Chapter 2 #3
She shrugged at him, then looked at Jack, hands on her hips, her small, wiry body sturdy on firmly planted bare feet. “She wants to stay with you?”
“She needs to,” he answered, holding her eyes.
“She’s not going anywhere if she doesn’t want to.”
Jack looked down at the dark-haired wisp of a woman with admiration.
He was almost certain she didn’t know what she was, the power she could wield once she accessed it.
Until then, he could break her in half while still in human form, but she was standing up to him like a warrior Roug. She had backbone. He’d give her that.
“Then I guess you’ll have to go talk to her.”
“I guess I’ll do that.” She approached the front door, then paused, looking back and forth between the brothers. “I want you both to know…I’ve never felt as happy to be Métis as I am right now.”
“Yeah,” said Julien, pursing his lips to avoid a grin. “Métis taste terrible.”
“We wouldn’t know,” Jack retorted in a sour tone, giving his brother a look before pushing open the front door for Willow to go inside.
Once she was gone, he sat down next to his brother in the space vacated by Willow’s departure, and the old swing creaked under the difference in weight. He sighed, resting his elbows on his knees and bowing his head.
“Didn’t go so well, eh?”
“Nah,” whispered Jack. “Not great.”
“She pretty much hates you?”
“That’s about the lay of it.”
“I couldn’t believe it when you two were eyespeaking. She’s human. Just human. Full-blooded. No Roug blood. Not even Métis.”
Jack sat back, looking over at his brother. “Told you.”
On the drive down from Portes de l’Enfer, the brothers had talked about Darcy in depth, Jack sharing the entire history of his relationship with her.
Their kiss, the incident in Boston, and their more recent meeting at Honoria’s wedding.
Jack left out some of the more intimate details of their weekend together, but spared none as he described her reaction to him in shifted form and her actions as she rowed away from him during Dansmatête last night, leaving him to drown.
Julien had gasped at this, knowing that the feelings and actions shared while inside with your mate were just as consequential as the ones you shared while fully conscious.
What Darcy had done to Jack was not unheard of in Roug culture, but it was incredibly dangerous and bordered on taboo.
If the vision had gone on longer, it could have even been life-threatening to Jack in real life.
“Maybe you should let Lela find her,” Julian snarled quietly.
Jack’s right hand had found Julien’s neck in a split second without ever taking his eyes off the road. As he squeezed the tender skin around Julien’s windpipe, Jack had articulated his words in a dark, uncompromising tone.
“Nobody hurts her. Not while I’m alive.”
Julien had reached up, struggling to remove Jack’s hand, and Jack had finally released him. Julien sputtered and coughed, massaging his aching throat.
“Nod that we’re in agreement, Julien.”
Julien had nodded, exclaiming in a raspy voice, “Merde! Vous êtes fou, Jacques!”
“You think I’m crazy? Watch what happens if you, or Lela, touch a hair on her head. She’s mine, Julien. I’ll protect her with everything I am.”
“Okay. Okay. I get it. Calm down.”
Julien nudged him on the swing. “Your mate’s, um…pretty, I guess. For a human. So you never said if you two…”
“What?”
Julien grinned, enjoying Jack’s discomfort. “You sorta glossed over the part about being with her. How did that work out? Were you able to…”
Jack tilted his head to the side, his face curdling, and Julien’s eyes sparkled.
“Did you or didn’t you? Come on, Ja—”
Julien quieted abruptly, clearing his throat as the front door opened and Darcy stepped onto the porch with a colorful floral duffel bag on her shoulder.
She was still wearing those cutoff shorts, and Jack’s eyes lingered on her long legs before raising them to her face.
Her hair was pulled back severely in a ponytail, and under the glare of the porch light, he could see how puffy and blotchy her face was.
She’d been crying. He could smell the salt on her skin.
“I need to get a few things from my office,” she said quietly, refusing to look at him. “At least I can work while I’m in exile.”
She looked at him pointedly, and he took her bag as she walked past him toward her office over the garage.
He watched her go, realizing that the twenty feet from the porch to the garage even felt too far.
As angry with her as he was, he didn’t want her more than an arm’s length away from him. Not with the threat of Lela.
Willow looked guarded and unhappy as she stood in the doorway. She trained her eyes on Jack.
“So what am I supposed to do if what’s-her-name shows up here?”
“Lela. Her name’s Lela, and she won’t hurt you,” said Julien. “She respects the old ways. As soon as she smells your scent, she’ll know what you are.”
“That’s hugely comforting,” said Willow, crossing her thin arms over her small chest.
“Send her to me,” said Jack. “I’ll be waiting for her.”
“Maybe Julien could stay here?” she asked, flicking her eyes to him, then coloring with the boldness of her request.
Jack shook his head. “Julien’s hunting Lela while I stay with Darcy. Believe me, Lela won’t hurt you. She may try to scare you, though, Willow. She could shift to frighten you.”
Willow’s eyes widened.
Jack and Julien exchanged looks, and Jack nodded slightly.
Julien cleared his throat, and Willow looked over at him. “Do you want to see me shift? A little? To show you what it’s—”
Willow reached out and grabbed Julien’s arm, pulling him into the living room without another word, and closing the door behind her.
Well, that should be interesting.
Jack looked up at the garage. He could see Darcy’s silhouette against a drawn shade near her desk window. He watched the graceful movements of her body as she gathered books and notes together in a pile, finally shutting off the light.
Willow and Julien emerged from the house. Willow looked pale.
“Are you okay?” Jack asked.
Willow’s wide black eyes regarded Jack solemnly, and she nodded.
“Sure?”
She nodded again, and Jack could see that her eyes were filled with tears. He put his hand on her arm.
“We’re still just Julien and Jack. Neither of us wants to hurt you.”
She pulled her arm back from him, crossing her chest protectively. “It’s just a lot to, um…process.”
“What is?” asked Darcy, offering a heavy canvas bag filled with files and textbooks to Jack.
“N-nothing,” muttered Willow. “Just, um…everything. All of this.”
Jack noticed as Darcy’s eyes narrowed at her friend. She looked at Jack, and he looked away, gesturing to Julien. They headed to the car, giving the women a chance to say their goodbyes.
Julien got in the back seat, and after waiting for Darcy for a second, Jack decided to let her open her own goddamned door. To hell with chivalry. He sat down in his own seat and cracked his window, trying to hear some of their conversation.
“Remember Boston. He cares for you…”
“Stop, Will. Enough…”
“Keep an open mind…”
“You’re trying to help, but just…”
“Just stay safe…”
“You too.”
Darcy hugged Willow then made her way down the porch steps, opening her door and settling into the passenger seat without a word. She buckled her seatbelt, then turned to Jack.
I guess you got what you wanted.
I never, ever wanted this for us.
Then he turned from her, put the car in gear, and headed home.