by Sadie Carter
He turned and clasped her cheeks in his hands, raising her face up to his.
“I love you. And the thought of someone hurting you, of you being unhappy or in pain… I want to prevent that. I’m sorry that I didn’t listen to you.”
“I know. But you were growling at every customer who even looked at me. Poor Mr. Jensen drops his gaze to his feet every time I come near. He went to take a sip of beer yesterday and completely missed his mouth. It went all down his front.”
Jay grinned. “Okay, point taken, maybe I could ease off a little. But it’s mainly because I’m in unknown territory. Once we get back to the estate, I’ll ease up, and you’ll have much more freedom.”
“Are you sure the pack will accept me?” Reed’s words had rocked her, bringing up old insecurities.
“Of course, they will, why wouldn’t they? You’re wonderful.”
“Reed doesn’t seem to think so. I don’t think you’ve thought this through, Jay.”
Jay grabbed her arm suddenly, startling her. “What did Reed say?”
“It doesn’t matter. I better get back to work,” she said quickly, not wanting him to question her further. “Ella will be tearing her hair out.”
“No great loss there,” he muttered.
“Hey.” She punched him lightly in the arm as she stepped past. “I think her hair’s awesome.”
“Cassie.” She stopped at the door, turning toward him. “Look, ignore Reed. He doesn’t speak for the pack. Everything is going to be all right. Okay?”
“Okay,” she replied, still feeling uncertain.
Leaning down, he gave her a hard, bruising kiss.
“Good, now get your butt back to work before you get fired.”
“Urgh.” She glared up at him in mock anger before turning and walking away, smiling as she heard him chuckle behind her.
Chapter Ten
“Ahh, just the person I was looking for.”
Cassie gasped, dropping the rubbish bag she’d been carrying.
“Drat. Were you trying to sneak up on me? Couldn’t you have made some noise or something?”
Reed appeared mildly surprised as he peered down at her. Then he picked up the bag of rubbish and threw it into the dumpster.
“We need to talk.”
She frowned. “Why? What about?”
He leaned back against the wall of Fat Eddy’s. “Don’t act dense. You know what I’m talking about. You need to leave him.”
“Excuse me?”
“You need to leave Jay, break things off with him. Tell him you don’t want to be with him, that it was all a lie, whatever. But you need to ensure that he comes back to the pack and that you don’t come with him.”
Pain lashed her insides, but she kept her face impassive. She was not going to give him the satisfaction of knowing he’d wounded her.
“What gives you the right to decide Jay’s life for him?”
“Look, it’s nothing personal, I’m sure you’ll make someone a good wife, partner, whatever, one day. But you’re not right for Jay. And seeing as how he won’t listen to me, you’ve got to see sense or you’re both doomed.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Werewolves and humans aren’t supposed to mix. He knows that. He’s experienced it before and he doesn’t deserve a repeat heartache. Do you know he swore never to be with a human woman again after that bitch Lia hurt him? I won’t let you fuck him over. You’re not his true mate. What if he finds her? What do you think will happen then? I’m trying to save you both some heartache in the long run. I’ll give you the money to set yourself up somewhere else.”
Her jaw dropped. “You’re going to pay me to leave your brother.” This was bizarre, unbelievable.
“The pack needs Jay home. What he doesn’t need is for you to tag along. All I’m asking is that you do the right thing. Give him a chance to find his true mate. If you loved him, you’d do that for him.”
“Is that the only reason you came here? To convince me to let him go?”
“Actually, I came to convince him to come home. Without you. But he won’t listen. You should.”
With that said he turned away, leaving a spluttering Cassie staring at him in shock.
“Are you going to let him get away with that?” The low voice came from behind her, and she turned, placing her hand against her chest.
“Why does everyone have to sneak up on me?” she gasped, glaring up at Brynn.
“You can’t let him talk to you that way,” he commented mildly, staring down at her. He looked completely out of place in the grubby alley, dressed in an expensive white shirt, dark pants, and blazer. “You roll over, and he’s going walk all over you. You have to get in there and tell him what you think of his suggestion.”
“I can’t. Anyway, why should I take your advice? Who are you? How did you even hear what we were talking about?”
He smiled. “I have my ways. It doesn’t matter why I’m giving you advice, only that you should take it.”
“He’s Jay’s brother, I should try to get along with him.” Why the hell was she explaining all this to some stranger?
“Why? Is he trying to get along with you? No. Or is it that you don’t think your relationship is worth fighting for? If that’s the case, then shrug off what he said, let your werewolf leave and find a relationship you would fight to protect, to keep.”
She swallowed, feeling sick, knowing he was right. Bloody hell.
“Do you want to be with Jay?”
“Of course, I do.” She wasn’t quite sure why she was standing here, still talking to him. He was a stranger, he was weird. Yet she needed some advice, and for some reason, he was trying to give her some.
“But you don’t care if his pack regards you as beneath him? As inferior?”
“Of course, I care. I want them to accept me.”
“Then you have to fight back. You have to earn their respect.”
He turned away.
“Wait. Who are you?” She ran after him, reaching out to grab his arm, confused when she found herself grasping at air. She hadn’t even seen him move, yet now he stood two yards away.
