Page 9

9

JACOB

A soft thump drew my attention. I leaned forward to see Kelly’s phone lying face down in her lap. Her fingers were frozen in mid-air like she’d just let it slip.

“Kelly?” The scent of sorrow hit me like a tidal wave, suffocating and thick, killing my erection in an instant. “Babe, what happened?”

She didn’t say anything or move. Had she even heard me?

A creeping unease settled in into my chest. I suddenly hated that her back was to me. Fuck. I needed to see her face, to know what the hell had just happened. “Kelly?”

Her silence stretched too long. The weight of her choking emotions roused my beast. When she still didn’t respond, I reached for her phone to set it aside.

She jerked as if threatened. Her slender fingers snapped around my wrist in a tight grip. “W-what are you doing?” The panic in her voice stopped me cold.

Play things cool.

Something had freaked her out, and she needed time to process it.

“Just moving it to the nightstand.” My fingers relaxed around her phone. It slid back between her crossed legs, showing that I wasn’t taking it from her. “Tell me what happened.”

Her nails dug into my forearm, and I suppressed a groan. Damn, that’ll leave a bruise. Not that it’d last long.

“Emma. She told me…” Her voice broke, and she cleared her throat. She released my wrist to wrap her arms around her middle, as if holding herself together. “I screwed up our friendship. I don’t think there’s any going back.”

My jaw clenched. “Don’t say that.” What the hell was Emma thinking? I could call her. Fix this nonsense. Maybe she needed someone to spell out how wrong she was. Would that cause her to dig her heels in harder? I didn’t want to cause a greater rift between the women. But what if it helped? “Emma isn’t the type to hold a grudge, babe.” I wanted to pull Kelly against my chest and let her cry it out, but with how upset she was, I was afraid of startling her again. “What did she say?”

“I…” She glanced over her shoulder. Tears streaked her cheeks. Her lips moved like she wanted to speak, but the words wouldn’t come. After a moment, she handed over the phone, hand trembling. “I should’ve known this would happen.” The pain in her eyes spoke of a hurt deeper and older than what I figured Emma alone could cause. It felt systemic.

Don’t read into it.

But I wanted to wrap my arms around her and kiss those salty tears away. Who did this to her? Violence wasn’t always the answer, but it seemed like a good idea now. Once I learned more about her past, I’d hunt the assholes down.

I glanced at the screen, scanning the latest messages. They were hurtful and jealous. I couldn’t believe Emma had sent them. Kelly went through hell, and her so-called best friend chose this moment to lash out? Yes, Emma had been worried for over a month. She had every right to be. But this wasn’t the path she should’ve taken.

“She’s wrong.” I released a soft sigh. “You don’t deserve this.” The words came out in a low rumble. “She isn’t thinking.” I placed a gentle hand on Kelly’s shoulder, brushing my thumb over her soft skin. “If you want me to handle this?—”

“No!” She wrenched free, twisting toward me. “That’s not why I mentioned this. Don’t you dare.” Anger flashed in her wolf amber gaze. Her beast lurked just beneath the surface, barely leashed. If she didn’t regain control, she’d lose it.

“Okay, I won’t.” Not immediately, at least. But if Emma wanted to pass her next science class, she needed to rethink her choices. “Promise.” My expression remained neutral, but my thoughts raced, building a plan to help her.

Kelly needed to get better with her emotions before I introduced her to the Pack’s Council—or took her anywhere public. What if she got cut off in traffic? Would she lose it? Snap at some random asshole? She was strong and needed to get a handle on it before someone pushed her too far.

Her nostrils flared as she studied me. Her face tightened, confusion narrowing her eyes. “You’re lying. I don’t know how I know this, but I do.”

I tilted my head to the side. Good girl. She was learning. Maybe my job as her mentor would be easier than I’d thought. If only she hadn’t used her instincts against me.

Her lips lifted, baring those perfect white teeth. “Don’t lie to me.”

My jaw clenched, but I schooled my expression. “Scent changes tell wolves a lot. You caught the shift in my physiology when I said that. And no, I will not press Emma on this immediately.” I held her gaze, letting my words sink in. “But if she wants to act this way, I’ll give her a choice. Last we spoke, she was struggling with College Algebra. That class was hard for her. If she wants my help passing future courses, she needs to be reasonable with you.”

Her mouth fell open. “Jacob! Don’t tell me you’re serious.” The look of betrayal on her face surprised me. “She’s allowed to break off our friendship. It’s not like I’ve been a great person to her.”

