Red (Siren Publishing Menage Amour)

by Eden French

  Calen’s nostrils flared in rage as he nodded in agreement.

  * * * *

  Cutter and Murphy were still in shock as they backed out of the room, closing the door behind them. The moment Calen heard the door click, he began his verbal attack.

  “Why, Zev? Huh? Why? Is it because she was mine? Because she chose me, not you? That the perfect Zev Reynolds, who never gets rejected by anyone, got rejected by her?”

  Zev collected some more blood in his mouth and spit it in his trash bin. He thought about telling Calen that Celeste didn’t seem to reject him as she fucked his face, but he held it in. That was no way for an alpha to act. And, Calen was his friend. A friend he had hurt.

  “No, Calen. It wasn’t like that. I swear.” He tried to speak evenly though his wolf was raging on the inside.

  “Then why, Zev? Why did you do it? Of all people, you? How could you do this to me? I deserve to know why you did it.”

  Zev’s chest rose and fell with a deep breath.

  “I’m sorry, Calen. I didn’t want to hurt you.”

  “That’s not an answer. I want answers, Zev.” Calen flopped down on Zev’s bed and covered his head with his hands, the fight drained out of him. “You could have any girl on this whole campus. Why’d you have to take Celeste from me? I thought, I thought she loved me.”

  “She does love you. And, I don’t know why things happened the way they did, Red. All I know is I can’t ignore the feelings I have for her any longer. I tried to be patient. I tried to ignore it. But Red, I cannot breathe without her. I cannot walk straight without her—”

  “Shut the fuck up, Zev. I don’t want to hear your stupid shit.” Calen’s words were slurred. The alcohol was catching up quickly. Zev watched as he swayed side to side on his bed. “If you think I’m giving her up, you’re fucking crazy. I’m gonna fight for her, Zev, and you know what? I’m gonna win.”

  Calen swayed once more before collapsing on Zev’s bed.

  “I wouldn’t expect anything less.” Zev picked up his friend and took him to his room where he tossed him on his own bed. Let him sleep it off the next couple of hours. Then, he’d do his best to explain everything to Calen. “May the best man win.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Later that evening, Celeste still wasn’t ready to share her digressions with Heather. She was pretty sure she never would be. She was too ashamed. She had already left several voice messages on Calen’s phone, but none had been returned. Not that she expected him to ever speak to her again. But, she wasn’t going to give up just yet. She would fight for what was hers. Or, what was left of it. She just didn’t know how Zev fit in all of this.

  Heather was finishing up her hair when Celeste approached her.

  “You look great.” Celeste entered the bathroom and smiled at her friend. Heather’s costume was fabulous, perfect for her shape. It was reminiscent of a mermaid with shimmering green, opalescent pants with pieces attached that gave the impression of fins. Her only other item of the costume was a clamshell bra, leaving plenty of space to show off her long and lean body. It didn’t leave much for the imagination, but Celeste couldn’t argue that her friend totally rocked the outfit. Celeste watched from the doorway as Heather curled her hair in wavy beach curls down her back before she spoke.

  “Do you think you can give me a lift to the Sideshow?” She tried to sound casual. “I’m meeting Calen there. I didn’t want him to have to drive out here, then back, you know?”

  Heather gave Celeste’s reflection a strange look. “You know, I’m sure he’d drive to the ends of the earth for you with a smile on his face, but yeah, sure. I’m meeting Jake at the Omega house anyway.”

  Celeste’s heart seared in pain. She brought her hand to her chest to calm it.

  “You okay?” Heather asked, noticing her friend’s discomfort.

  “Yeah…I think I just pulled a muscle or something.”

  Heather laughed. “Well, it’s no wonder considering all the sexcapades that have been going on the past few months. Sure, I’ll give you a ride. It’s no problem, and I’m almost done here. You look great, by the way. What are you supposed to be?”

  Celeste looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes ran up and down the reflection at the vintage circus performers costume. When she had picked out the outfit, she hadn’t known about her lineage, she just liked how the color matched her eyes.

