Watch Me, page 8
“Hey, it talks.” Zalin smiled at her. “Want to tell me why you’re trying to drown me?”
“I...I should have listened to you.” Tiffy wiped her nose on his arm.
“Ick. Thanks.” Zalin grimaced. “So what did you do I’d disapprove of?”
“I went back to see him,” Tiffy admitted quietly. “He lied to me. Used me. All this time. You were right about him.”
Zalin exchanged a confused look with Lucia. “Who? Dale?”
“Dale? Are you nuts?” Tiffy rolled her eyes. “Some Alpha you are. You don’t even know who’s camped out on your doorstep.”
“Tiffy,” Lucia warned.
“What? It’s true. He doesn’t have a clue he’s back.” Tiffy looked at Zalin, whose eyes had become hard. “Do you?”
“So tell me.”
“Keric.” Tiffy lowered her head to his shoulder.
Zalin stiffened. “What?”
“Do you know who he is?” She suspected he’d known all along.
“Kell’s youngest brother.” Zalin extricated himself and started to pace. “Jesus. He’s back?”
Tiffy nodded. “Why didn’t you tell me? It seems everyone knew, except me!”
Lucia looked from one to the other. “And me, it seems. Mind filling me in? Who is this Keric, and how does Tiffy know him?”
“He was sniffing after her a few years ago, remember? Hiding in the bushes outside the gate. Spying on us. You told me not go scare the youngsters.” Zalin kicked a chair. “Apparently I didn’t scare him enough to stay away.”
“So that’s where you’ve been tonight, when we looked for you?” Lucia hugged her. “And he told you who he is?”
Tiffy’s cheeks burned. She wasn’t about to tell them about what they’d done. Bad enough she regretted it, bad enough she still had feelings for him, even now. They didn’t need to know how she’d found out. Or when. “It doesn’t matter.”
Zalin stared at her. Tiffy looked up, met his intense stare and lowered her gaze again, unable to take it.
“I can guess. You’re upset because he seduced you. And once he had you where he wanted you, he moved in for the kill. Just like his brother.” Zalin shook with rage. “Tell me where he is. I’m going to kill the bastard.”
Tiffy jerked her head up. “No!”
“He hurt you! Do you think I’m going to stand by and let him get away with it? Or even let him do it again?”
“Just...make him leave.” She didn’t want him dead. Well, maybe a little. The initial shock had worn off and she saw a little more clearly now. It hadn’t all been his fault. She’d never asked any questions, and she should have. Apparently love wasn’t just blind. Nope. In her case, it was blind, deaf and dumb. Why hadn’t she ever asked where he was from?
“Didn’t work last time. Thomas told me they got a little carried away and he wouldn’t be back.” Zalin frowned. “I thought they might have killed him, when there was no news of him anywhere I inquired.”
“Well, they didn’t, and you should have asked around a little closer to home.” Keric’s deceit was clearer every second. “Barad is a friend of his.”
“Barad? How do you know? It might just be another lie.” Disbelief swung in his voice. “Barad is a good guy. He wouldn’t–”
“He is. I know, because he came to warn us tonight. Well, he warned Keric. Stood right there in the doorway and told him you’re out to find me, and to send me home.” It made her wonder if Barad could be trusted. “I bet he knew where Keric was all along.”
“God dammit. Anything else I don’t know about?”
Well, there was one little thing. She missed Keric, wanted to be close, even though she despised him. It tore her up to know how weak she really was when it came to him. If what he suspected was true, she’d never feel any different. Mates yearned for each other and they hurt when they weren’t together. Angela still loved Gothrim, and Graham knew it. It would never change. The pain lessened over time, but it never went away.
“Tiffy? There’s more, isn’t there?” Lucia hugged her. “Don’t you know you can tell me anything, regardless of what it is?”
“I know. But I’m not sure if I’m right, and I’d rather not speculate.”
“Dammit.” Zalin growled. “He got you pregnant, didn’t he?”
Pregnant? The thought hadn’t even occurred to her. He hadn’t used anything, and neither had she. The way her luck was running...it was a distinct possibility. “I...don’t know. I hadn’t thought about it.” Tiffy closed her eyes and buried her face in her hands. “Oh God.”
