by L. P. Maxa
Riley knew Jace was right. Logically, he knew his beta’s plan was the only safe thing to do. That didn’t mean that he had to like it. His stomach was in knots over the phone call he was going to have to make. “I don’t want her involved in this.”
“It’s too late.” Jace’s tone softened. “Call her, tell her to get on the plane. Tell her you want her to meet everyone. Tell her you and Jasper miss her.”
“What?” Riley jerked back like he’d been slapped. “What does Jasper have to do with any of this?” All the jealousy and anger he’d pushed down over the last few days was bubbling its way back to the surface.
Jace glanced at the still-black screen of the tablet resting between them. “Some of the pictures, Riley, they were taken through the window. They’re of the three of you, together.”
“No.” Riley got to his feet, his wolf rising, making him feel like he was about to crawl out of his skin. Someone had been there watching them. Someone else had seen Blake vulnerable, had seen her between them. The wolf inside him was a living, snarling thing, ready to draw blood. “It’s not like that. It was one night. It was stupid and we should’ve never touched her like that.”
“But you did.” Jace got to his feet too. Being beta, he wouldn’t allow Riley to tower over him. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed how strained things have been between you and Jasper since you got back from Dom and Corey’s.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m guessing Blake is why.”
Riley couldn’t deny sharing Blake had put a strain on his relationship with Jasper. He was jealous, and he was worried. He’d had so many thoughts, so many concerns over the last few days his head was spinning. What he felt now, though, dwarfed everything else. He was rageful someone had pictures of Blake in those private moments. He was livid his life had leaked into hers and she was in danger. His wolf was about to lose its shit at the thought of Blake here with Jasper again.
Riley swallowed thickly. “She’s my friend. Blake’s not mine, and she sure as shit isn’t Jasper’s. That night should’ve never happened.” He’d known it the moment his packmate and best friend had brought it up. He’d known that no good would come from it, but he’d let his lust, his curiosity override everything. Now they would all pay for it.
“Whatever she is, call her and get her on that plane.” Jace turned toward the door, speaking over his shoulder. “You and Jasper can go pick her up from the airport.”
“I don’t want to lie to her.”
“Then tell her something as close to the truth as you can. But remember, you’re the one who doesn’t want her in this world.”
He’d had every intention of keeping his shifter life completely hidden from Blake. He’d made that decision from the beginning, and he’d worked hard to keep it that way.
Enter fucking Jasper.
Chapter Sixteen
After Jace left, Riley took his time getting dressed, dragging his heels. He was putting off calling Blake. He was trying to formulate what to say before she was on the other end of the line. Rehearsing his words over and over, tweaking what he could while trying to convince her to come visit. He had to be as honest as possible without further endangering her life. No big deal.
He was a little bit excited he’d get to see her. He was also a lot nervous about how things would be with him, Jasper, and her in the same space again. That was part of Jasper’s sales pitch, they’d use Christmas break to get back to center after what they’d shared. When he was fully dressed, teeth brushed and hair fixed, he pulled out his cell and hit Blake’s name. His stomach was a ball of nerves as the call rang twice and then went to voicemail. Before he could leave a message, his phone dinged with a text notification.
Blake: At brunch with the ’rents, what’s up?
Riley sank back to his bed, his phone clutched in one hand. How did he explain the situation over text? He didn’t have time to be delicate, he’d stalled too long. She needed to make an excuse to her parents and get to the airport as soon as possible.
Riley: I need you to call me. It’s a bit of an emergency.
Blake: OMG. Are you pregnant?
Riley: How do your parents even eat around all your hilarity? Do they choke on their food often?
Blake: Let me pretend to go to the bathroom. Hold please.
It only took a few seconds for his cell to start ringing in this hand. He inhaled a deep breath before answering. “Hey, doll face.”
“What’s going on?” She was speaking softly.
Riley swallowed past the lump in his throat. “There’s something I need to tell you, and it’s not going to make a lot of sense, but I’m being as honest with you as I can possibly be, okay?”
