Animal Instinct

by Noelle N

  But instead of taking it from him, I held up a hand in the universal gesture to wait and sidestepped him. "I've got something for you," I told him conversationally, making a beeline for the oven. Propping it open, I pulled out three pots and two pans, the jarring clatter of metal against metal filling the silence, and straightened when I finally located the empty cereal box. "Yes, found it!"

  I stood up, falling a quick step backwards when I realised that Jed was standing slightly behind me. He was biting down on his lower lip to keep from laughing, and he eyed the cereal box in my arms with barely concealed mirth.

  "Yes, okay, I know it's a little unorthodox," I mumbled, unable to stop myself from blushing. Setting the box down, I reached for a knife and slowly sliced across the seal, which I'd taped together the day before. "And way paranoid. But this is really important and I didn't have a safe. I figured that if rogues were to break into our house again, this would be one of the few places they wouldn't check."

  Opening the box, I shook out another box – this time a smaller one that had originally held individual packets of pop-tarts. Jed was now hardly able to keep a straight face and I heard his quiet chuckle as he stepped closer, bracing his arms on the back of the chair as he watched me. After struggling to pry open the box, I cut another slit through the top and pulled out the book that I'd kept safely hidden, before holding it out to him.

  "I figured this might be what you've been searching for."

  He took the book from me and I leaned back on my heels, watching the expression on his face closely as he studied the book. His eyebrows arched in surprise when he read the title, but the he opened it, holding the book's spine firmly between two fingers as he thumbed through the pages. He scanned the book far quicker than I did and came across the page with the notes far quicker than I had. And the moment he did, the look on his face darkened, his fingers tightening involuntarily on the page, crinkling the paper beneath the pressure.

  "That was your mother's," I started hesitantly, watching as his green eyes swiftly flickered up to meet mine, "wasn't it?"

  He swallowed and set the book down before giving me a quick nod. It made my heart clench to see him so vulnerable all of a sudden, like the present had whipped back into the past and he looked so much like a young, lost boy who missed his mother. I stared at him for a moment, watched his eyes shutter close as he dragged in a deep, shuddering breath, the muscles on his arms cording tight as he dug his fingers into the table.

  "It's okay to miss her." My voice was quiet when I finally broke the silence, and he stilled when I reached down to place my hand over the back of his. He'd curled his hand up so tightly that his knuckles were almost white and I brushed my fingers over them, feeling the calluses scarring his skin like he'd been in far too many battles that he'd finally lost count. Slowly, he unfurled his fingers and I saw the vague indents marking the table, but I hardly cared because he'd turned his palm over, allowing me to interlace my fingers through his. I smiled and softly added, "I miss mine too, sometimes."

  He let out a quiet exhale and, after what seemed like forever, finally relaxed. The tension slowly but surely dissipated from his posture as he reached over to pick up the book again. Satisfied, I began to draw away from him to let him read but the moment I turned away, he stopped me by tightening his grip on my hand.

  I spun round, confused. "What – "

  But I froze, my heart stuttering when I realised that he was standing directly in front of me, far closer than I imagined he'd be, the book all but forgotten. He released my hand, only so that he could reach up to cup my face with his warm hands and before I could even register what he was doing, he'd lowered his head to capture my lips.

  Instantly, my heartbeat kicked up a notch as I stilled in surprise against him. His actions around me had always been slow, measured and I'd always been treading on eggshells around him because I never wanted to scare him away. But this – this was different. This was impulsive and unlike him and wonderfully sweet. He shifted just closer so that I was pressed flush against him, his lips nipping experimentally first at the corner of my mouth, and then tugging gently on my lower lip until a quiet whimper had escaped me and I was opening my mouth just slightly to let him in.

