Roderick’s stare drops slightly, and I could swear he’s eyeing the quickening pulse in my neck.
“I lived all over.” My voice is too breathy, but I can’t seem to remember how much air I normally need in my lungs. “Was kind of a rolling stone. But I grew up on the East Coast.”
His stare remains. “Where was the last place you lived?”
I shrug, trying to maintain my false air of calm. “Another small town. I doubt you’ve heard of it.”
His nostrils flare with a huff of breath, colored with dissatisfaction.
Do I care?
Fuck no. I want the wolf out of my house.
He can huff and puff all he wants, but my walls aren’t coming down.
“Where was the last place you worked?” he presses.
Should’ve known he wouldn’t give up.
“A public library.”
“What was it called?”
“Why do you care?”
But I already know.
Roderick Jameson is on a hunt.
The wolf has been doing some digging. Trying to find the marks I’ve left on the world as I made my way through it. He hasn’t found anything.
Because there’s nothing to find.
As far as the world is concerned, Juliet Adair only came into existence when she moved to Pine Falls, Colorado.
“Your name’s not Juliet.” He growls the accusation at me, done with his attempt at subtle prying.
And even though I knew things would come to this, the bald truth thrown in my face surprises a flinch out of me.
Silently, I curse the slip.
But attempting to pretend it isn’t true seems pointless now. There’s no way for me to convince Roderick that he’s wrong. I simply banked on no one being interested enough in me to look too closely into my past, so I don’t have a fake birth certificate or anything on hand to provide documentation to my false background.
But just because he’s figured out Juliet isn’t my original name doesn’t mean he gets anything else from me.
So, I smirk, knowing it’ll piss him off. “Well, your name isn’t Asshole, but you seem hell-bent on me calling you that.”
Roderick’s eyes widen, and it’s clear he didn’t expect me to cop to the deception. Then his scowl comes back, all the fiercer.
“Tell me who you are.”
“I’m Juliet Adair. The newest librarian in Pine Falls. And I’m a homeowner too!” I relay this with an overly bright voice I use with patrons I want to throttle.
The wolf puffs out another intense exhale of agitation. “Stop lying to me.”
Get out of my house!I want to screech.
To keep the harpy wail inside, I clench my teeth, but somehow, I still push out a harsh response. “I’m not lying. Maybe I haven’t always been Juliet Adair, but I sure as hell am now. And that’s all that matters to me. Now I want you out of my house and off my territory.”
