“Where’s my mom?” I asked.
“She gave herself a sleeping draught and won’t wake up for hours. In the morning, I’ll tell her you came by. At least we know Wren is alive. Thank you for that much.” He stepped forward and pulled me into a hug.
I went stiff at first, unused to contact from David. Despite the adoption, it had been clear to me from a young age that he wasn’t really my father. Still, at least he was trying. Before I could bring my arms up to hug him back, he pulled away.
“Thank you again, Sparrow,” he said. “Your guards, are they working out for you?”
I nodded. “We’re getting along really well.”
Yep, I was a master of telling the truth without telling all of the truth. We were getting along really well—and my dad didn’t need to know exactly how well.
“Very good. Come by for breakfast tomorrow, talk to your mother. She’d love to see you.”
It sounded like an invitation, but I knew an alpha’s order when I heard one.
With that, we left.
Zak and Logan flanked me as we walked back to my cottage. From the corner of my eye, I could see Zak flicking his gaze to me. It didn’t feel like an appreciative glance, though—more like concern. Had he sensed I wasn’t being entirely truthful with my stepfather?
At this point it didn’t matter. I was completely fried and had zero fucks left to give about anything.
Roman waited on my front step, looking like a beautiful mess. His blond hair was wild, his tattered jeans covered in dirt like they’d been dragged across the ground. “What the fuck, guys? I went to take a piss and you left without me. I had to shift into my wolf to run back here.”
“Sorry,” I said, then stepped past him and into my cottage. I did feel bad, but I had no more energy for anything or anyone. I left the three guys outside and collapsed on the couch. Home had never felt so good before, or so weird. Wren was alive, and that was a comfort, but now I had to battle something else, someone else. Someone who everyone trusted to guard me.
And I didn’t know where to turn.
Chapter Six
Everything was so damned big and so damned white.
So light and cheerful; it was like unwarranted hope had vomited its crisp brightness all over the dining room. The banquet table always felt much too empty when the whole pack wasn’t here, worse with Wren’s place set in front of the empty chair beside me.
I stabbed at my eggs and potatoes with my fork. It was meant to be a smiling face, two eggs for eyes, a pile of potatoes for a nose, and a slice of curved bacon for a mouth. It was what Mom always made for mandatory breakfasts. As if Bacon Man could set the mood.
“If you don’t actually eat your breakfast, you won’t have any energy for the day,” my mother said. “You’re wasting away, all skin and bones. I wish you’d take better care of yourself, dear.”
“I’m fine,” I said, swirling Bacon Man’s face into mess mountain.
I could feel the weight of their gazes, Mom’s from across the table, and David’s from his place at the head of the table between us.
David looked to Mom and took her hand. It was coming, the reason I was “invited”—the talk.
I wanted to be anywhere but here.
“Sparrow.” David’s voice was heavy, filled with command just like it always was.
I looked up.
“Your mother and I have discussed your vision,” he said.
Mom’s eyes were questioning and I could feel Drake and Everett tense by the doorway. They were listening. I hadn’t told them, or anyone, the whole truth.
“It was Wren,” I answered, knowing what was about to be asked. “I’m sure.”
I said it with certainty, conviction, though with everything I Saw, I was never confident in my understanding of what I was Seeing. But with Wren talking to me, it was like she wanted me to know about Everett. I heard her. I Saw her. She had to be okay. I told myself to stop second-guessing. I was sure.
Mom smiled up at David before turning back to me.
“How did she look? What did she say? Did she tell you where she was? Did she look like she was in danger? Was she harmed?” Mom only stopped when David squeezed her hand.
“She looked…” I had to think. It was still as fresh in my mind as if it had just happened, but somehow the whole thing was also unclear. “Thin.”
“Thin?” Mom asked.
“Yeah.”
“You think it was her now, wherever she is? And not just how you remember her before she left?” Mom asked.
