Page 58

Grandmother stood beside her desk, frozen. Her hands cupped a golden bowl, a fire burning down inside it. They had come in just in time to watch the last of the white petals shrivel to ash.

Oliver wanted to yell. What came out was a hoarse and horrified whisper. “Grandmother. What are youdoing?”

Grandmother winced. She stood in front of the desk as if that would cover up her crime. As if that would hide the smoke still drifting up behind her.

“I can explain,” she started.

Luna laughed. “You canexplain? He broke hisfootgetting that thing! Do you know how hard it is carrying a limping werewolf down a hiking track?”

“You didnotcarry me,” Oliver said weakly.

“Whatever.” Luna shoved her blonde hair back, letting out a noise not unlike a tea kettle whistling. “I can’t— I don’t— What the HELL? You’re so nice! Itrustedyou! Were you the one who put the bond nectar in the office in the first place?”

“That was an accident,” Grandmother said hastily. “Your entire bond was an accident. But I believe it’s a happy one. If you just had more time?—”

“What?” Luna blurted. “I’d throw over my fiancé, my wholelife, to come and stay here withFurrier By The Dozen? Withhim?”

Oliver felt that last part like a knife. The shock was gone. In its place was anger, deep and raging. She’d seen him unconscious after he ran away toward the mountains. She’d seen how he struggled with the bond, withLuna, and she wanted to lock him in formoreof it?

“You chained me to a stranger,” he hissed.

Grandmother sighed, resigned. “You chainedyourselfto a stranger. I only wanted?—”

“She could be anyone,” Oliver said, the panic growing in his chest. A dozen images blurred through his head: standing at Luna’s door listening to her laugh and say he was only good for sex. Luna looking down at him while he rubbed her feet, telling him he’d make a good alpha. Luna grinning gleefully as she showedhim how many chocolate orders Beth got after her latest round of social media posts. Luna shivering and dripping and scowling at him at the front desk, a rich, spoiled socialite about to launch into a life of nonstop fun and zero responsibility.

“She could be anyone,” Oliver raged. “She’s been living herewithus! She could have doneanythingto us!”

“Um,” Luna said shrilly. “What?”

“She’s good for you,” Grandmother pleaded.

He bared his teeth at her for the first time since he was a child. His voice was rising, and he could hear others padding down the hall to see what the fuss was about, Ben muttering something to Sabine about pressure cookers.

“You don’t know that,” he yelled. “She just showed up out of nowhere! We don’tknowher. She’s notsafe.”

“Not everybody wants to hurt us, Ollie. That woman was a fluke. And she’s in prison now; she can’t hurt us. I don’t understand why it got this big of a reaction from you. You didn’t evenknowher.”

She reached to touch his cheek.

He jerked back. It surged out of him like an explosion: “I GAVE HER THE KEY!”

The hall went silent.

Oliver’s ears rang. He stared at the carpet, vision swimming. He didn’t look up. He didn’t dare.

“I did know her,” he heard himself saying, the words finally tumbling out. A torrent after a year of keeping it at bay. “Alexis didn’t break in; I gave her a key. She never came over, but I thought—I thought it was romantic.She said she would wear it as a necklace.Key to your heart,she said.”

A hand touched his chin. He flinched.

Grandmother tilted his head back up. Her gaze wasn’t horrified like he thought it would be. It was warm and unbearably tender.

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

He laughed bitterly. “She said her family wouldn’t approve. Better to keep it under wraps from everyone.”

“But—” Grandmother wavered. “After?—”

“How could I? I endangered the pack. I’m next in line to be alpha, and I almost got us all—” He stopped, the word choking off in his throat. He could hear Ben saying something, but it was lost in the blood rushing in his ears. He turned, storming back down the hall. Past his aunts wringing their hands and Sabine and Ben with their arms around each other, past Uncle Roy looking shellshocked.