  “I’m supposed to be the wolf-girl,” she whispered. A shock ran through her body. The black and yellow striped corset off-set her dark eyes, the yellow in the costume was identical to yellow in her irises that was now noticeable at all times. Skin tight, black leather pants wrapped around her legs.

  When she had purchased the costume, she thought the tiny wolf emblem embroidered on the upper left side of the bodice was a cute detail. She had no idea just how significant it really was.

  “Like a lion tamer, but with wolves?” Heather questioned.

  “Yeah, something like that. Do I have time to double check my makeup?” Celeste deflected.

  “Sure, I was thinking about leaving in fifteen.”

  Celeste immediately retreated to her room and sat at her vanity. She grabbed a tissue and dabbed her eyes. How in the hell was she going to get through the night? She hadn’t heard anything from Calen since he left her apartment.

  Under normal circumstances, Celeste wouldn’t even have tried to explain why she and Zev had happened. She would have let Calen go. But, these weren’t normal circumstances, dammit. She was a goddamn wolf shifter. She had to believe if she just got the chance to explain it to Calen, if he knew what she felt for Zev was just as real and important as what she felt for him and driven by a physiological instinct, well, then he would know she still wanted him with all her existence.

  “Who the hell are you kidding?” Her reflection disgusted her to her core. She couldn’t even look at herself without feeling like a complete and total hypocrite. Tears welled up again in her eyes. Her grief was immense. It tore at her flesh whenever she remembered Calen’s face as she told him she had been with Zev.

  “Hey, C, let’s go!” Heather called from the front hall. “I just got a text from Jake wondering if I was on my way.”

  Celeste took a deep breath before heading out to meet her friend. She closed her eyes and stood in the door, begging her wolf to stay in her cave tonight. She hoped she didn’t run into Zev first, though she knew that was a long shot. He would have her in his sights the moment she walked onto the row.

  “Just please let him give me space to see Calen. I just need to see him and convince him to listen to me. To let me explain,” she whispered to herself before opening the door and joining Heather in the entryway.

  The drive there was filled with Heather’s chatter about Jake Pierson. Celeste wasn’t sure who he was, but by Heather’s description, she was confident he was a Greek god incarnate.

  The two arrived to a very bustling outdoor party. The entire row was decorated in various circus themes, each house taking on a different segment of the show.

  “Meet me at Omega House in a couple hours,” Heather said. “I got my cell, so if you can’t find me, text.” Heather slipped the phone into the back pocket of her pants.

  Celeste nodded and watched her friend head down the block to meet her date for the evening. Celeste’s heart raced as she looked in the opposite direction to where SAE was located. She slowly made her way down the row, not knowing what would happen when Calen saw her.

  How would he react? What would he do? Celeste was pretty sure it was all going to turn into a massive shit show the moment their eyes met, but she couldn’t stop herself. She needed to see him, even if for one last time. She needed to explain.

  Celeste approached the door to the house and hesitated as she reached for the doorknob.

  “Just open the door, C,” she said to herself. “If he yells at you, he yells at you. There’s nothing you can do now except try to let him know the truth about who you really are.” With a final deep
breath, Celeste opened the door and walked into the hall.

  As expected, Sigma Alpha Epsilon was packed to capacity. Celeste had never seen it so crammed with people. They had taken on the animal trainer part of the show, and the inside of the house was decorated to look like a three-ring circus, a different ring in each main room.

  Celeste felt a set of eyes on her and knew Zev watched. She looked up to the stairs and met his gaze. He was the lion tamer. With a whip holstered on his belt, he nodded at her in acknowledgment and pointed toward the hallway leading to Calen’s office.

  That was where she would find him. She mouthed the words thank you and headed down the hall. She pushed past several couples making out until she stood at his office door. She thought about walking in, as she had so many times before, but decided to knock instead.

  “What!” Calen’s voice shouted from the other side. He sounded off, though Celeste wasn’t sure why.

