Chapter 14

LEXIE

When there was another knock on the door, I raced for it. Was it Ollie? Or had Markus come home again?

I missed them, and I wanted to tell them about the interviews I had lined up for this week. I may not be a college graduate, and Anne would probably never like me, but at least their wolf shifter family and friends would never be able to say that I sponged off the twins.

The last person I expected to see on the other side of the door was the bitch from Walmart.

“Oh, hello,” I managed, wishing I could just slam the door in her face. But from what Ollie had said, Nancy wasn’t just Markus’s lover, she was a family friend. And the last thing I needed to do was offend someone else.

She grinned at me like the cat who ate the cream, though in this regard it was more like the wolf who ate the girl. “I just wanted to drop this off. Is Markus home yet?” She waved a credit card or something in my face.

I didn’t move back or open the door any further. I wasn’t letting her in.

“No, he’s not. You can give it to me.” I held out my hand, and to my surprise, she dropped the card in my palm without a fight. “Ah... thanks.”

“Markus left my place about half an hour ago, so he shouldn’t be too far away,” she said, glancing around as though she was expecting him home any moment. “I think the card fell out of his pocket when he took his pants off... or something.”

He fucking what?

I stared at her, not sure I’d heard her correctly. Surely, she was just here to be nasty. “You must be mistaken. Markus is at work this afternoon.”

Or that was what he’d told me before he left, I was pretty sure. I’d been half asleep at the time.

Nancy blinked her eyes like a big, innocent cartoon character. “Oh... I thought you knew. He’s been with me for the last few hours.”

My heart cried out at her words. I didn’t want to believe her. I couldn’t. Not after the night and afternoon we’d shared. Surely, he wouldn’t have gone to another woman’s house to have more sex?

And there was something about her demeanor, her face... she was gloating. Did that mean she was fabricating a lie, or was she telling the truth and here just to rub it in my face that he’d never be mine?

My brain quickly looked over the facts. She had his credit card... and they were lovers. He’d admitted that already. But he could have left that card at her place anytime. Last week, even.

Something wasn’t right about this.

Nancy grinned back at me, and I couldn’t stop myself from staring and cataloguing all her perfect features. Her long, glossy hair, her size four body encased in skintight jeans...

I plastered my hospitality fake-ass smile on my face and said, “Well, thanks for that. I’ll make sure he gets it.”

Then I shut the door in her face.

I leaned against the wooden door, breathing hard. It couldn’t be true. It couldn’t.

I’m not sure how long I leaned there, but the sound of a key sliding into the door behind my back had me jumping up and moving away from the entrance.

My heart was pounding in my chest, and I was struggling to breathe. I couldn’t rein in my feelings of dread and inevitability. I’d told Markus I only wanted him for that one night. That the future didn’t matter. But I hadn’t meant it!

Could I stay around and watch him with another woman? Many other women?

The door opened, and Ollie’s gorgeous smile lit up his face and my heart. “Well, hello, beautiful.”

I flew at him, wrapping my arms around his neck and hugging him tight. “I’m so glad you’re home.”

He chuckled and hugged me back. “So am I! Hey, are you okay?”

I nodded against him but didn’t let him go.

“Okay, let me put all this stuff down and we’ll go talk.”

I managed to pry myself off his stable, rock-hard chest and watched as he put his keys away, shrugged out of his jacket and pulled off his tie. “Okay. Tell me what’s happened.”

He sat on the couch, and I stood nearby, waving my hands around as I explained that his mom had come by to tell me I wasn’t good enough for her sons, then Markus came home and made me feel better, then he’d left, and Nancy came by and said what she’d said.

When I was finally done, Ollie chuckled softly while running a frazzled hand through his hair. “And here I was, thinking you were probably bored from being alone all day and might want to go out for dinner.”

At the mention of dinner, my stomach growled. “Yeah... well, I didn’t eat lunch, or much at all today, so that would be lovely. But what do I do about the rest of it?”

Ollie held out his hand and dragged me down to sit next to him on the couch. “So... you had sex with Markus on your own?”

I opened my mouth to reply, then realized I may have made a fatal error there. “Oh my God, I didn’t even think about how that might make you feel. That’s... I’m so sorry... Is that not allowed?”

