Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
Istep out of the bathroom, my hair dripping wet and a damp towel wrapped tightly around my torso, only to lock eyes with a flushed Caleb.
His clothes are disheveled, the collar of his shirt messed up and his pants full of crinkles.
There’s a wet spot on his thigh. Upon closer inspection, I realize it’s drool.
He must’ve run here in his wolf form, his clothes held in his mouth.
I allow myself only a second to wonder if he redressed in public or inside my apartment lobby before telling myself I don’t care.
His nostrils flare. “Why does your apartment smell like Adam?”
“Probably because he came by earlier.”
He’s probably also listening to my conversation with Caleb. He made it abundantly clear that he can hear everything that goes on within my apartment, and I doubt he respects my private conversations.
Caleb hums. “I was under the impression you two didn’t get along.” He glances at the wall separating our apartments. “I’ve received multiple angry visits from him these past few days. It seems you make quite a bit of noise.”
Adam is so fucking annoying.
“I didn’t realize you two were such good friends,” I say.
“I’m friendly with everybody,” Caleb says. He pauses, thinking over his following words. “We were roommates for a brief period during university.”
I dip my chin. “I see.”
How are the shifters getting into American colleges?
The shifters may have found ways to hide their marks when they lived among the humans, but we now know what to look for.
People are on high alert. Even without the markings on their hands, both Caleb and Adam are fucking huge.
There’s no way they would’ve gone unnoticed.
People surely would’ve suspected.
If I were still working for HPAW, I’d pry for details. Is Caleb expecting me to? I bite my tongue, refusing to take the bait.
“Were you getting blowjobs, too?” I ask instead.
Spite and anger have the question erupting out of me. I’m pretty sure I already know the answer, but Caleb clearly has no issues lying to me. I resist the urge to look at his hand. Adam says his mark is no longer darkening, and I want to see the proof for myself.
Caleb’s gaze flickers in the direction of Adam’s apartment, his eyes narrowing. “No, I was not. Adam and I had differing views on what saving ourselves for our mates means.” A moment of tense silence passes before Caleb continues. “Why was Adam here?”
I wrap my towel tighter around myself. “That’s none of your concern.”
Caleb blinks. Blinks again. Blinks for a third time.
“Not my concern?” His gaze darkens, and that odd glaze comes over his eyes. His wolf is interested in this conversation, too. “I can assure you it very well fucking is, Evelyn.”
I can only imagine the emotions his wolf is feeling. From what I understand, the animal part of him acts purely on emotion. It must be pissed that another man was alone with me in my apartment. That’s too damn bad.
I go to step into my bedroom. Caleb stops me. He moves quickly, standing in the living room one second and blocking my bedroom door in the next.
I glare up at him. “Move.”
“No.” Caleb meets my glare. “Why was Adam here?”
My hands curl into fists. “Because we were fucking, of course.”
Caleb runs his tongue along his top teeth. At the same moment, something hard smacks against the wall Adam and I share. It’s Adam, probably hitting the wall in anger. I ignore it.
Caleb looks about ready to burst. The little vein in his forehead is pulsating, and I can practically feel the angry heat emanating from his torso.
“That’s not funny.” He speaks slowly, enunciating every word.
I shrug. “I’m not joking.”
“Adam has not touched you.”
“Maybe he has.”
Caleb doesn’t get to care. He’s openly flirting with other women. Besides, he once told me he hopes I make a life for myself in his pack. He sure intends to, so why shouldn’t I? He promised me that he would wait until his marking blackened and our bond was dead. That was a lie.
“Adam has a big cock,” I say. Another pound on the wall, this one louder than the last. I’m taking this too far. I don’t care. “And his tongue… Fuck… It’s just so—”
“I should’ve accepted those blowjobs,” Caleb spits, cutting my sentence short. “I wish I had fucked those women who threw themselves at me. You should’ve seen the way they looked at me. There was one woman. A sexy, little redhead. Her name was—”
I shove Caleb’s chest. “Fuck you!”
He doesn’t move, and his chest rumbles with mocking laughter. “Haven’t you gotten the hint by now? I don’t want to.”
I stop breathing. Caleb snaps his mouth shut with an audible click. He closes his eyes, his cheeks rounding as he exhales. His muscles relax as he calms, but I’ve never been so stiff.
