I sat in my office chair and studied the hunter as she made herself comfortable. She lay down on the couch—her head on the armrest, legs crossed, and her cap covering her face.
“I refuse to believe you trust her,” I muttered. “You aren’t stupid.”
Joanna slid the cap down and stared up at the ceiling. “From the time I turned sixteen, the only constant in my life was birth control,” she joked. “I thought I was cursed ever since Dad got sick. Because one by one… I lost them all.” She rubbed her eyes. “When you think about it, even James left me to die before having a change of heart.”
The muscles in my body locked up with rage.
“But I can’t imagine knowing my sister was alive and not being able to run to her. That sounds like torture,” she said quietly, voice thick with emotion.
I leaned back in the chair, my expression softening. “She’s not you, Joanna,” I declared with a shake of my head. “You’re loyal and resilient. And you would’ve made things right.”
She let out a derisive snort. “Uh-huh.”
I sat up, drumming my fingers on the desk. “Did hearing about the transformation bother you?” I asked lowly.
Joanna’s eyes snapped open. “Bother me?” She shot up onto her knees. “That was assault, Marcus. I’m notbothered. I’m fucking furious!”
“What—Joanna,” I stammered. “No—I didn’t mean—” I slammed down on the desk, jumping to my feet. “Fuck! Do you really think I’m that despicable?”
Joanna’s gaze dropped to the floor. Her shoulders slumped, and she sat on her heels.
I stared down at my desk as my wolf paced. “I meant… learning what the first shift is like for a human…? Did that scare you?”
She regarded me with a contemplative frown.
My wolf whimpered, and my chest tightened.
Joanna shook her head. “With all this shit—the uprising, Latoya, the restoration of your Den—we’ve had little time to talk about… that.”
I forced myself to hold her gaze, even as I noticed a quiver of revulsion course through her body.
“Thank you for not asking me again.” She nervously fiddled with the cap in her hands. “I was worried that—”
“I thought we were going to die, Sullivan.” The words bore a nonchalance that surprised even me. “I was only trying my luck to determine the likelihood of fucking you again.”
Lies, lies, all fucking lies.
Joanna’s eyes grew wide. “Excuseme?” she sneered.
I kept my face blank. “You heard what I said.”
“I must not have heard you correctly because itsoundedlike you were talking shit.” She rose from the couch. “Ignoring the fact that I was human the first time we fucked, am stillveryhuman now, and you’ve had no issues—”
“Joanna—”
“No, enlighten me, Marcus. Because I assumed you knew what this was.”
“A werewolf and a human having meaningless sex.”
“Yes! Why say shit to try and change the damn rules now?” she challenged.
“Because, Joanna. Even with your power, the things I wanted to do to you—what Istillwant to do—would’ve broken you.”
The best lies are the ones with some truth, and the truth was this: the things I dreamed of doing to Joanna Sullivan would’ve left her unable to walk straight for days.
Goddess, help me.
Looking at Joanna, all I needed was a fucking dog collar. The way she stared at me made my skin hot. The pain that had been in my chest moments ago now morphed into a dull ache in my cock.
