Page 13 of Just Dare Me
“The UTF has no other choice. Because of her direct connection to the East Side conjurer, Hillerman is essential to this case, and since she’s made it clear that she refuses to operate without Detective Russo, they both come on board, despite FBI regulations forbidding couples from working together.”
“But they’re not a couple. She’s married.”
Rook’s voice comes from the couch behind us. “Right, right, she’s married…to a spirit. That possesses her body.”
His cheeky tone irks me. “Okay, are you really going to be the judge of unconventional relationships?”
“You can’t have a relationship with a ghost.”
“And an alpha would rather die than share his mate, yet here you are.”
The room goes silent, except for the sound of sizzling, which might be coming from the two holes burning in my back from Rook’s glare. Usually I would have instantly regretted talking that way to an alpha, but this time I feel justified. Rook started it. Why is he even listening to us? This ismyconversation, not his.
The doorbell chime rings out, breaking the tension.
“That’s Wulf,” Terrance says. He taps on his phone, and we hear the door open and shut.
Almost every night after he ends his shift at Underworld, Wulf stops in to report to us about any rumors he overheard at the club that might give us leads on the East Side horde or the Cleveland vampire clan. A few of his tips have actually paid off.
“Look who I had to drag away from the bar,” Wulf announces. He sweeps his arm over to Nolan, who gives an uncomfortable nod. Charlie stands up and waves excitedly at him. Nolan offers an awkward half-smile in return, which is actually a big reaction for him.
Nolan will come here if we ask him to, but he never likes it. For a nature-loving introvert and traditionalist, being in this underground mansion surrounded by an overly affectionate love cult is torment.
A feeling of homesickness pricks my heart. After months of feeling like a fifth wheel around here—or more like a fifteenth wheel—I miss belonging to a pack. Seeing Nolan is like smelling a campfire, or hearing the whisper of a stream—reminders of a simpler time filled with family and friends, back when my biggest concern in the world was getting boys to notice me, Nolan being one of them.
I wish I could hug him right now. He’s the closest I can get to my family. But I know he hates public displays of emotion,anyemotion, let alone physical affection. Plus, I’ve been so rotten to Nolan for so long, it’s probably confusing when I act happy to see him.
What a mess, the whole thing with my family. I wish I could wipe the slate clean and start over. A useless wish. After some of the things I said and did, there’s no going back. Literally, I can’t ever go back to see my family, or I’ll be killed.
“You stayed at Underworld until closing time?” I ask Nolan. I don’t think I have to tell anybody here that a night club is not his kind of thing.
“Just doing my duty,” he says. “Keeping my eyes and ears open for anything that could help us.”
Wulf claps him on the back. “I think we ought to hire him, Terrance. Seems like every time Nolan shows up, our attendance spikes. Half the Manistee Forest pack was there tonight.”
Nolan suddenly looks anxious, and I know why. Darby Monson is Manistee Forest pack, and according to Rook, Nolan and Darby have been hiding their love affair for years, partly on my account. Nolan doesn’t know I know. Maybe he doesn’t know thatanybodyknows. He’d certainly want to keep it that way. The Manistee Forest pack is way up in the northwest part of Michigan, a territory that, historically, has always turned their noses up at us city packs.
“Can you believe that?” Rook continues obliviously. “Coming all the way down here from Manistee Forest? I thought they hated the city. But Nolan seems to speak their backwoods language. He showed them a great time.”
Nolan quickly changes the subject. “Nah, I just wondered if maybe they’d heard anything about anything, which they haven’t. Seems like East Side has been quiet these days.”
“Same for me. I got nothing,” Wulf adds. “Except that Nick Gorgeous had to leave suddenly for the office. And now I find all of you up and at ’em. Something going on?”
“You’ll know when we know,” Parker says.
“Until then, eat something,” Nora invites. “We made too much, as always.”
Rook mumbles through a mouthful. “What too much? I’ll take all this down myself.” Always eager to be helpful, Muppet appears at his side, sniffing his plate. Rook shoves him away. “Not you. Get your own.”
“Hey, how about if you don’t shove him like that?” I say, and I feel like my tone is reasonable, but apparently not, because Rook flinches.
“Whoah, what was that?” he says.
“Nothing. I said take it easy.”
He jumps to his feet. “Whoah, hey!”
His sudden movement sets something off inside my body. I plant my feet and clench my fists. “Hey, relax!”
