Chapter 32
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Ifinished wrapping Miko’s present in some glittery green paper I found in my flat, the sticky tape’s stickiness long past its best. But it did the job.
Someone knocked on my door.
I answered it to Miko.
“Hi. Ha—”
“Can you come to the mess flat now, please?”
He looked even colder than usual, shadows swirling in the depths of his eyes.
I touched his arm. “What’s wrong?”
“I’ll explain everything.” He walked off.
I followed, trying to keep up with his angry strides.
“Slow down, Miko.”
He didn’t answer, turning into the flat where James and Cate waited.
“Have a seat,” the beta said.
Miko stood in the corner, arms folded, a ball of rigidity.
I took the seat next to Cate. “What’s going on?”
“Wait until everyone’s here,” James answered softly.
I kept my eyes on Miko, his gaze downcast, a vein throbbing in his neck.
Paige and Trev arrived next, the troll gently patting my back as he sat on his stool.
“Hi,” I whispered.
“You good?”
I nodded, riddled with anxiety and craving a Miko hug.
With everyone present, the alpha told us what happened at Tower Bridge. “I got more wound up by him on the walk home.” He growled. “Prick. Forever and fucking always. And, before he uses it against me in some way, I slept with him once. I was stupid and I wish I could forget it.”
My mouth fell open.
Miko glanced at me briefly. “Now you know, and I don’t want to talk about it. What I do want is for everyone to be on their guard. The coming months will be difficult, because why wouldn’t they be?” He growled again. “Fucking prick.”
“We’re going to be implementing patrols of the area, keeping an eye out for any members of his pack potentially spying or lurking,” James added.
I stuck my hand in the air.
“What is it?” Miko asked.
“What happens if he agrees to let us into Camden?”
“Then we’ll discuss it.”
“Are you anticipating an attack?”
“I don’t know. As I said, I’m wound up. I… Fuck. I’ll leave you all to the rest of your day. Be vigilant, speak to me if you have any issues. Okay? Good.” He went to leave.
Paige stood up. “Sir, we—”
“I appreciate the sentiment, but I really don’t want to celebrate my birthday. I’m sorry.” He left the flat.
James stood up next. “Told you he knew.”
“Did you tell him?” Paige demanded.
“When will you learn he sees right through this stuff?” He shook his head.
“I wanted him to have at least one birthday biscuit,” Paige said.
“What did you expect?”
She glowered at James. “For him to not be so on brand for once.”
I stared at the door, disappointed for the pack and for Miko. He might be resistant to his birthday, but that didn’t stop it being a real shame. Still, there were too many rotten things spoiling it. For a guy like Miko, turning thirty would be the least of his worries.
“I guess we can celebrate on his behalf,” Cate suggested. “Someone should acknowledge it.”
“What’s the point?” Paige answered sadly.
“Don’t be too sad,” Trev tried.
“It’s my own fault for not respecting his wishes.”
At that moment, Miko returned wearing a pink party hat. A walking paradox of grumpy and a sparkly paper cone crowning his head.
Every mouth in the room dropped.
The alpha cocked a brow. “Can’t a man change his mind?”
Paige rushed at him, hugging him hard. “You came back.”
Miko stood rigid. “I did.”
My smile actually hurt my jaw.
Gathered around the table, we ate the birthday cake biscuits and other nibbles, played some cards, but did not touch any of the gin under Miko’s strict instructions. He wanted fully clear heads.
He sat opposite me, making lots of eye contact and those smiles that lit up his face. His foot even bumped mine playfully now and again.
What a different man to the one I met a few days ago.
In turns, we checked outside for any suspicious activity. As much as Miko joined in, his paranoia crackled through the flat. It was infectious, and I kept one eye on the windows and doors.
Miko stood up, holding a glass of water. “This is really sweet of you all. I know I’m not as forthcoming as you’d like me to be, but I do appreciate this so much.”
“Paige was the master,” Cate said.
“Thank you, Paige.”
She beamed at him. “You’re worth it, even if you are grumpy.”
He smiled, making a cheers motion with his glass.
“How does it feel being thirty?” Trev asked.
“No different to twenty-nine. And I intend to keep it that way.”
We laughed as one.
“Welcome to my decade,” Trev added.
“How old are you?” I asked him.
“Thirty-four and proud of it, mate.”
“There you go,” James said to Miko. “You’re not the oldest anymore.”
Miko sipped his water.
“He’s happy about it really,” James said.
“Then who’s the youngest?” Trev asked.
Cate: Twenty-seven.
James: Twenty-eight.
Paige: Twenty-six.
Me: Twenty-six.
“We have a tie,” the beta said. “Now for the final round. Birthday month?”
Paige: February.
Me: February.
“Bloody hell! Days?”
