Home > Haven (Relentless #5)(17)

Haven (Relentless #5)(17)
Author: Karen Lynch

“I don’t know. It depends on whether or not I can do damage control. But if either of you pull a stunt like that again, he’ll hear about it, and you can bet he won’t be happy.”

I understood now why we needed multiple Betas. Maxwell and Brendan couldn’t be everywhere, and someone had to make sure the wolves who lived away from the main pack followed our laws.

With the threat of facing the Alpha gone, Lex’s air of confidence returned. She crossed her arms under her breasts, pushing them up for my benefit. “That was kind of hot. Feel free to scold me whenever you want.”

I almost growled in frustration. Paul was right. I had Alpha blood, so these females weren’t going to give up no matter what I did. If I made it through this gathering with my sanity intact, it would be a damn miracle.

I patted my pockets, looking for my phone. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to call my friend and try to clean up your mess.”

Julie took the hint even if her friend didn’t. “Come on, Lex. Let’s go to the mall and find new outfits for the party tonight.”

“Sure.” Lex smiled as she passed me. “See you tonight.”

Not if I can help it.

Maxwell hadn’t ordered me to go to this one, so I was staying far away from it and all the unmated females. It wasn’t just Lex and Julie I had to worry about. Pack members were arriving every day, so there’d be more of them to fend off tonight. No thanks.

Scowling, I turned to look for my phone, which must have fallen out of my jeans, and came up short when I saw Brendan standing there in wolf form. He had to have heard everything. Why hadn’t he confronted Lex and Julie for breaking a pack law, or me for letting them off with it?

I waited for him to say something, but he only watched me silently for a minute then loped off into the woods.

“Weird,” I muttered.

Must be that observing thing Brendan and Maxwell had mentioned. I hadn’t talked to Brendan since the little staring contest last Monday, but I had noticed him watching me at some of the cookouts. It would have bothered me if he hadn’t also been looking at Pete and the other Beta candidates. I wished I knew what he and Maxwell were hoping to find in us.

This week, I’d talked to Maxwell about cutting back my hours at the lumberyard so I could work on the Chevelle. At first, I was sure he was going to refuse, and I was surprised when he agreed. I think the fact the Chevelle restoration was a paying job and not a hobby was the main reason he said I could cut back to three days a week for now.

Laughter drew my attention to Lex and Julie, who were standing by the barn talking to my cousin Lydia, who was home from college for the summer, and two other girls I didn’t know. The newcomers looked to be in their early twenties, and my hope they were mated was dashed when they looked at me with unabashed interest.

I was starting to feel like an unwilling participant in a werewolf version of that bachelor reality show my mother liked to watch. But humans could give the ring back and go their separate ways if things didn’t work out. There was no out once your wolf imprinted on another.

You keep it in your pants, I warned my wolf. Those females are nothing but trouble, and we have plenty of time to get tied down.

I spotted my phone in the grass and picked it up. Brushing it off, I hit Sara’s number and listened to it ring. It was night in Russia, but not too late to call her. And I needed to find out what, if anything, Emma knew about the pack before I went to see her. I had planned to wait until tomorrow, but tonight might be better. I glanced at the group of girls who would all be at the party here this evening. Yeah, tonight was definitely better.

* * *

My phone rang as I drove to the waterfront at eight o’clock that night, and I grinned when I saw Pete’s name on the screen. I hadn’t told him about my plans to ditch the party, and he was most likely calling to see where I was.

“Hey, where are you?” he asked when I answered.

“Almost downtown. Going to see Emma.”

“Emma?”

I hadn’t seen him all day, so I filled him in on what had happened at the cove and my call with Sara that had left me with more questions than answers.

“Emma knows what we are? Why didn’t she say anything?”

“I don’t know. All Sara would say was that Emma already knew about werewolves before Sara told her about us. I asked how Emma knew, but Sara wouldn’t tell me.” I let out a loud breath. “You know how good Sara is at keeping secrets. You couldn’t pry it out of her with a jackhammer.”

“Sara told us Emma’s been through a lot. Do you think that has anything to do with how she knows about us?”

“Could be.” I’d wondered the same thing, and if that was why she was uneasy around us. If so, being frightened by Lex and Julie today wasn’t going to help.

Sara had been happy when I told her I was going to go by and make sure Emma was okay. She said she worried about Emma being there alone and hoped the three of us would hit it off. Whatever had happened in Emma’s past, Sara seemed convinced that Pete and I being werewolves would not stop us from being friends.

“When will you be back here?” Pete asked.

“That depends. What time is the party over?”

An edge of panic crept into his voice. “You’re not going to the party?”

I barked a laugh. “Lex almost jumped me a few hours ago. If I’d let her, we would have done it right there in front of Julie and whoever else walked by. And then I saw two more who looked at me like I was something to eat. No way I’m going near that if I don’t have to.”

“Are you serious about Lex?”

“Yeah. That girl doesn’t take a hint, and she made it pretty clear what she wants. She even tried to get me to shift so our wolves could play.” I laughed without humor. “Word of advice: skip the party.”

“I can’t,” he said almost desperately. “I told Mom I’d help out with the music. I wouldn’t have if I’d known you were blowing off the party.”

“Sorry, man. I figured you knew I wouldn’t go unless I had to.” I turned onto the waterfront. “Listen, I’m almost at Sara’s place. I have to go.”

“Okay,” he grumbled. “But next time, I’m leaving you here with these girls.”

Fat chance.

“Later,” I said as I pulled up to Sara’s building.

Emma had no vehicle, but the light was on in the kitchen so I figured she was home. I was half expecting to find Scott’s red Mustang sitting in her parking spot, and I was glad to see she was alone. Not that I wanted her to be alone. I just didn’t want her hanging around with Scott. Seeing her with him today had angered my wolf, who loved Sara as much as I did. We were both feeling protective of her cousin.

At the door, I stopped myself as I reached for the doorknob and pressed the doorbell instead. It felt strange not walking in as I’d always done, as strange as it was to have someone else living in Sara’s place. It was another reminder of how much our lives had changed in the last year, and it made sadness prick my chest. Funny how we can’t wait to be adults, and then when we are, we miss the days of just hanging with our friends.

“Coming,” called a voice from inside the apartment. The door opened, and I stared at the girl standing there. Her hair was piled on top of her head in a loose bun with strands curling around her face. Her T-shirt and shorts had splotches of paint on them, and there was a small streak of blue on her chin. She was also covered in dark spots of what looked like mud, and she seemed a bit frazzled.

Emma’s expression turned to one of surprise. “Oh, hi, Roland.”

“Hi. I…um…are you okay?”

Her brow furrowed, and she looked down at herself as if seeing the mess on her clothes for the first time. “Yeah, ugh. Had a little mishap in the kitchen.”

My lips twitched. “Are you making mud pies?”

“Not exactly.” Pink tinged her cheeks, and she opened the door wider to let me in. “Sorry about the mess.”

I followed her inside and shut the door. She led me into the kitchen where I stopped to gawk at the dark splotches on the cabinets, wall, floor, and even the window. It looked like a mini mud bomb had gone off on one side of the kitchen.

   
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