Page 9 of Midnight Hunt
Without thought, I reached between us and found his hand. “I’m sorry,” I said, glancing down as he threaded his fingers through mine. A familiar warmth spread up my arm at the contact. We hadn’t held hands in months, not since I’d started dating Ried. Although I knew it was nothing more than a friend’s comforting touch, an instinct poked at me to pull away. Ignoring it, I focused on the road again and said, “I shouldn’t have called.”
“Yes, you should have. We made a promise to always be there for each other, remember?”
A slow grin tugged at my mouth. “Even if I date non-dickish guys?”
He lightly scoffed and squeezed my fingers. “Yes, Vi. Even if you date non-dickish guys.”
3
GRIFF
The nearly five hour car ride ended way too soon.
Vi and I spent the majority of it listening to her blaring country music, both of us loudly breaking into song on several occasions. It was like the past week apart had never happened and everything was back to normal between us.
Except that it wasn’t.
She’d called me. She’d been scared and calledmeinstead of her boyfriend.
What’s more, she still hadn’t had sex with him. I’d teased her earlier about the lingerie, but I’d already known Reid hadn’t seen it. If he had, they would have definitely had sex, and Idefinitelywould have scented it.
They’d been living in the same apartment for an entire week. I thought for sure she would come home smelling like him this time, complete with a fresh claim mark. I’d dreaded it.Preparedfor it. And yet, when I’d swept her into my arms back at Reid’s place, I’d inhaled nothing but crisp fall leaves and dark chocolate, a scent I knew better than my own.
I’d nearly crashed to my knees, beyond relieved at the discovery.
Still, I’d spent the past five hours making nothing but small talk. We didn’t even bring up the fact that two males had tried to kidnap her. Vi didn’t respond well to being pushed. The only reason why Kolton sometimes got away with it was because of his position as the pack alpha.
If Vi wanted to talk about Reid or the attack, she’d do it on her own terms. Although I outranked her in the pack, she was just as dominant—maybe more so in some ways. If I forced her to talk, it would put a strain on our relationship, a lifelong friendship we’d fought so hard to maintain.
So I kept silent, carefully bottling up the words that desperately wanted to spill free. I didn’t bother to do this with anyone else in my life, but with Vi . . . things were different.
The second she parked her Jeep inside the family estate’s five-car garage, she jumped out and beelined for the house. I could sense how homesick she’d been, and even though it was two in the morning, I had no doubt she planned to tiptoe into every bedroom just to catch a glimpse of her family.
Smiling a little, I stayed in the Jeep long enough to text Kolton:Made it home safely. No one followed us.Any news on the two males?
A few seconds later, he sent back:No news. They aren’t members of Alpha DeRosa’s pack. We’re heading back now. Be there in an hour.
Cursing under my breath, I exited the vehicle and grabbed Vi’s luggage from the backseat. I was just about to tuck her newly-purchased lingerie into the suitcase when an image of her modeling them for Reid popped into my head. I stuffed the bag into the back pocket of my jeans instead.
When I closed the garage and entered the three-story mansion a few minutes later, I found Vi upstairs in one of the nurseries.
“I think he grew while I was gone,” she whispered as I silently came up behind her. I peered around her at the nine-month-old baby sound asleep in his crib, then down at her. Her lashes were fluttering, a sign that she was on the verge of tears.
The need to comfort her was like a swift kick to the ribs, but I didn’t initiate contact. If she wanted my touch, she would come to me. When she didn’t move, I replied in an equally soft voice, “Personally, I think Luca’s getting a bit chunky. Too many people spoil him in this house now that he can eat solid foods.”
When she muffled an amused snort, the ache in my ribs faded.
After a few more minutes of staring at her nephew, she crept back out and made for the third floor. I knew she was dying to see her four-month-old niece, but Lillian was still co-sleeping in the master bedroom with Kolton and his wife Nora. Luca had always been a calm baby who easily slept through the night. Lily, on the other hand, kept her parents up at all hours of the night. Nora was probably in there right now trying to nurse her fussy, night-owl daughter to sleep.
Not surprisingly, Vi peeked inside Melanie’s room next. Her seven-year-old sister was sound asleep, gripping a stuffed blue unicorn as usual. Hovering at the door for a moment, Vi crossed the ultra girly room newly decorated in blue and stopped at Mellie’s bedside to place a soft kiss on her cheek.
The girl rolled over in her sleep, mumbling something about dresses and tea parties.
Satisfied, Vi left the room, only to tiptoe to the next occupied bedroom. When she cracked open the door, though, a quiet gasp left her lips. My protective instincts surged to the surface, along with my wolf familiar’s. Whiskey went on high alert, ready to attack at the first sign of danger. But as I crowded in close to Vi, prepared to whisk her out of harm’s way, she whirled around and shot past me.
“Vi,” I hissed, but she was already across the hallway and scurrying down the stairs. I went after her, trying to keep my footsteps light. By the time I reached the ground floor, she was nowhere in sight. Using my heightened sense of smell, I tracked her through the house. She’d rushed toward the back where the dining room was, but when her scent veered sharply to the left, I knew where she was headed.
As I approached the open doorway, freshly baked dough and warm chocolate teased my senses. Whiskey immediately started to settle, and I slowed my mad dash. Already knowing what I would find, I paused at the kitchen entrance to take in the scene. Sure enough, two figures stood at the massive kitchen island, the countertop covered in cooking supplies and freshly baked goods.
