“Getting the girl you want takes work,” Selena said. “Which in this case means you might have to get a J-O-B. Trust me, if Marguerite is the right girl for you, it will be worth it.”
They were still talking about how he’d know if Marguerite was the right girl for him when Selena heard footsteps by the door. She looked over to see Ernesto standing there, a tired smile on his face. The two men with him appeared just as haggard. Selena had never seen either of them before, but the way they stood in the hallway, looking left and right like they expected someone to jump them at any moment, was kind of weird. Selena felt a twinge of worry. Was Ernesto in danger? But that was crazy. He was a businessman now, not a gangbanger.
“You’d better listen to her, kid,” he said as he walked into the room. “This is one teacher who knows what the hell she’s talking about when it comes to appreciating true love when you get a shot at it.”
Selena laughed and crossed the room to hug Ernesto. “Not that I’m not glad to see you, but what are you doing here?”
“I need to talk to you.” He pulled away and glanced at Ruben. “In private.”
That request for privacy, not to mention the tension coming off Ernesto in waves, made her inner wolf suddenly wary. The feeling only got stronger when she saw the concerned look on Ruben’s face. Something wasn’t right. But Ernesto was her friend. She was going to trust that fact over some strange werewolf instincts she didn’t understand yet.
She smiled at Ruben. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? First thing in the morning, so don’t even think of sleeping in. And thanks for the help cleaning up.”
Ruben stared at her for a long moment before darting a quick look at Ernesto with what could only be called suspicion in his dark eyes. But then he nodded and gave her a weak smile.
“Okay. See you tomorrow, Ms. Rosa.”
Leaning the broom against the wall by the door, he walked out, casting nervous glances at the men standing in the hall before turning right and disappearing out of sight.
“Ernesto, is something wrong?” she asked as he closed the door, leaving his two companions outside. “Because you’re acting all kinds of freaky.”
Her friend ignored her question as he moved over to look out the windows, something that was a lot easier to do now that there weren’t any blinds in the way. Ernesto’s heart was beating fast as hell, and if the scent coming off him was any indication, he was also sweating like crazy. She didn’t understand what that meant, but it couldn’t be good.
When he still didn’t answer, she walked over and put her hand on his arm, trying to get his attention. “Ernesto, talk to me.”
“Leave town with me,” he said suddenly, the words coming out in a rush as he turned to her with what looked like panic in his eyes. “Tonight.”
Selena found herself stepping back defensively, tingles running all over her body, the hair standing up on her arms. “What are you talking about? I’m not going to leave town with you.”
There was a spike in his heartbeat as he took a step forward, closing the distance between them again. “I need to leave the country, and I want you to come with me. Just think of it as a vacation. You’ve always talked about seeing another country. So, let’s do it.”
Now her heart started pounding hard, too, anger slowly taking the place of the worry she’d been feeling. “Why do you need to leave the country?” she demanded, tipping her head back to look up at him. “And don’t give me that crap about a vacation. What the hell did you do?”
Ernesto glanced out the window, his Adam’s apple bobbing nervously. “I didn’t do anything. It’s not like that. I just need to leave. If you feel anything for me at all, you’ll stop asking me questions and come with me.”
Selena opened her mouth to tell him she wasn’t going anywhere with him, but he grabbed her wrist before she could say anything, like he thought he could physically drag her out of the room. Her fingertips and gums immediately ached, a sure sign her claws and fangs wanted to come out. With a growl, she drove the heel of her hand into Ernesto’s chest, knocking him back a half dozen steps.
“Don’t touch me!” she snarled.
Crap.Her fangs had slipped out a little. She tried to hide them as much as she could with her lips, because they sure as hell weren’t going away. She wasn’t sure she wanted them to. Her inner werewolf told her there was danger here, and she was starting to believe it.
Ernesto stared at her in shock, his hand absently coming up to rub his chest where she’d thumped him. “I didn’t mean…” He stopped, took a deep breath, and began again. “Selena, I love you. I’ve always loved you. And you’ve always loved me. Let’s stop playing games. I’m in trouble and need to leave the country, and I’m asking the woman I love to come with me.”
Selena blinked. Who the hell was this jackass and what had he done with Ernesto? Because this wasn’t the friend who’d been right there at her side through most of her life. “Yes, I love you, Ernesto. But as a friend and a brother. I can’t love you any other way. That place in my heart is taken by another man. Someone special I want to be with forever.”
Ernesto turned his back to her, and for a moment, she thought he was going to walk out without another word. But then he spun around and grabbed her arms, yanking her off the floor and shoving backward until her shoulders slammed into the wall.
“You mean that fucking cop?” he shouted, shaking her so hard, her head bounced off the wall. “You’d rather be with that piece of shit instead of me? What the hell did he ever do for you, huh?”
Hearing him talk about Jayden that way made her want to claw him to pieces. “Ernesto, stop! I don’t want to hurt you.”
Even as she said the words, her claws extended. If she let the wolf out, she had no idea what she’d do.
Ernesto shook her again. “Was he the one who kept the gangbangers away from your tight little ass all through high school? Was he the one who paid your bills and kept a roof over your head before you went to college? Was he the one who kept the Locos and Riders from popping a cap in you every time you stuck your nose into gang business and got in the way of their recruiting? Was he the one who put a bullet in the back of Aaron Perez’s head for daring to lay a finger on you? I don’t fucking think so. I’ve been there for you. Every time you needed me, I was there. And if you think I’m letting a fucking cop have you now, you’re crazy. You’ve been mine from the moment I first saw you, and if I didn’t let Geraldo get in the way of that, I sure as hell won’t let an asshole cop come between us.”
Selena’s control was almost gone by the time Ernesto admitted to killing Aaron, so she’d barely paid attention to the rest of his rant…until he’d mentioned her brother. When he said he refused to let Geraldo get in the way, had he meant…?
Her vision blurred in rage as her fangs came out the rest of the way. Lifting her feet, she kicked Ernesto in the stomach, catapulting him away from her so hard, he slid across the floor and into the desks still stacked against the wall.
