My shoulders hit the pavement, and I grunt underneath the sudden weight of two tackle hugs.
“Ouch! Shit,” I try to push them off of me, but Talia’s grip on my neck is almost painful. “Talia,” I choke out. “You’re strangling me, bitch.”
I feel Anna’s grip loosen from around my waist first. She shakes Talia, and I hear her soft voice say, “You’re hurtin’ her, T.”
Talia lifts herself away, releasing her death grip on my neck, and I suck in a much-needed breath of air.
“Where’s Kash?” My eyes scan the crowd, searching, and I gasp when I spot him.
I climb to my feet, pushing Talia and Anna aside as I rush to reach him. Brody and a few of the Deltas have him held against the wall, and people from the crowd are shouting at him.
“What the hell? Brody! Let him go,” I say, pushing my way through the onlookers with a stunned Talia and Anna on my heels.
Brody ignores me.
When I reach him, I shove him in the stomach, trying to move him away from Kash, but Brody merely flicks me away like I’m nothing more than an annoying bug. Kash, quiet until now, growls low in his throat.
“Romy, back up,” Brody warns. “We’ll handle this guy.”
His friend reaches out, grabbing me by the arm, and I kick him squarely in the shin as hard as I can.
“Touch me again, and the next kick will be squarely in your undersized balls, you dick,” I shout, glaring daggers at him.
Kash chuckles, and my eyes snap to him. His arms are crossed firmly over his chest, and the man who held his other arm now bends at the waist clutching his bleeding nose. Brody finally backs off, scowling at me.
I run to Kash, and he scoops me up, planting a kiss on my nose.
“You’re a hellion. You know that, right?”
I roll my eyes. “I was trying to help you. So, I think what you meant to say was, ‘Thank you for saving me like the damsel I am.’”
He smiles, but it’s more a flash of teeth than anything else. A reminder of the alpha he really is. Heat shoots through me, and my nipples pebble at the friction caused by our bodies. Kash’s eyes shoot to my own, and his nostrils flare.
He kisses me hard, murmuring against my mouth, “No one else touches you. Do you understand?”
“Sure. No, go ahead. Just keep kissing some random dude. It’s not like we all thought you fucking died!”
Talia’s shouts sober me, and I slide down the front of Kash’s body. We turn to face her as one.
“Shit. I’m so sorry, you guys.”
A few of the closest onlookers break away and storm off, muttering about wasting time.
Talia’s hands are balled in fists, anger and hurt rolling off her in waves. She doesn’t say a word, which I know from experience means I’ve really pissed her off, but it’s the single tear rolling down her cheek that guts me. I’ve never seen Talia cry. I glance away, afraid I’ll start doing the same.
Beside Talia, Anna is once again tucked under Brody’s arm. Tears still roll down her cheeks, but she offers me a small smile.
“What happened to you?” Anna asks, her voice cracking. “You never showed up. You didn’t answer any of our calls. When they found Danielle’s phone and the blood—” She stops short and buries her face in Brody’s chest, sobbing.
He rubs her back and whispers something to her before turning his eyes to me.
“Their sorority sister is missing. It doesn’t look good from what the campus police told everyone, so when you didn’t show up, everyone thought the worst. We’ve been looking for you all night,” he explains in a tired voice.
My heart clenches at the way he glares accusingly at Kash, but I see the way he’s taking care of Anna, and I know he has a right to be mad at us. They all do.
God, I hadn’t even remembered the text. Or that the girls were waiting for me.
“And then you show up this morning, making out with some guy we’ve never met. Like it was no big deal that I walked the entire campus five times in these stripper heels looking for your ass,” Talia says, pointing to the offensive shoes in question.
Murmurs go up behind me, and I glance back, startled. Most of the crowd has remained, I realize. Probably hoping for more drama. Someone has their phone out and is clearly recording or taking photos.
Beside me, I can feel the tension rolling off Kash, and I know he’s already aware of our audience. I have to take this circus inside away from prying eyes.
