Chapter 6 Casey #2
My temper simmers as I glare holes in the back of his head.
“Oh, that is real mature, Wrath.”
He spins, walking backwards, grinning snidely. Why is that glittering menace so attractive?
“I liked him better when he didn’t talk to me,” I mutter darkly.
I lift my voice so it carries to every damn corner of my house. “You will clean this up. I don’t care if you have to pick every single hair off my couch with your damn teeth.”
The feeling of the five of them converging towards me is a little bit unsettling, but I’m too mad to care.
“What’s wrong with you now?” Khaos asks in exasperation. Like I’m being unreasonable.
I point to the couch. “Clean it.”
“Now, you know what being a pet owner entails,” Wrath murmurs and reaches out, pulling wolf hair off my damn chin.
I whirl towards him and stand up on my toes, gripping his face in my hands. “That is my very expensive couch. I had to have it designed and custom-made. This is not okay.”
Hazard snickers, and I whirl towards him, dismissing the man I was holding. I almost trip as I realise I willingly grabbed the alpha and nothing happened.
No, focus on the anger.
I prowl towards Hazard and poke him in the chest.
“Clean it,” I growl.
“It looks nicer this way,” Wrath smirks and crosses his arms, leaning on the wall.
I inhale and exhale, fighting for calm. “Please don’t destroy my very precious custom couch. I have plenty of other toys for you to ruin.”
I don’t like the way they look at me like that. Like I just challenged them to the world’s best game of hide and seek.
“Just clean it up, please.” I stress the last word and turn away from the mess before I cry.
I walk into the kitchen and start making myself a coffee. I go to the fridge and reach for the carton of milk. It’s empty.
I close my eyes and go to the pantry and put the long-life milk in the fridge. This is going to drive me insane.
How long was the bad weather forecast? A week. I’m not going to survive three days.
We’ve eaten. It was tense. I sat on the floor by the wall and kept a wary eye on the wolves sitting in the piles of fur on my beautiful couch. Now I’m standing in the kitchen staring out the window as the storm ravages the landscape.
Angel appears in the reflection. “Why aren’t you punishing us?”
I still, our eyes connecting and holding. Tension in both our bodies. What is he going to do?
“Cleaning it up is punishment.”
He frowns. “You aren’t hurting us.”
His voice is deep gravel, much deeper than I would have expected.
I turn to face him but lean against the sink and hold my cup in two hands in front of me.
“Listen, I don’t know what kind of monsters you’ve had before, but I’m not about to treat anyone with anything less than respect.”
“Why?”
My eyes drop without my say-so. Hiding my shame. “Because I’ve experienced it. So, if you want a monster, you’re not going to find it here. I won’t be that person. Just please don’t destroy me.”
He advances towards me, leaning over me, his eyes wary and hostile. “Don’t you want me?”
I sigh heavily. “Do you want me?”
“No.”
“There’s your answer.”
He looks so confused. So angry and confused. I sidestep, but he cages me in.
“What if I change my mind?” he asks in a rumble that I feel to my toes.
I laugh bitterly, mockingly. “You won’t.”
“What makes you so sure?”
I push past him. “Look at me,” I say and wave a hand down my body. “And look at you. We don’t match. We don’t fit. Past experience has taught me a lot about the right people you let into your intimate circle.”
He seizes my wrist, and I stiffen, refusing to look back at him. “Don’t change your mind now. Don’t fall in love with me, don’t even fall in lust, because I won’t ever, ever want you.”
Harsh, cold, aggressive, and full of disgust. It slaps at me like a physical blow.
“Yeah, thanks for the ego boost. Let me go now.”
He removes his hand from my wrist really slowly.
“Everything all right here?” I jerk my eyes up to find Riot glaring at me. Of course, I’m the bad guy. I walk stiffly past both of them and walk out into the storm. Safer out here.
The wind snatches at my jacket, instantly turning me icy cold, but I ignore it, moving into the middle of the yard, lifting my face to the wind.
I inhale the smell of the storm and do a quick walk around the property, making sure everything is the way it should be. I would stay out longer, but I already can’t feel my fingers or nose.
I turn back to the house. The chimney is puffing away; the smoke being snatched by the wind. The windows glow with orange light.
Howls in the distance have me turning, lifting my lip in warning. I tilt my head back and let loose a long, lonely howl.
It’s echoed a moment later by five more. But the wolves, the ones that were moving in this direction fall silent, successfully warned away. They were true wolves, but still, it’s better they not come here.
I wait, listening, straining my ears until I hear the howls moving further away. Only then do I relax and turn to go back to the house.
My feet hold me still as I take in what I never expected to see. A pack ready to defend.
They stand in the yard, arranged around me. I meet Khaos’ eyes briefly and then duck my head and stomp back to the house.
I feel all their gazes on me, but I’ve had enough. Some secrets are allowed to be just mine. I walk in, kick off my shoes, and disappear into my bedroom.
I sit in my bed and swipe at the tear that tracks down my cheek. For just a second…just one second, when I turned around, I saw a dream, a future I can’t have. I thought I was over this desire for a pack, long ago, when they beat it out of me.
I’m not stupid enough to let myself linger over these self-indulgent desires. Especially not with them. They deserve freedom.
And I deserve my isolation where no one can hurt me.