Thirty-Two - Vail
I thought about that for the rest of the drive into Huntington. Not correct table manners, but a power that gave you so much freedom, you could pretty much do as you pleased. I was fairly certain Reed was just being a polite date, since I was literally wearing my punishment around my neck, even if it was covered in a fancy chiffon scarf. And right now, I was probably a little green dot moving across half a dozen security screens. I wasn’t sure if Jasper was aware of our date, but I suspected Reed had to get some kind of pass before he took me off-campus. At the very least, both the driver and the guy riding shotgun were security, and I was pretty sure there was another car tailing us.
Reed definitely seemed more relaxed the further we got from school. But I sat up sharply as we drove into the basement of the hotel from the Alpha and Omega Dinner Dance. I looked at him with an uneasy expression. “Here? I thought we were going to a restaurant.”
“We are. This hotel has one of the best in town.” A dark flush stained his neck, and he admitted, “It was the only way I could get us a pass. It was here, or nowhere.”
Really? My stomach clenched as the security guard came round to get the door and I tried not to draw some unpleasant conclusions. Did he mean Jasper had insisted on this hotel for our date? And if so, what message was he trying to send? This was the place he’d taken me off Reed’s arm and collared me, after all. I palmed my stomach, my appetite shriveling. We’d just agreed to put the school behind us, but I was kidding myself. How could I escape the Hunter Moon Academy when the Clan Alpha controlled my every move?
I wasn’t very good at hiding my discomfort, and even though Reed was wearing his blank expression, I knew he was picking up on my vibe. We didn’t speak until we’d reached the foyer, and the security were leading us past the fountain – minus the ice wolves - to the restaurant door. “Huntington is Marshall land,” he told me, as the guards went ahead to talk to a pretty woman in a fancy black suit who was hovering near the door. “The other packs come here, but this is where our family’s from originally.”
I just nodded, because the woman was hurrying forward, her face lit up as she gushed, “Alphason, it’s such a pleasure to host you and your lovely date tonight. We have the private dining room set aside, or perhaps you’d like your usual booth?”
Reed looked at me, but I had no clue what was going on and just shrugged. “The booth sounds fine.” He nodded and the woman gave me a pleased smile, like I’d just passed some sort of test. The restaurant was busy, every table taken, and heads turned to watch us cross the room. I was glad for Penny’s dress – because despite what those bitches said about dig bins, it held its own in this crowd – and I made sure I kept my chin up. I only faltered a little when I realized our booth was right next to the one Jasper’s mom was seated at, a beautiful man in his early twenties sitting at her side.
Reed gave them a nod, but didn’t speak as he helped me slide into the booth. I ended up facing them, which was better than having Jay’s mom inches from my neck, but not by much. After one long look she ignored me, but her date stared at me so hard, I had to stop myself from slinking behind Reed’s bulky frame. The problem was, he was just as impossible to look away from, the way breathtakingly beautiful people are. With hair the color of a raven’s wing and skin so pale it looked like porcelain, he could have been a Hollywood sex symbol from another era. But his gaze was so probing, I found myself frowning back until he looked away. Reed didn’t miss the brief interaction. “That’s Theo. He’s Callum’s cousin.” I just nodded and focused on my menu, rather than asking why Jay’s mom was with a Sawyer guy half her age. “He’s an omega, if you didn’t guess.”
I didn’t, but now I knew, it made sense. The male omegas I’d met had an ethereal beauty, like they belonged to another time. I immediately thought of Mr. Wentworth and bit my lip, but the gushing waitress was back to take our orders and I put it out of my mind. We’re just two random people on a date , I reminded myself. Not an alpha and an omega, or a Marshall and a Marrow. For the moment, I was just a girl enjoying her first meal in a fancy restaurant, and I felt myself relax as Reed proved he was actually pretty good at the whole small talk thing.
