Chapter 5
CALDER
Unsurprisingly, Cassian didn’t invite me to sit.
Instead, he moved through the kitchen with his back to me, completely deliberate and unhurried.
The message couldn’t have been clearer if he’d spoken it aloud.
He didn’t respect or fear me. The latter didn’t bother me—I hadn’t come here looking for a fight—but the lack of respect cut deeper than I wanted to admit.
Of all the Wolfe brothers, I suspected he’d be the hardest to crack.
The bond between werewolf twins differed from human twins.
The connection went deeper than blood. I’d often wondered if Thorne and Cassian shared thoughts.
They didn’t, but sometimes they sensed things in each other the rest of us missed.
Which was exactly why I’d decided to come here instead of seeking out Ricky or Felix. Of the three, Cassian would know the most. Not just what’d happened to Thorne, but how she was physically and emotionally.
“Well?” he said. He stopped in front of the stove and flipped the bacon, the grease sizzling in the pan. “Say what you came to say.”
“You already know why I’m here.”
“Yes,” he said. “I do.”
He flipped another piece of bacon, then set the spatula down and rested his hip against the counter. His eyes locked on me, but they were empty. Flat.
“And how exactly did you come to see my little sister’s scars?” he asked, his voice tight with restraint.
I rolled my eyes. “You’re the same age.”
“Two minutes makes me the older brother,” he shot back.
Okay. We were bordering on petty now.
“Now, answer my question.”
I let out a slow breath and cupped the back of my neck. “She was angry, overheated, and losing control of her wolf. She stripped her sweater off, and her shirt rose high enough. I saw them.”
“So, she didn’t show them to you,” Cassian surmised.
“No, it was purely accidental. And then she kicked me out.”
“Too bad she didn’t bite your face off first.”
I stared at him. He stared back. Then he shot me a cruel grin.
Alright. Good to know exactly where we stood with each other.
I dropped my hand back to my side and sighed. “Look, man. I didn’t come here to hurt her. But now that I’ve seen those scars, I have to make sure she’s okay.”
Cassian’s grin vanished. He pushed off the counter and crossed his arms, his stance loose but unmistakably protective. “You came back. That hurts her. Can’t you see that?”
Yeah. That part was pretty damn clear already.
“You crashing her opening night and kissing her like that in front of the whole fucking town hurts her.”
I inwardly winced. That hadn’t been my proudest moment.
But the second I’d laid eyes on her, it was like my whole world had snapped back into place.
The pain of being separated from my mate hadn’t faded—it’d just become manageable.
I’d adjusted to it, like a chronic ache I carried everywhere without thinking about it.
Seeing her had ripped that wound wide open and reminded me it’d never truly healed. So, yeah. I’d kissed her. And she’d one thousand percent kissed me back. But it seemed safe to assume Cassian wouldn’t appreciate me pointing that out.
“You can’t just blow back into her life like a goddamn hurricane and expect everything to be okay.”
“I know that,” I growled. “I just—” I sighed again. Nothing I said would sway Cassian. I wasn’t even sure why I’d thought he would help me.
“You just what? What’s the point of all this? Why are you here? Why did you even bother returning? She was doing fine without you—”
“Fine?” My wolf reared its head at that, anger sparking in my deepest depths. “She’s fucking scarred, man! Someone carved words into her fucking body! That isn’t fine! You should have been protecting her—”
In the span of a single breath, Cassian moved. He closed the distance between us until we stood nose-to-nose. The air shifted instantly, tension rising in the kitchen like a pressure cooker, his wolf flaring in response to mine.
“The fuck did you just say to me?”
He practically shook with menace, but I didn’t back down.
My wolf rose to the challenge, howling at me to assert myself, to knock Cassian down a peg.
This was how it went between werewolves.
One always had to come out on top, prove they were more dominant.
But that was also how people got hurt. If it came to a fight, I knew without a doubt how it would end.
And Thorne would never forgive me for hurting her brother.
I dragged a slow breath in through my nose and forced myself to relax. Winning back Thorne’s trust was all that mattered here. Ripping out her brother’s throat wouldn’t win me any points.
“Let’s both calm down,” I said, though my voice came out deeper than normal. “Fighting won’t accomplish anything. And I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have accused you of failing her.”
Cassian didn’t back down, but the gold flecks in his eyes dimmed.
“We both know you would never let anyone hurt Thorne. Not if you had any say in it.”
