Page 24 of Captive Hybrid

Chapter Ten

Mordecai

Sitting on the bed, alone in the motel room, I fight back wave after wave of crappy emotions. I shuffle off the bed and start doing push ups. Ten. Twenty. Thirty. Instead of peace, it pumps me up, making me wish I had a punching bag.

I think about taking a shower, but don’t want to stand still for so long. After another thirty push ups, a soft knock sounds on my door. It’s the middle of the night. I pause, mid-push up, and climb to my feet. I pad across the room and open the door.

Jana stands on the threshold. Her eyes widen at my naked chest. ‘Wow.’

‘You again. What do you want this time?’

‘I wanted to have a go at you all day, but now, Jaken is asleep, and I can’t sleep and I’m kind of worried Divina will come into my room and turn me into a toad or something.’

I blink. ‘You talk a lot.’

Jana huffs a sigh. She’s changed into fluffy pink pyjama pants and a white t-shirt, matching the blonde-pink of her hair. ‘Can I come in or not?’

I nearly roll my eyes. But I’m going a little crazy too. I step back.

Jana seems to take up the whole room as she bounces in, a ball of jittery energy. ‘I wish Kyle was here,’ she murmurs. ‘Or Kaden. I forget.’

I close the door. ‘What are you talking about?’

‘Oh. Just this guy I know from the club I work at. Back home, when I can’t fall asleep, I go to his place.’

Feigning interest, I sit on the bed. ‘Is that your boyfriend?’

Jana laughs, making herself comfortable at the foot of my bed. Part of me wants to growl at her to get off. This is my space. Instead, I pull on my shirt and sit far away from her.

‘No. Just a guy I sleep with sometimes.’

Oh. My brows furrow.

The witch sniggers. ‘You look like you’ve never heard of casual dating before.’

I lift my shoulders. ‘I’ve heard of it. I just—wolves are fated. We’re usually monogamous.’ I scratch the back of my neck. ‘Is this what you came here to talk to me about?’ Something flushes over me. ‘Or are you—I am not Kyle,’ I say firmly, lest she get the wrong idea. I have no interest in being her one night stand.

Jana scoffs. ‘No, you’re not. I mean’—she waves at me—‘certainly not bad, but you’re Zenna’s. Don’t worry, not interested. Nah, I guess I just wanted some company. And you can’t change my hair into that awful black.’

‘You almost sound like you don’t hate me.’

Jana lifts a brow. ‘Oh, don’t get me wrong, I think you’re a douche for what you’ve done to my friend, but I don’t exactly know anyone else. And I know you want to go after her.’ She sighs, contemplating. Her gaze wanders around the room. ‘Did you do that?’ She points to the fist-sized hole in the back of the door.

‘Yes.’

She turns back to me with a frown. ‘Why?’

I growl.

‘You don’t scare me. Why did you do that?’

‘Why do you care?’

Jana glares. ‘What are you hiding?’

‘I’m not hiding anything. Look, I want to get some sleep. Get out.’

She ignores me. I am not used to being ignored. ‘Come on, tell me.’

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