Chapter Three
Delta had never been so happy to step out of a truck in her life.
Nory and Liam’s property was gorgeous. It was snowing by the time they arrived, and despite the frigid air, she rolled the window down and rested her chin on her arms, staring out the open window.
There were crows in the trees, fluffing up their feathers in the cold, and cawing.
There were deer tracks everywhere. The road that led into the center of the property was a one lane dirt road that had clearly become overgrown.
Several tire marks lead the way in though, so they found the dilapidated house in the middle of the acreage just fine.
Nory had been right. The cabin was probably a tear-down.
From here, Delta could see the roof was sagging on one side, and the right corner of the small home was completely caved in.
There had been a wraparound porch on it at one time, but it had all been destroyed by nature or destroyed by man, she couldn’t tell.
Twenty yards from the cabin, Nory and Liam had set up a tent and fire pit, and they were both outside waving to them as Nate inched the truck into the snowy clearing.
“Nice forest,” he murmured. He smelled less hurt now, and she was pretty sure his bandages had stopped most of the bleeding.
She didn’t respond.
He cleared his throat. “How do you want to do this?”
“I told you,” she gritted out, giving into the anger that had slowly filled her over the hours of driving in silence. “You’re free.”
“Yeah but…” He studied her through a frown. “We’re still paired. We need to figure out a house.”
“We are nothing, Nate. I will figure out my own house.”
“Wait,” he said, pulling to a stop. “Look, we came back here together. We’re together.”
“No,” she said in the frostiest tone she could muster.
Tonight, wherever she laid her head to rest, she would fall apart, and curl into herself, and cry herself to pieces.
But now? He didn’t deserve to see how hurt she was.
“You are you, and I am me. Figure out your own housing, and I will figure out my life moving forward. We are nothing, Nate.”
“Delta—”
“Hey, Nate? You said earlier that I’m getting exactly what I want by coming back here.
You misunderstand me. I’m not here to make you frame your life around mine for whatever it is you think I need.
I don’t actually need anything or anyone, and especially someone who would throw me away. I. Deserve. Better.”
Whoo, even she could hear the angry truth in her tone. She didn’t know where she was finding this boldness to say exactly what she wanted to, but she was so glad she was able to. Nate needed to hear it and she needed to be able to say it for closure.
“Delta, you don’t have anything. I can help. I can make you a safe home.”
“You aren’t a safe man for me,” she whispered. “Why would I want a home from you?”
The tears were building again, and this time they were angry tears. She shook her head hard. “You’re off the hook. Go live your life, and I’ll live mine.”
“What does that even mean?”
“I’m building myself up now,” she gritted out. “You aren’t ready for someone like me.”
He looked slapped, and dropped his gaze, and Delta shoved the door open, and settled her sneakers into the snow.
Some of the Pack were here already. Bridger, Tabian, and Vic were standing to the side, Dodger was walking this way from the cabin. Liam was saying something to Vic, but Nory’s worried gaze was on Delta.
God, she’d missed her friend.
She crossed her arms over her chest as she walked, not because she was cold, but because it felt like her aching heart needed a shield from the world. The snow crunched under her shoes with every step, behind her, she heard Nate’s door open and close, and she kicked up to a jog to meet Nory.
Nory caught her up and asked it. “Oh my gosh, Delta. Are you okay?”
That was like an I-love-you to someone like her. Someone caring about her well-being felt so nice. Nate hadn’t asked her that even once. Not ever.
“No,” she sobbed, wrapping her arms around her human friend, careful not to crush her. “I’m not okay.” She buried her face against Nory’s neck and squeezed her eyes tightly closed, like that would help keep her breaking pieces together.
“What’s happened?” Liam asked in a worried tone.
“Dude, what’s wrong?” Vic asked.
Nory shoved her back at arms’ length and studied her face, then looked to Nate, who hung back. “What did you do?”
“He didn’t do anything,” Delta said, not ready to throw him under the bus. “I’m choosing to dissolve our pairing. It’s me. It’s my choice.”
“You can’t just do that,” Bridger pointed out.
“You can if you never consummated the Arrangement,” she uttered raggedly. She shrugged and faced Nate. “You’ll tell them anyway. It’s what you do. You can’t shame me if I shame me first.”
Nate’s eyes were downcast at the snow, and his fists were clenched at his sides.
“So, you’ll be up for more Arrangements soon?” Dodger asked.
“Dodger,” Nate warned.
