Page 45 of Redemption in the Dark (The Righteous 5)
In fact, she couldn’t read the expression on his face as he stared at the CD player. He slowly walked across the kitchen and laid his hands on the counter beside the player, eyes closing.
She didn’t know that Wolf had a sister, but more concerning was why this fun, upbeat song was making him cry. Placing the bowl down on the counter, she took a chance and wrapped her arms around his waist, laying her head on his back.
“What’s wrong?”
“I haven’t heard this song in a very long time, but Awinita loved it. I was so sick of listening to it over and over. I’d yell at the wall and tell her to turn it down and bury my head under my pillow, praying she would switch it off or at least pick a different song. I’d been tempted to steal and break the disc so many times….” He stood straight as the song ended and the next tune began. “I’m sorry, I…I need some air. I’ll go get the mail and be back.”
She let her arms drop as he stepped away from her, heading for the front door. Maeve watched him from the window over the sink as he stuffed his hands in his jean pockets, and for the first time since she’d met Wolf, he looked like a man deeply haunted. The calm was still there, but the thunder cloud following him matched her own.
She turned off the player and found a large pan to make the pancakes. Finishing the last pancake, she placed it on top of the rest and heard the door squeak, announcing Wolf was back.
The voice that greeted her, though, was not Wolf. “Is Waya here?”
Maeve looked over her shoulder to see Unole in the doorway. “No, he’s out for a walk. I’m surprised you didn’t see him, but he’ll be back any minute. Did you want to wait in here for him?”
“Sure, those smell good.”
He nodded toward the plate, but his eyes were trained on the low-cut V-neck of the shirt she was wearing, and she suddenly wished she hadn’t offered for him to stay. She grabbed the plates, set them on the table, and then left to search for toppings.
“Here, I can help with that,” Unole said, taking the butter, jam, and syrup from her hands.
His fingers blatantly traced the sides of her breasts as he did, but her normal surge of sexual desire stayed dormant and happily stood aside for her anger to rise.
“What the fuck?”
“I know you want to head down to the barn with me.” He stepped closer, and she stepped back, matching the distance. “I’ll even make it worth your while. Wolf is nice enough, but he’s boring, and we both know you like it wild.”
“Get the fuck away from me, Unole. I don’t know what you think you saw, but I’m not interested.” With her outburst, Duke stood and came to her side, his gums peeled back from his lips as his eyes focused on Unole.
“I didn’t do anything. I was trying to be nice,” he said.
Unole’s eyes were trained on the snarling Duke, who seemed to be looking for an excuse to take a chunk out of him.
“Back off, Duke. I wasn’t hurting her,” he said, taking a small step back.
“Bullshit, you’ve been flirting with me since I arrived, and you just copped a feel on top of propositioning me. By saying ‘make it worth my while,’ are you talking money, or do you think you’re just that fucking good I’ll fall at your feet with a ‘thanks?’” Her hands balled as she pictured jumping on Unole, but not for the reason he was imagining.
The door banged open, the room instantly filling with Wolf’s presence in a way that had her shivering. His eyes were wild as he focused on Unole.
“You did what?” Wolf’s voice was terrifying.
Unole dropped the items on the table, the jam and the syrup bottle crashing into each other as the butter dish slipped off the table and smashed into pieces on the floor. Maeve grabbed Duke and pulled him back, scared he’d cut his paws.
Wolf’s hands turned into fists, his whole body flexing in a way that should’ve scared her, but instead, she had to bite her lip to calm her heated thoughts.
Unole pointed in her direction. “She’s a slut man and will fuck anything. She came on to me, not the other way around.”
“Excuse me? You don’t even know me,” Maeve said, the tension ramping up a little higher in the room.
“Wrong. I do know you.” Unole pulled out his cell and tapped on the screen. A video began to play.
The sound of music blared through the speaker as he held up the screen so they could watch the video. She was topless on a stage, giving a guy a blow job for the whole world to see. She had no idea when that video had been taken, then again, she couldn’t remember half of the shit she’d done, but it was from a few years ago. She remembered going to that club and using her fake ID to get in with some of her so-called friends. Things got wild after the speed round of shots, but what she was doing on this video, she didn’t remember at all.
“That’s you, right?” Unole said.
Hand shaking, she covered her mouth as she continued to watch herself in action. The filmed version of herself lifted her head and stared directly into the camera.
“I love fuck friends,” she yelled, lifting her hand with another drink in it. She chugged it down and resumed her work on the guy in the chair. The entire room erupted in cheers. A chant filled the speakers. “Suck, suck, suck,” grew louder until she wanted to cover her ears.