I clear my throat, speaking loud enough for everyone to hear me. “I’m so sorry everyone. You don’t know how much it means to me that you all helped look for me last night, especially after Danielle’s disappearance. I wasn’t in danger last night.”
Kash grumbles, but I ignore him and continue.
“But it makes me feel so much better to know that if I were in danger, I could count on all of you to help. Thank you so much for caring so much about me. I’m so sorry for scaring everyone. That was not my intention.”
My pleading eyes land on Talia.
A moment of silence passes, and I know better than to look at Anna. It’s Talia I have to convince first.
Her face is still angry, but she steps forward and embraces me before whispering in my ear. “You’re not getting off that easily, but let’s take this drama inside.”
She turns to the crowd. “All right everyone! You heard the girl. It seems we may have overreacted. But with the state of things on campus, can anyone really blame us?” she asks. “We’re gonna get inside. We’re all freezing, and my feet are killing me. Please make sure someone is with you walking home. Romy may not be missing, but Danielle is. Campus isn’t safe right now. That hasn’t changed.”
The crowd starts to disperse, heading toward parked cars or the neighboring dorms. I catch the eyes of a few people I recognize and mouth my thanks before they turn and leave, too. I see Brody talking to his frat brothers over Anna’s head. He bumps fists with them and they turn, leaving with everyone else.
My eyes drift back to Talia. She looks a little worse for wear. Her pink hair is a tangled mess around her head. Her mascara is smudged, and her feet are red where her heels have pinched them.
“Would a ride make things better between us?” I ask pointing my thumb over my shoulder to Kash.
“Excuse me?” he chokes out.
Talia’s eyes twinkle with mischief, and a devilish grin spreads across her face as she rakes her gaze up and down Kash. “It’s really the least you could do,” she says, stalking towards us. I hold in a laugh at Kash’s worried look.
“Well, let’s go, Romeo. You owe me.”
I snort and cover my face to hold back the hysterical laughter welling up within me. Kash rolls his eyes at me before scooping up Talia.
“Wow. You smell delicious,” Talia says, and Kash chuckles as he heads for the front door.
“Hey! Don’t get too comfortable in those arms, T. They’re mine.”
“Sharing is caring,” she calls to me.
“In this case, sharing is grounds for a catfight.” My lips twitch. Or a dogfight.
“Want me to carry you too, Pepper?” Kash asks with a smirk. “I’ve got two arms. I can handle you both.”
I flip him off before turning and hurrying inside after Brody. “The hell you can, you dog!”
Inside, I get Talia settled in the oversized chair and turn on the bubbles on her fancy foot soak. I don’t even want to know how much it cost her; all I know is that it’s pure foot heaven. It should have her feet perked up in no time. She hums as the jets start to massage away her aches and pains.
I laugh and shoot a look to Anna who grins before snuggling deeper into Brody’s embrace on the couch. He watches Kash with an air of disdain, and I cringe inwardly. From the tick in Kash’s jaw and his rigid posture, I can tell that the feeling is mutual. Guess double dates aren’t in our future.
I sigh and push Kash down on the opposite end of the couch and make myself comfortable on his lap. I pull a blanket from the back of the couch
and settle it over us before clearing my throat.
Everyone else waits in awkward silence.
“I don’t know where to even start,” I say uncomfortably.
Talia snorts. “How about you start with the basics? Like, whose lap are you currently sitting on?”
“Oh, shit,” I mutter. “Um, guys this is Kash.”
Talia sits up, her gaze narrowed. “The Kash,” she asks.
My face flames, and Kash squeezes my knee in support. But his posture is tense, and I know he’s wondering exactly how much I’ve told them.
“Um, yeah.”
Brody’s laughter has me looking in his direction so fast that I’m sure I have whiplash. He smirks and gives Kash a skeptical glance. “So this is your werewolf, huh?”
Kash’s fingers tighten on my knee before responding for me. “Well, I don’t know about being a werewolf, but I sure know how to make her howl.”
His tone is light and mocking—a perfect denial of his secret.
