Page 32 of Bullied Wolf Mate

I forced those thoughts from my mind as I knocked on the front door. I wanted to talk to Jameson about Inara. Thinking about Lorelei wasn’t going to make that conversation any easier.

Jameson opened the door. His eyes flashed with surprise and what might have been unease.

“Mark.” He stepped back, opening the door further, but still seemed unhappy to see me. “I wasn’t expecting you.”

“Yeah, sorry for dropping by unexpected. I wanted to—” I froze, body stiffening as Lorelei’s oak and vanilla scent wafted through the corridors.

I growled, head whipping toward Jameson. “Where is she?” I snarled.

He didn’t even pretend not to know who I was talking about. “We need her, Mark,” he said, folding his arms.

“I don’t care,” I hissed, bristling with anger. “Tell me where she is.”

He exhaled, shaking his head. “She’s down in the back office. The one next to the library.”

Snarling, I pushed past him, marching deeper into the mansion. I didn’t need him to explain what was going on to figure it out. Somehow, Declan had convinced Lorelei to help him with Inara. She was going to put her life in danger.

How the hell could they keep this from me? Especially since she was carrying my baby. I deserved to know when she was doing something dangerous and putting her and our child at risk. The rage continued to bubble and boil as I marched through the house, following her scent through the halls until I came to a closed door.

I barged into the room without knocking. Lorelei spun around, her eyes wide with shock, and she gave a squeak of surprise. Declan regarded me impassively, almost as if he had been expecting to see me.

“What the hell is going on?” I snarled. My eyes went to the open books on the table in the middle of the room. Even from here, I could see the arcane symbols scribbled across the pages.

Lorelei’s initial shock hardened, turning into stubborn defiance. “I’m guessing you already know, based on the look you’re giving me.”

“You’re studying magic,” I accused.

She raised an eyebrow. “I’m a witch. There’s a strong chance our kid will be, too. I see no reason why I shouldn’t be allowed to.”

“You’re acting like I don’t know why you’re actually doing it,” I growled, glancing between the two of them. “You’re doing it so you can open The Trove.”

“Yes.” Lorelei nodded. At my slightly shocked expression, she added, “No use beating around the bush. I was going to tell you about it soon, anyway.”

“You could have told me before this,” I snapped.

Declan stepped forward. “It was my idea, Mark,” he said. “If you’re going to be mad at anyone, be mad at me.”

“Oh, I’m furious with you,” I spat, baring my teeth. “But you’re not the pregnant one who has a cub to think about now.”

“Mark, you’re being ridiculous,” Lorelei said, anger and frustration filtering into her voice. “Just calm down.”

“You’re putting our baby in danger!”

She folded her arms, raising an eyebrow. “Me not learning magic and not learning how to open that door is putting this kid in just as much danger. Me avoiding all of this isn’t going to stop Inara from coming—you know that. At least this way, we might have a better chance of being prepared.”

My jaw worked. The worst part was, I knew she had a point. I just didn’t want to hear it.

“We’re leaving. Now.” I grabbed her wrist and pulled her out of the room despite her protests.

She followed without much resistance, though I could feel the rage and annoyance radiating off her. It wasn’t until we were halfway home that I finally let go of her. Neither of us spoke, however, until we got back to the house.

“I can’t believe you would go behind my back like that,” I snarled, slamming the door behind me.

“We’re not a couple. I don’t owe you any explanation,” she said. “I’m my own person, and you seem to keep forgetting that.”

“If I’d known this was what you were going to do the instant I let you out of the house, I would have kept you in there for another year.”

She threw up her hands. “Are you serious? Stop assuming you can just dictate every minute of my life. It’s starting to get tedious.”

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