Zalin turned on his heels and Lucia immediately went after him. “Don’t do anything before she’s sure.”
“I’m going to beat the bastard out of town. Tiffy doesn’t need him, she has us.”
“No, Zalin. Don’t.” Tiffy shot to her feet. “He’ll leave. There’s nothing left for him here.”
“Except you!”
Tears filled her eyes once more. “He doesn’t love me. I was just...a pawn. Something to use to get back at the pack.” Why couldn’t anyone love her? She’d thought he did, with all his talk about being mates, he’d fooled her completely. She’d told him she loved him, and he’d made a joke of it. She’d thought he just wasn’t ready to admit it, at the time. Now, knowing who he really was, she knew she’d wait in vain, because he didn’t love her. Never had. “He knows it’s over. He knows I’ve seen through his scheme.”
“Why don’t we all sleep on it? There’s nothing to be done now, and Tiffy is wiped out.” Lucia dragged her up from the floor. “Come on. Off to bed with you.”
As if she could sleep now. She followed Lucia upstairs, but only to put her sister’s mind at ease. Zalin followed, but returned to their own bedroom, slamming the door behind him.
“He’s mad at me.” Tiffy got into bed and drew the covers up to her nose. “I’m mad at me too.” Connor started to cry in the other room, no doubt woken by Zalin’s violent treatment of the door. “Great, now we woke Connor up. This is all my fault.”
“Don’t worry about Connor. Zalin will quiet him down. It’s not your fault, and he’s not mad at you. Zalin isn’t an idiot, Tiffy. He knows you got duped.” Lucia sat on the edge of the mattress. “So what couldn’t you say while Zalin was there?”
“How can I hate him, and be in love with him at the same time?” Tiffy clutched the pillow. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“You’ll figure it out.” She tucked the blanket around her. “In a few days we’ll go to the hospital and have a test done. If it turns out you’re pregnant, we’ll come up with a solution. Now get some sleep.”
“Okay.” Tiffy watched her walk to the door. “Lucia? Tell Zalin I’m sorry.”
Once her sister was gone, Tiffy cried herself to sleep.
Chapter 9
Keric sat on the steps outside the cabin, a beer in his hand, dragging the toe of his boot through the dirt. They’d come for him, but he couldn’t leave. This was the fourth beer and the sun hadn’t even made it out of bed yet.
Engine noise made him look up, then dismiss it as just another tourist driving up to a cabin. The noise came closer and a black SUV came into view, a blond woman in the driver’s seat. For a moment he thought it was Tiffy, but the hairstyle was different, and she was older. His interest waned immediately.
A door slammed, and still he didn’t look up. Two booted feet stopped in front of him.
“Are you Keric?”
He shrugged.
The woman took the beer from his hand and put it down. “I think you’ve had quite enough to drink.”
Keric lifted his gaze to hers, noting the disgusted curl of her upper lip. He guessed he looked like shit, with bloodshot eyes and stubble on his face. A savage headache pounded his skull, making it hard to concentrate. He didn’t care what this woman thought of him. It couldn’t be any worse than his own opinion of himself. “Who the hell are you, lady?” Even his voice felt rough and raw in his throat.
“I’m Lucia.” She waited for a reaction, but he gave none. “Tiffy’s sister.”
So the torment had begun. He guessed she was here to grab Tiffy’s stuff. His last reminder of her. The only thing holding her scent. Like an idiot he’d shoved the sheets into the washing machine. He wrapped his hand around the little skull earring in his pocket. At least he had this. While it didn’t smell of her anymore, it was the one thing he’d never part with. Keric got up to walk away. He wasn’t going to watch her sister remove the last traces of Tiffy. “Her bag is inside.”
“Where are you going? What bag?”
Keric stopped. “If you’re not here for her things, then why?”
Lucia crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I wanted to see the man who made Tiffy cry all night.”
All night. If she’d shot him through the heart, he couldn’t have hurt more. He had no defense and refused to look at her.
