13. Harper
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
harper
Maverick hadn't given me the right location.
The asshole had been sending me to a gas station half an hour away from the pack's land the whole time.
Rhone was right. The Alpha totally played us.
Bloom had already texted me to tell me to be careful. I didn't know if she was in on her mate's plan, but it seemed likely. I'd get the truth out of her when we were back.
I was packing all of our (endless) candy wrappers into a thin grocery bag when Rhone came around and opened my door.
"We can clean later," he said. Despite driving all night, he barely looked tired.
When I lifted my head, he tipped his to the side and tapped his throat.
"I bit you last night," I pointed out.
"That excuse isn't going to work again."
Right.
I had devolved when I tried that, and I needed to be at my most stable to convince the Wilder pack that I had my shit together.
I slipped out of the car, hooking an arm around his neck and rising up on my tiptoes before I sank my teeth into his vein.
His groan was so quiet, I almost missed it.
I forced myself to release him after three swallows, but the hand he had on my hip tightened when I did.
"You're not taking enough, Harper."
"Don't want to satisfy myself too much. I'm supposed to bite you in front of the pack at some point."
His chest rumbled unhappily. "I never agreed to public biting."
"I told you I'd need to be bitey to sell the relationship."
"That doesn't mean you have to bite me in public. If you want to bite me, we can step away from everyone else."
"Fine." Once again, he was acting like he was ashamed of me in public. I understood that he just wanted it to be private, but I didn't value privacy the way he seemed to.
I pushed him away, or tried to. He didn't budge.
He was blocking my way out of the car, and there was something in his eyes that said he wasn't done arguing with me.
I was done, though.
So, I climbed over the center console and stepped out through the other door.
He shot me a look that said, "What the hell is wrong with you?"
I sent one back that said, "You piss me off."
Neither of us acknowledged the silent conversation as Rhone pulled a duffel bag he must've packed for us out of the trunk of the car.
He locked the vehicle and stepped in front of me, leading me toward a dirt path that I assumed led into the area the pack lived in.
"No one is going to buy your story if we walk in like this," I muttered.
"Your bite is on my throat. They'll buy it," he muttered back
Whatever.
"Rhone Longfang," a deep male voice mused. "It's been a long fucking time."
"Zane Wildland. It hasn't been long enough."
Zane, who I assumed was the Alpha, chuckled. "Send Maverick my thanks for taking out a few of my pack's old, grizzled asshats a couple months ago."
I took that to mean that at least a few of Maverick's challengers had come from the Wilder Pack.
"He was glad to help," Rhone drawled.
"I assume you're here for the tech guy, and the tiny woman you're hiding behind you is my turned vampire."
That was the exact wrong thing to say, not that Zane knew.
Rhone's arm was around my waist, plastering my face to his back as he literally blocked me with his body, in a heartbeat. "She's mine."
A tense moment of silence followed.
Zane finally said, "If you want Zach, she stays here."
"We're here to make a deal." I attempted to take over the conversation as I wrestled Rhone's arm off my waist.
It didn't budge, so I nipped at his bare shoulder.
It wasn't a real bite, but it surprised him enough that his grip loosened. I was able to step around him, separating the two gigantic werewolves. Rhone yanked me to his chest, and I didn't bother trying to stop him from doing so.
There was no point.
Zane was... impressive.
Not as impressive as Rhone, but I was biased.
He had golden skin and high cheekbones, with striking, hooded blue eyes. He was chiseled everywhere... and was naked.
Very naked.
Next-level naked, and completely fucking gorgeous.
I was kind of disappointed he wasn't sporting an erection, because hot damn.
Unlike Rhone, he was mostly free of tattoos, and his black hair was cropped short. The top was just a little longer, almost falling into his eyes.
Rhone growled low in his throat, pulling me against his chest a little harder.
"Hi," Zane said, and I realized I'd been staring.
"Hey." I cleared my throat. "I'm Harper."
"Take your glasses off."
I was still wearing sunglasses.
Right.
I slid them over the top of my head, wearing them like a headband to show off the extra-bright red eyes that marked me as a turned vampire.
Zane whistled. "So the rumors are true. The Alpha Pack can tame turned vampires."
"Guess so," I agreed. "What do you want me here for?"
"I've got a turned vampire I want tamed."
I blinked. "Who? Why?"
"I'll be keeping that to myself."
"And you think I can fix them?"
"Don't see why not."
Rhone grunted. "You don't need a turned vampire, Wilder. You need a trained werewolf."
Zane glanced at Rhone before looking at me. "What does he mean?"
"Rhone keeps me stable with his blood," I explained. "It's a hassle for him."
"It's not a fucking hassle."
Zane's forehead creased. "I don't understand."
"There are rules that can help keep us sane, but the most important thing is to have a frequent, steady blood source. The wolves are the ones who figured out those rules. They've tried to rehabilitate dozens of turned vampires."
"Without much success?"
"Yes," Rhone admitted grudgingly.
"Then if you want Zach, you're both staying and teaching my pack what you know for a few months," Zane said, already striding down the dirt road. Rhone and I started walking too, staying behind him.
"We'll stay for one day," Rhone said.
"One month."
"Two days."
"Three weeks."
"Three days," Rhone argued.
"Two weeks. That's the lowest I'll go. You'll make it back in time for the real fun of breeding season."
"Fine," Rhone gritted out.
"Great. I'll find you a cabin, and you can drop your stuff before you get started."
"Thank you," I said.
"Sure. Nice shirt, by the way. It's a tempting invitation during breeding season. Especially when you barely smell like the man who's claiming you're his."
I glanced down at my shirt as Rhone swore under his breath.
Bite me.
Oof.