“Yes.” I tried not to take it personally. Of course she’d question what I had to say, and what I Saw. Wren didn’t need to be asked ten times if she was sure, because she was never wrong.
“What else? Where was she? Where is she?” Mom asked.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I don’t know.”
Mom’s shoulders fell and she leaned back in her chair.
I dropped my fork and waited for the rest of the questions I couldn’t answer. After that, I could leave. After that, I wouldn’t have to watch the way my mother looked at me when I disappointed her. Better to be alone.
“There must be some detail that you just aren’t thinking of. Something you aren’t telling us, something you overlooked,” Mom said with narrowed eyes.
“I couldn’t understand what she said,” I told Mom. “And I don’t know where she is.”
It wasn’t really a lie. I didn’t know where she was, and what she’d said to me made no sense. I couldn’t imagine Everett betraying me. He seemed so...but I guessed that was the perfect cover.
Mom and David stared at me.
I looked away and sighed.
“Thank you for breakfast,” I said, and rose from my seat. “If I have anything useful to share, I will.”
With that, I headed for the door.
It wasn’t club time, and I wasn’t in the mood for running, so I couldn’t think of a better way to forget my troubles midday than lying poolside in the tiniest of bikinis with Eveline. A few of the other pack members were around, but they were swimming laps or lounging on the other side of the pool, so Eveline and I ignored them, and they ignored us.
Triangles of cherry-red fabric covered just enough skin to be appropriate for lounging by the compound’s pool. Red was most definitely my color. It complemented my black hair and tanned skin, and drew all the right kind of attention.
Eveline’s suit was just as flattering, though quite a bit more modest. Her blue halter top barely let her belly show, but the color flattered her pale skin and freckles.
Even while I lay face-down on a lounge chair, I could feel Drake and Everett’s eyes on me, staring at my ass.
I knew I should avoid alone time with Everett because he was probably going to try something—and not the kind of something I wanted him to. Still, deep down, I couldn’t wrap my brain around it, and I was just as into him as I’d been before the vision. Traitor or not, the admiration of a beautiful man always felt nice.
“What’s on your mind?” Eveline asked. “Does it have anything to do with the cute guards staring at you like you’re the hot fudge to their sundaes?”
“Shh, they’ll hear you,” I whispered.
“Or like you’re the bun for their hot dogs?”
“I will hurt you,” I threatened.
“Or the dill for their pickles.”
Instead of smacking her, I cracked up laughing, I couldn’t help it.
“You know,” she said once we’d calmed down, “I never thought it would work between you and any of the guys in the pack.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I said drily.
“Oh, don’t get your bikini in a twist. None of the guys here are good enough for you.”
My mouth opened and closed. I hadn’t thought she held that high of an opinion of me. I’d always been screwing around with one guy or another.
“Anyway,” she continued, “I can easily see you with these guards. Especially that big guy over ther
e, the bear.”
I sat up abruptly. I could see me with Everett, too. And Drake. And Roman. And Zak. Fuck, this was too confusing. “I need to swim,” I said.
“All right,” Eveline said. “I should probably head home—I have guard duty tonight.”
“Thanks for hanging out,” I said. “I needed the girl time.”
“I’d guess so, after being surrounded by all the testosterone, you lucky bitch.”
We both laughed. Eveline got up and pulled on her wrap, and I made my way to the diving board and dove into the pool.
I spotted Roman approaching the pool house from the field beyond. He and Everett started talking. But Drake, well, his attention remained entirely fixed on me.
Drake’s smoldering dark eyes consumed me, every inch of my skin, every movement of my body. We were back on the dance floor, back in the hallway. We were alone.
I climbed the ladder and walked toward him. I could see the shape of his semi through his black pants. He wanted me. Good.
I placed my palms on his chest, soaking the white fabric of his v-neck t-shirt, exposing the chiseled shape of the muscles beneath.
“Tell me why,” I said.
“Why what?” he breathed. His voice was deep, laced with desire.