Ollie cupped my face with a hand and drew me closer, then kissed my lips. “Hmmm,” he hummed, before pulling away again. “Of course, that’s okay. It will help you two bond. I was just surprised.”

“I was, too,” I said, agreeing with him. “You and I get along so easily, it’s like we’ve been together forever. But Markus...”

“It’s different. I get it. But you two still click, don’t you?”

I didn’t want to tell Ollie how hot the session against the wall had truly been. Would he be jealous?

So, I settled for, “Yeah, we click. There’s a lot of chemistry, but he’s resistant to choosing me. That’s why I think he went off with Nancy this afternoon.”

Ollie’s lips twisted. “You think she was telling the truth? I’ll be fucking furious with him if that’s the case.”

I chewed on my lip and thought about it for a moment. “There was something off about her story. Her tone was strange. I can’t explain it.”

“But you honestly think my brother would have left here and gone to fuck a chick that he’s never wanted? Never really dated. Has always thought of as a booty call and nothing else.”

With every word I felt sicker and even worse than before. “You’re not making me feel better.”

Ollie laughed at that. “That’s because you’re a woman. And I mean that in the best way possible. Men can separate heart and body. Love and sex.”

I pouted. “I know women can do that too.” Obviously, Nancy could. “Not me so much, but just saying... it’s not just men.”

Ollie ran his hand over my leg. “I know. And Nancy is the perfect example. But what I mean to say, is that Markus has never loved any of the women he’s been with. To him they’re toys... a workout.”

“What about with me?” I whispered. It hadn’t felt to me like he’d treating our sessions like a workout, or me as a sex toy. The look in his eyes when he stared at me, the soft touches and affection afterwards... none of it felt cold or empty.

Or maybe I was delusional, and I was just another notch on Markus’s very notched headboard.

“We’ll ask him when he gets home,” Ollie said, brushing my hair out of my face and gently tucking it behind my ear.

I loved how affectionate and caring he was all the time.

I stared at him. “How come you’re still single when you’re so awesome?”

He burst out laughing. “Because I was waiting for you! The woman who was meant for me, who makes my heart pound and my breath catch in my throat.”

I leaned forward and kissed him again. “Don’t forget to mention the electric buzzing thing. Which, by the way, weirded your mom out. As soon as I told her about you two keeling over, she left.”

Ollie’s jaw tightened and his lips thinned at the mention of his mother. “I can’t believe she came over here and dared to tell you that you’re not good enough for us. She’s the one who taught us that women are special and should be respected.”

I snorted. “Obviously, that doesn’t translate to her sons’ mate.”

“I’ll talk to her,” Ollie said, “and sort this out. She should have a lot more respect for the Fated mate bond than she’s displaying. Makes no sense.”

I shrugged and pulled my legs up, curling into a ball and leaning into Ollie’s strength. “I didn’t tell you. I have some job interviews this week. Not just for hospitality stuff, but assistant work as well.”

Ollie wrapped his arms around me. “Sweetheart, I want you to be happy. I don’t care if you work or don’t work. Or if you want to go study or raise babies for the next twenty years.”

“Babies?” I repeated, pulling back to stare up into his face. “I hadn’t thought about... you want kids? How many are we talking?”

I also hadn’t thought about the fact that I could be pregnant already, not until this moment. Should I go and get a morning after pill?

“As many as you want,” Ollie said. “As soon as you can.”

No morning after pill then.

“Really? But we’ve only just met.” I couldn’t believe that this amazing man wanted to commit to me so strongly after such a short time knowing each other.

A baby would mean a lifelong bond between us. The thought filled me with a mixture of nerves and excitement. Imagine having a baby with Ollie. Or Markus. Or both. They would be wonderful fathers; I could sense that already.

He shrugged. “That’s the best part about the Fated mate bond. I don’t need to guess whether this is going to work or not. You’re meant for me, and I’m meant for you.”

I closed my eyes as he lifted my chin and kissed me again.

Ollie tasted of everything good. Sunshine and lazy Sundays. I never wanted him to stop kissing me.

The door opened and a growling, six-foot-three, dark-haired wolf shifter walked in. “That fucking manipulative bitch.”

