Page 4 of First Bite
Chapter Two
Iwanted to soak in the tub longer, but my hunger trumped my desire to relax. I dried myself off and pulled on a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt that was laid out for me before I slipped on my favorite pair of Vans and headed out of the room.
My hopes for Cole being out of his shitty mood were dashed when I heard him arguing with his cousins.
Goddammit.
“What the hell is wrong now?” I asked as I walked into the vast kitchen.
Logan and Braden were sitting on bar stools at the island area across from Cole while Zac leaned against the sink, arms crossed, watching Cole as he began plating our five-star meal.
“Just trying to iron out the change of plans that need to be made now that Enzo has another fucking Life Blood to juice himself up with,” Logan answered.
“This is messed up, and you know it, Cole,” Zac said.
“It’s our only option.” Cole looked over at Zac, “Let’s just get this to the table and eat.”
I followed the vampires into the dining room. A table with seating for ten was set and ready for us, but my appetite was slowly fading. The strange vibes I was picking up from the guys was unsettling. I could tell they were keeping something from me.
“What’s the only option?” I asked as I cut into my steak.
Cole sat at the head of the table, and I was to the right of him. Zac sat next to me, and Cole and Braden were across from us.
“It’s better to let us work this out before we fill you in on what we’re discussing. It’s not exactly something we’re proud of,” Braden said, his eyes shooting daggers at Cole.
Cole looked at me, “This whole shit show that went down, your mom being snatched up by Enzo, and the fact that we’re fucked if we don’t recruit more into our army against him—”
“Shut the hell up right now,” Logan interrupted.
“She’s part of us.” Cole looked at Zac, “Whatever you two did on that plane intensified the bond, and that means she needs to know what we’re fucking doing whether or not it scares the shit out of her.” Cole eyed me, “And whether or not you have a problem with it.”
“What I have a problem with,” I stabbed my fork into my broccoli, “is you and your shitty attitude. Yes, I fucked up, and yes, my mom is Enzo’s new pet, butthatpart is not my fucking fault. I’ll take the heat for running off, but I’m not taking any shit for what happened to my mom.”
“She’s right,” Braden spoke up. “What happened to her mom was out of her control.”
“Besides,” Zac started, “we wouldn’t have known what happened to her mom if Elle didn’t go down there. Those collectors took out Lucas’s vamps who had their eyes on her right after they checked in with him. In a way, Elle helped us.”
“That’s the stupidest fucking thing I’ve ever heard you say,” Cole argued. “Elle could’ve been taken too. On top of that, we still don’t know if any of the collectors got away from us and told Enzo his newly-acquired Life Blood has a daughter. She’s still in serious fucking danger, and so are we. Lucas’s coven is barely recovering, and if Enzo wants to go to war with who we have right now,” Cole threw his napkin on his unfinished plate of food, “we’re all as good as dead.” He stood and looked at me. “And you,Ellie Doll,” he said the nickname with disgust, “will be taken and used against us too.”
“Why don’t you take your bullshit mood somewhere else,” Braden growled. “Go take a fucking lap or something.”
Cole’s lips tightened, “We need to stay on top of this.”
“We need to fucking eat, asshole,” Logan snapped.
With one last glare, Cole left the table, and I stood. “I’m going to talk to him,” I said, the others looking at me like I was insane.
“Let him cool off,” Zac said as a warning.
“I can handle him,” I answered. “I think I’ve proven I’m not as breakable as we all thought when it comes to this supernatural shit.”
“If he upsets you, I’ll know, and I’ll personally fix his mood,” Braden said without a hint of sarcasm.
I nodded and walked out of the dining room area to find Cole outside, looking down at his phone.
“Can we talk?” I asked as nicely as I could.
Cole kept his face on his phone. “There’s nothing to talk about.”
