Page 68 of Wolf

“WhataboutAnna?”

“What about Anna?” Ash grumbled. “Anna has her life here now, someone to protect her, to look after her. She looks... happy. And if she was willing to tell you everything, then she musttrustyou.”

“How can you know that after justaday?”

“I don’t need to knowyou.” She grunted, and it slightly pissed me off. “I know Anna. And Anna wouldn’t trust just anyone. You wouldn’t be wrong to consider yourselfspecial.”

Ash tilted her head at me, and I could hear the soft undertone of her voice as she said the last words, the sadness in themunmistakable.

“Anna was...” Ash paused, her head cocking to one side as she struggled for words. I watched as her head gravitated upward, and I was reminded of Anna’s story about the constellations. “She was the last important thing to me in this world,” she said, a wistful smile on her face. “She gave up everything to take me somewhere safe. Her family, friends, country. I know it wasn’t easy for her. I wasn’t easy for her, either. But to know she’s cared for here, even if it’s not the safest place or with the most competent people”—I felt my leg throb in response to her jibe—“I know this is where she’s chosen to be. And if there’s one person I trust to make the right call, it’s Anna. That’s why I won’t worry anymore. I don’thaveto.”

Her feet hit the floor and a cloud of dust fell off her boots. She turned and picked up her bottle, her brown hair brushing across her face as she looked down to tuck it under her arm and headed towardthedoor.

“What are you going to do?” I asked, stopping her at my side. I didn’t look at her or even turn in her direction. My feet stayed firmly planted north, my eyes looking over the car lot and into the darkness of Fellpeak as the town turned in for thenight.

I heard the faint sound of cars on the main street a fewblocksover.

“Take care of her,” was all Ash said before she picked up her boots and continued towardthedoor.

I wanted to grab her and ask her what she meant by that. But my body didn’t move. Because somehow, I knew. I knew, and in the future, I would probably regret not stopping her. Not asking exactly what shemeant.

But that wasn’t today. Thatwasn’tnow.

Now, I just watched her walk away and pretended Ididn’tknow.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Anna

“So, you’re both from England?”Mallory asked, her big brown eyes wide as she stared at Ash, scanning her from headtotoe.

Ash smirked. “Childhood friends. Known the bitch foryears.”

“Said bitch is sitting right here,” I snapped, glaring at her. She onlyshrugged.

“Saidbeepis holding my child,” Mallory snapped between us, “so stop with theB-word.”

I looked down to the wriggling child on my lap, his blond curls brushing my chin. He was happily playing with my cell phone on an app I had downloaded for him. He was four years old now and found it fascinating to paint in the bike pictures that the app provided. When he finished one, he’d jump up and down on my lap and present me his amazing artistry before I put a different one on. This one was being painted a ruby red color, which made my heart warm in my chest, considering that his father’s bike, one he was practically married to, was a ruby redHarley.

“Good color, buddy.” Hunter’s voice came from over my shoulder, drawing mine and Mallory’s attention. Adair’s didn’t stray as he continued to scribble in thelines.

Hunter was Adair’s uncle, though he acted more like a father the more time he spent with the boy. He ruffled his hair before dropping onto the other couch where Mallory had parked herself. He chucked his arm over her shoulder and planted a long, deep kiss on her before he faced us again, leaving Mallory a littleflushed.

I stared into his deep green eyes before saying, “You know, if you wanna go do something about that”—I gestured toward Mallory’s hot, red cheeks as she gave Hunter the “fuck me” eyes—“I’m quite happy to look after themunchkin.”

I didn’t miss how Hunter’s eyes cut across to where Ash sat, nursing a bottle of rum after Lamb had managed to take away her last bottle of whiskey. She had only drank a little bit over the course of the morning and wasn’t anywhere near drunk, but I wasn’t surprised when Hunter said, “Nah, I gotta take him out in a bit. Gonna go check out the old garage on the other side of town; wondering if Mrs. Meyers would be interested in selling up, since her husband passed away a few months ago and her son looks like he doesn’t even know to changetheoil.”

“And you’re taking a four-year-old child?” I scoffed. “Good luckwiththat.”

Hunter rolled his eyes at me, flicking his black hair away from his face in theprocess.

“I would take him with me, but I’ve got somewhere to be,” Mallory said with a soft sigh, giving her little boy big round eyes, and I knew it was because she was jealous about how attached Adair was to Hunter. The boyidolizedhim.

“I’ll take him,” Jax popped up behind Ash a second later. She didn’t flinch, instead just turned her chin up to look at the supreme southern hotness. His dark, unruly hair was a lot shorter than Hunter’s, but it only served to highlight that gorgeous tan and add to the dark matrix of the tattoos covering him from headtotoe.

“Noway.”

“No wayinhell.”

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