“Come on. You can’t believe that shit.” I reached for her, but she leapt from the bed like I’d burned her. “Why are you defending her?” My teeth ground together. I was on Kelly’s side. Why the fuck were we fighting? Was this a werewolf thing or a woman struggle? Either way, I didn’t understand.

“Because! I don’t want you to weaponize your help. It’s a shitty thing to do.” She shook her head, anger hot in her gaze. “I can’t do this with you right now.” She walked past, determined to put more distance between us. What the hell? We weren’t done here. I grabbed her around the waist, not wanting her to walk away. Her elbow slammed backward, connecting with my temple hard.

“Fuck!” The impact sent me sprawling onto my back, my head exploding with pain. It wasn’t just a hit but a brutal, full-force blow. My skull pounded like someone had taken a sledgehammer to it. A burst of white stars clouded my vision, and my ears rang with a tinny, sharp whine.

I rolled to my side, groaning as my fingers dug into my temples. Each pulse of pain sent a fresh wave of nausea straight to my gut. The world tilted, my body sluggish and uncooperative. Don’t puke. Do not puke.

“Jacob?” The bed sank behind me. The way it rocked my body didn’t help my stomach. “Oh, shit.” Her trembling fingers grazed my arm. “I’m so sorry.”

She hadn’t meant to hurt me, and I’d been stupid trying to wrangle a flighty cub. Still, the agony in my skull fogged my brain. The ringing in my ears wouldn’t stop, and my vision was a mess.

A soft growl rumbled from my throat as my wolf pushed up, scrambling to take over. Kelly’s fingers froze against my arm, and I caught her sharp gasp. Shit. She’d heard that. I swallowed, shoving the beast back down. “It’s fine,” I mumbled against the comforter. “Don’t worry about it.”

“What can I do? I… I’m so sorry.” The tang of salt filled my nose, cutting through my pain. She was crying. “I’ll be right back.” The bed jostled again as she jumped up. Her sniffles hurt my heart.

“Kelly…” I squeezed my eyes shut, struggling to keep the bacon and eggs in my gut. But her feet slapped the floor on her way to the kitchen. A moment later, the freezer opened, followed by a brief shuffle, and then it slammed shut.

My head throbbed in protest, a fresh stab of pain shooting through my eyeballs. “Geez, Kelly.” I groaned, pressing my forehead against the mattress. “Have mercy.”

“Sorry!” She nearly yelled the word.

I shielded my exposed ear as I pressed against my temple. For fuck’s sake. “Close the blinds,” I mumbled the command. The faintest whir of machinery filled the room as the blackout shades obeyed. The room darkened, easing some of the agony slicing through my brain. Better. Curling into a ball, I tried to maintain control, even as guilt gnawed at my ribs.

“Huh? I didn’t catch that.” Cabinets opened and closed, as if she were looking for something else. Maybe a towel? Here she was falling apart while I was writhing in pain.

Damn it. I tried to push through the pain. I couldn’t handle her crying. Besides, I’d suffered worse injuries than this. I needed to fix this.

When I forced myself to sit upright, the stars flooded my eyes with a vengeance. My head spun as my arm wobbled beneath me. Fuck, I can’t… Yes, I could but not yet.

Footsteps padded back in, then hesitated. “What the hell? The windows… Did you do that?” Her voice sharpened, scolding me. “Hey, what are you doing? Lay down.” Kelly gripped my shoulders, firm but careful, guiding me back to the mattress. It made me feel like a cub again, and I wasn’t sure I liked this. “I have an ice pack for you.” The crackle of plastic near my ear came a second before the cool cloth touched my skin.

I hissed at the stinging sensation. “Shit, that’s freezing.” Her gentle touch over my back soothed my wolf. His agitation subsided, and he rumbled in contentment at our mate’s caress. But I kept one hand over my face, struggling to exist with my splitting headache.

“Sorry, I know it is. It’ll help, I promise.” The tension in her words twisted a knife in my gut.

Wait a minute. Something was wrong here. I cracked open an eye, raising my gaze to meet hers… and regretted my decision.

That same deep, conditioned pain I’d seen earlier was back. The look she’d worn when Emma cut her off. But this time, it wasn’t about Emma. She directed it at me.

The air between us changed, charged like the calm before lightning struck. My wolf stilled, ears pricked for the incoming danger. The look in her eyes was the quiet devastation you didn’t come back from.

She thought I’d leave her.

Ah, fuck.