AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Xander nodded. ‘Yeah. Until I met you, I didn’t know there was another way to be. It’s all we’ve ever known.’
‘It’ll take some adjustment,’ I cautioned.
‘Yes.’ He paused again; something else was clearly on his mind.
‘Speak, Xander,’ I ordered.
‘Harry, Max and Toby aren’t bad people. I honestly think they believed – misguidedly – that you’d be grateful if Noah was removed from the equation.’
‘I have corrected that impression,’ I said firmly. ‘Any further errors in judgement with regard to Noah will not be tolerated.’
‘I understand, alpha.’ He ducked his head then backed out of the room without turning his back on me.
Does he not turn his back out of fear or respect? I asked Esme.
Fear, she murmured.
I grimaced. On some level even the devoted Xander feared me. Being feared was polar opposite to my pathological need to be liked.
This sucked.
Chapter 10
Esme was restless, and I was eager to get us back on an even keel. Run? I suggested.
Yes, she agreed, relief colouring her voice in my head.
‘Esme and I are going for a run,’ I announced to Greg and Jacob.
‘On mansion grounds?’ Greg checked. He’d learned not to assume things of me because sometimes I sneaked off. He didn’t love it when I did that, and I was trying to learn to be better about telling him what I was doing, but sometimes the constant guards were stifling, more so now than ever. Greg would give me space to run but he’d make sure another wolf was following me at a discreet distance. Usually it was Liam.
‘Yes,’ I promised. The mansion grounds were rather limited in comparison to Black Park, and there were no deer to sink our teeth into, but it was the run Esme and I needed and we had land enough for that. Plus there was no travel time and we could find Ares to run with.
‘I will scout from the air first,’ Jacob offered stiffly.
‘Great,’ Greg said before I could refuse. Jacob nodded and walked out. ‘I like him.’ Greg grinned at me.
I smiled. ‘You’re just happy to have more lackeys.’
‘A man can’t have too many lackeys,’ he agreed. Now that we were alone, he pulled me into his arms and held me lightly. We stayed still, cuddling for a moment, and I revelled in his scent around me and the feeling of safety he brought. The tension I’d been holding in my body since the confrontation with the three stooges drained away.
I thought about Greg’s jaunt to the roof with his corvid temptations. ‘Any sign that Operation Wing-It is working?’ I teased.
‘I know you’re being facetious, but that’s an excellent name for the programme,’ he said in all seriousness. ‘And yes, some success already. Two jackdaws took some of my nuts.’
‘Lucky them,’ I snickered. I gave him one last squeeze and a quick kiss on the lips.
Surely Jacob was aerial by now. Impatience jittered through me as I started to remove my clothes and fold them neatly in a pile. When I was naked, I let the pleasurable shift roll over me. Suddenly I was on four legs and I slid into the passenger seat, letting Esme take the reins. After our small tiff, she needed to be reminded that I trusted her with all of my heart – and my body too.
‘Hey, Esme,’ Greg said softly. ‘Red says hi.’
We wagged enthusiastically and Esme wished Red could come running, too. She went to Greg and nuzzled him while he stroked her firmly and gave her ears a scruffle. She let out a happy noise. After a few moments of fuss, she pulled back, looked at him enquiringly and whined.
Greg shook his head. ‘We’re sorry, Esme,’ he said, sounding exactly that. ‘Someone needs to man the desk. You go, though, and have fun. Run for us.’
Esme barked an affirmative and we trotted out to the front door of the house. Jacob had helpfully left it slightly ajar, so it took nothing more than a nudge to open it all the way and pelt out into freedom.
We paused in the fresh air. It was an unseasonably warm April day and the sun was beating down. Esme lifted our head up to peer at the sky and spotted Jacob easily. He was flying lazily and nothing in his body language suggested he had spotted a threat. We loped into a happy run, sprinting the short distance to where we scented Ares.