When I went to use the bathroom later in the night, my head was full of his stories. He’d told me about growing up in a pack where he went from the smallest wolf to one of the largest in a matter of months. There was a note of glee in his voice as he recounted some of his acts of revenge on the pack bullies, which included shaved tails and a dog bath full of pink hair dye. It was also a playful side to him I’d never seen before, and as I washed my hands, I rolled my eyes at the goofy look on my face. I was actually having a great time.
Which should have alerted me to the fact I was due for an ambush.
As I opened the bathroom door, Jasper’s mom was on me in a blur of golden hair and cold blue eyes. I had a moment to think she really was one of the most beautiful women I’d ever seen, before her hand connected with my face. The slap was so hard, it knocked my right back onto the bathroom floor. She loomed over me, so furious she was shaking. “Next time you put one of my children in harm’s way, it will be my claw, not my hand. Do you understand, Omega?”
I nodded, but kept my eyes lowered as she stormed off. Because she was right in a way. Trey had only been there because of me.
“You should put some cold water on that.” As I gathered myself from the floor, I grimaced at the girl watching me from the doorway. Even with blurry vision, I recognized the blonde fauxhawk and shit-eating grin. When I’d regained my feet, Sin hitched her hip on the marble vanity beside me, and ran a paper towel under the faucet. She clicked her tongue as I plastered it to my red cheek. “Knew you were a badass, little Marrow.”
“In case you missed it, I wasn’t the one doing the slapping.” I narrowed my eyes at her. “What are you doing here, Sin?”
“I told you I’d check in on you, didn’t I?”
I studied her for a moment, remembering what my dad – or Gabriel Michaels - had said about not trusting her. There was the same almost manic energy coming off her as I remembered from the Horn, but she didn’t seem threatening. If anything, she was looking at me with a touch of pity. I was about to tell her I didn’t need her watching out for me, when she lowered her voice and said, “Remember I told you I was looking for something? Well, I found it. And I’ve brought you a message from your cousin.”
I rolled my eyes and tossed the paper towel in the trash. The red mark was fading, but I could do without Jay’s mom smirking at me through the rest of dinner and rummaged in my purse for some of the face powder Jasmine had given me. “I’m an orphan outcast, Sin.” I quickly swiped the powder over both cheeks, then frowned at the chalky result. “I don’t have any cousins. ”
“Not true, little Marrow. That trade I did with your old man was to find the Marrow Reserve. They don’t call it that, but it’s run by your cousin and he gives sanctuary to wolves like us.” She reached out and slapped my other cheek. It wasn’t as hard as the Arras Alpha’s, but it still left a mark and I hissed at her, but she just grinned. “The freaks and orphan outcasts.”
“You’re nuts.” I wet another towel and scrubbed at both cheeks, before giving up. At least the red patches were matching now. “Who is this guy, really?”
She hunched inside her leather jacket, but I could feel her excitement. “I can’t say much more, just that he’s a good wolf. And when I told him I was checking up on you, he said to tell you to watch out for your grandfather. The shit you’ve heard about him doesn’t even scratch the surface. And if he wants you to go to his compound, it’s not to exchange the Christmas cards you missed over the years, so watch your back.”
I nodded. I’d heard enough about my grandfather to know I wasn’t in a hurry to meet him. But as I rearranged the scarf at my neck, Sin leaped off the counter with a hiss. It was the first time she’d lost her grin since I’d met her – including when I hit a Black Denner with a pitchfork – and I realized she was staring at Jasper’s collar. And the emotion in her eyes was a deep, churning rage. Maybe even edged with a touch of fear. “Who the hell put that on you?”
I flushed and pulled the scarf back in place. “It’s a long story.”
“Bullshit.” She spun on her heel. I followed her to the door, but she was already heading towards the kitchens. “Sin, where are you going?”
“This changes things, little Marrow. I’ll be in touch in a couple days.” She paused to look back at me from the kitchen door. “And whoever put you on that leash better start running. Because the only thing your cousin hates more than a trapped wolf, is the asshole who did the trapping.”