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“I didn’t come for that,” Otto says, though I’m not sure I believe him.
“Then what do you want?” The fact that Otto doesn’t dismiss me for the lack of respect speaks volumes about the way we’ve bonded since I came to him. He’s become more like a father figure to me than anyone else in my life. Much more so than my real father—the pack deserter—ever was.
“I want to talk about the woman.” He sounds solemn. I don’t have to ask what woman he means. Her pink hair, matching eyes, and killer ass have haunted me all day long. The taste of her lips, breathing her fresh scent in, was the icing on a cake that was going to choke me to death on the way down.
Otto circles to stand in front of me, his mouth a thin line.
“I asked around about our Miss Quinn Cassidy. She holds her own well, and she’s no rogue. I wanted to know what she was running from.” He blows out a sigh. “Jakob MacKay of the Red Ash Pack has put out the word that he has a claim to her.”
I wince. I know nothing of Jakob MacKay, but I know of the Red Ash Pack and the MacKay family. The Alpha MacKay isn’t known for his kindness, and assuming Jakob MacKay is one of his infamous spawn, I’m sure the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. The anger simmers again, pushing to boiling as I stare at the older man in front of me who crosses his arms over his chest and quirks a challenging eyebrow in my direction.
“What fucking right does he have to claim her?” I ask in a harsh tone.
“According to him, Quinn is his mate.” My gut burns, the boiling rage screaming toward a fiery inferno within me as Otto stares at me knowingly. The man sees far too damn much.
“You know, then.” I cross my arms over my own chest, matching his guarded pose. I suck in a deep breath through my nose, trying to get a hold on my anger before it becomes all-consuming and I do something stupid. Like abandoning my vow of vengeance in favor of finding Jakob MacKay and kicking the dogshit out of him. “I can see that look in your eyes, Otto. You know that woman ismymate, not MacKay’s.” I want to know what the guy really wants with her.
Otto struggles to meet my eye. “She’s not traveling alone.”
I say nothing. What the hell can I say to that? It’s not like I missed the fact that she has three men following her every move. One of the twins, the slighter, albeit meaner, fighter of the two, looks tempted to rip me to shreds any time I come within ten feet of her. It’s fucking irritating.
Who are they to her? I can’t exactly ask. What right do I have? And why the fuck do I even care? Shit.
“I’ve given you a lot more time than I would ordinarily give to a shifter coming to train for your purposes.” Otto looks me directly in the eyes again. “There’s not much left for you to learn here, but I’m not certain you’re ready to go fight to get your pack back yet. You need more practical experience.”
I have a sinking feeling I know where he’s going with this, and I can damn near feel the punch before it lands.
“You want me to go with Quinn?” It feels like my heart is trying to run a marathon sprint.
“I want you to do whatever you think is best, but yes, I’ve considered that helping the future Luna of Cupid’s Pack might work out in your favor… in many ways.”
I’m sure Otto has a dozen other points to bring up in an effort to convince me, but I find myself nodding along before I can really think about it. “I’ll do it.”
“You will?” He doesn’t even try to hide his surprise.
“If it’s the best next step for my training, sure,” I grunt. The words taste like ash in my mouth. Because the truth?
I want a hell of a lot more fresh air.
EIGHTEEN
QUINN
“Quinn, baby, are you ready?” I swipe at my cheeks in a poor attempt to hide my tears before I turn to face Ian. He hovers in the doorway, but the second I turn, he’s on me.
I shudder as he pulls me against his chest, arms wrapping tightly around me and holding me against him as he rocks from side to side. I might as well not have bothered wiping my tears away because they fall harder as Ian squeezes me tightly. It feels like all I did all night was cry like an idiot; I honestly don’t know how I’m still going.
“What happened?” Ian’s voice is panicked and confused as he holds me.
“Maybe we should wait to leave until tomorrow,” I whisper.
Ian tenses, and already knowing what he’s going to say, I sniffle against his chest before burying my face against his warmth. “Mason really wants to get going soon. If Otto doesn’t think he can make much difference for us in a short time, there’s no need to stay. It only gives Jakob and his guys more time to catch up to us.”
There isn’t a logical reason for us to stay. It doesn’t matter that my heart stone called to me all night, begging me to go in search of something again. The angry part of me resisted, reminding me over and over again that I don’t have to cave to my heart stone’s every whim.
I won’t chase Sailor. I’mneverchasing any man who looks horrified after kissing me.
And Otto was clear last night, saying there wasn’t much he could do for us in the limited amount of time we have available. He wanted us to commit to weeks, not days, and I can’t. As much as it sucks that we spent so much time getting here safely only to turn around and leave almost immediately, I know it’s the right call. Each day I spend here would just be another that I’m not coming up with ideas for how to safely return home.
