Page 48 of Defiant
Matthew’s gray brows raise but he doesn’t say anything.
I just chuckle and take another sip of my coffee, then I follow my butler upstairs to the third floor in comfortable silence, fighting against a grin that keeps threatening to crop up on my lips and make me look like a stupid teenager.
I’ve had great sex before … maybe not quite as hot as that. No, no one’s tried to resist me before, or tell me what to do … definitely not as hot as that … But great sex is no reason to go around grinning like a fool. Especially since it's not locked down yet.
I unlock our patient's door but Cody’s still asleep.
“Should I wake him up and yell at him for being an asshole or save it for after breakfast?”
“Personally, I like a good yell first thing in the morning before the sun’s up. It’s a great way to wake up. Especially when you’re wounded. That startle reflex feels amazing on broken ribs.” Matthew’s sarcasm game is on point.
“He should be mostly healed at this point,” I counter.
“By all means, then, yell away.” Matthew makes a welcoming gesture toward Cody’s bed.
I decide against waking the other alpha up to yell at him. I can fix other problems in the meantime. And he’s not a current problem. He just needs a fitting punishment for wandering around my house uninvited.
I sigh. “Fine. Lock him back up, old man.”
“Who are you calling old man, toddler?”
I chuckle as Matthew drags out his keys and locks the bedroom door.
When Pluto discovers us walking back down the grand staircase he bolts up to us and dead arms me hard. “You did that shit on purpose!”
“Of course, I did,” I respond calmly switching my coffee mug out of the now-aching limb and into my good hand. I don’t retaliate, because Pluto does deserve to get in at least one good shot. “She didn’t believe she was an omega.”
“I could have hurt her or you, you dumb fuck.” Pluto runs a hand through his hair, distress clear on his face.
“Her, maybe.” I grin as I see Pluto’s teeth grind together. As an alpha, he hates when I dismiss him as a threat.
“If she’s your mate, you shouldn’t put her at risk.”
I let out a breath because that was a blow to the gut. That statement's true. I shouldn’t have. But Elena didn't believe me. And I learned a long time ago in this world that you can't hold punches because if you do, the fight just gets worse, drags on longer than it should, and both people end up a hell of a lot more bruised and broken. A quick punch to the face, a jab of reality, is always better.
"Before you called me down there, Stone's second blew up my phone. The Dark Nights are pissed." Pluto tells me what I already know. He's got a real talent for stating the obvious.
"What do we have on them?" I ask calmly. I knew it was coming. We make our way back downstairs shoulder to shoulder, last night's fight already forgotten. The front windows show the gray hints of pre-morning light when the sun is still beneath the horizon. The moon goddess has tucked herself away. I’ll have to fight today’s battle myself. Like always.
Matthew goes on ahead of us with a quick declaration. "I'll bring omelets to your office. And some clothes for Pluto."
My stomach gives a growl of approval.
Pluto scratches the stubble on his face as he answers my question about the Dark Nights, unconcerned about the clothes. Alphas end up naked around each other too often to be able to give a shit about modesty. "We know they've pissed off some bear shifters who live in Oregon. So they're having trouble out there. Our plant in their ranks told me there’s a bit of dissension. Stone’s wife might be against him keeping an omega, edging her out. Her family’s pretty extensive, so she might have some pull in the pack.”
“Good. Maybe I should have a little chat with her.”
“I’ll set it up.”
We stride into my office, business taking over our heads as we both consider strings we can pull. “I think we need the inner perimeter guarding Elena to consist of betas.”
Pluto sucks in a breath between his teeth as he takes a seat in a leather chair at the small circular meeting table off to the left of my office door, the table where I take most of my meals. “That will leave her vulnerable if any alphas penetrate. A couple growls, orders, most betas will fold.”
I press my lips together. “I know. But based on last night, I don’t think we can use alphas. You and Cody were both pretty damn affected by her scent.”
He sighs, nodding, drumming his fingers on the table before a grin spreads slowly across his face. “What about humans?”
“What about them?”