Talia snorts as I slap Kash’s chest in censure.
“So you weren’t scared off by all of her crazy talk of werewolves or her minor stalking?” she asks.
Kash smiles down at me. He kisses my nose and winks at me before answering. “No, I don’t mind Pepper’s crazy. I even offered to let her pet me.”
This time, we all laugh. Even Brody, but his laughter quickly dies off. He turns his speculative gaze on Kash.
“So, is that why you couldn’t be bothered to call and let us know you were okay? You were too busy being pawed,” he grinds out.
My shoulders curl inward at the accusation, and I feel Kash stiffen. But Anna speaks up first.
“Hey now, you know that’s not fair, babe. Romy wouldn’t worry us on purpose. All that matters is that she’s safe,” she admonishes him.
His eyes soften underneath her stare, and he falls silent.
“Do you still have it?” she asks him. His jaw is clenched, but he nods once.
My brows furrow at their strange interaction, but I ignore it in my rush to explain. “I’m really sorry you guys. I didn’t mean to worry you. I didn’t get your calls. I lost my phone last night.”
“Yeah, we know, sweetie,” Anna says to me over her shoulder before turning back to Brody. “Give it to her.”
I shoot Kash a puzzled look as Brody stands, still holding Anna with one arm, and digs in his back pocket. He holds his hand out to me, revealing my phone.
“Where the hell did you find that?” I ask, snatching it. I hit the button on the side, and the screen lights up showing fourteen percent battery life.
I glance back at Brody, waiting for his answer. He shrugs. “I found it on the ground by one of the frats on Greek row,” he says.
My mind flashes back to the night before. There were so many places my phone could have fallen out of my pocket..
“It's one of the reasons we thought something happened to you,” Talia says. “Brody found your phone by a trash can that was knocked over at this frat only a few doors down from Delta. We didn't know why you would have made it so close to the party but never show up.”
My body tenses as I try to think of a way to explain. Kash's thumbs make small circles on my back, but his muscles are rigid underneath me.
“Um, yeah. I kinda got freaked out by this dog that I thought was chasing me, and I tripped and knocked over the trash can. I must have dropped my phone when it happened,” I run my hands through my hair and shoot them what I hope is an embarrassed look.
“You got into a fight with a trash can?” Brody asks disbelievingly.
“I've got the bruise on my hip to prove it.”
“What?” Kash speaks through his teeth. My gaze snaps to him. “You didn't tell me you had a bruise.”
My brows rise. “We were kinda preoccupied with other things,” I say, and my cheeks flush as I remember our night together.
He smirks, and kisses me below my ear. “I guess we were,” he whispers against my skin. I shiver at his words.
“So how does Kash fit into all this?” Anna asks.
“I was her knight in shining armor, of course,” he says without missing a beat. “Swooped right in and swept her off her feet. Or, well, she was already off her feet, so I swept her onto them.”
Talia snorts.
Anna giggles, but I elbow him in the ribs and glare at him. “You didn’t sweep me,” I mutter.
Kash grins.
“Anyway,” I say, forcing myself to focus on the story and on putting their worries to rest. “After that, Kash and I started talking–”
Talia coughs pointedly, and I roll my eyes.
“And other things,” I add before going on. “And I didn’t realize I’d lost my phone until we were off campus and far beyond any reception anyway.”
“Where the hell did you go?” Talia demands.
“Kash’s house is outside of town,” I tell her.
“Oh.” Her brows lift in some kind of silent understanding.
“You spent the night there,” Anna says with a smile, also catching on. “So you guys are …?”
“Together?” Talia finishes.
I hesitate, unsure what the hell to say to that. Kash had called me his mate which feels beyond even the term girlfriend. But I can’t tell them any of that.
“Romy and I are together,” Kash says, and both girls smile, satisfied.
Their happiness leaves a hollowness in my chest, and I smile back, but it’s strained. Brody, however, looks less friendly than before.
“I don’t like it,” he says.
