“What? Yes, they are. Look at them,” she whispers and presses closer to me.
I chuckle. “They’re not staring at me. They’re staring at you. Now, which one do you want?” I ask, bringing her attention back to the important matter at hand. I don’t need her food getting cold because she’s wondering why the pack is eyeballing her. They’re gossips. Not the bad kind but they’re curious. Not a lot of news hits Red River. Aside from the ferals and the new cafe thatwe put in across town, Cordelia is the most exciting thing that has happened since we got that shipment of books.
“Biscuits,” she answers. I grab a biscuit and split it but when I reach for the butter and jam she says, “But only with the white gravy there.” I grunt that I hear her and plate up the biscuit and gravy for her. I add a second biscuit to her plate and reach for the silverware at the end of the buffet line but Cordelia beats me to it.
“I got this,” she says and grabs us each a set along with a napkin. “Where do you want to sit?” she sounds shy, like she’s not used to someone serving her and doesn’t know what to do with it.
Interesting.
But not surprising. Frostclaw is full of a bunch of dumb fuck shifters too hellbent on breaking the world to fit their mold that they’d miss what Cordelia has to offer. A female like her can have her pick of the pack. She’s curvy in the right places, enough to grab onto, and tall enough that when you move into her every part of her presses right where you want it. Hair as dark as night and warm brown eyes that can switch from annoyed to curious in the blink of an eye. She has a quiet way about her, but she’s tougher than she looks. She stood up to me and sassed me plenty last night and far more than even some of the toughest alpha’s in this pack wouldn’t dare to do.
And on top of all of that, she’s a healer. That’s a valuable skill any male looking for a mate would be proud of and humbled by. Then there’s the fact that I’m not speculating on how good Cordelia’s body would fit against mine like the males watching her right now imagining exactly how easy she would ignite for me the second that I had her in my hands.
I know exactly what it’s liketo have a handful of her ass while she moans sweet for me. Fuck, and it’s perfect. I scan the mess hall with a low growl at the thought of a prospective matetaking interest in her. Those idiots I threatened aren’t going to be the only ones.
Cordelia will have suitors.
I want to rip every male apart that’s eyeballing her right now. I should have made an example of the two from earlier. My wolf howls in agreement. The sound makes the entire mess hall fall silent. Anyone that wasn’t looking our way is now locked in. Fuck.
And the cherry right on the whole mess is that Cordelia steps quickly away from me, and raises the silverware in her hands slightly like she might have to fend me off. It’s a defensive posture that she forces back down immediately but I see it.
Gods. Who hurt her that she would think I would attack her like this in front of everyone? I’m a fucking asshole for dredging that up in the omega.
“I would never hurt you. I’m sorry.” I move past her and towards a table at the back where I can keep an eye on the room and make sure she’s able to eat in peace without the pack breaking their necks to get a good look at her. The room is silent while we walk and I can hear Cordelia’s footsteps behind me.
I put our food down and grab two cups from the row of empty cups at the center of the table and start pouring. The sound of coffee filling the cup is deafening. I slide a mug of coffee in front of Cordelia when she sits in the seat beside me and level a glare at the room. Like clockwork, everyone that was doing their best impression of a statue starts moving again. Forks and knives start moving again and chatter slowly rises from the tables. It doesn’t take a genius to know what they’re talking about.
Me acting like a fool over Cordelia.
“Thank you,” she says softly and puts my silverware down next to my plate. “I, ah, I’m sorry. I don’t know what to do when you growl,” she says and then rushes on to explain, “I-I guess it triggers my flight or fight response. I didn’t mean to-”
“Who did it?” I ask her and start eating.
“Did what?”
“Hurt you?”
“Why?”
I cut into my pancake. “Because I’m going to break every bone in their body until you tell me it’s enough.”
Cordelia gasps but she doesn’t move away like she has before. “What? Why?”
I lift a shoulder in a shrug. “Why not? It’s my job.”
“To beat people up?”
“To protect,” I correct her and give her a sidelong look. “Enforcers protect. That is my role in the pack and you’re a part of that pack now. That means I protect you.”
“Oh.” Her eyes widen and I notice her lashes. They are thick and lush and flutter when she drops her eyes to the table. She swallows hard. I follow the movement, eyes moving along the delicate column of her throat. When I look back at her face, her cheeks have gone pink. “I’ve never had that before. Sorry.”
Fuck. She’s serious.
And she’s fucking apologizing for it.
“You had shit Enforcers in Frostclaw,” I tell her and then nudge her plate towards her. “Eat up.”
“You keep bringing me food. Is that part of your role in the pack too?” There’s a slight tease in her voice when she picks up her fork and digs into her food. I like her sounding like this. She takes a bite of her biscuits and gravy and hums with delight. Yeah, this is better than her cowering.Not as good as you’ve had her though, it can get better than easy, much, much better.I clear my throat and dodge those ideas. No sense in entertaining them. I focus on Cordelia’s words. I want to keep her talking like this.