“Why’d you let me walk away that night in the club?” I asked, pressing my near-naked body against his fully-clothed form. His cock hardened completely, shoving against my bare belly.
“I don’t think anyone lets you do anything,” he said.
“You didn’t ask me to stay,” I said, tilting my head so my lips were an inch from his chin.
The scent of his sandalwood cologne enveloped me, reminding me of what had almost happened in the club, and again in the alley.
“You didn’t ask for my number. You just—”
His mouth captured mine in a movement so quick I didn’t see it coming. He tasted like the river and wildfire, like clouds and earth.
It happened so fast, and just as quickly it was over. I looked around to see if anyone else had noticed, but they weren’t paying attention.
“You drive me wild, Sparrow,” he said. “You push me to the brink of sanity and throw me over the edge, and that was just in five minutes of knowing you. Now we have to work together. I have to work to protect you. It’s my job, and you’re worth it.”
I opened my mouth to speak, unsure what the hell I was supposed to say to that. I mean, I was hoping he’d be like “oh you’re sexy and I totally wanted to fuck you,” but this?
“Sparrow?” A firm hand clamped down on my arm.
I twisted and met my mother’s gaze. Oh, shit. “Uh, hi, Mom. I didn’t see you.”
“I was just passing by, and I saw you here, like this,” she said, her voice laden with disapproval. In a hiss, she added, “Don’t fraternize with the help.”
I felt my mouth fall open. What could I say? I had no words. She wasn’t just my mom, she was the alpha’s mate.
She stared daggers at me before letting go. Drake took a step back, leaving me cold, bereft, and utterly alone.
“You’re a Solaris. Daughter of the alpha,” she said.
Adoptive daughter.
“You’re above this kind of behavior.”
No, I really wasn’t.
Chapter Seven
I couldn’t move, I was mortified. My overbearing, classist mother, coming over and ruining my talk with Drake. And just like that she walked away, leaving me fucking broken.
The help? What kind of elitist bullshit was that?
Worse, Drake had completely shut down. He was barely looking at me.
Movement from the edge of the pool caught my eye. I turned just in time to see Roman, clad in board shorts, rush to the edge of the pool. With a roar, he leaped and did a cannonball into the water.
The splash soaked me, cool water shocking my skin where it had warmed in the sun. It soaked Drake, too, and he frowned at Roman, who now swam underwater to the other side of the pool.
“Drake,” I said.
He shook his head.
Everything I’d just learned from him rattled around in my mind like bits and pieces in an old toolbox, waiting to be assembled.
I stomped back to my lounge chair, feeling the thud of the pool concrete on my feet and the curious eyes of my packmates following my progress. I grabbed my sunglasses first, so I could shield my eyes which were quickly filling with tears.
Everyone was staring at me, from the pack’s smallest pups in the shallow end, to some of the guys I’d hooked up with in the past, to their now-girlfriends. I didn’t need a shifter’s sensitive hearing to know everyone was whispering about me.
My barely-there bikini suddenly felt way too exposing. This was like being naked in front of everyone. No, it was worse than being naked in front of everyone—I was emotionally laid bare.
My hands were shaking too much to grab my cover-up and towel. Suddenly, a shadow blotted out the sun. I looked up to see Everett standing right next to me in his jeans and black t-shirt, his forehead wrinkled in concern.
“Here,” he said, grabbing my cover-up and handing it to me.
“Thanks.” I tried to tug it on, but my clumsy hands weren’t cooperating.
He took it from me and grabbed my towel instead, which he draped around my shoulders. “Back to your place?” he asked.
I nodded, not trusting my aching throat to speak. Again, someone’s kindness was moving me to tears.
I was vaguely aware of Drake and Roman following behind us as Everett and I walked back to my cottage on the stone path that led around the compound. When Everett reached for my hand, I took it, appreciating his strength and his warmth.
