Chapter Eight #2
Hill shook his head. “We didn’t threaten—”
“You said you went dark,” I interrupted, trying not to get upset.
Joanna merely shrugged as she fiddled with one of the two braids running down her scalp.
“We did go dark. I just didn’t tell you it was involuntary.
” She continued, ignoring the grit in my voice, “Hill and his boss want us to stop the uprising. But they don’t trust that you’ll fight for us when we’re up against the wall. ”
I leaned on the back of the couch, the cold leather against my palms keeping me grounded. “I take it you didn’t tell them about the blood pact,” I muttered.
Joanna’s jaw dropped, and I had my answer.
Hill pulled his hands from his pockets. “Blood pact?”
I clenched the leather, using my other hand to jab a finger at Joanna. “You were really going to let the Bureau believe I could break my oath? That I’d be willing to cease our alliance when I know the hell I’d suffer because of it?”
“You two are blood-bound?”
Joanna stomped three steps forward. “I told them you were trustworthy. I told them you were a fair alpha who wanted peace between humans and werewolves.”
“Excuse—”
Joanna’s gaze darted to Hill, stopping his interruption. “Yes, Agent. To get the rest of the Blackwood Pack to trust me, I formed a blood bond with the Alpha. I’m sure you need to add that to my file…” She dropped her gaze. “But please don’t tell James.”
Hill shifted his footing. “You don’t think he deserves to know that, Joey?” For the first time since he interrupted my pleasant morning, I sensed genuine concern from the agent. His voice was low and soft… and it made my wolf furious.
Telling the Bureau was one thing. What the hell did James have to do with me and Joanna?
Joanna pulled at a loose thread in her pajama shorts. “I’ll tell him soon. It just… it hasn’t been the right time,” she mumbled.
Hill gave her a slow nod. “Okay,” he conceded, clearing his throat as he put on his suit jacket. “Like I said, I felt I owed it to you to tell you about the club in person. And I’ve done exactly that, so…” He walked toward Joanna, causing me to straighten. “I’ll be on my way.”
Joanna flung the front door open. “It wouldn’t hurt to call first next time, Hill.”
Hill smirked, but when he turned to me, a frown took up his entire face. “It was nice meeting you, Marcus.”
I crossed my arms. “I’m a grown man, Agent. You don’t need to lie to spare my feelings.”
Hill chuckled and walked through the open door.
I listened to his retreating footsteps until Joanna closed it.
She faced it for a few moments without saying a word. Then, she turned. “Do you live here, Marcus?”
I blinked in confusion.
She chuckled, but I sensed the anger seeping through her pores. “Who gave you permission to open my fucking door?”
I paused, searching for the strength to use a calm and even tone. “You were asleep, and I thought it was James.” Joanna’s eyes remained cold, freezing over any self-restraint I’d mustered. “You told me you never brought men home.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “I said I never brought anyone into my home.” Her venom spread through my body. “You’re already so good at choosing your words. I’d appreciate it if you’d refrain from twisting mine to fit your narrative.”
She stormed away from the door, toward the kitchen.
I surveyed her quick movements, trying my best to decode the level of her anger.
“Thank you for breakfast,” she muttered under her breath as she dropped onto a barstool and shoveled some eggs into her mouth.
“Joanna,” I pleaded, massaging my temples, “I’m fighting a fucking hangover. Please just tell me what the hell you’re bitching about.”
Maybe I shouldn’t have challenged her while she was eating, considering she choked on the food in her mouth. Reflex had me by her side in seconds, holding the mug of cold coffee to her lips. She snatched the mug out of my hand and drank.
At least she wasn’t stubborn enough to die to spite me.
She slammed the mug onto the island. “Why weren’t you inside the club when the bombs went off, Marcus?”
Fuck.
Joanna acknowledged my silence with a nod. “Cool,” she said. “Let’s finish eating so I can send your nasty ass back where you belong.” She picked up my plate from beside hers on her left and shoved it in front of me.
