Page 27 of Missiletoe
I steeled myself before facing the largest occupant in the room. He dominated the space without me even looking at him. I could feel him against my edges. Every part of me wanted to come in hot to show him what dominant really looked like.
I knew exactly who he was, and I knew the score without needing to be told. Gareth was the big dog of the house. When meeting the pack alpha, a dog had two choices, conquer or submit. Neither was an option for me, but we were humans, not animals. That meant I had a third option.
Alliance. Or if not that, then wary truce. If I gained his respect and he gained mine, we could coexist.
Of course, all of that depended on his relationship with my bunny. If what I’d begun to fear was true, it wouldn’t matter if he got my respect. I’d have to go for his throat.
I focused my attention on the man behind the large, metal desk with a distorted version of my bunny perched on one side. The desk wasn’t large in comparison to the man behind it, and sitting so close to Gareth made Baz look like a toy.
Gareth managed to loom over them both without even needing to stand.
I had a feeling that if he were to stand up, he’d loom over me too, and that was impressive. I was used to being the largest man in the room. How tall was Gareth, anyway?
I met his piercing gaze and held it. There was no humanity to be found there, only sharp, reptilian intelligence. The shadows surrounding him came second only to Vale’s. They writhed around him like a living thing.
“Why are you here?” Gareth asked. No pleasantries or subtlety. He’d gone on the offensive right away.
I’ve met many dogs like him before. They are always the ones rescued from the worst homes imaginable.
“I’m here for Vix.” There was no point in me beating around the bush. Someone like Gareth would only be won by honesty.
When everyone in the room tensed, it confirmed my suspicion. Vix was their treasure. And Gareth was their front line of defense.
“I’m not here to hurt him,” I said. I didn’t think it would help, but it was worth saying.
I half expected Gareth to go immediately on the attack with demands and threats, but it was Vale who responded.
“And we’re supposed to just believe you?” Vale drawled lazily from the couch. “You’re stupider than you look if you think that.”
I wasn’t worried about Vale. Yes, he had a heavy set of shadows, but Gareth was the true predator in the room, which was why I didn’t acknowledge Vale’s words. I could tell his meanness came from a place of concern. He was like an overstressed dog, full of warning barks and growls, but he would only bite when provoked. His kind wanted strangers to stay in their corner and let him stay in his. As long as I didn’t try to rip Vale from his comfort zone, I knew he was no threat to me.
I kept my gaze locked on Gareth, and I saw the beginning signs of respect flicker across his face.
“You’re from Norway,” Gareth stated. “Your mother’s name is Anna Skarsgârd. She raised you, but you don’t have her last name. You have your father’s, Olafsson. He died during a rockslide on a rescue mission. The hikers he rescued survived. He did not. You were too young to get to know him before he died, but your mother and older sister took excellent care of you, so you grew up well-adjusted and have no criminal record. Your school records show that your test scores are all below average, but your high school teachers have nothing but good things to say about you in your transcripts. Every single one of them made a note that you are a hard worker and a kind person.”
Now Gareth was on the road to gainingmyrespect. He came at me with facts and words instead of brute intimidation. It was a rare find in a person of his size. Most big guys trended toward relying on their bulk to cow people into doing what they wanted. If Gareth was using words to intimidate me, I could trust that it was possible to reason with him.
Gareth continued his invasive, but impressive, litany of my personal details. “You’ve been the head of the local animal shelter for six years, have the best adoption rate in the state, and never want for donations. You’ve never skimmed from the shelter’s funds, and on occasion, put your own wages back into making sure all the animals in your charge are given the best care possible.”
I gave him a nod to acknowledge his abilities. I could see that he had earned his place as head of his household. “These are all true things.”
Gareth nodded back, and once again, I saw respect in his eyes.
“Are you about to tell me how many fillings I have?”
“Three. And you are two months overdue for a cleaning.” Gareth gave me the slightest smile, before closing off his expression. “By all accounts, you are a good man.”
“Why do I feel like this isn’t helping my case?”
“There is no such thing as a good man, Paris Olafsson. There may be a small number of outliers, but I find it difficult to believe you are one of them. For that to be true, our family would have to have an incredible amount of–” Gareth broke off inexplicably.
“Luck?” Apple finished softly. He leaned against the wall and examined his nails with a smug little smile.
“Yes…” Gareth agreed, but he didn’t look like he was happy about it. “Even if you are one of these outliers, a man like you doesn’t belong here.”
And there it was. Gareth had made his stand. I was unwelcome in his home, and theget lostenergy he started churning out was unmistakable. Any man in my place would be scared by the malice bearing down on him, but I’d met enough dogs like Gareth to know better than to back down.
If I did, I’d lose all the respect I’d gained and would never be able to earn it back. Not to mention that if I wasstupid enough to turn my back on him to leave right now, I might find his fangs buried in my neck.
