I didn’t even think to wait for Cole’s permission; I was grabbing the burger with both hands and taking a bite before Frankie was even out of the room.
I groaned in pleasure.
“Is it that good?” Tanner asked.
I opened my eyes, which had shut in my enthusiasm, and swallowed what I was chewing.
He laughed nervously. “I like them loud too,” he said, speaking to Cole.
“What?” Cole asked, the word sharp.
“I just meant, she’s an omega…” Tanner said.
“He’s drunk and an idiot,” Levi interjected.
“What else is an omega for?” Tanner asked with a nervous laugh.
“Shut your mouth for once,” Levi snarled.
“Are either of you members of a Pack?” Cole asked, her attention on Levi.
“I’m Pack Hail, sir—I mean ma’am, sorry,” Levi stuttered.
“And you?” she asked, turning her eyes to Tanner.
“I, ugh, I’m not affiliated with any Pack,” he answered.
“How many generations?” Cole asked.
Not being a member of any Pack wasn’t unusual. The more we interacted and settled within human communities, the more wolves were born outside the Pack system; still, most maintained their membership, even if it was only in name.
“Since my grandfather,” he answered.
“What a shame,” Cole replied and she stood from the booth.
“Now, wait, what are you doing?” Tanner stammered.
Cole stopped directly next to him but spoke to Levi.
“Ensure that Jerome understands that his disrespect has been received. Payment is due by the close of business tomorrow, or Sandstorm Credit House will begin enforcing securities,” she said.
Then, without hesitation or fanfare, she gripped Tanner’s hair at the back of his head and slammed his face against the tabletop.
My plate jumped, and I flinched with as much force.
His head bounced up, blood streaming from a nostril, a cut across the bridge of his nose, and an open gash where a tooth had bitten through his lip. It was gore and horror, and the last time I had seen so much blood, it was coating my own skin.
“What the fuck!” he cried, spraying Cole with droplets of blood across her grey sweater.
Cole exhaled, as if everything happening was beneath her.
My chest was tight, crushed, and I couldn’t breathe.
Tanner wobbled to his feet, and Levi reached out to try to keep him sitting.
“Who do you think you are?” he shouted, spraying more droplets of red at Cole.
Cole gripped his shoulders and brought her knee up hard between his legs.
