“I told her you would say that. And she’s ready to disregard your order. We’re outside your office.” Bennet sounds defeated and we have only been home for a couple hours.
I take a second to compose myself. There is no way to shut down my anger at her complete lack of personal safety though. I tell Josh I am going to need a minute with Kennedy to set some ground rules. We walk to the door together and she is fuming on the other side.
Josh slips past her not looking at anyone. Coward. Next time she’s this pissed I am going to make him sit in a room alone with her. Bennet won’t even look at me. Knowing he should be able to handle his Luna and I’m not happy about being interrupted.
“Inside, Kennedy.” She has tiny scratches everywhere from the glass, but otherwise, she was being truthful about being unharmed.
She just stares at me before taking a step forward. I open my mouth to start talking, but she cuts me off.
“Hello, Kennedy. Please join me in my office. We have a few things to discuss.” She mocks in a deep voice. “?Why thank you Ryker, you’re right. We should talk.” She flips her hair walking by me into my office. I just stare at Bennet completely bewildered. He says nothing but gives me a look that tells me she’s my problem for now. I close the door and close my eyes, taking a deep breath and channeling all of my patience for the raging little human standing in the middle of my office.
“Look… Kennedy. You can’t run the border. End of story.”
“I need to run and I need to learn the boundaries of the pack so I know where I can go and what to avoid. Why not do that right now? It’s simple and something Bennet and a few warriors can handle. They won’t even have to talk to me and you don’t have to be anywhere near me. Everything you have asked for all day.” Okay, I kind of deserved that, but it’s not happening after the attack today.
“It’s not a good idea right now. We just got back, we were attacked and my patrols have yet to check in.”
“That’s it? That’s the best excuse you’ve got? You went straight to work when we got here, why can’t I do something productive? I have been cooped up in a car, essentially by myself for half the day. Then we were attacked and I have adrenaline to burn off. I need to do something active. I want to run.”
“And Bennet can run with you…in the city limits. Or better yet, go to the gym. We have plenty of treadmills and equipment for you to use. It’s in the basement, completely safe and at your disposal.” There, that should appease her. Human girls like running on treadmills, I think.
“Did you just confine me to the packhouse gym like a cardio bunny?” Her voice went down an octave. She hasn’t moved from her spot in the center of my office and her honey and spice scent is making me dizzy. It had faded from her time here after my sister’s party and I was finally able to concentrate. I’m going to have to open all the windows to air it out again. “I hope you don’t plan on keeping me locked up here like a prisoner.” Did she just growl at me?
“No. It’s just not safe for someone like… It’s not safe for you. Not right now.”
Her eyes flashed. If I didn’t know she was human, I would swear her wolf was ready to rip my throat out.” Like me? You were going to say ‘it’s not safe for someone like me.’ What do you mean exactly?” She is almost whispering and I know it’s a dangerous sign.
I don’t have any real experience with women outside my sister and my mom, I don’t do relationships. And this feels like a trap. But she can’t just go wandering around either. She was lucky the last time she was here that she didn’t get lost or hurt.
“You can’t just wander wherever you want in this pack.”
“And I can’t just be stuck here inside. Let me learn where to go.” She raises her voice.
“Stick close to the house for now. Bennet and I can come up with a plan to introduce you around and get you familiar with the safe areas. But, that is going to have to wait. I have a few other things I am dealing with right now. Stick to the house, until you hear otherwise.” I’m doing my best to not get angry at her obstinance and my wolf is all over the place, understanding what I want, but also willing to just roll over and do anything she says to make her happy.
“Did you just try to alpha command me to stay in the house?” Now she’s seething.
Maybe. Though, I won’t tell her that. It was worth a shot. But I’m not going to admit it with the look she’s giving me right now. She steps right up in my space and pokes me in the chest. It’s supposed to be threatening, but all I can think of is how blue her eyes are when she’s mad and how much I want to throw her over my shoulder and take her upstairs so we can finish what we started the night of my sister’s party. I can’t though. I have to figure out if it’s even safe to have her as a mate.
“Listen here, Alpha. I am not a trophy to be polished and only shown at special functions. I am a person. I had plans of my own, before you. I didn’t make a fuss about coming here because I didn’t want to upset my aunt or start any fights. I know what mates mean to your wolves. He doesn’t deserve the pain or being mateless. You don’t want me anymore than I want you. I’m here now, but I won’t be a prisoner. Get your head out of your ass and understand that I am a warrior who will be a part of this pack you forced me into. I’m going for a run, you wanna control my path, join in. Otherwise stay the f*ck out of my way. And leave Bennet out of it.”
I was so shocked at her words, I didn’t move until after the door behind me banged open. When I turned around, Bennet’s face probably mirrored my own. If anyone else had talked to me like that, they would not be breathing now. But Kennedy just walked all over me and I think I kind of liked it.
“I really hope she doesn’t take that anger out on me now.” Bennet looks genuinely terrified. “If she decides she wants to grapple, I am calling you. What do you want me to do boss? And decide quick because she’s already proven she’s willing to jump out a window and climb off a roof to do what she wants.”
“F*ck. I forgot about that. Take her on a run, let her burn off some energy. She can’t go in the woods, you know she can’t, not yet. Steer her clear, distract her with something else.”
“Like what?!” He squeaks like when we were thirteen. “She’s on a warpath right now.”
“You spend the most time with her. Figure it out.”?”You do understand that is part of the problem, right? You can’t avoid her forever.”
“The more she’s around me, the more my wolf gets attached. I can’t let that happen. I need to know for certain she will be loyal and good for this pack. She’s human, we don’t even know if she could survive being marked. She’s been involved with Jeremiah’s pack her whole life and completely immersed for the last three years. You think they couldn’t find a safe way to induct her as a simple pack member in all that time?”
“I don’t know, but I have to go, she’s probably left without me by now. Just try. Actually try to get answers. I have a feeling her old pack didn’t try very hard. You saw her face when they brought Rayna in. She’s hurting right now because of a lot of things not in her control.”
I just nod. I hate the idea that she is hurting and stuffing it down with anger. I don’t think he’s wrong, but I need to know if she’s worth the effort first.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.