I jumped to my feet, my heart pounding like a steam locomotive against my ribs. “What’s happened?”

Was he talking about his mother or Nancy? Or both?

Markus turned to Ollie. “Dad called and asked me to come over.”

“Just you?” Ollie asked, his tone indicating that he was surprised.

“Just me,” he said, the scowl on his face telling me that wasn’t a pleasant thing.

“Uh-oh,” Ollie said. “What’d you do wrong?”

“Nothing!” Markus exploded. “They spouted some bullshit about Lexie not being our mate because she’s not a wolf. And when I told them they weren’t making sense because there are quite a few humans married into our pack, they went on about bloodlines and crap I’ve never even heard before. I ended up leaving because they were being ridiculous.”

“That doesn’t sound like them,” Ollie said, crossing his arms over his chest in a gesture that looked self-protective. “But then again, neither does the fact that Mom came here to investigate Lexie.”

“It was Nancy who told them about me,” I said quietly.

“Nancy?” Markus looked over at me, then swallowed hard, his throat working. “When did you see her?”

I hadn’t said I’d seen her. Anne had told me. But since he’d brought her up...

“She came by an hour ago to drop this off.” I walked over to the hall table where I’d placed the card and handed it to Markus. “She said you left it at her place... today.”

I watched Markus’s face carefully, looking for clues and to see if he would lie to me or not.

He stared down at the card, then slid it into his pocket. “That’s weird. I don’t remember dropping it.”

I stared at him, dumbfounded. “Did you just admit to going over to Nancy’s house this afternoon. After we had sex? You said you were going back to work.”

“I went to deal with... Hang on a second.” A growl rolled through the room. “What exactly are you accusing me of, Lexie?”

I had the sudden feeling I’d taken a step too far in the wrong direction already, and we’d only just started the conversation.

I swallowed hard, determined to push through my discomfort and confront him about this. “Your mom said that its impossible for you to be monogamous, and Nancy said you went over there this afternoon and slept with her.”

Markus’s gaze flickered with fury, and the room filled with tension. “I haven’t heard a question yet.”

Now I was the one getting angry. “Did you?” I put both hands on my hips. “Leave me here just to go and fuck someone else?”

His nostrils flared before his jaw tightened. “You seriously think I’d do that?”

Ollie got up off the couch and came to stand beside me. “Just tell her the truth, Markus.”

This time Markus’s growl reverberated around the room. It was followed by an eyeroll. “Oh my God, not you, too. Why does everyone think so badly of me? What the hell did I do wrong?”

He hadn’t done anything wrong, but... “Did you go over there? If she’s lying, just tell me and we can put it aside.”

“I went over there,” he admitted, and my belly dropped.

I stumbled away, choking on the tears that began welling up.

“But I didn’t fuck her!” he growled out.

I didn’t know what to believe. “So you just went over for a... what? A chat? Because I know you haven’t committed to me, or the triad bond... or whatever you want to call this thing we all have, but...”

Now I was feeling foolish, hoping for love and respect when we barely knew each other. The truth was, I wasn’t a proper girlfriend to either of these men. I was a fool, and my heart broke as I faced reality. Everyone was right. Markus wasn’t the monogamous type.

“But what?” he demanded. “You assumed I’d be yours from the moment we met? Well, guess what? I have been! I haven’t even kissed anyone else since we met.”

I pressed my lips together to fight off the tears, finally gathering enough control to speak. “Then what were you doing at her house?”

“Oh my God!” He threw up his hands, swiveled on his heel and opened the front door. “You want me to say that I fucked her? Fine, I fucked her! Are you happy now? You’re just like the rest of this town. You all think I’m some sort of good-for-nothing asshole. Well, aren’t you lucky that you’ve got the other half of a perfect pair to love you? Ollie’s the perfect part, of course, and then there’s me. I’m the one you can just dump because I’m not perfect. Nowhere near it.”

The hurt and pain beneath his words were heartbreaking. For the first time I realized he was telling the truth. He hadn’t slept with Nancy. She’d lied, and I’d believed her. “Markus... I...”

Before I could get out my apology, he was gone, taking his anger and my heart with him.