Page 3 of To Keep A Wolf
“He was supposed to rescind the law,” I say, desperation creeping in now. I haven’t spoken aloud about that moment since it happened. Doing it now is like ripping the doors off a house of horrors. “You have to know that’s why I did it. I never would have agreed to marry him without a reason.”
The anger he walked in here with resurfaces. “The problem is that you think your reason was good enough.”
“What would you have done?” I shoot back, and he scowls.
“My point is you always think you have to do it alone.”
“Look around you. Iamalone.”
He shakes his head. “You didn’t have to be.”
I look up at him, heart thudding. I have no right to ask, but I can’t help myself. “How is he?” The words are no more than a whisper.
His expression is carefully blank. “I wouldn’t know.”
“What do you mean? You’re his best friend—”
“He disappeared as soon as your little announcement was made. No one’s been able to locate him. Much to Jadick’s irritation.”
I exhale, relieved that he’s safe. But then I consider Tripp’s words. “He’s out there alone. And probably sick like me.”
Tripp’s eyes narrow. “And whose fault is that?” I look away. “You took his pack from him, Mac.”
“Not me. Jadick—”
“Jadick used you, but it only worked because the Jades trusted you. That betrayal is something you have to live with.”
I want to argue. To tell him there’s no way; the Jades hate me. But deep down, I know he’s right. I got them here. Even if it was because I promised them Levi. In the end, they followed me. And they did it with the hope I helped kill the moment we were done putting Jadick on his throne.
“I know,” I say, eyes filling with tears again.
He gives me a once-over, and while there’s friendship in his gaze, I see disappointment too. I don’t know which one is winning. “When your insides stop trying to get outside, maybe you can get your shit together and make it right again.”
I start to answer, but then my stomach twists, and it’s all I can do to get over the toilet in time. Tripp holds my hair again. With his other hand, he rubs soothing circles over my back.
“I don’t deserve it,” I say when I’m back against the wall again.
“What?” he asks.
“You being nice to me.”
“No,” he snorts. “You don’t. But that’s not how friendship works.”
“Are you my friend?” I ask, hating how vulnerable I sound. But the truth is, if the answer is yes, he goes on a list of exactly one.
“I’ve always been your friend, Mac. Even when you thought I wasn’t.”
CHAPTER2
Two days later, champagne-colored gauze envelopes me. A full skirt that’s both wispy and confining as hell swishes at my ankles. Beneath the formal dress I’m wearing, strappy heels threaten to bring me down where I stand. After five days of non-stop vomiting, my body is wobbly even without the threat of stilettos. It would be ironic, for sure; surviving so much venom and violence only to be taken out by a pair of shoes.
Part of me would be glad it’s all over. After all, I’ve rejected my true mate only to chain myself to the most evil, disgusting man I’ve ever known. Condemning my entire pack to a future like the one I’m enduring now. What else is left for me to fuck up, anyway?
Apparently, this party tonight if this dress is any indication.
It’s the least “me” thing I’ve ever worn. But I guess that’s fitting. Because I’ve never felt less like myself than I do now.
“Knock, knock.” A voice at the bedroom door draws my attention, and I look up from where I’m sending my heels a death-stare. Instead, I aim it at my new fiancé, who doesn’t wait for an invitation to let himself in. Jadick is dressed in a black and white tux, his dark hair perfectly styled. Gold cuff links bear the Clemons family crest, a small reminder that his family is embedded into the very fabric of this town like the threads in his coat.
