The man who’d snuck up on him held up his hands. “I mean no harm.” He was skinny. His jeans and shirt hung on his lanky frame. His brown hair looked greasy and was unkempt. And there was something about his eyes, glowing red and vivid, that Dalton knew was unnatural. Dalton blinked and squinted, attempting to clear his vision, thinking that perhaps his rage was causing him to see things. Nope, the red eyes were still there.
“What do you want?”
“Nothing.” The man shrugged. “Just waiting on my mistress. Same as you.”
“That is my mate,” Dalton snapped. “Not my mistress.”
“She appears to be your keeper. Do you have a collar and leash?” The man chuckled, and the sound grated across Dalton’s nerves.
Dalton turned away and walked to the car. Why had he bothered to even respond to this fool? The wolf leaned backagainst the car and let his eyes settle on the door, waiting for Jewel to emerge.
“It’s a weird dynamic between true mates,” the male continued, as if Dalton hadn’t just ignored him. “I thought the males of your race were quite protective of their mates.”
“That doesn’t mean we control their every movement.” Dalton was unable to keep from defending himself to the idiot.
“Of course not. And I assume it must also be commonplace for one of your kind to let his mate go sauntering unattended into a supernatural brothel?”
The words knocked the breath out of Dalton so hard that he actually stumbled forward. His eyes snapped from the door over to the strange interloper. The scrawny man’s hands were in his pockets, and his shoulders were relaxed. He tilted his head to the side, as though studying Dalton. “Oh, you didn’t know?”
Dalton didn’t respond. A brothel? His mate had been visiting places where supernatural beings …hooked up. What the actual hell? “Who are you?” Why on earth should he believe this stranger’s words? Would his little dove really go into such a place?
“I’m someone who knows exactly what goes on in there.” He motioned toward the building. “My mistress visits often.”
Dalton narrowed his eyes. “Why aren’t you inside with her?”
The man chuckled. For a moment, Dalton swore the man’s face morphed into something hideous, something not of this world. “Sometimes a man needs a break.”
“Maybe, but are you truly a man?”
The stranger touched the side of his nose and grinned. His teeth were pointy and sharp. “You’re smarter than you look.”
Dalton’s wolf pushed at his skin, fighting to come out and tear the strange man to pieces. As he stepped closer and took in a deep breath through his nose, he caught the scent of sulfur—a foul and evil smell.What is this thing?
The door to the shack opened, drawing Dalton’s attention away from this creature masquerading as a man. Jewel walked out, her eyes widening as she saw the man to whom Dalton was speaking. Her eyes bounced to Dalton and then back to?—
“Mal, your mistress is asking for you,” she said simply before turning and walking to the car.
“Always a pleasure to see you, little dove,” Mal replied.
That was all Dalton’s wolf could take. The beast took over. Dalton didn’t phase, but the wolf gave him its supernatural speed and strength. One second, he was feet away from the disgusting creature, and the next, Dalton’s fist connected with his face. The man flew backward and landed on the ground. Dalton’s wolf snarled, and his words sounded rough coming from his mouth. “Never call her that again. Better yet, never speak to her again.”
Dalton wasn’t sure the man had heard, as he wasn’t moving on the ground. Dalton didn’t care. The wolf wanted to tear his head from his body, but the man wanted to check on Jewel more. Dalton stalked back to the vehicle. As he passed Jewel, he took her elbow in his hand and guided her to the passenger door. He opened it and waited until she was seated inside. His self-control was hanging by a thread. He forced his movements to be slow and gentle as he shut the door, instead of ripping it from its hinges like he wanted.
Once he was inside the car and they were on the road again, he managed to get his beast under control. After some time, he was able to speak calmly. “We have much to talk about, mate.”
Three
“For someone as intelligent as I supposedly am, I have made some less than smart decisions as of late. Worse than that, I have hurt my true mate. If I continue down this road, he may never be able to forgive me.” ~Jewel
Jewel flinchedat the sound of Dalton’s sharp tone. He rarely spoke to her in an angry tone, even when he was frustrated. The man had an incredible amount of patience with her, much more than she’d earned. She wanted to beg his forgiveness. Instead, she pressed her lips together, attempting to keep her consciousness under control. Just a little longer. Once it was done, she could tell Dalton everything, and then hopefully he’d understand.By the Great Luna, I hope he understands.
The silence in the car was a heavy blanket that threatened to suffocate her. Maybe that’s what she deserved. Jewel had already committed so many transgressions in this life. Since she’d joined the supernatural world, she’d done things she would have never imagined. How many people had she killed? It didn’t matter that she’d been under the influence of dark magic.She could have fought it harder. She was the one responsible for the deaths. What was one more sin? Was she even redeemable at this point?
Jewel hadn’t even realized they’d arrived back at the Colorado pack mansion until she heard Dalton’s door close. His actions were controlled—too controlled. Though anger radiated off him, his movements did not show it. He even came around the car and opened her door, as he always did. Jewel half expected him to head inside, leaving her behind. It would have been completely understandable. Though Dalton didn’t leave her, he also didn’t hold his hand out to help her out of the car, as he usually did. Instead, he stepped back,awayfrom her as she got out. He didn’t slam the door but shut it gently behind her. She met his eyes and saw the glowing orbs of the wolf staring back at her. A chill ran down her spine. Not because she was afraid of him, but because she could see more than anger there. There was hurt, but worse than that, there was the recognition of betrayal.
He turned from her and started for the house. Jewel made her feet move, though she practically dragged them. She didn’t want to have a conversation. She wanted to take a shower and wash off the filth left on her from the shack. Then Jewel wanted to crawl into bed and lose herself to the oblivion of sleep. There, she hadn’t betrayed her mate or ripped his heart in two. There, she didn’t feel the darkness inside of her. In her dreams, Jewel’s life was simple, instead of the twisted web it had become.
As Jewel cautiously entered their room, her eyes immediately searched for Dalton. To her dismay, he was nowhere in sight. A wave of panic washed over her, causing her heart to race and her palms to sweat. She frantically scanned the room, hoping to glimpse him somewhere. And then she heard it—movement coming from their closet. Another surge of fear rushed through her as she imagined him packing a bag andleaving her for good. Frozen in place, Jewel was at a loss for what to do next. How could she possibly come back from this if he decided he was done with her secretive ways? The mere thought of losing Dalton, her true mate and the other half of her soul, sent a sharp pain through her chest.
