I spin on the heel of my Doc Martens. “I’m that obvious, huh? I just hope the bedroom has some curtains…” The last part of my sentence trails off when I hear Kim’s voice. What the fuck is she doing in here? I make my way out of the kitchen to where I heard her. The front door has been propped back in place, so it’s covering most of the hole, but it will still need to be replaced.
I move deeper into the house until I see Calix standing near a doorway at the end of the hall. “I just need to grab a few things,” I hear Kim mumble. “I was hoping to speak with you regarding the pack issues too.” Calix doesn’t say anything as I approach, but he lifts his arm when I near, tucking me into his side.
“This is your house? What the hell do you have against curtains?” Kim lifts her head but doesn’t answer me. I’m starting to really take her attitude personally. Fine lines form at the corners of her eyes when she sends a shrewd look in my direction.
Never one to back down, I head right into her bedroom and sit on the end of her bed. “Nice and sturdy.” I wiggle my brows at Calix. “Smells a little like dog, though.”
Kim doesn’t do much to hide her growl.
“What’s your deal? Why are you acting like I pissed in your Pradas? Your pack is the one causing the fuckery and messing with our plans.”
Kim lifts her chin just a tiny bit, but it’s enough that I notice. “My pack doesn’t concern you. You shouldn’t be here, or them.” She tips her head to the side, but I know she means Grim and Gunnar. So it’s not just me she doesn’t like.
I lean back on my palms. “I go where he goes, and they go where I go. You’ll just have to deal with it.”
Kim’s eyes narrow and her arm moves just enough to make me believe she’s fighting the urge not to lunge forward.
“I wish you would,” I dare her, staring right into her eyes.
“Leave,” Calix barks, his voice harsher than I’ve ever heard it. Kim turns to look at him and drops her chin. “This goes two ways. You either go now, or I hand your dead body over to the man outside to take back to your pack.” His tone is cold, uninterested. I feel like a little of Grim might be wearing off on him.
Kim makes a show of stepping backwards and lifting her hands before walking out the door. I hear the front door slam against the ground and the floor shakes a tiny bit. “Well, I can’t say it was nice meeting her. Are all shifters such elitist assholes?”
Calix walks over and pulls me up so I’m standing in front of him. “No.” He drops his forehead to mine and takes a deep breath. “I should have been more careful when I got into town last night. I didn’t even want the local packs to know I was here.” He says it like he needs to apologize.
I brush my palm over his stubbled jaw. “It’s okay. Maybe it’s her you need to save the pack from,” I say, only half joking. Calix chuckles, and I feel a dip in my stomach from knowing I made that happen, that something I said lightened his mood, if only for a minute.
After a few more stolen moments, he wraps me in his arms and announces, “I was just really getting to like retirement.”
When we enter the kitchen, Grim is leaning against the counter with his ankles crossed, and Gunnar is rummaging through Kim’s fridge. Calix keeps my hand in his and clears his throat. “I need to go see the alpha, the sooner the better.”
Gunnar straightens, holding a medium-sized Tupperware container. He flips the lid off and tosses it into the sink a few feet away before bringing the bowl up to his nose for a sniff. He makes a sour face and lets it sail into the sink with the lid. “Can we grab some food on the way there?”
Chapter 9
Calix half turns to face the back seat when we stop in front of a massive house that looks like it belongs on the edge of some cliff, not smack dab in the middle of a forest. There was no clear marker that indicated when we entered pack land, but I’m pretty sure we’ve been on it for a while, even though I haven’t seen any other homes for the last mile or two. “Try not to kill anyone,” he tells me.
I hook my thumb in Grim’s direction with my mouth hanging open. “He’s literally Death, and you’re tellingmenot to kill anyone? Pshh.”
“Oh, let her have some fun,” Gunnar chastises Calix as he gets out of the car.
“You weren’t saying that when she was going to kill that entire coven of witches,” Calix counters over the top of the car, loud enough that it reaches all the men standing near the front door like some sort of fucked up secret service agents.
“That would have been a headache,” Gunnar replies with a nod.
“You think her killing everyone who pisses her off here would be any easier?” Calix points at the men behind him as Grim gives me his hand, helping me from his side of the back seat.
“Stars, they act as if I have no self-control,” I mutter, smoothing out my black romper.
Grim lifts my fingers up to his mouth and kisses my knuckles. “You test mine,” he rasps, looking down at my long legs. I kept the boots on when I changed, and strangely they work really well with the short black jumpsuit. I have my long hair pulled back in a high, tight ponytail with a black leather bracelet covered in spikes tied around it, along with some other jewelry. Most of it’s stuff Aeson gave me, so it’s just as much of a weapon as it is an accessory.
Calix slams his door and stands by my side while Gunnar comes over from the driver’s side to take his place, leaving Calix to take the lead, so I end up being flanked by Grim and Gunnar.
The front door opens, and Kim stands in the entry. Her face is already set in a scowl. “Goddamn, she needs to get laid,” I mumble under my breath, not really thinking about being in the middle of a bunch of supernatural beings, but it’s clear a few of them heard me when several of the men chuff out laughs and quickly cover them.
Kim’s nostrils flare, but she ignores my comment. When Calix reaches the top step, she lowers her head and says, “Alpha Torin welcomes you.”
“Where is he?”