“The second,” Paige revealed.
“Thirteenth,” I said.
“And we have a winner!” James declared. “Orion is our baby just shy of Valentine’s Day.”
“Take a bow,” Cate said.
I was blushing. “What? No.”
I met Miko’s eyes, his expression kind of soft but mostly unreadable. Maybe he was reaching the end of his party mood.
“Go on,” Paige pressed. “In fact, you and Trev should double bow as the spring chicken and the grandpa.”
Trev roared with laughter. “Grandpa!”
“Do I look like a chicken?” I asked, standing up to check myself over with mock-horror.
“A little around the backside,” Miko cut in.
James spat his drink, laughing.
“The nerve of you!” I cried, clasping my chest.
He chuckled, then put his drink down. “I’ll do some checks.” He left the flat.
I didn’t see him again until we decided to call it a night an hour later.
“Hi,” I said to his reappeared finery.
“Hi. I’ve come to walk you home.”
Paige squawked with excitement.
He threw her a stern look.
“Sorry, sir.”
Miko offered me his arm.
Was I dreaming?
“Come.”
I linked my arm with his. “Why thank you, kind wolf.” Giddiness sat nicely within me without the aid of alcohol. The joy of the night was all the drug I needed, this the cherry on the cake.
We walked to my flat by the light of his lantern, pausing at the door.
“You can come to my place if you like?” he said.
Butterflies danced. “Are you sure?”
He nodded. “You’re good to cuddle.”
How did we go from wound-up Miko to this guy in a matter of hours? “Then I say yes.”
“Good.”
“But let me grab something,” I said, unlinking my arm from his.
“Okay.”
I dashed inside the flat, returning with his present.
“What’s this?” he asked.
“Happy birthday, grumpy.” I took the lantern from him.
He took it, carefully unwrapping it, the paper glittering in the glow of the light. He froze, staring at the perfume bottle.
“Do you like it?”
He looked at me. “I love it.” He held it up for closer inspection. “Thank you so much.”
I dug at the floor with my boot, a little bashful. “You’re welcome.”
He took hold of my chin, lifting my head gently. “Very thoughtful of you.”
“It’s your birthday.”
“Thank you.” His tone was husky, loaded with seduction.
For a moment, I thought he might kiss me. But his fingers left my face, eyes on the bottle. “Mum would’ve loved this.”
“She would?”
“Collecting perfume bottles was our thing ever since I was a kid. I’m carrying it on.”
“That’s nice.”
“Managed to save some from home.”
“Do you have pictures of your family?”
“No.” He offered me his arm again, not going into any further details. “Come on.”
No pictures? Stars, how utterly sad.
We carried on to the second floor. He opened his door for me, gesturing for me to enter.
“Thanks,” I said.
He slammed the door once we were inside, pushing me up against it. The lantern slipped from my hands to the carpet. Taking me by the wrists, he lifted my arms, pinning them above my head and brought his mouth close to mine.
“Stars…” I breathed, trapped in his strength, his crotch bumping into mine.
He brushed his lips across my cheek, soft growls stirring my cock.
“Miko…”
“You’re making me feel,” he whispered.
My skin sparked with need. “Feel?”
“Feel. The good feels. Making my heart beat like it should.” He rested the tip of his nose against mine. “I can’t resist you.”
I licked my lips, hungry for his kiss. “You don’t have to.”
“I’m… I’m thinking a lot of bad things right now.” He ground into me. “Real bad.”
I pushed back against the door, stretching my body. “Use me for bad things.”
“Mmmm…”
“Do whatever you like.”
“God, I want to.”
“Then take me, Miko.”
“Fuck…” His breath, hot and delicious, sent my senses into a giddy spin. I was ready for his kiss, for whatever his devious plans for my body were.
But red caught my attention at the window.
Red. On the blinds.
Red.
“What’s wrong?” I heard him say.
I blinked at the spot.
Red. It moved across the closed blinds. A dot? Not quite. More like a rippling patch of crimson liquid moving back and forth.
“Orion?”
“Red…” Something about it muddied my head. A haze of confusion fell over my mind. Red spots in my vision, a twisting in my guts.
“Orion?”
Metal on my tongue. Dirty and corrupt. Seeping into me.
“What’s wrong?” Miko grabbed me by the shoulders as the red spread across my vision. Plunging deeper, poisoning me, blinding me.
I sucked in a sharp breath as Miko and his flat disappeared into the red.
“I can’t…” My body was so cold, so stiff. “I can’t see.”
Miko moved, the door crashing open. “James!”
His voice echoed, fading into the distance as the red brightened.
“Miko…” I struggled to speak. “Help…”
The red snatched my voice away.
Oh, stars. Oh, stars. Oh, stars.