Page 44 of A Wolf of War
Lachlan didn’t comment on her shift in mood.Instead, he offered her another smile, this one softer, more deliberate. “Would you like a cup of coffee? I was just about to make one myself.”
Willow hesitated, then glanced at him. His presence was disarming, like he’d been built to ease tension, not create it. Despite everything, she wanted to like Lachlan. It would be easier to have at least one lifeline in this mess.
“Yeah,” she said, barely above a whisper. She cleared her throat. “That would be great.”
Lachlan gave a simple nod and moved around her, keeping a respectful distance as he stepped to the counter. Willow trailed after him, careful not to get too close, leaning her weight onto the edge of the counter as she watched him move with practiced ease. It was quiet, oddly domestic. Just a moment, she let herself breathe.
He moved quietly, asking what she liked in her coffee as he went. His tone was easy, unhurried, like this wasn’t the middle of a hostage situation but an ordinary morning between acquaintances. She answered with short, clipped phrases.
When the coffee was ready, they settled into a quiet rhythm, sitting across from each other at the kitchen island. Willow wasn’t entirely sure why she’d agreed tolinger. Maybe it was foolish. But the truth was, she ached for anything that resembled normal. A conversation without barbed edges. A moment without Milo.
Something human in all this madness.
“So, how are you settling in?”
Willow lifted the mug to her lips and took her time sipping, letting the silence hang uncomfortably thick between them. She didn’t owe him any answers, but his gaze pressed the words from her anyway.
“Well, all things considered,” she said, voice dry as bone, “I guess just fine.”
Her expression sharpened as she set the mug down, eyes cold and unreadable. Lachlan’s easy smile faltered, a flicker of regret tightening the space between his brows.
“I really am sorry about all this,” he murmured. “If it were up to me, things would’ve gone a lot differently.”
“So, what’s with the whole mate thing, anyway? Can’t he just, like, find somebody else? Somebody more willing?”
She hit the last word hard, her voice tight as she dropped her gaze. It wasn’t a real question; more of a desperate hope, clinging to the edge of reason.
Lachlan exhaled through his nose, his smile soft and sad. “I wish I could tell you otherwise, but… no. It doesn’t work like that. A mate bond is not something we choose. It’s instinct. It’s written in the stars, so to speak.”
His voice dipped, gentling further. “It’s mutual, too, Willow. That pull you feel? That’s the bond.”
Willow’s thumb skimmed along the rim of her mug, her brow furrowed in thought. She didn’t want to say it, didn’t want to give it air, but the truth pressed up against her ribs.
“Yeah,” she admitted, barely above a whisper. “I do feel it.”
Her voice cracked, and she set the mug down with a soft clink before burying her face in her hands. “I don’t know. None of this makes sense.”
Lachlan, mercifully, let her sit in the not-knowing. After a few moments of collecting herself, she spoke up again.
“So what are you guys, anyway? The werewolf mafia?”
Lachlan blinked, startled. His brow ticked up slowly, and for a second, he just stared at her like he wasn’t sure if she was joking.
“I’m sorry?”
She shrugged, tone sharp. “I was talking to Milo, and he said that you sold drugs and guns.”
The corner of his mouth twitched, not quite a smile, not quite a frown.
“If we’re being blunt, yes, I suppose that’s the bare bones of it.”
Willow’s eyes narrowed.
He sighed, resting his forearms on the counter, fingers drumming lightly. “Werewolf history is steeped in blood, Willow. You have to understand that we didn’t exactly have a seat at the table in society. For a long time, we survived in the shadows. That legacy carries down. The cycle continues.”
He was silent for a moment, allowing his words to sink in before continuing.
“Even now, with all the wealth and power we’ve built, it’s almost impossible to separate from the underbelly we were born into. It’s what we know.”
