Chapter 10
Following the sound of several loud voices, Byron entered the foyer and froze.
He blinked twice, wondering whether he was hallucinating, because the woman wrapping her arms tightly around Mason was no other than Charlie, the sexy werewolf female he’d spent the night with.
His inner wolf wanted to let out a warning growl directed at Mason.
Why were they hugging so tightly? And why was Charlie here?
Their gazes met and locked. He couldn’t interpret her facial expression. Was she surprised to see him here or not?
Charlie finally freed herself from Mason’s embrace, looking as if she’d gotten caught doing something she shouldn’t have. Was she Mason’s girlfriend? Was he the one her parents had arranged a mating with? Then why the fuck had she slept with him?
“Oh, Byron,” Flora suddenly addressed him, drawing everybody’s attention to him. “Look who just arrived for a visit, Jude and Austin’s sister.”
Fuck! He didn’t know what was worse: Charlie being his alpha’s sister or being Mason’s girlfriend.
“Charlotte,” Jude added, “let me introduce you. That’s Eve and Spencer. This is Flora. She keeps the household running smoothly, and that’s Byron. You’ll meet the others at dinner tonight.”
Byron approached. “Nice to meet you, Charl—Charlotte,” he corrected himself quickly. He’d almost called her Charlie.
“Nice to meet you, too.” Charlie smiled at him briefly, not giving away that they knew each other, before looking at his other family members. “I hope I’ll be able to remember all your names.”
“Priscilla,” Flora said. “Could you please get new sheets for the bed in Austin’s room?”
“Of course, I’ll change the sheets right away,” Priscilla replied quickly and left.
“Jude didn’t mention that he was expecting you,” Byron fished.
Jude cast Charlotte a slightly annoyed look.
“That’s because this is a surprise visit.”
Charlotte pasted a smile on her face. He could sense the tension between the siblings and wondered what was wrong.
“I just needed a change of scenery,” Charlotte said and looked at Austin. “Could you show me your room? I just want to freshen up a little.”
“Sure.”
But before Austin could step in and take her suitcase, Byron took the handle.
“I’ll take her up to your room. I was going upstairs anyway,” he said, trying to sound casual.
Austin looked surprised. “Thanks, Byron, that’s uhm… nice of you.”
Byron motioned toward the staircase when he caught Flora’s warning glance at him.
He knew instantly what she was trying to convey to him.
Only two nights earlier, she’d warned him not to use Charlotte to get back at her brother.
It was much more complicated now, but he had no intention of telling Flora—or anybody else, for that matter—what had already happened.
“This way,” Byron said, neither too friendly nor too coldly, not wanting to arouse suspicion.
Before he could turn toward the stairs, Priscilla squeezed past him with a stack of fresh sheets and hurried upstairs. Fuck! With Priscilla ready to change the sheets in Austin’s room, they wouldn’t have any privacy once upstairs.
Charlotte set her foot on the first step, and he lifted the suitcase. Side by side, they walked upstairs slowly. On purpose, he slowed their ascent, creating more distance between them and Priscilla, so she wouldn’t be able to listen in on what he had to say.
When they were almost at the top of the stairs, and Priscilla had already entered Austin’s room, he knew that the people in the foyer wouldn’t be able to hear them from here either, he leaned in.
“Did you know last night who I was?” he pressed out through a clenched jaw, while keeping his voice low.
“Did you?” she shot back just as quietly.
He didn’t like the accusatory tone in her voice.
“Well, you were the one propositioning me last night.”
“After you rescued me from those guys.”
The way she said rescued sounded like an accusation now. He wanted to have it out with her right here and now, but he knew he couldn’t.
“You and I, we’ve gotta talk,” he demanded.
“I agree.”
She sounded just as pissed off now as he was.
“Tonight, after everybody is in bed.”
At the door to Austin’s room, he stopped. He peered inside. Priscilla was already stripping the bed.
“I hope you’ll enjoy your stay,” he pressed out, lacing his voice with a friendly tone so Priscilla wouldn’t smell a rat.
“Nice meeting you,” Charlotte said, her smile just as fake as the sentiment in her voice.
“Likewise.”
He rolled the suitcase inside the room, then pivoted and left.
Later tonight, he’d have it out with her, because there was no way their encounter the previous night was a coincidence.
Somehow Charlotte—or Charlie—had orchestrated a meeting with him and got him to sleep with her.
How would she use this against him? To pressure him to betray his loyalty to his family?
Or to give Jude a bargaining chip to force him to submit?
Had Jude actually planned this and used his own sister to carry it out?
And had Charlotte only reluctantly agreed and now regretted it?
Was that why he’d sensed tension between the two siblings?
Fuck, the more he thought about it, the more questions he had.
And what was even worse was the thought that Charlotte hadn’t really wanted him, but had done so only to achieve a goal for the Werewolf Alliance.
Was she a modern Mata Hari? A honeypot to ensnare him so he would fall in line and drop his opposition to Jude’s leadership?