Shift Happens(52)

Ryan brushed past me and headed to the door without saying another word. I glanced back to find Wick watching me closely, waiting for me to act. When it became clear I wasn’t moving, he patted the cushion beside him. Not so drunk after all. As much as I would’ve loved to sink into the couch and those arms, there was something I had to do first. I turned and ran after the other Werewolf.

“Ryan!” I called out.

He froze with his hand on the doorknob, but didn’t turn around. “What?”

“I want to apologize.” That came out whinier than I wanted.

Ryan spun toward me, but his face gave nothing away. “Why?”

“I’m sorry I used you to escape. It wasn’t…” At a loss for words, I looked down at my hands to discover them fidgeting. “Right.”

“Why apologize for that? It’s what you do, right? Seduce targets and eliminate them.” He continued before I could utter any semblance of a defence. If I had any. “At least you didn’t slit my throat.”

He had a point. I was a government contractor. A ruthless killer. “I think it’s a testament to how much I like you that I didn’t.”

Ryan choked on a bitter laugh. “Like me? You have a funny way of showing it.”

Sighing, I leaned against the wall. “I like you as a friend. I like that you can kick my ass in martial arts, that you lose at cards, and you couldn’t solve a crossword on your own to save your life. You can’t hold it against me that I wanted to escape.”

Silence.

“You liked me,” I pointed out. “Yet even if I hadn’t tried to escape, you would’ve brought me to Lucien trussed up like some stuck pig.”

Ryan glared at his feet while he clenched and unclenched his hands.

“And I would’ve understood. I do understand. I’m not sorry for trying to escape, but I apologize for how I did it. If there’d been another way to leave us both unscathed, I would’ve used it.”

That surprised Ryan into looking up. His eyes focused on me and narrowed.

I continued. “I’m sorry I hurt your feelings and you now think everything was an act. It wasn’t.”

“It wasn’t?” he said, his voice rough as gravel.

“No. It wasn’t.”

“So when you kissed me and rubbed your tits against my chest like a rabid bitch in heat…that wasn’t an act?” His gaze burned.

I looked away. “Ok, well that part was.”

Ryan’s laugh was hollow. “Whatever.” He walked out of the house and slammed the door behind him.

I let a long breath out.

“I wasn’t joking when I said you made an enemy in Ryan.” Wick’s voice directly behind me didn’t come as a surprise. I’d sensed him approach during my pathetic attempt at an apology.

“If you start spewing ‘I told you so,’ I’ll kick your ass.”

“No.” Warm arms wrapped around me. Wick pulled me back to rest against his strong body. “That’s not what I’m doing. You offered him a nice apology.”

Another sigh escaped my lips as I allowed myself to enjoy the moment of comfort in Wick’s arms. “Not enough.”

“No,” Wick agreed. “But he might come around in time.”

“Whatever.” I pushed Wick’s arms away before I could get too comfortable and walked around to the living room. “I’ll be gone before he finds forgiveness.”

Though I couldn’t see him, I knew the second Wick tensed. The air crackled with his anger. “Don’t say that,” he growled.

I spun around to find Wick fighting with his wolf. His whole body vibrated, his fists shook and his eyes, when he didn’t have them squeezed shut, were bright yellow. I started to speak, but he cut me off.

“Don’t,” he said. “Don’t antagonize my wolf like that. It’s hard enough holding him back when you’re around as it is.” Sweat trickled down his face. When a Were’s animal wanted something, it pushed and pushed, forcing a change. Despite being a facet of the Were’s individuality and not a separate entity, the animal inside believed it could get what it wanted if it had control.

“Wick.” I wanted to tell him to be reasonable, but the wolf was beyond reason. Animals were instinctual, not practical. It wouldn’t help Wick to hear how there was no way I could stay and risk Lucien’s control over me strengthening, that I planned to clear my name, cut out the tracker and run away to lick my wounds. To hell with what my wolf or Wick’s wolf wanted.

Wick shook his head while I stood prone. I didn’t want to make it harder on him, but after the crappy night I had, the last thing I wanted to do was play submissive to placate Wick’s wolf. It would give him more power over me and make it more difficult for my wolf to keep detached. Maybe I could distract him.