Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
Emmett was starting to think the human was running into him on purpose. Either that, or he was incredibly clumsy. He spun around, making sure Jonah wouldn’t fall over, and waited for the man to right himself before looking at him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.
“Should I be concerned with your damsel in distress energy?”
To his surprise and delight, Jonah’s response was instantaneous and teasing. “Or maybe I should be concerned that you keep trying to grab me. Werewolves don’t kidnap humans, do they?”
“I mean, you’re cute, so I wouldn’t be opposed,” Emmett shot back.
It was just a joke, there was nothing wrong with a little harmless flirting, but when Jonah’s cheeks turned bright red, he was intrigued.
His tail swished a little, thankfully the room was too crowded for Jonah to notice, and he found himself leaning closer, trying to catch whether Jonah’s scent was interested or just embarrassed.
Unfortunately, it was too crowded in the cafeteria for him to tell, and by the time they made it back to the hallway, the pink on Jonah’s face had disappeared and Taron had stepped between them, throwing an arm around Jonah’s shoulders and smiling brightly at him.
“So, how was it? Not as scary as you thought, right?”
Letting out a slow breath, Jonah nodded. “Right.” He grimaced. “I swear, I know not all supes are bad. I honestly didn’t think I’d react like this. I never thought the same way other humans do.”
“Let me guess, you were isolated?” Tasha asked as she followed the group.
Jonah nodded again. “Raised on a farm an hour outside the city in a human-only community. I was homeschooled, and I went to university online, too, so I couldn’t even interact with supes during school.”
“Yikes, so like extra isolated,” Miguel said, shooting Jonah a sympathetic look. “Not many humans leave those communities. Why did you?”
Jonah’s face went hard, his chin lifted stubbornly when he said, “Because I’m not like them. I’m not going to treat people like trash just because they aren’t the same species as me, and I’m not going to hide away from the world either.”
He said it with such conviction, Emmett got the feeling he’d been rehearsing that in his head. The determination was admirable, and there wasn’t a waver in his voice or even a hint of uncertainty in his scent. He fully believed his words. Emmett liked him a little more after hearing that.
Taron pursed his lips thoughtfully, then nodded. “That’s it. I’m adopting you.”
Jonah’s head jerked back, and he blinked rapidly in response. “I’m sorry?”
“I’m adopting you,” Taron insisted. “You need someone to show you the ropes of the supe world, and I like your attitude. Consider me your new supe daddy–”
Jonah shot Emmett a horrified look, and Emmett couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
The poor human looked like he wanted to refuse but was too afraid to offend anyone.
And Emmett, being a little bit of a shit, didn’t speak up on his behalf.
He kind of wanted to see how far Taron would go, and how long it would take Jonah to realize he could say no without consequences.
They split up in the lobby, Tasha sending him and Miguel to do a walk around the outside of the building before returning to their stations, while Taron led Jonah away, still talking about plans for adoption.
He was snickering to himself when they headed to the left, circling the building at a steady pace so they wouldn’t miss anything.
“Jonah seems nice for one of those isolated humans,” Miguel said, drawing his attention.
Emmett cocked his head thoughtfully. “He is nice. He’s trying, and I can tell he doesn’t mean it when he reacts poorly to supes. He smells like guilt and shame every time. He just needs to get a little experience, that’s all.”
“Uh huh. What kind of experience are you planning to offer him?”
Emmett rolled his eyes. “Not that kind.” He noticed Miguel’s disbelieving look and huffed. “Alright, not that kind any time soon. I don’t want to overwhelm him. But if he was looking for some fun experimentation later on, I wouldn’t say no. He’s cute!”
Miguel shrugged. “I mean, you’re not wrong.”
It was a fact they both knew, but for some reason Emmett bristled when Miguel agreed with him.
He didn’t want to have to compete with his best friend for the human’s attention.
Jonah, with his sandy blonde hair and his light green eyes, was exactly Emmett’s type.
He kept his face clean shaven, which showed off his sharp jaw and pretty pink lips.
He wasn’t slender like the other humans Emmett had met recently, he had muscles, which if he was raised on a farm like he said, was probably earned through hard work, not just a regular gym routine.
And when he relaxed enough to finally smile, it took Emmett’s breath away.
He wouldn’t rush it, he wasn’t lying when he said he didn’t want to overwhelm the poor human, but he was definitely interested. Who wouldn’t be?
A buzz in his pocket pulled his focus during his end of the day meeting with Ronan.
He had to let his pack leader know there was a mated pair in his group that couldn’t be separated and was a potential risk to employees.
He didn’t blame them, matings were never easy, but they needed to leave that kind of stuff somewhere they wouldn’t get caught.
It would be wrong to suggest a mating room in the building, right?
Jonah: Does a vampire looking at my neck mean something?
Supe Guru Extraordinaire: Did it feel threatening?
Jonah: No. Kinda felt like he was hitting on me, if I’m being honest. But I don’t know supe customs, so I could be wrong.
Emmett let out a low growl, but swallowed it quickly when his packmates noticed. “Sorry.”
Since they were all werewolves, they were used to random growls and went back to their meeting without demanding an explanation. Miguel did send him a curious look, but Emmett shook his head, keeping his phone hidden beneath the desk while he answered Jonah.
