Fox hit the disconnect button on his phone and slid it into his back pocket. His Alpha wanted him home on the next flight available, and he wasn’t best pleased about that. His wolf had been antsy for days now, ever since he had bumped into the blonde wolf and her vampire companion.
Cassia; yes that was her name. Cassia what? Who was she and why had his wolf sat up and been so interested in the woman? He didn’t think it was the mating instinct kicking in though he could be wrong. What he’d learned about the wolves here was that their mating instinct was an instantaneous thing as opposed to a more gradual thing among his kind in Europe. Surely if it was the mating pull Cassia would have known instantly and tried to claim him?
It was disconcerting how he couldn’t get her off his mind though, and he didn’t like it. He had been sent over here by his Alpha to track down the non-aligned Weres that had been crossing the Atlantic Ocean. His mission was to try to determine what they were up to, and what, if anything, their actions may mean for the European packs.
There was far too much uncertainty among the supernatural races in Europe at the moment. The vampires were up to something. This was evident in the way their attention had turned away from trying to exterminate the Were population there. Something was focusing them stateside, and there were rumours of Ancient vampires being on European soil for the first time in centuries. Add in the strange behaviour of the lone wolves crossing the Ocean, and there was enough strangeness happening to concern most of the covens as well as the few integrated packs that still managed to reside as a unit.
He didn’t have time to be diverted by a wolf, no matter how beautiful she was. He didn’t have any of the answers that he’d hoped to find either, so he wasn’t happy about being summoned home. He couldn’t refuse his Alpha though. If she said they had to come home then they had to. Muttering a curse, he spun on his heel and threaded his way back towards the motel they taken up residence at.
He’d barely taken a handful of steps when a scent wafted towards him on the breeze and he froze on the spot. He had only scented it once before, but his wolf new instantly who it was. His head turned to the left, catching a glimpse of blonde curls vanishing into one of the nearby nightclubs – Cassia. His feet were moving before he could register what he was doing, moving towards a place called The Dive and the woman that he couldn’t get out of his head…
*****
“We’re closed!” Pietro barked out, as the front door opened, not deigning to turn from stocking the shelves with bottles of alcohol.
“I said we’re closed!” He roared again, spinning around when it became apparent whoever it was wasn’t leaving. His mouth dropped open, and he blinked in surprise when he saw who his visitor was. How the hell could he not have scented her? It was only as he thought it that he realised that she must have masked her scent as she entered.
Closing his mouth and swallowing hard, he greedy gaze roamed over Cassia’s exquisite face, drinking in each feature like a starving man. Had it really only been a day or so since he had last seen her? It felt like a lifetime, and he didn’t like the way his hands felt so clammy and his heart raced just at the sight of her. She looked good… better than good. She looked perfect. There were some tell-tale signs of strain around her mouth, but apart from that she looked well.
“What are you doing here, Cassia?” The words barked out more aggressively than he intended, and he had to force himself not to cross over to her when she flinched noticeably. He truly didn’t want to hurt her, not even when he couldn’t shake the feelings of betrayal seeing her brought back to the surface.
“We found an antidote to the poison. I wanted to let you know that, so you wouldn’t be worried about being infected again.”
Pietro inhaled deeply, a shiver of relief coursing through his body. She had done it? His beautiful wolf had finally found a cure to Amort? Pride as well as relief threatened to overwhelm him, and it was all he could do to remain standing where he was. He wanted to hold her close, to tell her how proud he was of her, and yet, he couldn’t bring himself to take that first step.
“Congratulations, Cassia. I know how hard you worked to find the cure. I didn’t lose faith that you would succeed eventually.” He swallowed again, turning away because he couldn’t bear to see the uncertainty in her eyes. “You didn’t have to come all the way out here to tell me. Andrei or Alexei could have let me know.”
“I wanted to see you.” Cassia hesitated, took a deep breath and continued.” I needed to see you, Pietro… I know you’re angry with me. I understand why you feel betrayed that I sided with the pack against you. It wasn’t like that, not the way you think it was.”
“It doesn’t matter…”
“It does and you know it.” The vehemence in her voice was surprising considering she had barely been speaking above a loud whisper before.
He could feel Cassia moving towards him, and he kept his back to her, continuing to restock the bar. He didn’t want her to be here. He didn’t want to see the evidence of what his rejection was doing to her. Why couldn’t she just leave? Then she wouldn’t hurt so much and neither would he.
Pietro held himself tense, afraid she would touch him, and he would lose all control. To do so now would only hurt them both all the more later. He couldn’t forgive Thereasa. He couldn’t return to the pack, and Cassia couldn’t be apart from her people. That day had proven that more than anything else ever could.
“Hurting Thereasa… knowing that you had hurt Liam and all those you love in the pack, that would have killed you, Pietro. You say you don’t understand what a pack is and yet you run with your own. Alexei, Andrei, Demetri, Caleb, Mac… Annie, Mara, Loretta, Cedar… the list goes on and on. They are your pack. You may not be a wolf, but what you feel for them is just as intense as what I feel for my pack. Can’t you see that?”
Spinning around, he pinned her with his mismatched gaze, denial blazing from their depths. “It’s different and you know it. Cassia… don’t do this. I cannot be part of your world any longer. I have only hatred in my heart and the desire for revenge. That won’t change, not until Thereasa is dead. This is who I am. This is what I am. You have to see that and understand that there is nothing but heartache for you if you continue down this path.”