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“Really? I find it an amusing pastime.” He didn’t even try to deny it. He might even start whistling for as bothered as he seemed.
“You find these games amusing?”
“Yes, I have to say I do.”
That was all I was going to get? No explanation, and definitely no apology.
“You seem intent on getting under Duncan’s skin. Do you dislike him for any particular reason?”
“I don’t dislike him at all.” He lied with an ease I wish I could one day master.
“Well, whatever your beef is with him, leave me out of it. In spite of what you’ve heard, there’s nothing between Duncan and me. I’m not the target you’re looking for.”
“Yeah, I could see that with the way he stared at the two of us yesterday.”
“He was worried because a member of his pack was missing. That’s all that was.”
“Sure. Makes sense,” he said, giving me a side-eye that confirmed my skills in lying didn’t even come close to his.
“I’m surprised Groza didn’t try to hook you,” I said, trying to get under his skin for a change. “I’d think you two would be extremely suitable.” They could both spend their days plotting against each other, or maybe they’d do it together.
“Who said she didn’t?” He laughed at my expression. “What’s so shocking about that? Am I that loathsome?”
“You’re—okay.”
“Trust me when I tell you, there couldn’t be two more unsuitable people.”
I used to think that was the case with Duncan and Groza, but that hadn’t been accurate either. I wasn’t taking anything at face value ever again.
I stopped well shy of the cottage. “Well, I’m home, so thank you, but goodbye.” I wasn’t letting him anywhere near the front door. No, we were standing out in the street where anyone who cared to look could see us.
He nodded, as if he realized it was not the time to push his luck and try to follow me the rest of the way.
I walked to the cottage, glancing back only once I got to the door. He was long gone.
Chapter Seven
I didn’t wantto go.That was the only thought in my head all day. I couldn’t sleep last night because all I could think of was this stupid dinner. Now I was tired and cranky, and I still had to go to dinner. There was no way I was going to make it through a meal when my stomach felt like it was being squeezed.
“Why are you going to Groza’s tonight?” Charlie asked.
How was I going to defend why I was going and make it sound good?
He’d been watching me get ready in my bedroom of the cottage with a worried eye. As much as I’d held back my feelings about Groza, the concern in his eyes told me he was already shouldering some of the weight. He never saw me around her, so was it talk at school? Was someone saying something to him? Who was I kidding? Even a five-year-old could see we hated each other.
I put down the shirts I was deciding between and sat on the bed. “She’s the alpha of this pack, and she invited me. I thought it would be nice to go.”
“But she doesn’t like you.” Charlie stared at me as if that hadn’t answered anything. “Why would she ask you to her party?”
I had a couple of options, and like usual, I had no idea which was right. Did I ask him where he’d heard that and deny it? Treat him like he was an idiot? Make him less likely to ask a question next time? Or try to shield him from how much she truly hated me? And I her, for that matter?
“I’m not one of her favorite people, but this might be an olive branch of sorts, a way to be nicer to each other. I’m figuring it’s the right thing to do.” How could I tell him I’d said yes because I was trying to spite Duncan? That I was walking into a viper’s nest? I might burn in hell for all my lies lately, but practice made perfect.
Once he was grown, if he had a beef over some of my choices, I wouldn’t be surprised. But I felt pretty good about defending this one.
“You mean like when you tell me I have to share, even with Alec, who hogs everything? Because kindness is better at winning hearts than meanness?”
I’d said that? It sounded pretty good. “Yes. Like that.”