And this was the guy Wren had said would betray me? I didn’t think so. He’d just rescued me from one of the most humiliating experiences of my life. He didn’t have to do that. He didn’t have to care, but he did.
We reached my door, and Everett brushed a kiss on my forehead. “Drake and I will be out here until Logan and Roman start their shift. Give me a shout if you need anything.”
“Or me,” Roman said. “I’m not going to hang out until my shift, but I’ll be around if you ever need anything.”
I nodded, feeling tears burn in my eyes again.
“Hey,” Everett said, catching a rogue tear that wouldn’t stay put and was trying to make its way down my cheek. “What’s wrong?”
“Stop being so nice to me,” I said in a tight voice. “It hurts more.”
Off to the side of my doorstep, Drake stood tall and proud, but his lips moved like he was holding something back. Roman leaned in to his side.
“What happened?” Roman whispered. “I missed it.”
Everett’s face softened and he bent down to take my lips with his. Just as quickly, he stepped away. “I always want to be nice to you,” he said. “Nothing makes me happier than being nice to you.”
“Tell Drake I’m sorry for what my mother said.”
“He already heard you,” Everett said.
Drake hadn’t moved, his expression hadn’t changed. But I believed Everett.
As I stepped into my cottage and closed the door behind me, I thought of that again. I believed Everett. I trusted Everett.
I trusted him more than my misleading visions, I trusted him more than my inaccurate Sight.
A few hours later, I was in that place between wakefulness and sleep. I didn’t have work tonight, and I wasn’t allowed to go to the club for fun. I hated naps because they made me feel grouchy and groggy, but here I was in my sleep shorts and cami, napping.
A knock sounded at my door and I stumbled from the couch, my knee connecting with the edge of Wren’s favorite table.
“Fuck!” I shouted, holding my knee.
“Sparrow?” Drake’s voice called. “Are you okay?”
“No, my fucking knee is fucking broken,” I said.
The door knob rattled.
“Let me in,” he said.
“I would if I could fucking walk,”
I growled under my breath.
He laughed—the bastard laughed. “Stop being such a wimp.”
I limped to the door, muttering curses with each step. After unbolting the deadlock, I flung the door open.
Drake and Everett stood in front of me, their hair dripping from the rain. Their gazes both flicked to my bare knees, both of which looked entirely unhurt even though the right one throbbed like a bitch.
“I swear that demon table broke my leg,” I said. “What do you want?”
“Our shift is over,” Everett said.
I stared at them. They didn’t usually check in with me at the end of a shift. Why were they here now? “Okay...cool. Thanks.”
“Roman and Logan are on duty,” Drake added.
I gave him a small smile. At least he was talking to me again. Maybe that was it. Maybe he wanted to talk, and maybe that’s why they were here.
Thunder rumbled outside, and the soft sounds of rain surrounded us.
“Look, do you guys want to come in?” I took a step back from the door, but faltered on my bruised knee.
Everett didn’t hesitate—he swooped in, picked me up like I was a little kid, and swiftly deposited me back on the couch. Then he returned to the door to toe off his shoes.
Drake stepped in after him and closed the door, taking off his shoes, too. “It’s muddy outside,” he explained.
Sweet of them to be so considerate. “Thanks.”
He eyed the coffee table in the center of the room with skepticism. “That’s the demon table that tried to attack you?” he asked doubtfully.
“It’s eviller than it looks,” I said.
The two guys seemed to fill my tiny living room. They looked around with interest, their nostrils flaring. They were probably taking in my scent. I hated that they could do that, but I couldn’t.
“Um, do you guys want a snack? Dinner? Something to drink?” I moved to get up.
“I’ll grab something, if you don’t mind,” Drake said, waving me back down. “I don’t want you limping around on your broken leg. What do you have?”
“Not much,” I said. “Wren likes to cook, but when she left...I think all I’ve got is some bagged salad and supplies for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.”
Shifters Gone Wild: A Shifter Romance Collection Page 59