I can't do this. I have to get out of here.
As they entered the kitchen, bodies spread apart and disappeared. Jess glanced at the kind mother figure at her side in time to see the look she'd given the lot of them. Get out, now.
When the crowd had dispersed, Nancy whispered, "You okay, Jessica?"
A deep breath in. But she couldn't exhale. She just held it and stared into Nancy's eyes. No. Not even close. Tears spilled over, and still Jessica just stood there, letting them fall.
"Let's go someplace else." Rather than turn Jessica toward the crowd, Nancy pulled her farther into the room, through the kitchen and down the hall on the other side toward the guest bathroom.
As soon as the door closed behind her, Jessica released her breath and sat on the toilet, stuffing her head between her knees.
Nancy busied herself locating a washcloth, running cold water over it, and squeezing out the excess before she held it before Jess' trembling hands.
Bless the woman again. She didn't badger Jessica for details. She just soothed her, running a palm over her back. The longer hairstyle Jess had been sporting lately afforded the ability to hide her face between the curtain of the bob on either side.
"Can I get you anything?"
Jessica simply shook her head. Tears fell. A flood of them. Nancy just held her ground and patted Jessica like the mother she was.
There wasn't any real need for words. Sure, there was no way Nancy had correctly interpreted quite everything going on in Jessica's mind, but she had the basics. She knew Jessica was a wolf. She knew for whatever reason Jessica hadn't shared this information with her human friends. And, God almighty, she knew there was something going on between Jessica and Charles.
What more did she need right now?
It was enough to send any woman into an emotional overload.
After several minutes of silence, Jessica finally pulled herself together and lifted her head. Her cheeks were flushed, as evidenced by her reflection in the mirror.
"You are a sweet, dear young lady, and I'm so glad to have you in our lives. I've come to think of you as my own child, even though I've only spent a short amount of time with you. You are always welcome in my home and with my family. If there is anything I can do for you, I'm here. I'm a good listener, and I've been around the block a few times." Nancy smiled so broadly and genuinely Jessica's tears threatened to begin anew.
She simply nodded and squeezed the woman's hand in thanks.
"Come on out when you're ready, dear. I'll go dispel the rumors with some sort of tale of PMS, okay?"
Again, bless her.
* * * *
Damn. Charles had barely moved since Jessica had entered the house. Rooted to the spot in the living room, he still couldn't control his beating heart. And Reese was right there next to him, suffering from the same ailment.
Alyssa stood several feet away, by most accounts looking out at the newly falling snow. But Charles could see her peripheral vision glaring at him, daring him to fuck things up any more than he already had.
Lucky for him, he glanced across the room just in time to notice his little brother angling toward Alyssa. Thank God she'd made friends with Michael. At least it would distract her from the craziness going on in the room. He'd have to thank Michael later for his unintended help. The little bugger was surely oblivious to his part in the situation. He was probably just glad there was someone unmated around to talk to among all his older siblings.
Charles jerked his gaze back to the front door. How the hell had no one managed to tell him Jessica was coming today? Including his sexy mate herself.
The woman had breezed into the house, her scent filling the huge space, leaving no ounce of breathable air. He'd nearly come in his pants when she'd removed her coat to reveal her skintight sweater and form-fitting jeans. When she shook her head to shake off the flakes of snow, her glorious brown hair with just a hint of curl at the ends danced around her face to frame it as though she were posing for a fashion shoot.
The scene had appeared to be in slow motion, and he recalled it with great detail as if it had actually frozen in that space of time for an hour.
And then all hell had broken loose. Tears? Why? "What the hell is going on? And why didn't anyone mention she was coming over today?" Charles tossed those rhetorical questions at Reese, who merely shrugged.
The glare from his mother told him to stay where he was and keep his hands to himself under penalty of death.
That made two days in a row Charles had felt reprimanded by a parent as though he were five years old again.
His mother hadn't spoken a word, but the woman didn't have to. A look alone from her spoke volumes and had always put her children in their place.
When his mother slipped out of the bathroom, noticeably alone, everyone scampered to resume normal activity. He wasn't the only one desperately pretending all was well with the world.
Reese nudged him from behind. "What the fuck?"
Charles just stood there. He didn't know one bit more than Reese.
But he couldn't stand to see his mate cry, for any reason. It tore him up and almost trumped the allure of her sexy ass as she'd left the room.
When Jessica finally emerged from the restroom, she went straight to the kitchen and pasted on the fakest smile he'd ever seen in his life as she approached her human friends.
The women surrounded her and hugged her, muttering some insanity about it being her time of the month.
Even from the distance of several yards, Charles could hear their soothing words. His eyebrows rose at the angle of the conversation. That woman, his mate and Reese's, was no more experiencing her "time of the month" than he was. In fact, quite the opposite. She was so fucking fertile today he nearly cussed out loud. Her body called to him and Reese like no other day of the month, begging them to take her, claim her, let her milk them dry with her pussy until they passed out from the exertion.
It was truly an unfortunate stroke of coincidence today of all days they were forced to endure this afternoon of faking like they'd barely met and didn't care for each other any more than as passing acquaintances.
Though Charles doubted he could pull that wool over his mother's eyes, considering the knowing look she'd given him in passing.
Obviously that was Jessica's intention, to keep the entire family in the dark. Considering the broken glass Charles was tiptoeing over with bare feet, he wasn't about to be the one to dump that information out for the entire family. He hoped to hell she'd come around in time … time being a relative word right now since Charles thought he might explode with need at any moment.
Charles turned to face Reese. "Ideas?" He pleaded with his gaze for his friend to come up with a plan that involved getting the two of them the hell out of here before they embarrassed themselves, Jessica, and the family. Oh, and let's not forget Alyssa.
Reese merely shrugged and shook his head back and forth so minutely there was no way anyone else in the room was the wiser.
When Charles glanced again at Jessica, he found her clutching her stomach. For a moment he almost smiled at her ability to play this out so thoroughly. And then in a stroke of awareness, he realized she wasn't faking. She was truly in pain. Mates, especially those not yet claimed, could not endure this proximity while ovulating without a great deal of discomfort. Her womb knew that, even if her brain hadn't registered yet.
He watched in some fascination as Jessica shifted her weight from one foot to the other, crossed her legs, and squeezed her thighs tight around her pussy.
She was so wet, so needy. Sweat had even formed around her hairline. And it was not that warm in here. "Are we the only ones who can smell her lust?"
"I certainly hope so."
Charles felt actual sorrow for Jessica's situation and discomfort, but his own was a close second, and Reese was in just as much pain by the squirming shuffling he was doing alongside Charles.
"Let's go outside for a few minutes. Maybe cool off." Charles needed to escape. Now.
"It's a plan." Reese headed for the back door, pushed it open, and burst into the frigid weather as if his life depended on it.
Charles didn't miss the glare from Alyssa, who still sat by the window, offering peripheral reprimands, even though she was now engaged in a game of cards with Tessa's daughter. The child was still not feeling well, but it was Christmas break, and no one had the heart to force her to stay in bed.
"Fuck." Charles nearly shouted the word the second he shut the door. Without more than a passing glance at the sky, he paced on the back porch of Justin, Trevor, and Kara's home, not caring one tiny bit the snow was picking up pace and mixing with sleet.
The weather and its idiosyncrasies were the least of his problems.
"That's what I was going to say. How did we not know about this?"