  He made a low, satisfied sound when I began to kiss him back, and slid a hand down my cheek so that it was resting lightly on the slope of my neck, his fingers tangling themselves through my hair and his thumb sweeping teasingly across the line of my jaw, only to rest on a spot on my neck just below my ear where he once promised he'd mark me someday. His touch seemed to kick my senses on overdrive, and suddenly, nothing else seemed to exist but him. I found myself letting out a throaty moan as I leaned even closer to him, feeling the hard length of him pressed demandingly against me and it was a perfect friction; impossible to stop myself from arching into his touch like nothing else but his hands on my skin, nothing else but him would ever suffice.

  I was just this close to breaking and dragging his head down to my neck so that he could mark me as his once and for all, when he eased back. His eyes were so dark they were almost black and he seemed just as breathless as I was, but perfectly in control of the situation nonetheless because he was lowering his head to my ear the next second.

  "Soon," He whispered, his voice husky and dark with promise, before taking a resolute step back and shoving the book back into the box just as a knock sounded on the front door.

  I'd been so caught up in kissing him that the sound made me jump in surprise. But he'd clearly pre-empted this, because he was calmly chucking the box and the pots and pans back into the oven, before striding out of the kitchen, only pausing briefly to toss me an amused look over his shoulder.

  I stared after him in disbelief, torn between scowling and laughing. "Stupid tease," I mumbled as I followed him, hardly bothering to keep my voice quiet since I meant for him to hear anyway.

  He let out a quiet laugh and shook his head in mirth, before opening the door. I caught a glimpse of several cars parked right outside along the driveway over Jed's shoulder, the sunlight refracting off the hoods in a way that made me squint.

  "Are you – " Adrian began, only to pause and do a double take when he saw Jed's relaxed expression. "Damn it, Alpha." He shook his head rapidly, a look of mock-horror on his face. "If you're going to smile creepily like that at least warn a man before he gets a heart attack!"

  Jed rolled his eyes and slammed the door shut in Adrian's face. We could still hear Adrian's uproarious laughter outside, but when I noticed Jed rubbing the back of his neck in an almost self-conscious manner, I couldn't stop myself from smiling.

  "Don't listen to him," I said comfortingly. "You're absolutely gorgeous when you smile. Or even when you don't. You know, back in the human world, if we were in high school, you'd be the hot stud all the cheerleaders drool over and wish so desperately to paint edible body glitter all over you just so they could lick it right off."

  I blushed right after I said it and he quirked an eyebrow at me for a moment. Then he pulled out his phone to type a quick message and held the screen out to me:

  Is that a cheerleader's fantasy or yours, Quinn?

  "I – " It was impossible to stop myself from blushing even harder at his text and I glared at him, even though the ferocity of my glare was immediately lessened the moment I saw the teasing smirk playing at the corner of his lips. "Shut up," I mumbled at last, then blushed all over again when I realised he hadn't said anything to begin with.

  He bit his lip to keep from laughing and quickly typed another message to me.

  We're heading to Io for some security checks. There's been another breach. Spike will be at the diner so you're safe.

  I nodded in agreement. "Alright, just let me grab my things," I told him, and headed to the counter. After downing the rest of my coffee, I set my mug and Jed's into the sink, before heading back out and reaching for my bag along the way. "Okay." I smiled, hitching the strap of my bag further up my shoulder. "I'm done now."

&n
bsp; Jed gave me a cursory glance and nodded, before holding up his phone to me again.

  By the way, do you need me to pick up the edible body glitter on the way back?

  I glared at him again as he tried his very best to keep a straight face. Right. Time to fight fire with fire. "Oh, we'll definitely need that," I said breezily, watching with great satisfaction as his eyes immediately widened. "I think the more important question is – am I going to be the one eating it off you," I drawled, pushing myself up on the tips of my toes and stepping closer to him, so that my lips were mere inches away from his ear. He swallowed at our close proximity, his fingers twitching by his sides as he fought the urge to touch me, but I bit back a smile and continued, "or is it going to be the other way round?"

