Chapter 23

Rafe never came back to bed. Maybe he’d scampered off back home. Good, Ruby thought, running her fingers through her tangled hair. She twisted it into a knot and then swung her legs out of bed.

Just when she’d convinced herself she was glad he left, that she was better off without a werewolf in her bed, the smell of coffee wafting up from the kitchen told her Rafe hadn’t gone anywhere. The bastard.

Her stomach heated at the memory of last night. She thought he wanted her as much as she wanted him. She didn’t want some pity oral! Not that it wasn’t amazing, but that was beside the point. He’d made her feel like a complete idiot and that was not the post-orgasm experience anyone wanted. And if he thought he was just going to run off again or pretend nothing happened, he had another think coming. Mr. King of Mixed Signals was going to get a piece of her mind this morning.

She’d slept in her tank top and nothing else, secretly hoping like the desperate pervert that she was that Rafe would come back, but clearly this outfit would not do for breakfast and telling wolf-man to go fuck himself. Ruby grabbed a fresh tank top, dark red like her rage. She pulled it on over a black bra. She didn’t bother with fancy underwear because that furry bastard would not be seeing them today, but she did wear her shortest skirt just to spite him. She never wore makeup to breakfast in her own home but today, it felt necessary. Black eyeliner on her top lids with just a little swoop at the ends and her favorite lipstick color: Sexy Red Riding Hood. She smiled at herself in the mirror. She looked damn good for a morning of telling a guy off.

Ruby stomped down the stairs to the kitchen and found Rafe leaning against the counter, nursing a cup of coffee. He looked like shit. Good.

He didn’t bother to smile when she walked in, just watched her. She lingered in the doorway not wanting to actually get close enough to him to get to the coffee maker.

“Morning.” His voice was like black coffee, hot and rich. He had circles under his eyes and his hair was tied back messily at the nape of his neck. His stubble was dark and thick. Damn it, she was wrong. He didn’t look like shit at all. He looked sexy as usual. How fucking dare he?

Ruby opened her mouth to tell him off but Rafe spoke first. “I’m going to the pack today. I’ll get you their protection and then I can get out of your hair.”

Wait. What? He was leaving? Just like that?

He turned away, avoiding her shocked stare and poured her a cup of coffee. Two teaspoons of sugar, no milk. Damn it. He remembered how she took her coffee. Could he be any more infuriating? He put the mug on the counter and slid it toward her. A peace offering. Well, screw that.

“You’re leaving?”

He nodded. “I think that’s best.”

“Why?”

“The pack will be better able to protect you.”

“No, Rafe. Why do you think that’s best?”

He blinked and stared down into his mug. “Just drop it, Ruby.”

“I won’t drop it. Why are you so damn convinced that I shouldn’t be around you?” She stepped closer, feeling the heat radiating off of him.

“I’ve told you before, I’m not what you think.”

Ruby breathed out a frustrated sigh. This bullshit again. “And what am I supposed to think? So far you’ve been nothing but good and kind to me. You fought for me. You’re protecting me and my sister. Are holding a girl’s purse and giving her the best orgasm of her life supposed to be threatening actions?” Her voice rose with every word until she was practically shouting. His silver eyes flashed at the mention of orgasms but he stayed silent.

“I’m not scared of you, Rafe,” she yelled.

He leaned forward until his face was level with hers. “You will be.”

She pushed against his chest, shoving him back toward the counter. He let her. She was so damn frustrated with this argument she wanted to slap him.

“What does that even mean? I don’t know what happened that made you believe you are so scary or terrible, but you’re not, Rafe. You’re just not!”

He swallowed hard, something shifting in his expression.

“I’m not a pet, Ruby. I’m not a dog. I’m a fucking werewolf.” A muscle ticked in his jaw as he stalked toward her. She backed up until she hit the wall. He was close enough now that every breath pressed his chest against hers.

“I’ve terrorized entire villages. Chased people until they pissed themselves. Torn out the throats of rival pack members without a second thought.”

Ruby’s breath caught. “Those things happened so long ago. That’s not you anymore!”

He shook his head. “Do you want to know why I left the pack?”

He didn’t wait for her response before he went on. “My father wanted me to kill my brothers, to take my rightful place as the Alpha. Not long ago at all, Ruby. Five years. That’s it. We fought for hours, the three of us, round and round in that ring. By the time the rain started we were already exhausted and injured. Theo was the weakest. I could have picked him off easily.

“My father screamed at me from beside the ring. Kill him! Kill him! The old bastard was dying and wanted to see the new Alpha crowned before he left this world. I pinned Theo to the ground. My own brother, my own blood. He fought me, clawing and scraping. I slashed his face, blood pouring into his eyes. You saw it, Ruby. You saw the scar.” He held her stare and she wanted to tell him to stop, that she’d heard enough, but he kept going.

“I could have ended it, but I hesitated. Knox barreled into us, his teeth at my throat. And I was happy, relieved. If he would just kill me, I could be done with it all. With everything my father wanted from us.”

A small whimper escaped Ruby’s throat. Rafe’s eyes glowed bright silver, his voice a deep growl. Even his teeth seemed longer, sharper. She put a hand on Rafe’s chest and she could practically feel the beast prowling beneath his human skin. She willed him to come back to her, to leave this awful memory behind. It was more words than he’d ever spoken to her, like he’d saved them all up and could no longer contain them.

“But then I saw her. Phoebe. She was hiding in the trees, watching, silent tears trailing down her face. Her eyes never left Theo. He lay in the mud, chest heaving, face covered in blood. I’d done that to him. My own brother. But Knox was at my throat. I was pinned on my back, the only thing stopping him from killing me was my paws on his chest. If I let him kill me, he’d kill Theo next. I did the only thing I could think of. A desperate, disgusting thing.”

His breath came in long shuddering gasps like he’d just been in the ring, like the fight hadn’t been over for five years. His eyes were dark with the memories.

“I shifted. Back into human form, right in the ring. It shocked the hell out of everyone. It’s forbidden. I shamed my father and my pack. Knox didn’t know what to do. I used everyone”s surprise to my advantage. I screamed at Theo to run and he did. Sloppily and half blind he ran into the woods. My father came into the ring, raging but so old and sick I wasn’t scared of him anymore.

“He spat at my feet, my bare, human feet drowning in mud. ‘Get the fuck out of here. You are dead to us,’ he screamed. So I did.”

“You saved your brothers,” she whispered and he laughed, low and mocking.

“Goddamn it, Ruby. Get it through your head. I’ve done nothing but fight and kill my whole life. And then in the end all I did was shame my people. I’m both a monster and a coward.”

“But—”

“Stop.” His voice was hard and cold, unmovable. “Stop trying to see me as something else. End this ridiculous infatuation. You are a silly little girl who likes ghost stories, but I am not a story, and I will hurt you.”

She swallowed the sharp, angry tears clogging her throat. She would not add crying to the ways she’d already embarrassed herself.

“Have it your way.” She pushed against his chest but he didn’t move, his eyes flashing with pain. “Maybe I am silly and ridiculous.” He winced like he already regretted the words. “But you’re the one still believing all the lies your father told you. You’re the one with a completely warped view of himself. All this talk of protecting me when all you really wanted to do was protect yourself.”

His eyes widened like her words hit him physically. She pushed him again and he backed up.

“So, big bad wolf, you can go fuck yourself.” Ruby turned and spun away from him, not waiting for a response. She strode for the door, but it was blocked. By her sister. Who, judging by the wide eyes and blanched skin, had heard everything.

“Morning, Lena.”

“Uh … morning.”

The door slammed and Rafe was gone.