8. Harper
CHAPTER EIGHT
harper
We sat at a table in the far back corner of the tower's food court.
Rhone had looked extremely unhappy to be there since the moment we walked in, and ignored greetings from a handful of people. I didn't particularly care that he was probably hurting their feelings, but the human instinct to wave back in apology for his brutishness was impossible to ignore.
Maybe it was more social training than instinct.
At least I still had one human part of me.
Rhone had forced me to go through the food line with him to choose a taco, loading up his own plate in the process. He didn't like socializing, but only a true monster could hate tacos.
Like me.
Not that it was the tacos’ fault. The problem was me, not them.
When we sat down and he lifted the taco to my mouth, I reluctantly grabbed it from him and forced myself to take a small bite.
He was satisfied by that, so he worked on his own food while I tried not to make awkward eye contact with the massive crowd of werewolves I didn't know.
Most of them gave us a wide berth, but I was pretty sure that was because of Rhone, not me.
Ryker winked when I made eye contact. He'd already healed fully, so Rhone couldn't have done too much damage.
I didn't dare wink back, but nodded.
If I ever tried anything with him again, including friendship, I was almost positive he wouldn’t survive it.
The women I'd gossiped with in the elevator made eye contact too. They gestured to me, then to their hair, mouthing something that looked like, "I LOVE IT."
When I mouthed back a thank you, Rhone's attention jerked over his shoulder, a half-eaten taco still in his hand.
The women waved at him, and he looked back at me.
"I think they were complimenting my hair," I said.
He returned to his taco.
"Are we going to talk about your possessiveness?" I asked him.
He didn't acknowledge that I'd said anything at all.
I figured that was a no.
My phone vibrated on the table, and I glanced at the message from Bloom.
Rhone did too.
Bloom
Where are you?
I'm in your room but you're not
She always referred to the observation room as my room, and the apartment Rhone tried to get me to live in as my apartment.
Me
Rhone dragged me to Taco Tuesday
Bloom
Rhone doesn't go to Taco Tuesday
I lifted my phone and snapped a picture of him eating a taco, then sent it to her.
The look he gave me said he was not amused by my surprise photography.
The one I gave him said I was not amused by his attempt to force me to eat.
Bloom
Maverick applauds your skill at convincing Rhone to interact with people
Me
I tried to talk him out of coming, he literally dragged me
No skill required
Bloom
We're heading to you
"They're coming to join us," I said. "Let's get out of here before she gets all sad that I can't eat."
"Your stomach hasn't started churning yet."
I blinked at him.
"Take another bite." Rhone gestured toward my taco with his own.
He wasn't going to take no for an answer, and he'd already threatened to feed me with his own hand.
I reluctantly lifted the taco, and took another small bite before setting it back down.
Rhone seemed satisfied by the progress.
He suddenly stopped eating again, and his scowl deepened for no apparent reason.
"What happened?" I asked, assuming Maverick had spoken to him through the pack link.
He turned in his chair, and the way his head turned slightly told me he was scanning the room.
"What's going on?"
I was kind of surprised when he answered the question. "A few of the enforcers reported me to Maverick this morning."
"For what?"
"Claiming a female who doesn't want me and isn't my fated mate." He said it calmly. Like that was a rational thing for someone to do.
It wasn’t.
"What did he tell you to do about it?" I asked.
"Maverick doesn't give me orders."
I knew that. They were a team, however strange the dynamic was.
"What does he want you to do about it?"
Rhone didn't answer that question.
I picked up my phone and texted Bloom.
Me
What's going on with the enforcers' complaints?
Bloom
There are rules about claiming someone like Rhone has claimed you
He can't attack a guy you were with willingly, since you’re not together
Me
What is he supposed to do about it now? Apologize? We both know he isn’t going to
Bloom
He’s supposed to stop being possessive of you
I stared down at the screen.
Me
He still hasn't told me why he's being possessive at all
Bloom
Maverick doesn't think he really knows why
Me
How could you be possessive without knowing why?
Bloom sent me a shrug emoji.
Me
I need him to keep feeding me
Could the enforcers make that difficult?
Bloom
I'm not sure
Want me to ask Mav?
Me
I guess
I waited a minute.
Rhone resumed eating.
Bloom
Rhone's not going to change his behavior because of something the enforcers do, think, or say
They could start challenging him, and probably will if they're really concerned. Mav thinks they are, after the ordeal with Ryker
They won't beat Rhone when they start challenging him, but it’s going to start causing problems for the pack soon
Me
What kind of problems?
Bloom
The big kind
Some people are already not Rhone’s biggest fan bc he’s kind of an ass
If Maverick lets him steal the woman he wants, despite what she says about it, it looks very bad
And the last thing we need is more challenges right now, particularly coming from inside the pack. Maverick said it’s pointless to try to hold on to a pack that doesn’t trust you
Shit.
Bloom
Mav's going to sit down with him to talk about it, they’ll figure something out
You should just focus on healing
Healing was a pointless dream. I’d never stop feeling bloodthirsty, so stabilization was my only option.
I studied the Beta.
Rhone wasn't going to stop with the possessiveness or get it under control. He had no desire to. I didn't even think he particularly cared how it affected the pack. According to Nolan, he was the Beta for Maverick's sake, not for anyone else's.
He and I weren't enemies. It wasn't fair to let people think I didn't want him. If I'd known he was going to attack Ryker for it, I wouldn't have bitten or fucked the enforcer. I didn’t care about Ryker.
I cared about Rhone, though. Just a little.
In some strange, illogical way, he and I were kind of a team. Our best friends were mated. He'd refused to let me die from the beginning, and he was keeping me alive through sheer bullheadedness.
I had an easy way to solve his problem, even if he didn't want to acknowledge that it was a problem.
