Chapter 13 #2
I ran my hand over my face. “No.” I couldn’t tell her that my dad had ordered me and my entire pack to leave her alone.
If I told her I didn’t say hi on campus because I didn’t notice her, she’d know it was a lie.
I always noticed her. Just like she noticed me.
I could feel her. Our connection was so strong that I could pinpoint where she was on campus at any moment.
Not wanting to tower over her, I sat on the edge of her bed. Even though she was standing, she was only a tad taller than me as I sat there. “I’m here to tell you that nothing happened with those girls and that I like you.” There, I’d said enough. Now it was her turn.
Not saying a word, she tossed her tissue into the trash and sat on Sarah’s bed, across from me. Not next to me. She folded her hands together and looked me in the eyes, piercing me.
I wanted to take her and make her mine. However, if I acted like I wanted to, I’d scare her off and end any chance I had with her. “I feel something for you,” I said, admitting more than I wanted to. I didn’t like being this vulnerable. I needed something from her in return.
When she didn’t answer, I forged on. “Do you feel anything for me?” I wanted to touch her. Hold her in my arms. Convince her that she belonged with me.
“Why do you want to know?” she asked, her voice soft, barely above a whisper.
It was time for honesty. Well, as honest as I could be. I had no idea how this would work when she couldn’t even know my kind existed. Even though this seemed to be a futile endeavor, it felt right, and I couldn’t give up on Laney.
She fidgeted with her hands, as if trying to decide what to do with me. We stood upon a precipice. Either she chose to fall into me, trusting me, or she’d shut herself off, keeping me at a distance.
“What I feel for you…I’ve never felt that for anyone else. Ever,” I admitted.
Her phone beeped, distracting her. She stood and went to her desk, glancing at it.
My eyesight was good enough that I saw it was a text from Clayton.
Red hot lava raged inside my body, about to erupt.
If I discovered that Clayton had kissed her, I would kill him.
I balled my hands into fists, my muscles shaking.
“I appreciate you coming here to tell me how you feel. And I appreciate you letting me know that nothing happened between you and those girls.” She flipped her phone over so I couldn’t see the screen.
She turned to face me, leaning against her desk and folding her arms as if to close herself off from me.
She didn’t look at me as she said, “I came to Stonemore to get my bachelor’s degree.
My focus is on school and graduating with excellent grades.
I don’t have time for a relationship.” Her voice was monotone, as if rehearsed, as if she’d told herself this a thousand times, trying to convince herself. She sure as hell didn’t convince me.
I stood slowly, trying to give myself time to think of a way to convince her to give me a shot.
Maybe if I started small, she’d be more willing to try.
“Will you go on a date with me?” If my pack found out, they’d tell my dad.
I had no idea what he’d do to me for going against his direct order.
It had never been done before. An alpha’s order was law, and no one could disobey.
The fact that I could meant something. My bond to Laney had to be strong if it was overriding my dad.
That alone meant I couldn’t walk away from this.
“I don’t know,” she said, chewing on her bottom lip.
While that wasn’t the answer I’d hoped for, at least it hadn’t been a flat-out no. “Why don’t you know?” I took a careful step closer to her, not wanting to frighten her.
“I’m afraid.” She looked up at me with those beautiful blue eyes.
And I was lost in them. Without thinking, I let instinct take control, and I leaned down and brushed my lips against hers.
Simple. Gentle. It felt right. Perfect. My need for her only increased.
But she’d said she was afraid, and I couldn’t be too forward with her.
I had to get her to meet me halfway. Forcing myself to pull back took every ounce of self control that I had.
Every part of me wanted to claim her. Right here, right now.
“I’m afraid, too,” I whispered. “I feel things for you I didn’t know were possible.”
Her breathing picked up, and she placed her palms on my chest. I couldn’t stop looking at her lips, wanting to kiss them again.
She blinked several times, as if trying to calm her body down from our kiss. “The problem is physical attraction is only part of it,” she said. “I don’t know much about you, and we’re not even friends.”
I hoped she wasn’t implying that while she was attracted to me, she didn’t actually like me as a person. “And you’re friends with Clayton? That’s why you went out with him?” As soon as I said it, I knew I’d made a mistake.
Her hands dropped from my chest, and she took a step back, away from me. “Is that all this is? A pissing contest? If Clayton hadn’t shown interest in me, if I hadn’t gone out with him, would you even be here?” Her voice was harsh and angry.
I didn’t understand why everything with her had to be so fucking complicated. I liked her and wanted to spend time with her. End of story.
“Let me ask you this,” she said, holding onto the desk chair behind her, as if that would keep her from coming closer to me. Touching me. “Why do you like me?”
“I feel a connection to you,” I immediately answered. “And you’re beautiful.” The most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.
She nodded, as if she already knew that. “What is it about me that you’re drawn to? Not my looks.” She tapped her chest. “Me. The person I am.”
Shit. I didn’t know her that well. “I feel like I’ve known you all my life.” Which was true. “You’re kind. You want to help others. You’re smart.” I was grasping at straws here. It was hard for me to put into words why I liked her. I just did. That should be enough.
Nodding, she said, “Let me think about it.” She folded her arms again.
