Page 55 of Pack Baines

LOWIE:I’ve got it. I’ll surprise you.

EVRON:Oooh, surprises. I like it. Does this mean Juno IS on the menu?

I’m just about to type out a reply, amused and suddenly completely at ease with just a few messages, a strange prickle on the back of my neck has my footsteps slowing.

Frowning, I raise my head to peer around subtly. My cell is still clutched in my hand, vibrating with every message that comes through as the guys continue the conversation without me, yet I can’t shift my attention away from the weird awareness that slithers down my spine. Someone is watching me. I can feel their eyes on me, setting the hairs on my body on end, and a swirling pit of worry forms in my stomach the more the feeling of being watched grows.

Giving up any pretense of being subtle, I turn around and openly look for the source, only finding clusters of students milling around after classes. No one seems to be looking over at me, all engrossed in conversations or sitting out in the remaining rays of sunshine before nightfall.

Biting my lip, I scan my surroundings once more, finding nothing out of the ordinary. When nothing jumps out of the bushes and screams ‘boo’ at me, I decide to message the guys and head tomy dorm quickly, the unease clinging to my shoulders with a clawlike grip.

Looking down at my phone, I turn with the intent to hurry to my dorm, only to collide into a body that blocks my path. Stumbling back, I look up sharply, eyes wide with a flush of panic. A man, one I vaguely recognize, stands on the sidewalk with his hands outstretched and an uncomfortable smile on his face. “Woah, there. Sorry about that. Looks like we both weren’t paying attention.”

He says it friendly enough, but there’s something about the shrewd, calculating gleam in his dark eyes that sets me on edge. There’s no doubt in my mind that this is who was watching me, the unease in my stomach growing tenfold as the guy takes a step back away from me and stretches his lip into a bigger, more uncomfortable smile, as though he’s trying to set me at ease.

It doesn’t.

In fact, it has the opposite effect, and I grip my cell tightly as I try to offer the man a smile that I’m certain comes out more like a grimace. “No worries. Sorry for running into you.”

“Not a bother at all. You enjoy the rest of your day,” he assures, bowing his head a little, hands still held out like he’s trying to appease a startled wild animal. Before he departs, he eyes me once more and says, “I’ll see you around, Miss Henley.”

Then he disappears down the sidewalk, tucking his hands into his pocket before he rounds a corner and vanishes from sight. It takes a whole stunned minute to realize the motherfucker used my old pack name, and my heart stops for all of three seconds before it starts a thundering beat beneath my ribcage.

I’m pressing buttons and calling the first name in my contacts before my brain catches up, pressing the phone to my ear as I wait for the call to connect.

“Hey, beautiful. You disappeared from the chat. Everything—” Creek answers, and I can hear the smile in his voice, a soothing sound to the riot currently exploding within my body.

Interrupting him, I blurt, “I think someone is following me.”

It’s all it takes for him to rush out with, “Where are you? I’m on my way.”

“Not far from the library,” I breathe, rubbing a hand over my chest where my heart gallops like an untamable stallion.

“I’m around the corner. Be there in five seconds,” he assures, voice steady and calm, my lighthouse in an unfamiliar storm I don’t know how to deal with.

I stay on the phone until Creek rounds the corner briskly, is right in front of me, and even as he tugs me into a warm hug that instantly makes me feel safe. I drop my arms and band them tightly around him, clinging to him as he tucks my head under his chin, his hand cupping the back of my head to keep me pressed against him as I tremble with panic.

We stay that way until my heart has calmed down enough, and I’m no longer shaking like a leaf. Eventually, Creek pulls back long enough to peer down at me with determination, and announces, “We’re packing all of your shit and you’re staying with us. We were going to give you time to settle into the idea, build up with sleepovers, but fuck it all. You’re coming to live with us, where we can keep you safe.”

There’s such a finality about it that I can do nothing but nod, my earlier worries evaporating like they hadn’t existed before, and allow Creek to lead me to my dorm, pack all of my things, and carry it all to his car before he drives us to his house.

Chapter 21

Creek

I can smell her fear, the bone-deep panic, her scent still sugary but with sour notes to it that make my nose twitch. I don’t like it, don’t like that she’s scared, that someone was watching her. In fact, it sets my blood on fire, and I’m forced to unclench my hands from around the steering wheel so as not to worry Juniper more.

“He knew your name?” I ask the moment she’s done explaining, and I glance over at her before facing the road once more.

Reaching for the hand attached to the thumb she’s chewing the nail off of, I link our hands together while I drive, and I feel the way she relaxes instantly. Not completely, but enough that the sour notes of her scent softens enough that I feel a little less homicidal.

Juniper hugs my arm to her chest, a show of vulnerability I both hate and love, and answers quietly, “My old name. He called me Miss Henley before he disappeared down the sidewalk.”

Frowning at the road, I mutter, “So, whoever this is doesn’t know you’ve changed your name. You had all your bills before under Baines, right?”

She nods.

“Then it stands to reason that whoever this bastard is hasn’t kept up with you over the years. This is recent,” I theorize, looking over to Juniper before rolling down the drive that will lead to our house.

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