Leaving my phone on the table, I stood up.
Rhone's gaze followed me, his eyes narrowing.
If I tried to leave without eating more, he would stop me.
I wasn't leaving, though.
I stepped around the table and slid one leg over Rhone's lap before taking a seat there, straddling him.
A tiny crease appeared between his brows. One of his hands was still on his taco, but the other lifted to my waist, like he thought I might fall over if he didn’t hold me up or something.
Before he could ask what I was doing, I took his face in my hands and kissed him.
His utter lack of response, and the way he completely froze, was almost funny.
I pulled away long enough to lean my lips to his ear and whisper, "The enforcers think I don't want you. Kiss me back, and they'll shut up about it."
When I dragged my mouth back to his, his tongue met mine.
There was hesitance behind his kiss.
Uncertainty, maybe.
There was none of that behind mine.
I dragged my tongue over his with reckless abandon, still holding his face in a way that would tell everyone watching that I wanted him and was in control.
I was having my way with the Beta’s mouth in front of his whole fucking pack.
For the first time in far too long, I really, fully felt something.
Desire, strong enough to take my breath away.
My body always responded to Rhone, but this was more than just my body. This was me. My dead, black heart. My dark, bleeding soul.
One of my descended fangs grazed his lip as we made out, and his enthusiasm picked up just a tad.
Rhone was still the one who pulled away.
His chest was rising and falling almost as heavily as mine was, his stony gaze moving slowly over my face.
I dragged my thumb over his cut lip, wiping his blood off the broken skin and lifting my finger to my mouth to suck it clean before I slipped off his lap and went back to my seat.
Bloom and Maverick looked like they were fighting to keep shock off their faces as they took the two empty seats at our table.
"That's one way to solve a problem," Maverick said, when the pack's attention had mostly left us.
"You're welcome," I tossed back.
Rhone grunted. "Take another bite."
I considered asking if he wanted me to sink my teeth into the taco again, or into him.
But I'd already pushed my luck with him enough for the current hour, so I focused on the food.
My stomach churned as I walked slowly on the treadmill. The half taco Rhone had forced me to choke down was threatening to make a reappearance.
Bloom was jogging on the machine beside mine, but only because Maverick kept coming over to increase the speed on her treadmill every couple of minutes.
He was a lot stricter about her training than mine. Probably because she might have to run for her life at some point, and I was much less likely to live long enough to manage that.
Especially if I couldn't keep down half of what everyone else agreed was a fantastic taco.
Rhone had unceremoniously left me with Bloom and Maverick when he was done eating, and I pretended not to notice the slight bulge that remained in the front of his pants as he walked away.
Everyone was horny because it was breeding season. The bulge could've been because of that.
Or it could've been because I kissed him.
He hadn’t been very enthusiastic, so it probably wasn’t that. I shouldn't be thinking about it, or even caring about it. I rarely cared about anything anymore.
But I cared about this. Just a little.
"Do you think he's mad that I kissed him without asking?" I asked Bloom. Maverick was on the other side of the room, chatting with a male enforcer about something.
"Rhone?" Bloom asked breathlessly.
Wow, I was glad I wasn't jogging.
"Who else?"
"I don't know. He can’t be mad about you fixing his problem. Not after what he did to you after Ryker. If he is, he needs to get over it."
I nodded. That was fair.
"Pick up the pace, Harper," Maverick called from the other side of the room.
"If I do that, I'm going to throw up all over your mate," I called back. "Your dick of a Beta made me eat half a taco."
He grimaced.
"I thought they were together," the enforcer he was talking to muttered, loudly enough that I could hear him over the sound of Bloom suffering on the treadmill.
"They definitely aren't together."
"Then what are they?"
Maverick shrugged. "It’s consensual, so it's not our business."
"Was it good?" Bloom asked me. "The kiss?"
"Yes and no."
She frowned, stabbing the button on her treadmill to slow it down.
"You should ask for a refund. Running is a steep price for a mate bond," I said.
"I'll send fate a strongly-worded email."
"Good call."
She smacked me on the arm harder than she probably intended to, since she was still working on slowing the treadmill. "You changed the subject. Explain."
"He didn't really seem like he wanted to kiss me. I was doing all the work. He felt and tasted good, but it isn't fabulous to make out with someone who doesn't want you."
She made a face. "You really think he doesn't want you? He told you that you're his."
"I don't think he wants to be possessive of me. He just is. Maybe a fully turned vampire imprints on the first werewolf they bite or something."
"Vampires don't imprint. We don't even have fated mates, unless we're stuck with a pissy werewolf who likes to torture us with fitness machinery," Bloom said, raising her voice to make sure Maverick heard her.
He winked at her.
She smiled.
"I know. The situation's just weird," I said.
She nodded.
Maverick had Alpha stuff to do after our torture session ended, so Bloom walked me back to the observation room I'd claimed.
When we got there, there was a folded sheet of paper taped to the door.
Ignoring it, I tried the handle.
Locked.
I typed the code in.
The numbers flashed red.
I tried it again.
More red lights.
Had someone locked me out of my room?
It was the only place in the tower where everyone was safe from me.
I tried to breathe slowly against the incoming panic.
"Let me see if Maverick changed it," Bloom said carefully. After a moment, she shook her head. "Here." She carefully pulled the paper off the door and opened it up.
When I scanned the note, my panic faded, replaced by anger as I ripped it out of her hand:
TROUBLE,
YOU ARE NOT A PRISONER OR A THREAT
APARTMENT 3341
"3341?" Bloom asked. "I think that one is across the hall from Rhone's. He's 3340."
I crumpled the paper in my fist and stormed down the hallway. "He can't just lock me out of my room. Moving my stuff every day is one thing, but this is an entirely new level of dickishness."
"I can call him."
"I have a better way to get back at him."