“Joanna—”
“I suppose nothing happened this time too, huh?” she demanded.
How was I going to explain this? My claws threatened to extend as I gripped the back of her stool. “It’s not what…” The words caught in my throat. What did it matter? “Are you jealous?” I asked instead.
Joanna set her fork down and looked up from her plate. “That you had sex with someone else last night, Marcus?” Her voice was deceptively calm. “Jealousy is the last thing you need to worry about from me, trust and believe.”
“I told you we shouldn’t have—I knew you would get like this.”
Why did I say that?
Joanna launched off the stool, pinning her fists at her side. “We aren’t a couple; I’m not stupid.” The words stung more than if she’d struck me. “I have no right to you or your dick. Sleep with whomever you want. But don’t do it and then come running to me.”
“Joanna—”
“So, I’ll ask you—get like what, Marcus? Get upset that you used me? Get sick to my stomach that I was your sloppy seconds?”
My wolf whimpered at the rising scent of salt from Joanna’s eyes.
We wanted to lick the tears away if she dared to let them fall.
My pulse quickened. I should’ve let her stay angry.
It would’ve made it so much easier to quit her.
Because she was quicksand. The more I fought, the deeper I seemed to fall.
I released an exasperated sigh, rubbing the back of my neck until it burned.
“She only sucked me off,” I admitted. “And I understand that doesn’t make the situation any better, but you need to know.
I would never have allowed last night to go as far as it did between us if my cock had been anywhere other than her mouth, I swear. ”
I may have wanted to ignore the bond, but hurting Joanna was something I never intended to do.
“And I thought I explained this before, but you are both the reason I wanted to and could not fuck that girl the night we first slept together.” I rolled my shoulders, fighting to keep the space between us.
“You took an oath with my pack, but it’s my blood that binds you, Joanna.
Draw from the pact, and you’ll feel that I’m telling you the truth. ”
We finished our breakfast in silence, leaving me to assume Joanna at least wanted to believe me.
She didn’t protest when I insisted on washing the dishes while she got dressed.
I watched her out of the corner of my eye and fought down the persistent smile that appeared on my face with each of her furtive glances my way.
I threw on my clothes while I stood in front the dryer before walking toward the nightstand where I’d left my phone and key fob. I sat on the bed about to read my missed text messages from Maya but froze at the sound of an opening door.
Joanna stood in front of the partition, which I now noticed hung from the ceiling by heavy chains on a track. Last night, the floating wall was irrelevant; now, it screamed for attention.
The wall opened to reveal a secret display of weapons. Knives, guns, arrows—all contained some sort of silver in their making. Joanna grabbed a knife from a rack and sheathed it on her thigh. Then she grabbed a pistol, checking its magazine before shoving it in the holster on her hip.
She closed the door and tugged the brim of her black cap lower. “I guess I can’t avoid Latoya anymore,” she whispered, her back still toward me. “Thank you, by the way… for catching that Hill didn’t know about her.”
I rose from the bed, shoving my phone into my back pocket. “She needs to confess before more people get hurt.”
Joanna’s head moved with a hesitant nod. “I might not see my sister when I look at her.” Her voice trembled, and she cleared her throat. “What if she’s a fucking monster and doesn’t want to help us?”
I didn’t wait to test whether Joanna would push me away. I wrapped my arms around her from behind and pulled her closer to my chest.
“You can do this,” I assured her, hoping she could feel how much I meant it.
Her body tensed against mine, and her hands had balled into fists at her sides. “You barely know me, Blackwood.” Her words shouldn’t have burned the way they did.
I closed my eyes and ignored the heaviness of my body. “And yet… I still know.”
Joanna could face her sister. And by the end, she’d have Latoya begging to help us. I was as sure of that as the air in my lungs.
“Because even when I feel like a monster, you give me courage to want to be a man.”