“Something tells me you’ve been drinking since she left.” Lucia sighed. “You look as miserable as she feels.”
“I’ll get over it.” Keric shot her a black look. “Like you said, I’ve been drinking.”
“If my husband finds out I’ve come here, he’ll hit the roof. He thinks I’m getting groceries, so we better make it quick.” She sat on the steps. “What the hell is going on? Why did you do this to Tiffy? By the looks of it you suffer as much as she does.”
Yeah, well. Nothing a silver bullet through the head couldn’t fix. “Why should I tell you?”
“Because I asked? I’m not the enemy. I just want to resolve the situation.”
“There is nothing to resolve. Your husband killed my brother. Am I supposed to forgive and forget?”
“I didn’t say that. And your brother pointed a gun in my face at the time. Zalin had no choice.” She frowned. “I just don’t understand why you took it out on Tiffy.”
“I didn’t.”
“You must have done something. She didn’t come home bawling her eyes out for nothing.”
“She told me what happened, but didn’t mention the guy’s name. I guessed it was Kell, and asked her.” And lost her. He’d known even before he’d asked, but the need for confirmation had overridden everything else. “Told her he’s my brother.”
Lucia shook her head and stared up into the trees. “Well, you’re going to have to fix it. The girl is in love with you.”
“She hates me. You didn’t see her face when I told her who I am.” Keric raked his hand through his hair and watched the mist between the trees. The way it swirled and moved in the light wind reminded him of a white wolf, playing catch with him. “It’s over.”
“If you believed that, you would be gone already.”
He wasn’t about to admit how he felt. Especially not to Zalin’s wife, who would no doubt run back to her husband and tell all. Lay him bare, so this time his minions could do a proper job and destroy him both physically and emotionally. “Don’t worry, I’m going. Your precious husband won’t need to sic his pack on me this time.”
Lucia narrowed her eyes. “Meaning?”
He wasn’t surprised no one had told her. “I learned my lesson last time.”
“You lost me. What happened? I thought he’d told you to leave and–”
“–and I’d just go away like some puppy dog?”
“Well, no, but surely you realized they didn’t want you here?”
Keric snorted. “Oh yeah, I got that. Loud and clear.”
Her lips pressed into a straight line. “Then why did you come back? Why put Tiffy through this? She was sweet on you, surely you knew you’d run into her again?”
Anger sliced through him. They were crazy. The lot of them. “You’re here, reading me the riot act because of your sister, and you ask me why I came back? If Tiffy suddenly disappeared without a trace, what would you do?” Keric turned and walked back to the cabin. “I’m done talking about this.”
“Wait. I’m sorry.”
He spun, took two threatening steps toward her and chased her off his porch. It brought no satisfaction to see Lucia back up like a scared rabbit. “No. You don’t get to say sorry. It doesn’t make what your pack did okay. I had no idea what Kell had done, but I got crucified for it. Instead of anyone telling me when I asked, I had to overhear one of your pack wishing I’d join my brother in hell, while I was lying half dead at the bottom of a ravine!” Keric yanked his hands up to stop her when she wanted to interrupt. “Forget it. All I wanted was to find out what happened to my brother. Now I know.”
“I’m a little lost here. Why did you tell her?” Lucia frowned at him. “You weren’t drinking because you found out what happened. You were trying to get over Tiffy, so she has to mean more to you than just a means to an end.”
Keric smiled, knowing full well it would look vicious and mean. “You wanted me to lie to her?”
“No, of course not. But you could have done it a little more...gently. If she really means something to you, why didn’t you wait for a better moment?”
“So she can accuse me of leading her on? Yeah, that would suit you, wouldn’t it? Not enough with her hating me, you’d turn me into even more of a villain by keeping the truth from her.” He glared at her. “She was never a means to an end.”
“Then why–”
“Enough. I’m not discussing it.”
She didn’t stop him walking away, and he slammed the door to shut her out. Inside, he dropped to his knees and clutched his head. He’d never see Tiffy again and the knowledge tore him up worse than their claws and fangs had. Right now, he would have welcomed a fight to the death, only this time he wouldn’t defend himself. Anything would be better than the gaping void in his soul, where Tiffy’s love had been.