“Uh, okay, you’re kind of freaking me out.”
Riley winced. If she was already freaking out, then what he was about to tell her was really going to send her over the dramatic edge she lived on. “We chartered a plane for you to come to Haxton, today, this afternoon. I need you to tell your parents it’s a last-minute surprise for New Year’s Eve, and that you’ll be home in a few days.” He paused, thinking she’d have something to say to that, but the line stayed silent. “Jace, Jasper’s twin, he’s not only tech-y. He’s involved in some, um, stuff and he’s helping put away really bad guys. One of those bad guys is fighting back, and we all need to go on a bit of a lockdown.”
“I’m sorry. Is this a joke?” Blake laughed quietly. “You know how insane that sounds, right?”
“I do, and I know that it’s a big ask, but I need you to trust me.” Riley took a deep breath as he stood, pacing his room. “This bad guy, he got the wrong idea about you and me. He thinks we’re together, and Jace thinks the bad guy could try to use you against us.”
“Why? Why would he use me? I don’t even know Jace.”
There was no way Riley could explain anything further. He couldn’t tell her about how packs work, or how criminals try to use mates as collateral. That’s what was happening. Riley was sure of it. Riley hadn’t been seen with any other females since before he moved to Greenly. Even then, it was random hookups. Whoever this dick was, he assumed that Blake was special, that she was his. They’d gone out together a lot. She stayed over in his dorm room. It wasn’t a big leap to make.
“It’s how this man works.” Riley had vowed to tell her as close to the truth as he could. “They sent Jace images of us together, of Jasper and I with you at the cabin.”
He heard her gasp, his stomach sinking at her discomfort. “Someone was watching us? Watching us together like that? Are you kidding me? I think I’m going to be sick.”
He hated telling her that over the phone, he hated she was distraught, but he needed her to understand the seriousness of what was happening. He needed her to understand there wasn’t another choice. She needed to get her ass on that plane.
“I know, Blake, I’m so sorry.” He was sorry. He was sorry that her friendship with him had brought her into this crap, that her privacy had been violated, and worse, he had put her life in danger. “I need you to get on that plane. I need you here where we can protect you until the threat is eliminated.”
“The threat is eliminated? You sound like a character in a military movie.” She sighed. “Fuck, Riley. What am I supposed to do here? This all sounds so off the wall. I don’t even know how to run out on my parents without freaking them out too.”
“I would never put this on you if I didn’t think it was necessary.” He’d have given anything to keep her out of this side of his life. He knew he’d live with the regret for the rest of time.
“Shit. Okay. Yeah, okay, send me the flight information, I’ll be there.”
“I’ll pick you up. Everything will be okay. I promise.” Right as Riley said good-bye, Jasper walked into his room, his expression hard.
“Was that Blake? Jace told me everything. How is she?” Jasper leaned against the dresser, his arms crossed over his chest.
Riley nodded. “She’s shaken up, but she’s coming.”
Ja
sper sighed. “And you? How are you?”
He forwarded the flight information to her, and then shoved his cell back into his pocket. “How am I doing? Well, I feel fucking terrible her connection with me put her on some asshole’s radar. I feel sick thinking someone would hurt her to get to us. I feel uncomfortable thinking about her being here, surrounded by shifters. I feel irritated she’ll be in this house, between you and me, so soon after…” Riley didn’t need to finish his sentence. As much as he hated the thought, he knew the memory of their night with Blake was running through Jasper’s mind, like it was his. A constant loop of steam and indulgence for Jasper. Regret for him.
“You think she’ll ask for more?”
Riley shrugged. “Don’t they all?”
It had nothing to do with ego, with experience or skill. Jasper and he were shifters. They were supernatural. Magic. Being with one shifter was one thing, but being shared between two? That was something altogether different. In high school, when they started such a dangerous game, they were both selfish kids. This was Blake. She was his best friend from college, and she was about to be locked into a house with the both of them.
“You going to tell her about what we really are?”
