Page 22 of The Return
Corey’s brow furrowed. “I hate it already.” He blew out a breath. “I don’t think I can do this. The more I learn about this—your—world, the less likely I am to want to take part in it.” He turned and stared out the window. “I’m sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry. I wanted to tell you everything. I wanted to share my life with you. It never dawned on me that it would terrify you. I have a suggestion. How about we go in, mingle a bit, and then I’ll make the announcement.”
“Which is?”
“That I’m leaving the pack.”
Corey gasped. “You’re what?”
“We’ll go away, just the two of us. We’ll be a small pack, you and me. I have enough money to buy a piece of land, so we won’t have to worry about that.”
“You—You’d do that? Give up your birthright? Your people?”
“They’re our people. You are pack. And yes, I’d give them up to stay with you. I can live without them, but you? No chance. That’s what a mate is. You’re my heart—I’m your strength. We are two parts of a whole being. Neither of us is truly complete, except for when we’re together.”
His brows scrunched together. “Let’s go in. I can’t promise anything, but I have to at least give it a chance.”
And that was all I could ever ask him for.
CHAPTER7
COREY
The sheer numberof people in the place stunned me. It was hard to wrap my brain around all of them being werewolves. It also wreaked havoc on my mind that a place this big was so well hidden.
When we got out of the car, I stood a few moments and gaped up at it. Two levels, with wraparound porches on the top and bottom. The wood was a medium-brown color, but I couldn’t tell you what it was. Windows were spaced around it, making it seem as though the house would have sunlight throughout the day. Gray slate tiles with solar panels ran along the roof. The place reminded me of a giant treehouse, with spotlights illuminating the grounds, including a path that appeared to have a fire pit on it. I had to admit, the place was breathtaking.
“You lived here?”
“Don’t sound like that,” Jonas complained, a bitter note in his voice. “It’s a nice place. Great, actually. But you don’t know what it was like. I had no one. You weren’t here. There weren’t many other people around other than my parents. The pack wasn’t allowed to come out here for anything other than a monthly run, which I couldn’t participate in. I could hear them, I could smell them, but wasn’t allowed to see them. So yeah, as prisons go, it’s beautiful and gilded, but it was still a jail.”
A line of vehicles ran up the drive, parking in the paved lot or finding a space along the delicately manicured path. The pack had arrived.
“Come on, let’s go,” he said, as he turned and headed toward the lodge. I followed behind him, ready to find out that this wasn’t my world and that I didn’t belong here. When Jonas opened the door, the voices inside stopped. I don’t mean they lowered. I mean they all went dead silent. It was eerie as hell to be in a room with over a hundred people, and not hear them make a sound.
When Jonas strode through the crowd, I heard the first murmur. It slowly turned into a swell of voices, all raised in supplication. I shrank back, because I knew, despite what Jonas had said, I didn’t belong here.
Then, as one, the assembled people turned in my direction, and they smiled. It was freaky as hell.
“Corey!” called Doug Baxter. He and Amy made their way to me. Amy was getting bigger. She looked beautiful, with her hair done up in a messy bun and wearing what essentially was a mumu.
“Amy, you look great.”
Her brows furrowed as she jutted out her lip. “I’d look better if I had gotten a choux bun.”
“I’m going to try to make decaf ones. All the flavor, none of the caffeine.”
Her grin widened. “Pull this off, and I’ll dump this one and run away with you.” The voices stilled again. Doug’s face was ashen. She turned and gave a dismissive wave. “It’s a joke, sheesh. Pregnant people need to find the fun where they can.”
No one but me laughed, and I eventually realized they were all staring at me. I didn’t care. I thought it was funny.
“That’s a good one, Amy,” I said with a chuckle. “But I think Jonas… I mean, Alpha, might not agree with it.” Though he said the transfer wasn’t going to be for a bit yet, I needed to practice now so I wouldn’t screw up in the future.
“Agree with what?” Jonas asked as he came over and handed me a plate nearly overflowing with snacks. He pointed to each item in turn. “These are jalapeno popper cheese balls with bacon and chives, these are baked spicy wings. Over here we have cheesy sriracha chicken quesadillas, and the last ones are puff pizza snacks. There are other things on the table, but the plates are only so big.”
“So’s my stomach,” I reminded him. “You only called people about this meeting a little while ago. Where’d all this food come from?”
“The packhouse has a chef,” he informed me. “It was the one bright spot about being here, at least on weekends, because my mom’s cooking ability is… limited. During the week, it was the gamey chipmunks or starvation. He’s on the text chain, and as soon as he found out there was going to be a gathering, he started working on nibbles for us.” He peered around the room. “And before you ask, no, this isn’t everyone. Several people couldn’t make it because of issues with childcare and things like that. They’ll catch up with us later.”