  A delicious, husky growl ripped past his lips at my words and, even as I felt a thrilling shiver gloss down my spine at the sound, I fought to keep calm as I shifted slightly, pressing my lips quickly to his cheek. His faint stubble brushed against my lips in the most delightful friction and I lingered there for a moment or two before pulling away altogether.

  "Time to go," I said brightly, stepping aside to maintain a fair distance between us. It was impossible not to laugh at the stunned look on his face when he realised I'd flipped the metaphorical tables back on him and I smiled innocently, placing a hand on the doorknob as I glanced back at him. "Ready?"

  He narrowed his eyes at me and followed me out of the house, but his exasperation swiftly faded the moment he heard me laugh; and, with a genuine smile this time, I reached down to intertwine my fingers with his.

  * * *

  The diner was unusually silent that morning, infused with a tension that was impossible to miss. A swift glance around made me realise that the place had less customers than usual, but that wasn't much of a surprise, since a fifth of the pack had left with Jed to check on the breach in Io. But when I scanned the place a second time, I belatedly realised what it was.

  Or who it was.

  I was making a beeline for him before anyone could even stop me, and stood by the booth, placing a palm flat on the tabletop. There were vague protests from the other customers but I blocked them all out and focused on the man seated there. He was chewing pensively on a slice of buttered toast, twisting the ring on his index finger in a distracted manner and looking almost uncomfortable in a small booth like this with his long legs stretched out in front of him. He seemed to detect my presence at once, but he didn't react, save for the way his fingers tightened imperceptibly around his cup as he brought it to his lips.

  "Diego," I greeted him curiously, offering him a bright smile when he slowly turned to look at me. "What're you doing here? I mean – in this diner," I added, when he simply arched an eyebrow at me. "I thought you were going to be at Lance's, Jed told me he offered you a guestroom, but I'm glad to see that you're up and about. How're you feeling, are you – "

  "What the hell," He swore sharply, dropping his toast and dragging a hand through his hair. It didn't escape my notice that while he'd pushed his hair out of his eyes, he'd left some locks of his hair alone in a way that kept the left side of his face still partially shielded. "Do you usually speak this much just to fill up the silences on lover-boy's end?"

  "Sometimes." I shrugged and sat down on the bench opposite him, my smile widening when he stared at me like I'd just sprung three heads.

  Everyone else was watching us with wide-eyes and mystified looks on their faces, but it was just a fractional shift from the way they'd been regarding him earlier – with glares of hostility and disgust, and I couldn't help but feel a strange wave of protectiveness when I realised that the latter emotion was probably because of Diego's scarred face. It was the same kind of protectiveness I knew I'd feel if anyone accused Jed of the crimes his brother did, or if they dredged up Jed's past and flung it back in his face.

  "No, seriously," I continued, folding my arms over the table and considering the situation carefully. I didn't know Diego well at all, but something told me that he wasn't the kind of person who wanted to be around people – not if he could help it, at least. "Who brought you in here?"

  "Actually, Lance did." A familiar voice made me turn, and I stared at Spike in surprise. He smiled sheepishly. "He had to head out with Alpha and he left the rogue in here so that we could keep an eye on him. Sorry, Luna."

  "No, don't apologise. It's fine," I assured Spike quickly and stood up. The other customers were still sending odd glances our way, and I met each and every gaze evenly, waiting until they backed down. Then I turned to Diego. "Well, when you're done with breakfast, come look for me in the kitchen."

  He glanced up sharply. "What?"

  "Did I stutter?" My smile widened when he narrowed his eyes at me and I pointed to the back of the diner. "Kitchen. Later."

  Before he could respond, I strode off, reaching for Spike along the way and tugging the hem of his sleeve so that he'd follow me to the counter. Lorraine was already there, watching our exchange with suspicion in her eyes, and she shook her head at me.

  "What're you doing, Luna?"

  "He's not all bad," I said simply. "I need an assistant in the kitchen. Pay him what you would a normal kitchen assistant, dock it out of my pay if necessary and I'll tell Jed when he gets back. He won't mind, I'm sure." Throwing a backward glance over my shoulder, I watched Diego stare out of the window for a moment before turning back to them. "I owe him."