“Why are we arguing, Evelyn?” he asks. “Why are you upset with me?”
“You tell me.”
Caleb drags a hand through his hair. “What did Adam tell you?”
“Show me your mark.”
When Caleb hesitates, I take the initiative to grab his wrist. He doesn’t fight me as I pull his hand between us. His marking is now a deep red, almost as dark as mine was when I came here.
“When did it stop darkening?” I ask. Caleb doesn’t answer. I continue. “Do you truly detest me that much? I was a victim, Caleb.” I swallow, refusing to let myself cry. “I was a child, and I didn’t know any better. You don’t get to judge me for that.”
I was lied to and abused by the adults who were meant to protect me.
I understand why Caleb is mad at me. I tried to kill him, for fuck’s sake.
I fully understand his anger, but it doesn’t change the fact that this is a complicated situation.
Things aren’t nearly as black and white as he wants them to be.
Caleb shakes his head. “You don’t understand, Evelyn.”
“Then tell me.” My voice cracks. I ignore it. “Tell me, Caleb.”
“HPAW’s weapons now emit a high-frequency noise that overwhelms us in our wolf forms,” he says. “We can’t shift, and it leaves us vulnerable to their bullets. They attacked a small border pack last week. We weren’t prepared. It was a slaughter. Men. Women. Children. All fucking dead.”
My heart pounds, and I clutch the edges of my towel as I wait for Caleb to elaborate. HPAW is continually developing new weapons and strategies, but they’re rarely successful. Shifters are hard to kill, and they’re skilled at adapting to the changes HPAW implements.
“One shifter survived,” Caleb continues.
“With a message, I presume.”
Caleb nods. “Yes. They threatened you…”
“I don’t understand what this has to do with you denying our mate bond.”
“It has everything to do with it.” Caleb presses his forehead against mine, then runs his thumbs across my cheekbones.
His touch is soft, borderline reverent. “If people believe our bond is dead, you’re not so much of a target.
You lose importance.” Caleb swallows. “I need HPAW to believe you’re unimportant to me, at least until we know how to defend ourselves against their new weapons. ”
I grind my teeth. This isn’t how I anticipated this conversation going. I thought we’d argue. I thought Caleb would break my heart. He’s exceptionally good at that.
“What’re you going to do?” I ask. “With HPAW?”
Caleb hesitates. I lower my gaze. He doesn’t want to tell me. Our bond might be healing, but he still doesn’t trust me. I’m not sure what else I can do to prove myself. At this point, it’s on him. I’ve done all I can.
“We’re going to kill them.”
My head snaps up. Caleb blinks, waiting for my reaction. Is he expecting me to panic? To beg him to spare HPAW?
I straighten my spine, holding eye contact. “As you should.”
Caleb has gone out of his way to avoid war with the humans. He’s made a genuine effort, but he has to prioritize his pack. I might have once argued with him, maybe even pleaded with him to show mercy, but I’m done with that.
Fuck HPAW. They lied to me. They abused me. They raped me. I have no love for them.
“And where does this leave us?” I ask.
It takes Caleb a long minute to answer. “I don’t know.”
Of course he doesn’t. I’m not going to figure it out for him, either.
I sigh. “You should leave.”
Caleb licks his lips. “You don’t understand, Ev. If I reclaim you as my mate, I’m not letting you out of my sight. That job you’re so proud of? Gone. Your impromptu trips to the library? Gone. I will be by your side every minute of every day. You will not leave my sight.”
He takes my wrist, sliding his fingers up my arm. I swallow, my throat dry as his fingertips travel up the side of my neck. “Is that what you want? The game has changed. HPAW has proven to be a credible threat, and being my mate puts a target on your back.”
I open my mouth, then clamp it shut. I wouldn’t be able to work or visit the library? Caleb threw me to the wolves, literally, but I’ve adapted. I’ve found pleasure in my independence. It’s hard—and oftentimes lonely—but there’s a sense of pride that comes with it.
Caleb tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “Think about it, Ev.”
He’s brushing past me a moment later. I stare at my bedroom door, not moving even as my apartment door opens and shuts. There’s a quiet click as my front door is locked from the outside. So Caleb does have keys, after all. I figured as much.