Chapter 34
Tessa
I turn and look at Slater. That wasn’t exactly what I was going for. He looks down at me and doesn’t look the least bit repentant. He reaches towards me, like he’s going to touch me, and I flinch back. He freezes and drops his hand. I hate this stupid bracelet.
“What was that?” Slater’s dad asks. Dread pools in my stomach. “Why did you flinch when my son tried to touch you?”
They both look at me with confused expressions. Well, his dad looks more mad than confused. “Slater would never hurt anyone,” his mother says with a tight expression.
“Mom, it’s fine,” Slate starts.
“It is not fine,” his mother says, looking at me accusingly.
“Why is she acting that way?” Slater’s dad asks.
Aware that the room has mostly quieted behind us, I look up at Slater.
His jaw is set, and he doesn’t look happy.
I figure it falls on me to make the peace.
“So, I’m wearing this new accessory.” I hold up my wrist. “I didn’t put it there myself; somebody else did.
And right now, we can’t get it off. In the meantime, every time Slater touches me, it sort of hurts. ”
They both stare at me like I’ve lost my mind. “It sort of hurts?” his mom repeats.
“It hurts a lot,” I admit.
I can feel the tension in Slater next to me, but I don’t look at him. “Who put it on you?” His dad asks.
“A skinwalker,” Slater says. His parents both go quiet.
His dad looks between us. “And you can’t get it off?”
“No.” Slater’s voice is void of any emotion, and I hate that he’s how he was when I first met him. He’s been so different with me, but he’s back to the cold indifference. Frankly, I hate it.
“We’re worried something might happen if we try to take it off. There’s no clasp, no mechanism to undo it, no nothing,” Zane’s dad explains. “Any ideas?”
Slater’s father looks at me and then at Slater. “What happens when you touch her?”
“It hurts her,” Slater tells him. “We already told you.”
“Can I look at it?” he asks.
I pause, unsure, and look at Slater. He gives me a tight nod, and I hold out my hand. To his credit, Slater‘s father is very gentle with my wrist. “Solid silver.” He turns my wrist but is careful not to touch it. “How did they get it on?”
I think about my time in the bathroom. “I don’t really know,” I’m embarrassed to say.
“Sam showed up, surprising me.” I try to remember exactly what happened, but the details are fuzzy.
“She told me she had a present for me, and then she grabbed my wrist. By the time I looked down, she was gone, and this adorned my wrist.”
“Did it hurt when she did it?” Slater’s dad asks.
“No. There was nothing. I was convinced it was just a normal bracelet until,” I pause, but it’s too late.
“Until I touched her,” Slater adds.
Slater’s dad faces me. “What exactly happens when my son touches you?”
I glance up at Slater for a moment. I don’t really want to say because I don’t want him feel any worse. When he doesn’t say anything, I go ahead with the truth. “It sort of feels like I’m being electrocuted. I mean I’ve never been electrocuted before, but that’s the only way I can describe it.”
He continues to turn my wrist and then looks at his son. “Touch her. Let me see what happens.”
“No. Absolutely not. Have you lost your mind? I’m not going to hurt her,” Slater growls out the last few words.
His father’s face tightens, and I worry that things are going to get really bad. But he releases my wrist. “Are you going to try taking it off?” he asks Alpha Blackwood.
Alpha Blackwood looks at me and then back to Slater’s father. “I don’t know. What do you think?”
Slater’s dad crosses his arms over his chest. “I don’t think you’ll know the answer unless you try.”
Alpha Blackwood turns to me, clearly leaving the choice up to me. “Well, I don’t want to wear it any longer than I have to, so...” I don’t look at Slater. “Let’s try.”
Alpha Blackwood nods. “Okay.”
Slater’s dad adds, “You’re the strongest among us, followed by that boy of yours. You should try to get it off first, but I’ll grab tools in case that doesn’t work.”
He leaves, and Alpha Blackwood looks at Slater. “Let’s prepare a spot in the garage.” Slater nods and turns to me and puts a hand out but drops it a second later. “I’ll be right back.”
I take a deep breath and watch them go. It's quiet, and I don’t know what to do with myself. Slater’s mom looks at me intensely. “Slater lets you touch him?”
I frown. “Yes.” I take in her face and ask cautiously. “Does he not allow you too?”
“Slater doesn’t like to be touched. Never has.”
I take in her words. “Oh.” I don’t really know what to say to that. I make a mental note to ask Slater about it. Thankfully, I don’t have to make small talk because Slater’s dad comes back in.
“This boy was outside.”
He steps aside and a good-looking guy steps in behind him. “Peter!” Riley calls out and comes over to join us. Slater’s dad and mom leave us and walk over to the living room as Riley comes over and gives the guy a hug. “You made it.”
I glance over at Reid and watch as he steps away from the wall, his eyes locked on this Peter guy.
No, no, no. This is not going to be good.
He walks over to where Riley is talking animatedly to Peter.
I can see this is going to be a trainwreck.
I know he doesn’t want Riley to know, and he certainly doesn’t want her family to find out before she does.
That’s exactly what will happen if he makes an issue.
So, I step in front of him. “Hey, Reid.” My voice is breathless, and I try to think what in the world to say.
He glances down at me, and I freeze at the look on his face. And then Evie is there.
“Reid, Zane needs your help.”
I don’t really know that he does, but that’s our story and we’re sticking with it.
He looks between the two of us, looking like he’s going to disagree.
“Reid,” Riley says behind us. “I have somebody for you to meet. This is my friend, Peter.” I squeeze my eyes shut but then force them open again a moment later.
