Page 171 of Wicked Savage Wolves
“I don’t trust you.”
Ouch.I mean, that much was already clear with how she reacted, but hearing it aloud is still like a knife to the gut.
“But—”
She raises a hand. “Let me finish.”
I give her a stiff nod, clinging to my son like a lifeline.
Joaninha’s chest rises and falls with her breaths, then she turns to Jae. He gives her a nod of encouragement and that alone makes my hackles rise. What is he encouraging her to do here, exactly? She turns to face me again.
“César needs to come first, always.”
“He does.”
“But he won’t if we’re fighting. I don’t want to risk burning bridges with you. We’re both young. I let my emotions get the best of me the other night, and I reacted poorly. I’m…” she inhales a loud breath. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have attacked you like that.”
“It was nothing. A little water. We’re good.” I try to brush it off. If anything, I was impressed. I didn’t know she could wield her hydrokinesis like that. It makes me care for her even more. My wolf sees her as a worthy partner and a future member of our Pack. A warrior strong enough to stand beside us.
“It’s not nothing. It was out of line, but besides that, a relationship would have never worked out between us. Not long-term.”
“You don’t know that,” I bite out. She’s refused to give this a real chance, fighting me every step of the way. She didn’t want to get married, something most members of the Pack don’t even bother with, but she isn’t a wolf. She wouldn’t have understood the concept of being my mate and I didn’t want to scare her. But I guess marriage was too much. She didn’t even want to fucking date. I don’t know what to call what we’ve been doing, but even that was half-assed on her part.
But before I can say any of that, she continues. “Seeing you with Georgia the other night made me hate you. It made me want to hurt you and the best way to do that is with him.” She nods toward César. “I don’t want to be that person. I don’t ever want to use him against you or have him used against me. He isn’t some bargaining chip and I hate myself for even considering it.”
Air freezes in my lungs as her words hit their mark and my eyes narrow. She folds her arms across her chest and looks away. A single tear slips past her defenses and she hastily wipes it away.
“We can’t afford to be at one another’s throats. We can’t feud and fight. This can’t be messy. We have a child together and that’s complicated enough. Trying to date, to be whatever it is that you want, it just makes an already complicated situation worse. I think for both our sakes, we need to focus on being co-parents. Not—not anything more.”
I stand there, stunned. I expected her anger. Her fury and hatred, even. But I was prepared to fight for her. To convince her of my innocence. Now, I don’t know what to do. My mind is left reeling. She knows I didn’t cheat, but she still doesn’t want me. I’m not worth the effort, I guess. Not worth her time. And that she even considered keeping César from me…my wolf scrapes its claws along my insides. Furious and wounded that its mate would consider such a thing. Such a betrayal.
I bite the inside of my cheek harder until blood pools in my mouth, the metallic taste grounding me.
She clears her throat. “Everything you’ll need should be in the bag, but if it isn’t, call me.”
I nod my head.
“He ate about thirty minutes ago, so he should be okay for at least another hour.”
I nod again.
“Oh, and he’s happy and awake now but he usually takes his second nap around two, so you’ll notice he’ll start to get crabby. Hischupeta”—pacifier—“is in the right-side pocket and his blanket is in the large compartment. He won’t sleep without both of them.”
I know all of this already, having picked up most of it during our time together, but I let her run through her list before she tells César goodbye.
“Alright. I guess we’ll be on our way.”
“Okay.”
Fuck. Fine. This is not how I planned shit to go. I turn and take two steps toward the SUV when Jo calls out, “Wait.” I freeze, thinking maybe she’s changed her mind. Maybe—
She rushes to me and gives César a quick kiss on the cheek, running her hand lovingly over his hair. “Okay.” She seems to gather herself. “Have a great time together. And if you need—”
“Jo…”
She pauses. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m not changing my mind. It’s your day with him.” She visibly swallows. “I know he’s safe with you. Just ignore me.”
“I’ll bring him back at seven.”
