“Oh?” she asks, her eyes turning dark and serious.
“Yeah,” I answer, unnerved by her stare.
It’s almost like she knows how much blood there is in my past…
Oh, God, how can I possibly tell her all of this?
“Well, I’ll go pack,” she says after a moment. “I don’t have to do much. All my stuff is still in bags.”
“Yeah, right,” I remember, laughing softly. “I only need to grab a couple of things. The estate is always well-stocked, so we won’t need to pick up groceries or anything.”
“Cool,” she says. “I’ll get dressed.”
I watch her leave, trying to feel enthusiastic about the trip. In a way, I do. Sitting by the fire, walking along the shore, and exploring the manor with her all sound like great things to do.
But in my fantasies, she’s laughing with me, happy and relaxed. I’m a goddamn fool if I think that’s how this is going to go.
The sharp alternative slams into my mind—we fight bitterly, then go in separate directions. The manor is so huge, we could lose each other in there for a week if we really wanted to.
And no matter which way this goes, I’m going to be constantly tortured by her body. So turned on that I can barely breathe, but knowing the whole time that I can’t touch her.
Hell, knowing that I don’t even deserve to touch her.
Going to the estate suddenly seems like a bad idea. At least in town, there are distractions. Friends, pack business, restaurants, and shopping. Out on the lake, it’s just going to be us and our problems.
Fuck!
Can I get out of this somehow?
Lexa appears in the doorway, a big smile on her face. “You ready to go?”
No way.
“Just let me get dressed,” I say.
I trudge up the stairs, feeling like a man about to face the jury and not knowing if he’s about to be eternally punished or finally set free.
Chapter 21 - Lexa
The drive out to the estate is tense. I’m not entirely happy about being stuck with Kit while we’re having so many problems, but I had to get out of town.
I want to believe I was imagining it, but the feeling of being stalked was too real. An intense aura of threat surrounded my father at all times. All he had to do was glare at me too hard, and I’d start trembling.
And that’s exactly how I felt in town yesterday. I didn’t imagine it.
Even seeing that Kit was close behind me didn’t put my mind at ease. It just made me wonder what kind of stunts my father might pull to stay undetected by others as he kidnapped me right out from under Kit’s nose.
But then he’d be subject to Lycan Law. It rules all the packs. If he took a wedded bride, his entire pack is forfeit. Kit can move against him with the help of every pack in the Range.
Surely not even Father is that stupid?
As I gaze out the window, misery slowly spreads through me. Father isn’t stupid, but he is reckless.
The trees around us get thicker and taller, enclosing the car in a tunnel of green. I can’t see the sky above or the road ahead, just a never-ending wall of close-knit branches and fluttering leaves. The early morning light dapples across the smooth dirt road, flickering across the windshield like glowing embers.
I glance over at Kit. His eyes are focused forward, as if he doesn’t dare to look at me. For a few moments, I let my gazelinger on him, watching his muscles bulge as he reaches out to shift gears, the way his long fingers grip the steering wheel.
Suddenly, he looks at me, his blue eyes locking onto mine. A little shock runs through me, but I don’t look away.