  She opened the door and immediately understood his demeanor as the scent of alcohol wafted across the room. Calen sat at his desk, a bottle of scotch in front of him. It was already one-quarter gone. He was on his way to becoming obliterated drunk. Calen shot Celeste a heated glance when she entered and picked up the bottle as she neared.

  “I have nothing to say to you,” he said roughly, taking a swig from the bottle and slamming it down on the desk in front of him. Droplets of the golden liquid splashed out of the neck.

  “Good because I have enough to say for both of us.” Celeste refused to back down. She was determined to fight for him. Her abrupt tone was pushing it, but she hoped her brusqueness would catch his attention. She didn’t wait for him to argue. “There is nothing I can say that will ever excuse my behavior, Calen. I know that. I am deeply sorry for hurting you, for lying to you. There is nothing I can do to change what’s been done, and I wish, with all my heart, that I could change it, Calen. I do.”

  Celeste took a breath. Could she do it? Would she be able to explain who she really was? She looked at the bottle of alcohol on his desk. Would he even remember?

  “There’s something about me you need to know. Something I just recently found out about myself. Something, I’m still not sure I believe.”

  Calen looked at Celeste, the hurt spilling from his expression. Her heart quickened. He still loved her, she could see it all over the anguish spread across his face.

  Celeste spoke slowly, examining Calen’s expression as she told her story. A story anyone would believe was a fairy tale, of how it started with beginning to feel things differently, how she viewed things in a new way, how her eyes turned color, her appetite for sexual pleasure increased, how she became bold. She continued and spoke of the animal attacks, the bodies found in the woods. Tears flooded her eyes as she explained how her wolf emerged, what it looked like, what her parents had admitted, how Zev had been there, and how she was inexplicably drawn to him, her true mate and her alpha. Calen sat in silence.

  “I know this all sounds crazy,” she said when she finished her story. “I know it sounds like the ranting of someone who is imbalanced and, maybe I am, Calen. Maybe I am crazy. Maybe I am selfish. Maybe I am trying to find a way to make everything okay. I don’t know…nothing makes sense. The only thing that does make sense, the only thing I have always known to make sense are my feelings for you. And, that I have always been completely and totally in love with you. Even before I knew you, I was in love with you, Calen. Until the day I die.”

  Celeste finished the last sentence and collapsed in the chair opposite of his desk. Calen sat there unmoving, silent, as she collected herself.

  * * * *

  Calen was unsure of what to say. He had been in a half-drunk stupor since Zev had explained the very same thing to him hours ago. He had even gone so far as to shift in front of Calen to prove the point, a detail Calen wasn’t sure he was thrilled about knowing. Could Celeste shift into another form? Would Celeste look as Zev had as her wolf?

  Despite the unbelievable turn of events, he still felt betrayed. He was still hurting in his core, but he was not the same person he was this afternoon. This afternoon, he was ignorantly drunk and jealous and hurt beyond immeasurable belief. Now, he was no longer ignorant. Hurt? Of course. Drunk? Completely. But at least he was no longer ignorant.

  And, as he listened to Celeste’s words, heard her voice, he knew he’d never be able to live without her. The sincerity in her tone made her pain obvious, and knowing she loved him with her entire existence was enough for him. Calen shifted in his chair as a soft warmness spread in his heart. Forgiveness. They would figure it out. He had no idea how, but he knew he couldn’t hold out any longer. Calen opened his mouth to speak when her cell phone went off.

  Celeste pulled it out of her pocket and answered.

  “Heather? Is that you?” Calen watched as her face drew together, a look of concern spreading over it. Celeste’s tone changed. “Heather? Can you hear me? Where are you?”

  Celeste pressed the phone closer to her ear. She heard a whimpering, a small cry into the receiver.

  “Heather! I’m coming to find you. Hold on! I’m coming now!”

  Celeste jumped out of the chair and headed to the door.

  “Calen, I’m sorry. I have to go. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Please, please think about what I’ve said.”

