Before leaving, Griffon issued a warning.
“Just because Jackson broke off the mating agreement doesn’t mean that the Sterling pack will allow him to do so. He’ll be my brotherinlaw sooner or later. Don’t even think about getting him to fight against the whole pack for you.”
After saying that, Griffon turned around and walked to the door.
Once he was gone and the door was closed behind him, I heaved a deep sigh of relief.
Every time I faced him, my body filled with an indescribable pressure.
I wasn’t sure if I was afraid of him or if I was fearful that I wouldn’t be able to control my feelings for him.
Fortunately, my impulse had been to lie to him regarding any desire I had for him.
Otherwise, who knew how he would have reacted. It could have been anything from disgust to laughter.
I collected myself and walked to the sink, turning on the water but only staring down at the stream before turning it off and walking out of the bathroom.
As soon as I stepped out, Jackson was there, pushing Lena away and walking over to me.
“Ms. Palmer, let’s go back.”
I nodded and shot a glance at Lena. Her eyes were narrowed with warning, her wolf flashing for a second. Likely, she was afraid I would say something to Jackson about her slapping me.
Which was quite funny when you stopped to think about it. She had the gall to slap me, but she didn’t want anyone to know about it.
How utterly ridiculous.
I desperately wanted to slap Lena right now. Or tell Jackson, or say something to her. Anything to burn off everything I was feeling toward her, but this was the Wilton pack’s territory.
Not only was I a guest in her pack home, I was a human.
That was already two strikes against me, and the last thing I needed was a third.
Plus, I didn’t want to be the center of attention, nor did I want to be hated by the Wilton pack after the fight, or have it cause problems for Jackson. Anything that might come back on me negatively would likely affect my deal with Tara.
I suppressed my anger and decided to find a chance to beat her next time.
“Yes, let’s go.” I walked down the stairs, and Jackson politely took my hand to a*sist me down them.
When we reached the bottom, he looked over at me as if to confirm that I’d made it down the stairs okay and that it was safe for him to let go of my hand.
But rather than let go, his face darkened and his hand tightened around mine.
“Who did this to you?” he growled out, and I could hear his wolf rising to the surface.
He raised his other hand to touch my slightly swollen face, and something that looked like pain crossed over his face.
I was slightly stunned when I saw the look on Jackson’s face. I wouldn’t have expected him to feel sorry for me.
I hesitated, not saying anything.
There was no way he was going to stick up for me against his good friend’s sister. Stand up for a human over a wolf.
Taya’s silence made Lena heave a sigh of relief.
Jackson had always been good at observing people’s expressions and body language. As soon as he saw Lena’s sigh, he immediately understood what had happenedwas happening.
No wonder Lena wouldn’t let him go when he went to look for Taya, why she had clung to him and come along with him.
She was the one who had hit his woman.
Jackson gazed over at Lena.
His voice was deadly calm as he spoke, a hint of his Alpha voice coming out.
“Miss Wilton, I brought my companion to your house as a guest, and you put your hands on her. Is this how you were brought up in your pack? Does the Wilton pack condone actions such as these?”
Seeing that Jackson had found out so quickly that she had hit Taya, Lena’s heart skipped a beat. But her anger quickly dispelled it.
He hadn’t even bothered to ask what had happened and was already defending Taya. This was too much!
Lena couldn’t hold back her temper anymore, and her wolf’s hotheadedness rushed to the surface. “You didn’t even ask who hit her before blaming me. Is the Sterling pack always so quick to rush to judgments?”
Jackson’s expression turned darker. “Are you saying that you did not put your hands on my woman?”
“Even if I did, you didn’t ask me why I would do so. Why would your a*sumption be that she didn’t deserve it?”
Jackson snorted. “I know Ms. Palmer very well. And there is nothing in her character that would warrant someone putting their hands on her.”
Lena hadn’t expected Jackson to defend his companion like that, to defend a human so readily over another wolf shifter. She was so angry that her face turned pale. “Jackson, how can you do this to me-”
Jackson wasn’t interested in Lena’s act.
He promptly cut her off. “Apologize to Ms. Palmer!”
Although Henry was his good friend, Lena meant nothing to him. They had only met a few times, and there wasn’t any history between them to make it necessary for him to treat Lena with the respect it was clear she believed she deserved.
She might be a wolf and technically outrank Taya, but compared to Jackson, Lena was nothing. The Wilton pack might be wealthy, but they had no power. And they certainly didn’t wield the power the Sterling pack did. Frankly, they were lucky he had even come to this event.
Seeing that Jackson wouldn’t let her go until she apologized, Lena was so angry that she burst into tears. “Jackson, you’re bullying me!”
The shewolf’s cry soon attracted the attention of the crowd. Most were holding gla*ses of wine laced with wolfsbane and standing aside to watch the show.
No one came forward to help Lena.
She quickly pointed at Taya. “She was the one who insulted me in my own home. And she’s a human! I was so angry that 1 lost my mind and slapped her. I wouldn’t have done this if it weren’t for her stirring up trouble. I didn’t do anything wrong!”