“You don’t like what?” I ask, and Kash’s hand drops onto my thigh as if he’s ready to hold me down if needed. I force myself to relax.
“This guy took you to some remote location with no cell reception for an entire night. No one knew where you were or how to reach you. Anything could have happened.” His glare zeroes in on Kash. “You didn’t even bother to call or stop by the party to let us know your plans had changed, so we spent all night wandering around in the freezing cold looking for you. He doesn’t exactly seem like a good influence.”
“Uh, excuse me?” I blink.
Anna lays a hand on Brody’s arm. “Babe, I don’t think—”
“What they did was dangerous,” Brody declares. “And I’m not letting him put Romy, or any of you, in any more danger.”
“I wasn’t in danger,” I insist.
But Brody ignores me. “Did you forget that someone took Danielle last night? You were in danger, and so was my girlfriend and your roommate when they spent the night wandering around campus, looking for you.,” he tells Kash, earning a snort and a curse from Talia now.
“I think you’re blowing this a little out of proportion,” she drawls.
But Brody is oblivious to her or even me as he adds, “I’ve been looking out for these girls. If you want one of them, you go through me.”
I roll my eyes. “Okay, this is ridiculous. Brody, you’re not in charge of—”
“Shut up, Romy,” Brody snaps.
“Anna, I’m gonna need you to reel in your boy toy’s crazy, right now,” Talia warns.
Kash sits up, moving me aside so that he can face Brody without obstruction. I go still, unsure whether to tell Brody to run and hide or let Kash and Talia pound him into ten thousand pieces.
“Romy is never any safer than when she’s with me,” Kash says in a voice that is deceptively soft. He scoots to the edge of the couch so that he and Brody are only a foot apart now. “I tell you this to assure you how unnecessary this conversation is. Because her safety is none of your business. If you try to insert yourself between us again, make any more demands on her behalf, or speak to her the way you just did–the only one who will need protection here is you.”
Silence falls, and I watch as Talia leans forward, eyes blazing. “What he said,” she adds.
Despite the fact that she’s ankle-deep in bubbly water, she looks lethal.
Anna has gone pale and wide-eyed as she waits
for Brody to respond.
Brody only glares back at Kash, eyes locked in some sort of stare down that only furthers Brody’s idiocy.
“Anna,” I say sweetly. “Why don’t you take Brody to get some air?”
Anna jumps up, nodding quickly and looking relieved to have a task. “Babe.” She reaches for Brody’s arm. He jumps so hard at her touch that Anna flinches and backs away.
Brody blinks, tearing his gaze from Kash when he realizes what he’s done.
He pushes to his feet and goes to her, offering a quiet apology.
We all listen as Anna and Brody talk quietly. Finally, she talks him into taking her to breakfast, and they make their way toward the door. They pause, and Brody helps Anna into her coat. His gaze meets mine briefly before he attempts to speak. Anna reaches up, patting his cheek, and I shoot her an apologetic smile before they slip out.
When they’re gone, Talia shakes her head. “That asshole has got to go,” she announces.
“No argument here,” I agree.
She eyes me then Kash. “Tomorrow,” she says so sharply that Kash blinks.
“Excuse me?”
“Monday afternoons we meet at Hallowed Grounds,” she tells him. “You should come.” Talia smiles, but it reminds me a little of Kash’s feral snarls.
Kash eyes her warily. “I’ll be there.”
“Good.” She rises. “Just because Brody’s a douchebag doesn’t mean he isn’t also a little bit right. I don’t trust you yet, and it’s up to you to fix that.”
She stalks off before either of us can reply, calling back, “I’m showering then sleeping, so please keep the screams to a minimum.”
Then she disappears, leaving us alone.
I look over at Kash awkwardly.
“She’s—”
“Fierce,” he finishes for me, looking thoughtful.
“You sound like you appreciate it,” I say, confused.
“It’s good to know I’m not the only protector in your corner, Pepper.” He reaches for me and pulls me onto his lap.
The Girl Who Cried Werewolf Page 14