The blue pants and white tank top she wore were probably her PJs. With her arms crossed like that, she shoved her breasts up, and I could see her nipples poking through the thin fabric. I had to look away so she wouldn’t think all I wanted from her was sex.
“You can go now,” she said, her voice slightly irritated, as if she’d known I was staring at her. What was I supposed to do? It was a thin white tank that I could practically see through.
“So you’ll think about going out with me on a date?” I needed to clarify that to make sure we were on the same page.
“Yes, I’ll think about it. In the meantime, I’d like for us to just be friends. No more kissing. That can’t happen again.”
The corners of my lips pulled up. “Why no more kissing?” I asked, lowering my voice, hoping I affected her half as much as she affected me. “Don’t you kiss your friends, Laney Lake?”
She smiled, and I felt lighter than I had since I’d stepped foot in here. Maybe I was finally making progress with her. Shaking her head, she started shoving me toward the door. “Out,” she said. “I need to sleep.”
“You sure you don’t want me to sleep with you?” I asked, moving toward the door. “I make an excellent pillow.”
At that, she laughed.
Definitely making progress.
“Let’s just focus on being friends,” she said as she opened the door.
“While you think about dating me,” I reminded her.
She tilted her head to the side. “Where would you take me on a date?”
This felt like some sort of test. I stepped out into the hallway, turning to face her. “I’d take you on a picnic. Then out on a boat late at night so we could gaze at the stars.” Something about that felt right.
“Good answer.” With a smile, she closed the door.
I reached over to my nightstand, grabbing my phone, wondering who the fuck was texting me this early in the morning. This was the one day I didn’t have training or a class and could sleep in.
Dad
I called in a favor and had the insulin you gave me analyzed. Your intuition was right. It’s not insulin.
I immediately called my dad. He answered on the first ring.
“If it’s not insulin, what is it?” I asked, my voice gravelly since I’d just woken up.
“Wolfsbane,” my dad said, articulating the word with venom.
Why the fuck would Laney be taking a dose of wolfsbane twice daily?
“She’s hiding something,” Dad said. “It’s time to take care of this.”
“Wait.” I shot upright, a sharp, instinctive surge of anger burning through me. “What do you mean take care of this?”
“It’s time to get rid of her.”
Something inside me snapped. “No.” The word came out low. Dangerous. Final.
My dad didn’t utter a word, but I could hear him breathing into the phone. I forced myself to shove down my need to protect Laney. Losing it wouldn’t help her; it would only piss off my dad more. “Why do we need to get rid of her?” I asked, more controlled this time.
I had to remind myself that Dad had always been one to value life. Not long ago he’d ordered us all to leave Laney alone. Now he wanted her dead. I had to be missing something.
“She’s a half-breed and willingly injecting wolfsbane into her body twice a day. She has to know it’s not insulin. There isn’t a prescription associated with it. Someone is making the wolfsbane into a liquid form. I don’t buy the naive girl bit. Laney is doing this to get to you.”
I swung my legs over the side of the bed and got up. I went over to my window, gripping the window sill as I peered outside between the slats of my blinds.
Get to me? Every instinct I had rejected that. Laney could just be hiding what she was. Hiding from us. “To get to me how?” I asked, my voice tight.
“Laney wants you to trust her so she can kill you when you least expect it.”
I shook my head, clenching my jaw. “I don’t know…”
“Or she could want you to form a mating bond with her in order to eliminate your line.”
My chest tightened. That hit closer than I wanted to admit.
“The point is, she’s too dangerous to be left alive.”
A sharp, vicious growl built in my chest before I could stop it. The thought of anyone laying a hand on her, of my dad giving the order to eliminate her, sent something feral clawing to the surface.
Every instinct screamed that Laney was mine. I had to stifle it. If I let that emotion come out, my dad would end her now. I couldn’t let that happen.
I pinched the bridge of my nose, forcing my voice into something steady. “Will you let me investigate before you do anything?”
“Why?”
Because I would tear apart anyone who tired to touch her.
“I need to know if she’s innocent,” I said, forcing my voice to remain calm, even though I felt anything but.
“Or if someone’s pulling the strings. If this is bigger than her, we need to find out who’s behind it. Our best shot is through Laney.”
My dad took a measured breath, thinking.
It felt like time stopped as I waited for his verdict.
“Okay,” he said. “But I want it handled quickly.”
Relief overwhelmed me. “I’ll get on it right away.”
“You have one week.”
That wasn’t enough time.
“Son,” my dad said. “Be careful. Something about Laney doesn’t feel right.
I know you care for her. Have you considered that’s part of it?
I only checked the insulin for wolfsbane, but there could be something else in there.
Something that makes you attracted to her.
All I’m saying is to watch your back. This is how the enemy works.
They get you to trust them, then they strike when you least expect it. ”
My stomach dropped. “I’ll be careful.”
“If anyone wants to harm our pack, the surest way is to take you out. You’re not easy to kill. But what if you fall for a weak half-breed? They’ve eliminated the threat without having to do much. Everyone knows an alpha can’t be with a half-breed.”
“I’ll get to the bottom of it.”
“One week.”
“Got it.” I ended the call.
For a long moment, I didn’t move. I stood there thinking. Then the truth hit me. Laney was in danger. And if Dad decided she was a threat…my jaw clenched. No one, not even my dad, would lay a finger on Laney.