’t, I’ll never let him go again.”
Maddie and Aspen whooped, and Oscar let out a high-pitched “Bravo, Miss Harper!” from the corner.
I stood up suddenly lightheaded. The sun was brighter than ever, and for the first time since I was a teenager, I felt like maybe I could survive another day.
“Thank you,” I said, voice catching. “For everything.”
Aspen hugged me again, and this time I let myself lean in, just for a second.
Parker jingled her keys at me. “Ready to go home?”
I nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
We said our thank yous and goodbyes to Aspen and Oscar after offering to help clean up. Maddie, Parker and I stepped into the daylight like we belonged there.
Parker drove her sports car like a bat out of hell, so the trip back to the pack house took no time at all.
Parker dropped me at the curb and shot me a wink before peeling off, tires chirping on the hot blacktop.
The air had shifted while we were at lunch, growing thicker and a few degrees warmer.
Storm coming, maybe, or just the pre-dinner lull that always made Texas afternoons feel heavy as a wet blanket.
I climbed the stairs, clutching the paper sack with the leftover scones, and paused at the landing.
I could hear my own breath, fast and shallow.
There was a confidence in my stride that hadn’t been there this morning.
I thought about what Aspen said about how you can survive anything if you have a reason.
I punched in the entry code and listened for the beep before turning the knob.
The apartment was silent.
But the air was wrong. Dense. Every hair on my arms stood up.
I stepped inside, took two steps, and stopped dead.
The place seemed off.
The coffee table was overturned, books scattered here and there.
My legs went cold, then numb. I scanned for blood, for signs of a fight, but there was nothing—just the raw aftermath of something volcanic. The air was thick with the smell of sweat, and, underneath, the copper tang of rage.
“Jess?” I called, voice cracking.
Nothing.
He wasn’t here. Then I remembered that Parker and Maddie had mentioned the bonfire and barbecue that were happening tonight. I figured he must have gone without me. All the good feelings I had felt from the afternoon with the girls vanished.