Owen lifted his empty mug and flagged a server. The lyr could spout science and statistics all night, but it didn’t change the fact that Tasha McNeil with her ability to see was a rare prize.
“Thanks for the lesson,” Owen said, “and fuck you very much.”
Remy swore under his breath, but quieted when the waitress approached the table. Her bottle-blond hair coiled on her head in a messy nest, and a metric ton of black liner traced eyelashes so long they looked like they might take flight. She thrust her spectacular breasts forward as she bent to retrieve the empty mugs. “’Nother round?”
Owen nodded. His cock twitched as he watched the server’s hips swing as she worked her way through the crowd back to the bar.
“Who cares if Tasha McNeil can see when one fuck is as good as another?” Remy asked.
Owen growled. He wanted to shift into his wolf form and sink his teeth into the lyr’s neck for being right. Satisfying as that might be, it didn’t change the fact that he was the one who’d put the pack at risk. Because of his carelessness, Lilith had managed to tamper with the mark he’d placed on Tasha McNeil. How Lilith had managed that trick, he didn’t know, but as soon as Tasha had mentioned sitting in the park with Lilith immediately after he’d marked her, he’d known.
Marking a female tagged her, and after that the marked female was a potential mate for any were in the pack. Owen had no intention of sharing her, however. He’d intended to make her his, but the bonding through sex had only been partially accomplished.
Whether that was his fault or Tasha’s or related to the hex the witch had added to the mark, Owen didn’t know. One thing was certain: the hexed symbol etched on Tasha McNeil’s wrist was an open invitation to Fate only knew what sorts of dark magick. It opened a psychic doorway to the Lost Legacy pack that the witch could manipulate. Witches were nothing but trouble, and Lilith Darke was the worst kind of trouble.
Owen had created this mess; it was up to him to make things right.
“You can still change your mind,” Remy said. “I haven’t told Lan. Yet.”
“Great plan,” Owen snarked. “Leave an innocent woman marked, but not bonded. What kind of a bastard do you think I am? Might as well plant a beacon on Tasha signaling every one of our enemies. I might as well kill her myself. It would be kinder.”
“You don’t know for certain that she’d be in danger,” Remy said with a shrug. “Even though she has the sight, as far as I can tell, Tasha McNeil is totally human. She spends most of her time in the city and has shown zero interest in anything out of the ordinary—”
“Except me.”
“Noted, Romeo. However, with time the mark will fade along with any danger carrying the mark poses. Her memories of you will fade along with it. She’ll go on with her life none the wiser. Better yet, you will be able to have a life.”
“No,” Owen said flatly. “If I stand around with my dick in my hand, this is how it will go down: Sooner or later, my brother will find out. When he does, Lan will act like an alpha. He will protect the pack. First, he’ll kill Tasha so he won’t have to kill me, even though he’ll want to. Then it will be my turn. By the time he gets done with me, I’ll wish he’d killed me. And that’s not even counting what the Council of the Kinraven will do when they find out, which they will. It’s only a matter of time.”
Remy sighed. “You’re probably right.”
“Besides, instead of forgetting about the whole thing, Tasha’s been hunting me the past ten days. Rather than enjoying her stay at the spa, she’s been asking questions and digging into the history of Lost Legacy. I’ve had to hole up in Lan’s quarters to avoid her.”
The waitress slid two mugs frothy with a local brew across the table. Owen kicked back a long slug and dragged his hand across his mouth. “Woman doesn’t know how to quit. If I don’t do something, she’s going to get herself killed and start a war in the process. So yeah, my plan sucks, but at least I have one.”
Remy leaned his head against the back of the booth. “I respect the fact that you want to take care of this. I wish there were another way that didn’t include you submitting to the alpha of another pack. Call me crazy, but I think it’s a little extreme. I mean, it’s honorable that you want to protect this woman, but is she worth your life? What if Gideon Black decides to kill you instead of accepting you?”
“What the hell?” Owen laughed bitterly, allowing his gaze to stray to the sexy blond waitress. “I hear he’s a hell of an alpha. Maybe I’ll enjoy it.”