Kissing the top of her head on the way past without thinking, I miss a step when Jonathan slowly says, “I feel like there’s a very interesting story I’m missing out on here.”
Cringing at my careless mistake, I turn back to Sabrina who’s currently squirming in her seat. Bolstering her nerves, she goes for humor as she tosses out, “So, Cinjin and I pulled a Vegas.”
Jonathan cocks his head. “What are you talking about?”
Licking her lips, she rushes out, “Too many drinks, accidentally got married, but it turns out it was a BOGO deal. Paperwork got messed up so it’s his name on the certificate, but tied to Reid’s social security number. So, I’m... sort of married to them both until we get it straightened out. While I’m dating their brother.”
His eyes practically bug out of his head as he whips his gaze my way, fiery hair slinging into his face that he hastily shoves out of the way. “Yeah, no, fuck me, I guess. Why tell me anything interesting?”
Cringing, I shrug. “Wasn’t relevant to the job?”
The glower he aims my way speaks for itself as I excuse myself to the bathroom. The hallways are relatively quiet, most people in the building calling it quits around five. Finishing up and washing my hands, I head back to the conference room, a sinking feeling settling deeper in the pit of my stomach with every step. Pushing the door open, I find Hunter in the room, and Cin on the defensive.
Glancing over at Jonathan, I calmly state, “Time to call it a night.”
I’m not sure if it’s my tone or the fact that he’s had more than enough of my family drama for the day, but he slides his laptop into his bag and leaves without protesting, sending me a few nervous glances on his way out. The foreign alpha is leaning against the wall, sending Sabrina back into her quiet, withdrawn state.
“You’re putting her at risk by being out this late,” he declares with the utmost condemnation, but Cin has absolutely no problem matching his energy.
“And you’re painting yourself in a poor light by playing warden. I’d think our other halves have enough jailors to contend with already, don’t you?”
“You act like if she shifts here it isn’t a big deal,” Hunter spits, growing more incensed by the minute.
There’s an almost audible pulse in the air, making my heart miss a beat, my gaze being pulled towards Sabrina as if compelled. It physically hurts, like I can’t draw enough air into my lungs.
“And you act as if I can’t hear you,” she quietly declares, still working away, fingers flying across the keys. “Yet here we are, in the midst of one bad decision after another, and pretending we have any of the answers to fix them.”
Both of them turn to look at her, picking up on the same vibe that I am. Cin tosses a glance in my direction, communicating everything we’d rather not say aloud in the moment. When I flit my attention to Hunter, though? He’s completely fixated on her, his body strung tight and ready to intervene at a moment’s notice.
He’s scared,I realize with a horrified sort of satisfaction.
Even though he pulled her back from the brink this morning, whatever he saw while he was rooting around inside of her must have been bad enough that it made him nervous, and that’s not an easy task. It could be simply that a female alpha is an unknown entity, but I don’t think so.
I think he saw something to warrant him barging in here before sunset in preparation that he isn’t sharing with the rest of us.
“Where’s Slade?”
Hunter doesn’t tear his eyes off of Sabrina as he responds, “I’m not your brother’s keeper. But it’s a good thing that I decided to swing by sincesomeoneshould be with her, especially with it getting late.”
Tongue in cheek, Cin retorts, “What are we, invisible?”
Crossing his arms over his chest, Hunter leans against the wall, raising an eyebrow. “Fuel for the fire.”
As the two of them bicker, I return to my seat beside Sabrina, not pressuring her to move. She’s fully aware of what’s going on, so if she hasn’t budged, there has to be a reason. It may be that she’s simply being petty, her dominant tendencies riding her hard and wanting to toy with Hunter, but I don’t think so.
“We should be getting back,” the foreign alpha repeats, and I level him with a challenging glare above my computer.
“Are you going to drag her out of here? I’m sure she’ll take thatreallywell.” When he simply returns my venom, I glance back at my screen. “Maybe you should try asking for once. After all, weren’t you the one advocating for her choices when you arrived?”
Sabrina reaches out, trailing her fingers down my arm and eliciting a shiver that runs down my spine. “Thank you.” I can only nod, and she chooses that moment to close her laptop, resting her elbow on the table and her chin in her hand as she looks over Hunter, not an ounce of trepidation to be found on her face anymore. “So what do you say? Shall we try that again, a bit nicer this time?”
The muscle beneath his eye ticks as he stares her down before finally relenting, his voice monotonous. “Would you be so kind as to call it a day so we can make it back to the house before night falls?”
A small smirk forms on her face as she winks. “Much better. Though if you’d held out another ten seconds, you’d have had the backup to call my bluff.”
By the time she’s sliding her laptop into her bag, the door opens. Slade, Kaige, Damian, and Boden stride into the room, instantly seeking out Sabrina. While she hasn’t said a word to them yet, they pause, feeling the change in the atmosphere. While I typically condemn the instincts our other halves press onto us, it serves us well in this moment, allowing them to become instantly aware that this isn’t our sweet mate, but our first encounter with her wolf calling the shots.
“How was work, gorgeous?” Bo asks, breaking the tension and heading straight for her without an ounce of fear.
