Page 131 of UNAwere

‘Did you?’ He narrows his eyes suspiciously.

I swallow. ‘Couldn’t sleep.’ It’s not a lie.

‘Are you looking forward to tomorrow?’

‘The ceremony?’

He nods.

‘Um. Sure.’

Warner leans forward in his chair, watching my face closely. ‘You know what I said to Jude last night? After dinner?’

I shake my head, lowering my gaze to the desk.

‘I told him how pleased I was with how protective he is of my bonded.’ I don’t miss the amusement in his tone. ‘Don’t you think it’s admirable how seriously he’s taking this role?’

‘He’s good at what he does.’

‘I told him I want him around more often. To be a shadow, of sorts.’ There’s a knock at the door, and I jump, but Warner just glances up at it and smiles. ‘Ah. Speaking of.’

Jude comes in, followed by a woman wearing chef’s whites. She’s pushing a trolley, laden with cloches, and smiles when she sees us.

‘Thank you, Chef,’ Warner tells her.

She nods and leaves, but Jude stays, keeping by the door.

‘We were just talking about how good you are at your job, Briggs,’ Warner tells Jude. He stands, rolling his sleeves up to his elbows, and comes around the desk until he’s standing beside my chair. I try not to flinch when I feel his hand fall to the back of my neck.

‘Alpha,’ Jude says, voice dark.

‘As I was saying last night, it’s admirable how protective you are of my bonded.’ Warner’s fingers squeeze my neck, and I grit my teeth. ‘How good you are at being a guard. Standing there. While we’re about to eat lunch together. Not a word. Not a twitch.’ Warner chuckles. ‘I could fuck her over this desk right now, and I know you wouldn’t move an inch.’

Jude’s eye twitches.

‘I won’t,’ Warner continues, when the silence gets so thick it’s hard to breathe. He leans down and presses his lips against my hair. ‘Not until I’ve taken you in the ceremony.’ He lets out a soft grunt. ‘When you’re presenting to me, your glands oiled and primed for my mark.’

A shudder slips down my spine. When I peek back at Jude, he’s staring at the trolley the chef pushed in, as if all he wants to do is flip it over.

‘You should’ve worn something a bit better than this,’ Warner tells me, fingering the lapel of my cardigan.

Before I can form an answer, Jude grunts, and we both look at him.

‘You like the cardigan, Briggs?’ Warner asks him, amused.

Jude says nothing, but his face tells me everything he’s holding back.

‘It’d look a lot better off, though, don’t you think?’ Warner presses.

‘That’s enough,’ I say, hating the expression on Jude’s face. I stand and take a step back from Warner’s reach. My heart is racing, but I ask him, ‘Why are you talking about me like that?’

Warner smirks. ‘It’s a joke. For Briggs.’ He casts Jude a quick wink. ‘You’ve always been so great with the ladies, haven’t you, pal?’

I gasp and turn on Jude, forgetting myself. ‘He does call you pal.’

The look of pure astonishment that crosses Jude’s face makes me realise what I’ve just said.

‘Sorry!’ I quickly glance at Warner, who’s staring at me.