“Too soon? Hey, I’m probably not asking for me,” he said, raising his hands in surrender. “She can just date again is all I’m saying. Wow, how did you fuck that up, bro?”
“Change!” Nate snarled.
“No, no, no,” Liam murmured, pushing him gently backward. “He’s just trying to get to you. You already smell like blood.”
“Ask her out and I’ll fucking kill you,” Nate promised around Liam, and Delta could see his eyes were the brightest gold she’d ever seen.
This didn’t make sense. He didn’t care about her, so why did he care if Dodger mentioned her dating someone else?
The guys were yelling at each other now, but there was a roaring in Delta’s ears, and Nory was dragging her toward the dilapidated cabin.
She was asking Delta something, but she couldn’t understand her words.
Her attention was glued to the fury on Nate’s face as he yelled at Dodger.
Liam was giving him an Alpha’s order not to Change, and Vic and Bridger were standing between them, trying to pull Dodger’s attention off Nate.
“I shouldn’t have come back here with him,” she uttered as Nory dragged her around the back of the cabin.
“What the hell happened?” Nory asked as she pulled Delta into the back door of the little cabin.
This room was standing still just fine. It had a little wood-burning stove in the corner, and all the walls of the small room seemed to be sturdy enough. The roof wasn’t even sagging overhead.
Outside the small window over the woodburning stove, it was snowing steadily. She could still hear the boys yelling. Nate’s voice in particular was booming.
She didn’t understand. He’d tried to leave her with Decker, so why did he care? All men were the same. If he couldn’t have her, no one could.
“Girl, what is going on?” Nory demanded, shaking her shoulders gently. “We just talked to you guys eight hours ago, and you were fine. You were happy. I could tell!”
Disgusted, Delta blurted it out. “He was taking me back to my old Pack. He wanted to drop me off with my ex. I didn’t know eight hours ago that he was trying to dump me off.”
“Holy crap,” Nory drawled out. “No. No, he wouldn’t do that.”
Delta’s stupid lip was trembling. “I was falling for him, and he was planning ways to get rid of me.” She crossed her arms over her chest and tried to control the tic, but she couldn’t help it.
She pulled her fists up and shook them in front of her face, and when it ended, huffed a sign of relief as her muscles released.
“You’re so upset,” Nory whispered, holding her hand. “I can’t believe he did that. Did he say why?”
“The Pack was done so he wanted out.” Delta stared out the window at the falling snow.
“Nory, I don’t want to be with a man who doesn’t want to be with me.
I feel so embarrassed. So stupid. I was so happy talking to you about this property, and thinking Nate would be so happy, and he was talking to my ex and my dad behind my back to dump me. ”
Nory nodded. She nodded and nodded, eyes full of sympathy. “What do you need?”
“Shelter.” She swallowed hard. “A car. A job. Independence. I want all the things he thought I needed, but on my own terms. I want to get them for myself. No man will ever be tethered to me again.” A sob escaped her. “It hurts so bad.”
“Oh my gosh, Delta,” Nory whispered, her heart in her eyes as she pulled her in for a hug. “You can come back to my apartment with me and Liam. I have a couch that folds down into a bed.”
But the thought of falling apart in Nory’s apartment with her and Liam in the next room, in the honeymoon phase they had earned, didn’t feel appealing at all.
She opened her eyes and looked around the small room. It had been the living room of the cabin, once upon a time, and the doors to the rooms had all been closed, and old soggy towels shoved under the cracks to staunch the flow of cold air.
“Can I stay here?” she asked softly.
Nory stopped rubbing her back and eased out of the hug. “You want to stay in this place?”
“Just for a little while. I just need time to breathe and figure my life out.
Nory looked around the room. There was clutter everywhere, and something had built a nest in what used to be a forest green couch.
A raccoon perhaps? The stuffing was pulled out and littered the floor in gray, fuzzy clumps.
A healthy layer of dust covered everything.
Cobwebs decorated the rafters, and old, chipped dishes cluttered the small kitchen counter.
The doors to the cabinets were missing, and they were all full to overflowing with old boxes of food and trash.
The small pile of wood that sat beside the wood stove looked ancient.
“This place hasn’t had electricity in years,” Nory said.
Delta shrugged. “What do I need it for right now?”
“Um, heat?”
“I don’t get cold like you. If it drops too low, I’ll build a fire.”
“Okay, then for charging your cell phone?”
“I have a portable charger in my bag.”
“There’s no food in here.”