* * * *
Tiffy stood in front of the mirror, staring at herself. She’d never looked so wiped out in her entire life. Dark shadows smudged the skin beneath her puffy, bloodshot eyes. Her hair was a mess, tangled and matted from turning in bed all night.
A shower would cure the hair, maybe even freshen up her face, but it wasn’t the worst of it. No, that dubious honor went to other places. Every move made her aware how sore she was...down there. Not painful, but definitely sore. Every step brought a constant reminder of what she’d given to a man who didn’t love her.
She shouldn’t have told him about never having kissed anyone, or being a virgin. Becca had always said a girl never forgot the first kiss, the first man she was with. She was right. She’d certainly never forget, but Keric had made sure the memory would be painful and tainted.
Why? Why had he chosen her to wreak his revenge on? What had she ever done to him or to Kell? What made them hate her so much? Thanks to Keric and his brother, she’d never trust anyone again. It only got her burned, and she was sick of being everyone’s punching bag.
She should have dug deeper. She’d known there was something he wasn’t telling her, and she’d let it go, thinking it was too painful for him to talk about. For him. Never in a million years had she expected his secret had anything to do with her.
Not important. The bastard had actually told her it wasn’t important, that first night on the edge of the lake, and she’d believed him.
What a complete and utter idiot she was.
Tiffy scrubbed her face with a wet cloth, but it didn’t help. She took a shower, hoping it would wash away every last trace of Keric, and it didn’t help either. She might carry a lasting reminder of him inside her, and she couldn’t wash that away. For once she wished she could be a normal human being. It would have given her the option of a morning-after pill, at least, but they didn’t work on Lycans. Even a regular contraceptive pill only had a twenty percent success rate among them, so she’d never bothered asking for it.
For now, she’d have to wait.
She heard Lucia putter around in the kitchen, and decided to grab a coffee. Tiffy stopped in the doorway when she realized it wasn’t Lucia, but Zalin who prepared breakfast. He turned and smiled, a spatula in one hand, two eggs in the other. “Hey. You want some eggs?”
She shook her head and went to the coffee pot instead. “Where’s Lucia?”
“She went to get groceries.” Zalin shrugged. “Said she wanted to get it out of the way, so she can spend the day with you.”
“Oh.” Tiffy sat at her regular spot by the table and watched him crack eggs into the pan. “I’m sorry I made such a mess of things.”
“It wasn’t your fault.” He stirred the eggs and lifted the pan. “Are you sure I can’t tempt you?”
“I’ve tasted your eggs.” Tiffy grinned, despite herself. Zalin’s scrambled eggs usually contained a lot of calcium–in the form of eggshells. “So no, you can’t.”
He groaned theatrically. “The culinary genius in me is severely insulted.”
“If there is a culinary genius in you, then you’ve eaten one.” Tiffy got up and took the spatula away from him. “I’ll do it. At least it’ll be edible.”
“Lies.”
“Yeah, right.”
The door banged open and Lucia came in, carrying grocery bags. She put them on the table and eyed Tiffy at the stove. “Zalin tried to poison you, huh?”
“Hey!” He laughed, hugging her.
“He told me he ate a culinary genius. You should take him for x-rays.” Tiffy chuckled, glad of the banter. They probably had no idea how much she needed their support right now, how much it meant to her to have a sense of normalcy. This was more like the breakfasts before she’d met Keric. Zalin kidding around, stealing kisses from Lucia, who got flustered when he tried to help with cooking.
“I make a damned good steak, even you can’t say otherwise.”
“Show it to the grill then give it to me,” both women echoed at once, and laughed.
“You have other talents I appreciate.” Lucia grinned. “But forgive me for not listing them, Bighead.”
Her words reminded Tiffy of the night before, of Keric’s talents and how she’d unabashedly appreciated them. She stared out of the kitchen window, wondering what he was doing. Had he already left? Was he even thinking about her?
“Tiffy.”
Did he regret any of it?
“Tiiiffy...”