“No,” Riley answered with more conviction than he felt. Jace had made a good point earlier, saying that the in-between was where Blake could get hurt. “There’s no reason to tell her. All she needs to know is Jace puts away bad guys and one of those bad guys is fighting back.” Riley side-eyed his pack mate. “And the two of us are both exceptional in bed. No supernatural abilities involved.”
Jasper snorted out a quick laugh. “What about the pictures? Did you tell her about those?”
“She wasn’t happy.”
“Did you look at them?” Jasper smirked. “Jace wouldn’t show them to me, but I gotta admit, I’m curious.”
Riley glared at his packmate, growling out his response. “If you try to get to those pictures, I’ll remove your eyeballs with a spoon.”
Jasper put his hands up on either side of his head. “Whoa, bro. I’m in those pictures too. What’s the big—”
“No.” Riley took a step toward Jasper, his fists clenched at his side. “You don’t get to see her like that.”
“Again.” Jasper crossed his arms over his chest, his relaxed façade pissing off Riley further. “You mean I don’t get to see her like that again because I’ve seen it all, man.”
Riley lunged at Jasper at the same moment Jace stepped into the room. He quickly put himself between Jasper and Riley, his arms out barely keeping them separated. “What the hell? Riley? Why are you fighting me?” He turned and shoved Riley back, pointing a finger at his face. “Stay the fuck on that side of the room.” He looked over his shoulder at Jasper. “What the fuck is going on in here?”
Jasper shrugged, like his best friend hadn’t gone after him moments before. “Not sure. Riley is acting overly jealous of our new girl, Blake.”
“She’s not our anything.” Riley could hear the threat in his tone, the anger, but he couldn’t seem to do anything to make it dissipate. Now that he was home, his wolf was living closer to the surface, controlling his actions. “She’s my—”
“She’s your what? I hope like hell you were about to say friend, because you fucking told me less than an hour ago she wasn’t anything but that to you.” Jace was back to pointing in his face again, his finger wagging. “I’m assuming if she was more than that, you wouldn’t have fucking shared her with this jackass.” He gestured behind him to his twin brother.
Riley knew he was acting possessive, jealous, completely at odds with everything he’d told Jace this morning. He hadn’t lied to his beta. Blake wasn’t for him. She wasn’t his forever. He’d have known that by now, given all the time they’d spent together. Not to mention the night they’d had at the cabin. He’d been inside her. He’d had her. His shifter would have noticed, responded, tried to claim her.
He was acting like an asshole because Jasper was egging him on, as if he wasn’t stressed enough. “Blake is important to me, but she’s not for me. Jasper is being a shit, the way he always is, and I’m not in the mood for today, that’s all.”
Jace turned back to his twin, using that finger on him instead. “Keep your mouth shut, let Riley deal with Blake, and stop trying to piss everyone off. You hear me?”
Jasper nodded, his stupid smirk still in place. “Whatever you say, beta.” He pushed off from his spot against the dresser. “I’ll see you when you get home with Blake.”
He winked at Riley, like the dick he was.
Chapter Seventeen
The minute Riley climbed in his truck and drove away from the house and his fucknut of a packmate, he felt calmer, more in control. Jace was right, he shouldn’t let Jasper get to him like that. Riley was as much at fault as Jasper for what happened with Blake at the cabin. He could have stuck to his guns and said no. At some point he needed to own up to his part in everything that had happened. Sure, he’d had reservations, and he’d voiced them. In the end, though, no one controlled him except for himself. He’d wanted Blake, he’d been turned on by the mere thought of her between himself and Jasper. So, he’d acted on it. Now the consequences of that night were his to deal with, much sooner than he’d thought he would have to.
Riley watched as her small jet landed, impressed with the expensive piece of equipment he hadn’t known Jace had privileges with. Mountain compounds, countless vehicles, computers, cameras…Jace’s wealth was far greater than Riley ever realized.
