Page 10 of Her Wolf

“Quit while you’re ahead,” Lars chimed in.

She glanced over her shoulder. He’d come up behind her, but stood a few feet away with his arms crossed over his chest.

“But you said—” Cora began.

“You make the decisions,” Lars cut in, “but at least let us advise you. We’ve got a few years on you, bunny.”

She should have reprimanded him for calling her that, but she could feel pride coming off him in waves. So she smiled and reached for him. Finn shifted her weight, keeping her hoisted with one meaty arm as he held out the other for Lars.

A cocky grin sprang up on his face. “Aw, you guys!” He charged forward, gripping them in a fierce embrace that made Cora squeal.

He pressed his lips to Finn’s and then ducked his head to kiss her too.

The door opened, and they all three turned to it.

Bailey’s silhouette stood outlined against the late afternoon sun filtering into the villa’s garden. The hand he’d used to push open the door dropped to his side.

“I’ll come back later,” he said in a thick voice.

“What? No.” Cora wriggled until Finn let her slide to the ground. She went around him and headed for Bailey, who was already drawing the door closed behind him. She caught it with her hand and pulled it open again.

He had his face turned away, but there was a deep sadness etched in his eyes and on the unhappy curve of his mouth.

“Hey…are you okay?” She grabbed his arm, trying to keep him from walking away.

He paused and then looked back at her. “I thought I was interrupting.”

“You’re not.” She gave him a small smile. “Come inside.” Taking a step back, she held out her hand to him.

Bailey’s eyes flickered over her face, and then behind her. His lips twitched as if he was biting the inside of his bottom lip, and then he looked back at her. “I can come back la—”

“No. There’s a lot we need to sort out. Come on.” She took hold of his wrist and guided him back inside the conference room, closing the door behind him.

Lars and Finn had taken their seats on either side of the head of the table. As she led Bailey back inside, Lars pulled out a chair beside him and waved graciously toward it, giving Bailey a shark-like smile.

“Ignore him,” Cora said, glaring at Lars. “His bark’s worse that his bite.”

Lars shot her an offended look, and rocked back on his chair so he could rest his ankles on the table.

She took her seat and put her hands flat on the table in front of her. Bailey took the chair beside Lars and gave her a small frown when she turned her attention to him.

“How well did you know Gabriella?” she asked.

It took Bailey a few seconds to respond. At first, his frown deepened, but then he smoothed his face and cast a glance at Finn and Lars. “She was like a sister to me.”

Cora’s eyebrows shot up before she could control her expression. She dropped her gaze and murmured, “Oh,” while she tried to sort out suddenly muddled thoughts.

It would explain Bailey’s reaction to Neo’s news.

A cold weight settled in Cora’s stomach. She swallowed hard, pressed her palms down, and forced herself to look Bailey in the eyes.

“It’s my fault she’s dead,” Cora said.

Finn growled, and Lars hissed out a sigh as his head sank into his raised hand.

“I mean it,” she said, raising her voice as she shot the two men an angry stare. Then she turned back to Bailey. “It was because of the tracker, wasn’t it?”

Bailey shrugged, and then nodded reluctantly. “That’s all I can think.” He cleared his throat, his hands clasped together and dangling between his legs as he sat forward. “When you came back from shopping, Javier found the tracker on her car. That’s the last time I saw her.” And then he frowned at her again. “But that wasn’t your fault. How could you possibly—?”

---