  "And you repaid your life debt or whatever by granting him full pardon even though Brutus and the others were this close to killing him," Lorraine returned, still shaking her head reproachfully as she eyed me. "That's more than enough."

  "No. He didn't just help me escape Prometheus. He saved me from a world of hurt, torture and degradation when he got me out. I owe him," I repeated, dragging out the syllables of the words slowly to get my point across. "Anyone who has a problem with this can take it up with Jed, who knows just how much I owe him."

  "No, it's fine," Spike assured me, wrapping an arm around Lorraine's shoulders to hold her back when she made to argue again. He gave me a faint smile, a light of understanding in his eyes. "We get it. Just – be careful."

  I smiled gratefully at him and nodded, before heading into the kitchen. As the door could swing shut behind me, I could still hear Lorraine arguing with Spike in hushed tones, something about how Diego couldn't be trusted because he was from a rogue from Prometheus.

  The door shut with a solid click and I finally let out a quiet breath, bracing my hands on the sink as I considered the matter. So Diego was a rogue from Prometheus. But, then again, Jed was a Trevino and his father and brother were sexual deviants who raped and killed women. Ever since I was introduced to this world of lycans, I was fast realising that there was no black or white. You fixed a moral compass, only to have its needle shift every time you pointed it at a different person.

  " – so what the hell do you want?"

  Diego's voice made me glance up, only to see him striding into the kitchen, letting the door swing shut behind him. The expression on his face was nothing but bored but his eyes scanned the kitchen swiftly, locating the two doors almost immediately. If I hadn't been spending so much time with Jed and knowing exactly how he acted in unfamiliar places, I wouldn't have been looking out for Diego's reaction at all. But I was, and I didn't miss the way he threw a cursory glance at the knives before his eyes snapped back to me.

  My lips quirked up in amusement. "Look for exits, look for weapons," I mused, sidling over to the counter to pull out a chopping board and two knives. "You know, contrary to popular belief, you and Jed aren't all that different."

  "Don't refer to us in the same sentence," Diego said shortly and braced his arms on the counter as he stood opposite me. "What do you want?"

  "You wanted to be here," I started, meeting his gaze squarely, "didn't you?" When he narrowed his eyes at me again, I smiled and continued, "just one of Jed's hypotheses. He told me that you gave Titan a really good chase last night but led them
away from Prometheus ground instead of towards. And it wasn't until he got out of the car and joined in the chase when you finally let up."

  Diego didn't speak for awhile. Then his lips tilted up in the most fleeting smirk. "Any other fascinating hypotheses he offered?"

  I shrugged and reached beneath the counter to pull out the ingredients that Lorraine had already prepared for me earlier. "Well, he does believe that the compass and the note you left me weren't the only two things you did that night," I continued mildly, not looking at Diego as I set the trays of vegetables on the counter. "There was a decoy sent to Titan that night, which led the pack right to a forest where Prometheus was gathered at, which meant that the Prometheus grounds were left completely unguarded."

  Diego was silent for a moment or two. "Must've been one hell of a coincidence," was all he said at last.

  "Oh, it is." I let out a vague sound of agreement as I set a bowl of tomatoes between us. "Or one hell of a twisted plan. Turning two packs against each other so that Bianca and I could escape. That was pretty clever of you."

  He met my gaze with a blank stare. "What do you want?"

  "I need an assistant in the kitchen," I admitted honestly. It wasn't entirely untrue – lunch and dinner rushes were the worst and if it weren't for Spike, Lance or Adrian who occasionally stepped in to help, I didn't think I could handle them at all. Reaching for the knife, I spun it and held the handle out to Diego. "If I let you use this, are you going to stab me in the back with it later?"

  His gaze sharpened. "If you're so afraid, don't turn your back towards me."

  "I'm not afraid." Raising the handle of the knife to him, I paused and waited. "Truce?"