Page 17 of Wraith
Wraith twisted his mouth to the left. “Of course, I—and no. Not interested.”
“Really? Well, she is.”
“Trust me, Lili.” Wraith closed the file he’d been going through with his friend. “Amelia isn’t interested in me. We just met. If there’s anything there, it’s because I’m helping her”
“Blind as usual.”
Wraith frowned at her.
“Look, just because of crap that happened a million years ago, you had no control over, doesn’t mean you’re supposed to spend the rest of your life alone. Blue balls can kill, you know?”
“Seriously?”
Lili chuckled. “Seriously. You’ve been wandering this world alone for about ten years now. No man’s an island, you know?”
“Have they met all men? How do they know none of them is an island?”
“Remember a long time ago I promised I’d always tell you when you’re being an ass?”
Liam nodded.
“You’re being an ass.” Lili stood and stretched her body. “I’m going to bed. Where’s the wolf?”
“In bed with Amelia.” Wraith muttered irritably. “It seems he has a thing for her even though he scared the living crap out of her last night.”
Lili laughed. “That’s good. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Okay.”
“Any chance I can score some of your blueberry pancakes? I have blueberries in the freezer.”
Wraith nodded. “Sure.”
With a hug, Lili headed off down the hall. She returned a few minutes later, arms piled high with blankets, a duvet and a couple of pillows. Wraith wanted to tell her she didn’t have to, but knew Lili would only worry. There was no way he’d get any sleep for the second night in a row.
After checking around the home one last time, Wraith crawled onto the sofa, bunched the pillows up behind his neck and stared at the ceiling. The house was so quiet. Wraith wanted to start banging on a metal pot with a wooden spoon. He usually liked silence but with danger lurking, the stillness unnerved him.
He managed to doze off. The moment the darkness came, it brought with it nightmares.
You’re unworthy, Wraith. The things you’ve done makes you unlovable. No one can be forgiven for doing the things you’ve done.
He jerked awake, his body covered in cold sweat. The only sound in the room was his breathing—harsh and fast as he glanced around while reaching for the gun sitting on the floor beneath the sofa.
When he saw he was alone, Wraith covered his face and flopped back to the damp pillows. But suddenly he couldn’t get comfortable. He found himself by the front window, arms folded across his chest, staring out at the darkness.
Doc still hadn’t left the room with Amelia either, which was a bit weird for the wolf. Usually, Doc would sleep by his feet on the bed at the cabin.
You’re unworthy, Wraith.
It’d been so long since he’d heard those words. He thought they had been spoken on anger but as the days rolled into one, he realized his heart had been broken. Love was such a waste of time—such a killer of the humanity in people.
Wraith swore under his breath and went back to the sofa. He turned the pillows over, scrunched them up and tried once more for sleep.
At about four in the morning, Wraith gave up on getting any rest and repacked his go bag. Once done, he started in on making pancakes.
“Hey.”
He looked over one shoulder. Amelia was still wearing the clothes she’d been when they arrived. “Hey.”