Supe Guru Extraordinaire: If he was looking at your neck while flirting, he was probably hoping to entice you to feed him. Sometimes hookups are involved just to make the experience more pleasant. Whatever you do, don’t rub your throat while around him. He might take it as an invitation.
Jonah: Shit. Good to know.
A second passed, then two, the dots dancing on the screen. Emmett got the feeling he had more questions and waited, unsure why he was holding his breath.
Jonah: Doesn’t it hurt? I feel like that would hurt.
He bit back a snort as he shot off a reply. From that response, he didn't think Jonah was interested in being a vampire’s supper. Just curious.
Supe Guru Extraordinaire: No. They can beguile their partners so all you’d feel is a pleasant hazy sensation.
Jonah: That’s… kind of creepy. Is that wrong? I shouldn’t say that, right?
Supe Guru Extraordinaire: To a vampire, no. That’d be rude. But to me, it’s fine. I told you, no judgment. You can ask whatever you want.
“Emmett.” Ronan’s sharp voice made Emmett’s head jerk up and he gave him a sheepish look when he noticed his alpha glaring at him.
“Yeah?”
“Anything you want to share with the rest of us?”
Miguel, being Emmett’s favorite person, spoke up for him. “It’s work related. Sort of. There’s a human temp who has never been around supes before. Emmett offered to answer questions so he wasn’t freaked out.”
Ronan frowned. “Does he feel unsafe?”
“Not really,” Emmett replied. “He’s just unsure of himself. He said there are some species he’s never even heard of before, and he doesn’t know how to act around them. Since we’re in the same building, I gave him my number so he can text me questions.”
That was mostly true. True enough that Ronan wouldn’t question it. Technically, Jonah had a few scares, but he was getting better. He did great at lunch, and all his questions since didn’t sound panicked, just confused.
“Fine. But if he isn’t in danger, he can wait for you to answer until after the meeting. Tell me about your team.”
Tucking his phone into his pocket, he gave his report, including the part about the mated pair. Ronan made a note of it and said he’d consult Alistair on what to do about that before moving on.
By the time the meeting was done, the majority of the staff had already left and the night shift was taking over.
A few members of their pack switched out with them, those who didn’t mind working nights, and they filed into the room where Ronan waited while Emmett left with the rest of the day shift.
“Think we should tell Harlem that Ronan will be late?” Axel asked as they headed out.
“You really think our alpha wouldn’t have called him already?” Tasha countered.
The newest member of their pack was Ronan’s mate, an adorable little kitsune named Harlem.
He was a sweet man, fit in well with the pack, and they all did their best to make sure Ronan got home in time so his mate stayed happy.
Ronan had to stay for at least a little while longer to meet with the night shift guys and share the reports from the day shift, but hopefully he wouldn’t be too far behind them.
“Hey, isn’t that Jonah?” Miguel asked, nudging his arm and jerking his chin toward the elevator banks.
Emmett swung around to look and, sure enough, Jonah was exiting the turnstiles that lead to the entertainment division, frowning at his phone without watching where he was going.
Emmett couldn’t help himself. He strode across the lobby with a little burst of werewolf speed, purposely putting himself in the human’s path, and watched with amusement as Jonah walked straight into him.
“Oh crap, I’m so sor–” Jonah cut himself off, finally realizing who he’d crashed into, and let out a heavy sigh. “Oh, good. It’s just you.”
Emmett grinned at him. “What’s your excuse this time?”
Jonah made a face, confused. “Huh?”
“Well, this is what, the fourth time you’ve walked into me? I feel like you’re doing it on purpose at this point.”
Cheeks turning a brilliant shade of red, Jonah squawked, “I am not!”
“Uh huh. So why’d you walk into me then?”
He waved his hands around wildly, the smell of embarrassment just barely masking a hint of arousal. Oh ho, was the attraction mutual, perchance? That’d be a fun surprise.
“You came out of nowhere! I swear, I looked up a second ago, and no one was in front of me and–”
“Don’t let him fool you, Jonah!” Axel called out from where they stood near the main lobby doors. “He did it on purpose! He wasn’t even near you!”
Jonah’s mouth dropped open, and Emmett shot his packmate a dirty look before giving Jonah an innocent smile.
“Don’t listen to him. He’s a liar. He lies all the time.”
“Uh huh…” Jonah said suspiciously, narrowing his eyes on Emmett. “Why do I feel like I shouldn’t believe you?”
Batting his eyelashes, he gave Jonah his biggest puppy dog eyes. “Would this face lie to you?”
He grinned when Jonah burst out laughing, covering his eyes to block out Emmett’s undefeated puppy face. “Oh gods! Werewolves can do that? I thought that was a puppy thing!”
“Oh, werewolf pups can pull it off even better than I can. Believe me, if a werewolf pup looks at you with those eyes, you won’t be able to resist. There are dozens of them in my pack, and they’ve got everyone absolutely wrapped around their fingers.”
Jonah peeked through his fingers, and Emmett felt his tail swish again as he grinned and dropped his hand. Playing with this human was fun. He was already looking forward to tomorrow when he could see him again.