“Damn straight,” he snarled.
He held my gaze for a few more moments before finally scoffing and looking away. He returned to the stove and flicked off the burner, the bacon likely a little crispier than he’d intended. He removed the pan from the heat source, then rested his hands on the counter, his back to me once again.
“I don’t know why you came to me,” Cassian said, his attention fixed on the kitchen window. “I can’t help you. What’s more, I don’t want to help you. Thorne wasn’t the only one you left. Honestly, I have no desire to repair our relationship.”
Ouch.
He faced me. “If Thorne didn’t tell you what happened, then I sure as hell won’t either. I won’t betray her like that. It’s her life, and you aren’t a part of it anymore. This is your cross to bear. Not hers.”
I whipped a hand over my hair, frustration curling low in my gut.
“Ricky, Felix, and I are here for her,” Cassian went on. “We’re her brothers. We love her.”
I almost said I love her too, but I knew he’d just scoff at that.
“You leaving proved to us that we don’t need you. So, why don’t you just go back to wherever you’ve been hiding and leave us alone?”
I stood there a moment longer than I should have, jaw tight, chest aching in a way that had nothing to do with my wolf. There was nothing left to argue. No angle to take. He’d closed every door I might’ve tried to pry open.
“Alright,” I said quietly.
Cassian didn’t say a word.
“I hear you,” I added. “I won’t push her. And I won’t ask you again.”
Still nothing.
I walked to the door, then paused and glanced back. Cassian remained where he was, hands still braced on the counter, shoulders squared like he was holding the house together by sheer force of will.
“For what it’s worth,” I said without turning around.
I’d told him I wouldn’t apologize, but the words came anyway.
“I am sorry. Not just to her. To you, Ricky, and Felix too.” I wanted to tell him why I’d left, about the choice I’d been given that hadn’t really been a choice at all.
But Cassian had made his position clear.
Anything I said now would sound like an excuse.
And Thorne deserved to hear it all first. Not her brothers.
Cassian finally spoke, but it wasn’t what I expected. “It’s too late for that, man.”
I nodded, even though he couldn’t see it, and left, closing the door behind me with a soft click.
I started walking and didn’t stop until the house was well behind me. When I reached Main Street, I quickened my pace, eager to avoid onlookers and judgmental stares. I had no patience left for it.
Frustration sat low in my chest and my wolf paced restlessly in my head.
Cassian’s and my conversation had not gone as planned.
I’d been a fool to expect any other outcome.
No one knew better than I how fiercely protective the Wolfe brothers were when it came to Thorne.
I should have known Cassian wouldn’t tell me anything.
It was time to head back to the inn and come up with Plan B. I just wasn’t sure what that looked like yet. Leaving town, as Cassian suggested, wasn’t an option. I hadn’t come back just to run away again. I was staying, whether they wanted me here or not.
Behind me, a low, rumbling sound approached. Not animal, but mechanical.
I slowed as a motorcycle slid to a stop beside me, tires kissing the curb with casual precision. They planted one booted foot on the cement, effortlessly balancing the bike as they cut the engine.
I eyed the biker, instantly wary. The whole street was bare, and they’d still chosen to pull up beside me. That wasn’t accidental. But I didn’t recognize them in their leather jacket, slim-cut trousers, and scuffed combat boots.
They reached up and pulled off their helmet, shaking free a long mane of blonde hair. Piercing blue eyes locked onto me before she flashed me a grin, complete with fangs.
Ah.
Evangeline St. Germain.
“Well,” she drawled. “If it isn’t the prodigal mutt.”
I rolled my eyes. “What do you want?”
“Wow,” she said, sliding off the bike. “No hello? No nice weather we’re having? You wolves really are all snarl and no charm.”
“I’m not in the mood, Evangeline.”
“Oh, I know,” she said cheerfully. “That’s why this is fun.”
She leaned back against the bike, crossing her arms as her gaze flicked over my clenched jaw, the tension in my shoulders. That was the problem with the St. Germains. Nothing escaped them.
“Rumor has it your homecoming isn’t going well. It looks like you could use a friend.”
A harsh laugh escaped me. “And you want to be that friend?”
“No,” she said, laughing. “No one wants to be your friend. That’s kind of the point, isn’t it?”
“I’m walking away now. Feel free to go annoy someone else.”
She pushed off the bike and fell into step beside me without asking, boots thumping against the pavement.