The plane taxied in a semicircle, coming to a stop a few yards from his waiting truck. The door opened, the stairs descending to rest on the asphalt. Blake appeared at the top, in tight jeans and a loose cable-knit sweater, her gaze swinging to the open window his arm was hanging out of. She smiled and he couldn’t help but return it. The circumstances sucked. Yet he was undeniably happy to see her. Never in a million years did he think Blake would ever be in Haxton, meeting his family and seeing the places that shaped him. He needed to relax and be grateful for the silver lining in all this bullshit.
Blake was safe, and she was here with him and his people.
He climbed out of the truck, coming around the hood to take her bag off her shoulder. He held one arm out and she snuggled into his side, squeezing him tight. He took a moment, holding her close, breathing her in.
“Well, I can cross flying on a private jet off my quickly dwindling bucket list.” She pulled back, winking at him over her shoulder. He knew what she was getting at. Being double teamed was on that list too.
He opened her door, waiting until she got seated before tossing her bag into the back, and then he climbed behind the wheel. “How was it? Traveling in such opulence?”
“I’m ruined for all other air travel.” She buckled her seat belt. “Have you never been on it?”
He chuckled. “I didn’t even know Jace had access to a jet.”
“Jace, Jasper’s tech-y CIA-ish twin.” Riley didn’t love Jasper’s name on her lips, but he was trying to let it go. “He’s engaged to Axie? Right?” Blake wrinkled her cute little nose. “I should have paid more attention to how everyone is connected when you talked incessantly about them.”
Riley pulled out of the small private airport and merged onto the highway. “Yeah, well, you didn’t know you’d be sent for over holiday break, huh?”
“That’s for sure.” She pulled her knees up to her chest, hugging them and wiggling her boot-clad feet. “Are we in danger right now? This bad guy, how bad we talking?”
“Honestly, I don’t know much beyond what I told you this morning.” That wasn’t a lie. Jace hadn’t gone into detail about the newest and last criminal they were trying to put away, other than that he was a judge. Riley had been too stressed at the idea of getting Blake to Haxton to have bothered to demand more answers. “Bad man that needs to go to jail, he’s fighting back, threatening the people close to Jace.”
“Is he threatening Axie too?”
“I’m sure.” What he meant was, he was sure whoever this guy was, he’d love to threaten Axie. She was at the compound, under lock, key, and Jace’s watchful eye. He’d never get to her, and Jace would murder him on the spot if he so much as tried. “We’re all going to lay low at Jace’s house until the threat is over.”
“The whole family? Everyone that lives in Haxton?”
“No.” Thankfully, the whole pack wouldn’t be under one roof this time like they’d had to do in the past. Jace had fortified everyone’s security until he was satisfied with their safety. “Jace, Axie, Jasper, and us. The paaaaarty will come for dinner tonight though.” He’d been about to say pack, but thankfully he’d caught himself in time. The dinner would be a ruse for a basic briefing of the now-escalated situation.
“I get to meet the people you missed so much I had to rescue you against your will? Score.” Blake was smiling, her happy energy leaking through the cab of the truck and warming his heart.
He twisted his hands on the steering wheel. There was one thing they still needed to discuss. He knew it would be better to do it without Jasper present, for obvious reasons. “Listen, about Jasper.”
“I know how nervous you are.” Blake reached out, putting her hand on his shoulder. “I promise it’s okay. I am not looking for a repeat, I swear. Things are weird enough right now. I don’t want to add any stress to this situation.”
“If you feel uncomfortable, or if he says anything you don’t like, tell me, okay?” Riley waited until she nodded. “I won’t let anything happen to you, doll face, I promise.”
She smiled. “I know you won’t, sourpuss.” She turned to face him more fully, her feet dropping to the ground. “Now tell me again about this giant family of yours, prepare me for all the faces and dynamics.”
“Okay, well, Corey and Dom have my little sister Hadley—”
Blake interrupted him to ask, “Corey and Dom, she’s a counselor and he’s a baseball coach. They’re like surrogate parents, right? Your mom and stepdad don’t live in Haxton.”
