Page 87 of Wolf's Reckoning
Very slowly.
I was almost scared to look at him. The silence that followed was a full-body thing; it reminded me of the feeling you got when you held your breath for too long.
Then Wolfe smiled.
Goddess, it was theworstkind of smile—lazy, lethal, polite enough to be terrifying.
“I’m keeping her where she belongs,” he said, his voice smooth as ice sliding across a blade. “Right beside me.”
I couldfeelmy face heating. Rage or embarrassment—I wasn’t sure which. Probably both.
“She’s not yours to keep,” Tyler said.Why the hell was he still here?Stupid. So stupid. “You married her, not marked her.”
Wolfe didn’t move. But the shadows seemed to stretch a little farther under the table.
“Fuck, I forgot all about you,” he said with a slow drawl, and I winced in sympathy at how totally emasculating thatwould be for someone as proud as Tyler. “Is that a challenge?” Wolfe asked, his voice lazy and bored.
Tyler blanched.
“I didn’t mean?—”
“Because, if it is,” Wolfe cut in, lifting his mug again, “we can settle it right now.” He looked over the other shifter with total disdain. “Are you still here because you can’t go back to your father and tell him you couldn’t even secure a marriage contract?” He tilted his head, arrogance pouring from him as he spoke to Tyler. “Would killing you do you a favor?”
The room held its breath.
I wanted to scream. Throw something. Crawl under the table—or maybe set it on fire. Instead, I reached for my knife, casually slicing into the venison on my plate.
“I’ve already married you, Wolfe,” I said, forcing a warmth into my voice that I didn’t feel. “You can stop posturing to impress me.” I smiled up at him, seeing that he understood what I was doing, and he smiled back. It was as empty as mine, but it broke the tension.
A ripple of laughter sounded throughout the hall.
Wolfe didn’t laugh. He leaned toward me, his voice a whisper only I could hear.
“Your knife’s dull.”
“What can I say?” I murmured back. “I like a little resistance.”
He chuckled, a dark, soft sound. “You’ll get it.”
Luna help me, part of me already knew he was right. “Are you done threatening everyone?” I asked, my voice still low.
Wolfe sniffed as he leaned back. “They seem to react better to demonstrative action more than pretty speeches.”
I didn’t comment and concentrated on the food on my plate. I didn’t touch the mug of wine placed in front of me. Not because I was being difficult, but because I didn’t trust what might spill out of my mouth if I let even one drop loosen my tongue.
Wolfe, of course, was relaxed. Elbow on the table, long fingers wrapped around his cup, like this was any other night in any other pack.
“Eat,” he said softly, as if the command were meant for my benefit alone.
“I am eating,” I muttered.
He turned his head lazily, stormy blue eyes catching mine. “No. You’re picking.”
I pressed my lips together to stop the snappy retort; instead, I forced a lightness into my voice that I wasn’t feeling. “Maybe I’m savoring.”
He leaned in, voice just above the clatter of cutlery and low conversation, his voice thick with something I hadn’t heard from him before. “You do that with everything, princess? Or just when you know I’m watching?”
My fork stopped mid-air as a pulse of warmth spread through me.