  “What’s wrong?” Calen stood and followed her out the door. Fuck that. She wouldn’t be leaving his sight any time soon, especially when it sounded like trouble was near.

  Celeste shook her head. “I don’t know. It sounded like Heather, except she was whimpering…crying maybe. She’s in trouble, Calen, I can feel it. I’m going to go find her.”

  Calen grabbed Celeste by the arm and held her firmly.

  “I’m coming with you.”

  Celeste looked down at her arm, and Calen released it. There were so many things they needed to talk about, so much that still needed to be said, but there was no time at the moment. Calen knew the only thing she wanted to do was find Heather.

  She nodded at him. “Fine, Let’s go.”

  They took off down the hall, pushing past the partygoers on their way out the door.

  * * * *

  Zev saw the two run out of the party together and knew something was wrong. He remembered her need for space, but space was something he wasn’t about to give her too much of when he sensed danger near and a drunk Calen close by her side. He ran down the steps and followed them out the door as quickly as he could.

  * * * *

  Omega House was almost as packed as SAE. Celeste and Calen burst through the door and began searching for Heather.

  “She shouldn’t be that difficult to spot,” Celeste shouted to Calen over the music. “She’s a nearly six-foot tall mermaid.”

  Celeste and Calen walked room to room searching for their friend with no success.

  “Who was she here with?” Calen asked.

  “Umm, Jake Pierson. She was meeting him here,” Celeste replied.

  “Let’s find Jake, then,” Calen said.

  They continued to search the house, stopping to ask everyone they could if they had seen Jake or a mermaid. No one seemed to know who they were talking about. Celeste’s heart ached. Something was wrong. She felt it. Heather was in trouble.

  “Maybe she’s not here,” Calen said. “Maybe she left and went somewhere else.”

  “No,” Celeste said. “Heather wanted me to meet her here. She wouldn’t have left without calling me.”

  Celeste looked around the party and saw a guy stick his hand up a girl’s skirt. The girl turned and slapped it away before storming off. Celeste narrowed her eyes as the guy turned to his buddy and high-fived him, both of them laughing at his score. Anger flashed through her body but was quickly replaced when the small gesture reminded her of the recent deaths. The victims had been the same type of male. They had all been sexual predators.

  Jake.

  Celeste’s stomach twisted into a knot. Her heart dropped as fear coursed thro
ugh her veins. It chilled her to her bones. She had to find Heather.

  “Upstairs,” Celeste said coldly. “Calen, we haven’t checked the bedrooms.”

  Calen’s face drained of color when he heard the implication. The recent deaths brought to light the stories of misconduct and how the culture of the campus had been skewed over the past years. He followed Celeste up the stairs. She took them two at a time, praying Heather was not there. Calen was right behind her. She smelled his adrenaline coursing through his system and knew it had burned off any lingering effects of the alcohol. The music was fading away as they reached the second landing leading to the bedroom hallway. Celeste pulled out her phone and dialed Heather’s number. They stood still and listened.

  “Please be on, please be on,” Celeste whispered as she waited for Heather’s phone to ring. She focused her attention to listening. If shifting had any advantage, it was super-sensitive hearing and she hoped she’d be able to pick out a ringing phone from behind a closed door.

  The phone rang once, twice, a third time before Celeste heard it coming from a room a couple of doors down. She ran ahead and reached the door before Calen. She tried to open it, but it was locked. She pounded on the door.

  “Heather! Heather! It’s me! Open up, sweetie, we’re here,” she yelled through the wood.

  Nothing.

  Celeste pressed her ear to the door and listened. Beyond the barrier, she heard a soft whimper. Celeste jiggled the door handle again, this time with more force. The door wouldn’t budge.

  “Stand back,” Calen ordered. Celeste took a step away from the door. “Heather, I’m going to try to open the door. Stay away from it, okay? I might have to break it down.”

  Calen took a few steps back and ran toward the door. He hit it full force with his shoulder. The door cracked a bit but did not give way. Celeste watched in agony as Calen took a few steps back and tried again. Once more the door cracked but remained closed.