“How did you do that?”
He grinned at her. “Oh, I’m full of hidden talents.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re not human, are you? What are you?”
“Ahh, I’m something you’ve never met before. But enough about me. Now, are you going to walk inside and teach that werewolf not to mess with you? Are you going to fight for what you want?”
“I still don’t understand why you’re trying to help me. I don’t know you.”
“Don’t you? Don’t you recognize me?”
She tried to think. Had she met him before?
“I’m told I look a lot like my father.”
Again, nothing clicked.
“Your mother never told you what your father looked like? No, I guess not. I’m here because of you, Cassie. I can’t tell you everything right now, but trust me in this. If you plan on living with werewolves, you have to take a stand. Stick up for yourself.”
“What? No. Hey, wait,” she called out, moving after him as he started walking away. “Are you saying that you know my father?”
“I knew him. Because he was my father, too.”
With that, he simply disappeared. Cassie chased after him, racing around the corner of the building, certain he’d be there. But there was no one in sight. She took a deep breath, trying to still her shaking.
“What the hell? What the hell?” she whispered to herself.
“Cassie? Cassie, where are you? Oh, there you are. What on earth are you doing? I thought you were taking the trash out, but you’ve been gone twenty minutes.”
Cassie turned and gazed at Ella. The look of annoyance faded from the other woman’s face as she stepped forward and grasped Cassie’s arm.
“Hey, are you all right? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Yeah, or a figment of my imagination.
”
“What?”
“Nothing, umm, I’m fine.”
“Yeah? You don’t look fine, you’re pale and shaking.”
Cassie shook herself. “I, umm, had a run-in with Reed. It shook me up a bit.”
Ella snorted. “I’m not surprised, that guy is a jerk. I hope you told him where to go.”
“No.” Cassie shook her head, building up her courage. She wasn’t going to let Reed push her away from Jay. She wasn’t going to settle for living on the outside looking in. Jay was hers and if she had to fight for him, she would. “But I’m about to.”
“Oh, yes! Wait, let me go and get into a good position. I don’t want to miss a second of this.”
Ella turned and practically ran through the back entrance of Fat Eddy’s. Cassie moved at a slower pace, trying to push her thoughts about Brynn to the side. She couldn’t do anything about some mysterious half-brother, at the moment, but she could show an arrogant, cold werewolf that she wasn’t going to roll over and play dead.
Taking a deep, bolstering breath, she stepped into Fat Eddy’s and walked over to where Reed and Jay sat.
Cassie came to a stop beside them and slammed her palm down on the table. Both men looked up at her—Jay with surprise, Reed with a cool, dismissive glance. She leaned down and stared into Reed’s face. His eyes widened before he narrowed them, glaring at her.
Cassie forced herself to stay still, not dropping her gaze. She wasn’t going to show any submission to this werewolf. Something flickered across his face. Surprise? It passed so fast she wasn’t sure whether she’d imagined it or not.
“No.”
“No?” Jay’s hand covered hers. “No, what? What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” Reed snapped.
“Your brother told me to leave you. He doesn’t think I’m good enough for you. I disagree.” She didn’t take her eyes off Reed, determined not to give in. “I’m not easily scared off. I love Jay. I deserve him. And I’m not going to let anyone, including you, scare me away. Got it?”
Reed glared back until she figured they were going to be stuck there forever, staring at each other. Her insides quivered.
“What, exactly, did he say to you?” Jay asked quietly.
“It was a private conversation,” Reed interjected, his voice a low growl. She stood her ground. She knew Jay wouldn’t let him hurt her.
“He said that if I loved you, I’d leave you, let you find someone who deserved you. He even offered to set me up somewhere else.”
“Boy, what a jerk,” Ella remarked, her voice scornful. “You should be thankful Jay found someone as awesome as Cassie.”
Reed glared at Ella until she paled slightly and turned away. “I was simply trying to convince her to do what’s best for both of you.”
Jay let out a low, lethal growl and she saw both men tense, ready to fight.
“Jay!” she exclaimed sharply, relieved when his eyes turned her way. They were shining, glittering—the wolf was close to the surface. He visibly shook himself before turning back to his brother.
Cassie took a deep breath. “I’m not going, no matter what you do, I won’t leave him.”
“Let’s go somewhere private for this, shall we?” Reed looked over at Jay. “Alone.”
Cassie swallowed her hurt. Had she expected him to respect her for sticking up for herself? “I’ll just—”
“Come with us to somewhere private,” Jay interrupted her. He glared at Reed. “This concerns Cassie as well. I’m not having this conversation without her.”
Cassie sent him a small smile before turning and walking through the kitchen into the large storeroom. Which now had a broken window. Crap.
Reed closed the door and leaned back against it, scowling at them.
“Do you want me to come back to the pack, Reed?” Jay asked.
“Of course, I do, it’s your home, where you belong. Why? Is she trying to convince you not to come back?”
“Stop assigning her the role of the bad guy, Reed. I love Cassie. I intend to spend the rest of my life with her.”