“Peter, this is Reid, my brother’s best friend.
And these are my friends, Tessa and Evie.
Well, Evie is also my brother’s girlfriend. ”
I force a smile to my face and turn around. “Hi, Peter,” I say brightly.
He smiles. “Hi. Are you Tessa or Evie?”
“I’m Tessa.”
“And I’m Evie,” Evie says shaking his hand next.
He turns to Reid, and I figure we’ve avoided the inevitable for as long as possible. I will Reid to not like crush his hand or something worse. Instead, Reid smiles. That’s worse, so much worse, my mind screams at me because that smile is cold and terrifying.
“I’m Reid.”
“Hey, Reid. I’m Peter.”
I bite my lip as Reid shakes Peter’s hand.
I watch Peter very carefully. He’s either a really good actor, or Reid doesn't do anything to him.
Peter steps closer to Riley and puts a hand on her back.
I suck in a breath as Reid tracks his movement.
“Do you want to head somewhere quiet so we can study?” Peter asks quietly, but we still all hear him.
I see just the slightest hesitation on Riley’s face, but she nods and smiles. “Sure.” She steps forward with Peter right behind her, but Reid steps into her path. She looks up at him and cocks an eyebrow.
“Your dad won’t let you study in your room with a guy.” His voice is low and quiet.
Riley's eyebrows nearly hit her hairline, and she laughs. “Uh, ok.” She tries to sidestep him, but Reid moves smoothly with her. Riley stares up at him. “Reid.”
“Riley,” he returns in a calm voice.
I watch the standoff with my heart pounding in my chest. “Peter,” Evie says, turning to the newcomer. “You should eat something.”
“Yes. Food,” I blurt out. “You should eat.”
Peter eyes Evie and I, and I force a bright smile to my face. Riley gives me a funny look that I ignore. “Riley, did you get a chance to eat yet?” Evie asks.
“Uh, yeah. I ate a little but—”
“You should eat more. Come on. Let’s all go eat.”
Riley frowns and looks at Peter. “Let’s go,” I practically yell.
Riley literally jumps. “You guys are acting weird.”
“No, we’re not.” I laugh and turn to Evie. “Are we acting weird?”
“No.” She gives a laugh that’s even worse than mine. “Food?”
Riley looks between the two of us again and shakes her head a moment before turning to Peter. “Alrighty then. I guess we should eat.”
Peter frowns. “I think we should head to your room and—”
“Eat.” Reid’s one word command has us all jumping.
“Good grief. Fine, we’ll eat,” Riley says.
She walks past Reid and elbows him in the ribs, but he doesn’t respond in any way.
I breathe a sigh of relief as I watch them walk towards the food, but it doesn’t last long because I’m pretty sure Peter has a one-track mind tonight.
And I can guarantee it does not involve studying.
“You two are terrible wingmen,” Reid says in a low voice before walking over to where Riley and Peter are.
“Huh,” Evie says, watching him go. “He called us wingmen.”
“Yay us!” I fist bump her.
“What are you fist bumping for?” Slater suddenly asks from like right next to me.
“Oh good grief, how do you do that?!” I put my hand over my heart, which was already racing from the run-in with that Peter guy. Slater follows my gaze and frowns.
“Who’s the guy with Riley?”
“Peter,” Evie says.
“Why is he here?” Slater asks, still eyeing the guy.
“Well, apparently he’s Riley’s study buddy.”
“Pretty sure he’s not here to study,” Evie mutters under her breath.
Slater looks at me, and I give him a look. “He keeps trying to get right to the studying...in Riley’s room.”
He curses low under his breath. “Reid’s going to murder him.”
I freeze and meet Evie’s eyes, and neither of us say anything. Slater looks down at me and smirks. “You think I didn’t know, Shorty?”
“You know about the two of them?” I whisper.
He nods. “I’ve known about it forever. He’s not exactly subtle.”
“I know!” Evie says in a hushed whisper. “That’s what I told him.”
Slater’s eyes narrow on Evie. “Does Zane know now?”
Evie’s eyes go wide. “No.”
“Good. We need to keep it that way until Reid is ready to tell her.”
I look up at him. “I don’t think he plans on telling her.”
He nods. “Yeah.”
“I think he’s planning to let her figure it out when she turns eighteen.”
He looks over at his friend. “Hope he doesn’t kill anybody in the meantime.”
I cringe. “You’re teasing, right?”
He meets my gaze. “She’s really popular, has lots of friends, and has no clue Reid is her mate.”
“But she’ll wait for her mate; she’s a good girl,” Evie defends.
“She is,” Slater says in response. “It’s not her that I don’t trust.” Before I can respond to that, he turns to me.
“You ready to try to get that bracelet off?” Nerves suddenly assail me.
Slater steps close, blocking out everything and everyone else until all I can see is him.
“I won’t let anyone hurt you. Ever.” His words are fierce, and I trust him.
He reminds me of my brother, and I suddenly have the desire to see him.
“You remind me of my brother. I really want you to meet him.”
He gives me a pained look. “Your brother?” I laugh at his expression; I can’t help it.
He continues to stare at me. “Your brother?” he repeats again.
“If I remind you of your brother, I’ve been going about this all wrong.
” He steps closer. “Because there is nothing brotherly between you and me, about what I feel for you.” The laughter dies out, and I stare up at him.
“All right. Well, I’m going to go find Zane before I self-combust over here,” Evie says, startling me and reminding me she’s still here. “Okay, bye.” She hightails it over to the table.
I turn back to Slater. “Okay. Let’s do this.”