The combination had taken him back to a situation he thought he’d managed to forget. He was avoiding sleep as well, needing to patrol every minute he could. Needing to besurehis pack was safe. He knew it wasn’t healthy, but he couldn’t stop it.
He sat next to Tristan, but he didn’t take his eyes from the back door. Let the fucking cat walk in. Just try it.
Chapter Seven
LEON
Joaquim was waiting for Leon when he returned to where he’d left his clothes.
“Luna wants you,” he said. Brief and professional, as if he were keeping his distance. Leon didn’t blame him—Luna’s displeasure wasn’t to be incurred lightly, and he was pretty certain that was what would be waiting for him.
He shifted back, and dressed quickly, not wanting to keep her waiting any longer than he had to. Once he explained, she’d understand why he’d done what he had. He hadn’t hurt anyone, and Tristan had needed a wake-up call. Theyallhad.
He knocked once on the den door and pushed it open.
Luna and Matt both turned at his entrance. Tristan was there too, looking unfairly blameless, young, and extremely interested in his shoes.
And Karl. He was leaning against the fireplace like a statue someone had carved to illustrate fury and restraint. His arms werefolded, but not in comfort—they were containing him, his whole body coiled and still, like a controlled explosion that was already in progress. Leon had the absurd thought that even Karl’sshadowlooked pissed off.
He stepped inside with deliberate ease, but his chest tightened. Luna didn’t meet his eyes, which meant she was angry.Reallyangry. If she were in cat form, he’d be getting a swipe across his muzzle, claws most definitely unsheathed. He tucked his hair behind his ear.
The silence stretched.
She met his gaze, finally. “Did you attack one of our hosts?”
The question was cool and neutral, but her eyes were smoldering.
“No,” he said. “I didn’t hurt him.”
“You jumped on him from a tree,” Matt said quietly.
“I was making a point,” Leon said. “He wasn’t paying attention. He was vulnerable.”
“Was he your target?” Matt asked.
Leon frowned. “What?”
“Did you go looking for him, or was he just the unlucky one to walk past your tree?”
“I wasn’tlookingfor anyone,” Leon said, through clenched teeth. “I was minding my business. Which, by the way, is ensuring the safety of the queen of all the cats.” He looked squarely at Matt. “And he needed to learn. Now, he’ll always remember to look up.”
Tristan’s cheeks flared a deep, dusky red, and he still didn’t tear his gaze from his shoes, while Karl growled, low and threatening in a way that sent a completely inappropriate shiver down Leon’s spine.
“You couldn’t have gotten his attention any other way than by jumping on top of him?” Luna asked, the vibration in her voice betraying her fury.
Knowing he mustn’t undermine her status in front of them, he didn’t make the first retort that rose to his lips—you really think jaguars can whistle?The worst of it was, she’d have no problem if he’d pulled this move when schooling a cat.
“He was paying no attention to anything around him,” he said, frustrated. How come the wolves’ shortcomings werehisfault?
Karl’s voice cut in, low and lethal. “He was on a run,off-duty. Clearing his head.”
Leon blinked. “He wasn’t patrolling?”
“No.”
Shit.He kept his expression still as he processed the information. Okay, maybe he’d fucked up just a little. But the reasoning still held—Tristan hadn’t been paying attention. And that put Tristan, Luna,andJesse at risk.
“So what was I supposed to do?” he asked. “Let him wander around with his head in the clouds? We’reguestshere, sure, but if one of ours made that mistake—”