“What about what Cassie wants?” Reed turned to her. “You’ll be an outsider. There are no other humans living on the estate. You’ll be different from everyone else. Most of the pack have never lived with a human. They won’t like it, they won’t like you. At best, you’ll be treated as a guest. At worst, you’ll be ostracized. Is that really what you want?”
Actually, it sounded awful, to be excluded, ignored…that wasn’t how she wanted to live her life anymore. But this was Jay’s home they were talking about, and she would try to live there, for him. Besides, she was determined to make an effort, not to hide away. They’d just have to accept her. She held her shoulders straight and stared Reed right in the eyes.
“They’ll have to get used to living with a human, won’t they? We’re actually not that bad, once you get to know us. We’re toilet-trained, we don’t smell, and most of us have good manners. Can you say the same?”
Jay stepped slightly in front of her as Reed’s eyes glowed. Whoops, not a good sign.
“There’s no way I would allow Cassie to be treated so poorly.”
Reed’s gaze moved off her to focus in on Jay, and Cassie shivered with relief. Reed was truly scary.
“We won’t be staying if the pack treats her so badly. I won’t live with a pack who would treat my mate like that.”
Cassie stared at Jay’s back, tears welling up at his words.
“They won’t know how to treat her. She has no place in the pack. Even if they make an effort to be polite, to be respectful, she’ll have no role, no contribution. Is that what you want for her?”
“No, not at all, which is why I spoke to Cooper. He’s agreed to let us petition the advisors, asking for Cassie to be accepted as an honorary packmate.”
Reed gaped at him, stunned. Cassie had to resist asking him what in the hell he was talking about. She’d wait until later when they were alone.
“You’ll never win the vote.”
Jay shrugged. “If we don’t, then we’ll see how things go. But if Cassie dislikes living in the pack, brother, if she’s treated with anything less than the respect and warmth she deserves, then we will leave. Cassie is willing to try to live with the pack to make me happy, how can I do anything less?”
“You owe your loyalty to the pack,” Reed rumbled.
“Yes, and other than one lapse in judgment years ago, I have always done my best, given my all. But Cassie is my mate, she comes first.”
“But she’s not your true mate, she isn’t a werewolf. I thought you would have learned your lesson after Lia.”
“Cassie isn’t Lia.”
“You’d leave your pack, your family, for her?”
“In a heartbeat.” Jay sighed. “Enough. You won’t ever understand. I think it’s best we say our goodbyes now, you’re needed back home.”
Reed shook his head and left, closing the door behind him.
Cassie immediately jumped into Jay’s arms.
“Thank you,” she murmured.
He ran his hands down her back. “For what?”
“For sticking up for me like that.” Although she felt bad that he’d argued with his brother because of her.
“I will always have your back.” He grinned. “I can’t believe you told Reed off. You know, he’s not used to people speaking to him that way, especially not a human.”
She gulped. “Is he really mad?”
“Yeah, but don’t worry. He knows where I stand now.”
“But wouldn’t he have sensed your lie? About leaving the pack?”
He began kissing down her neck, and she clasped his shoulders, leaning into him. “No, because it wasn’t a lie.” He cupped her face. “If you don’t like living with my pack then we’ll leave.”
He kissed her deeply—long, slow, and sweet. When he drew back, she gazed up at him, astounded.
“Y-you mean that? You’d give up living with the pack, your family, for me?
”
“Yes. I love you. You’re willing to live with the pack, even though you’re afraid and unsure, how could I be willing to sacrifice anything less?”
“But what about you? They’re your family, you wouldn’t be happy living apart from them. Your wolf needs them.”
“I would be happy because I would have you. I will not have you treated as anything less than the wonderful person you are. Yes, they’re my family, and I will miss them. But I cannot live without you. If you wish it, we’ll go somewhere else. Another pack, where they’re more accepting of humans. You come first, baby, and you always will.”
Her insides melted and she took his mouth in a rough, scorching kiss.
“God, I love you. So much.”
He clasped her face, staring intently into her eyes. Reaching into his front pocket, he withdrew a small ring box. “Cassidy Callington, I love you. Will you marry me?” He flicked open the lid, and she gasped. Inside was the hugest, ugliest ring she’d ever seen.
“It looks like something out of a Cracker Jack box,” she blurted out, slamming a hand over her mouth as she realized how rude that sounded.
He merely chuckled. “Not quite, it’s from a junk shop. There’s no jewelry store here. The ring box, Ella provided and, well, I hope you’re not too disappointed. I’ll get you a real one when I can. But if you agree to marry me, I want everyone to know you’re mine. I don’t want to wait.”
He clasped her face firmly. “You are my life. We have a tie just as strong, just as real, and special. And I know that both of us will fight to keep what we have. Marry me, Cassie. I’ll love you for eternity. No matter where we are or what we do, you’ll always be in my mind and filling my heart.”
Tears welled in her eyes, blurring his face, but the intensity of his feelings still shone through. She reached for his hand. “That’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard. Sometimes I can’t quite believe that you really love me. I get this shock when I realize this is all real, not a dream.” She held out her left hand. “I would love to marry you.”
