Elijah didn’t know what to make of Valentina’s cold shoulder routine. Was she just toying with him this whole time? She didn’t seem the type, but then traditionally, he had bad taste in women. Just because she wasn’t blonde or submissive outside of the bedroom didn’t mean she was magically going to be different from the other women he had dated. He sighed and went to his room to grab a pair of shorts. If there was nothing he could do to help, then he could at least work out some of his frustration.

After finding the gym he had seen when he’d had the initial tour of the house, Elijah spent the better part of two hours lifting weights and running until his skin was slick with sweat and his muscles were starting to protest. He’d never been able to run so fast or lift so much before, and he was thankful that the gym was equipped with heavier weights so that he actually felt like he was getting a workout.

The problem was that his mind wouldn’t stay away from thoughts about Valentina. Even when he was focusing on having correct form or not tripping over his own feet because he was running so fast, she was always at the edge of his thoughts. Finally, when his body was exhausted, he left.

His body was moving without him paying attention, so although he had intended going upstairs to shower, he found himself standing in front of the dining room. He could scent Valentina on the other side of the door, along with someone else, someone male. Fire sparked in his veins, and when the door opened and the other man stepped out, he had to focus not to reach out and grab him, demanding to know what had gone on in there.

Jealousy wasn’t his usual go-to emotion, but for the last couple days, it had been much higher on his list than it normally was. Before the next shifter could step in to see Valentina, he entered the room and shut the door.

“We need to talk,” he growled.

She looked up at him, and a blush rose on her cheeks before her eyes darted away. He hadn’t missed her reluctance to look at him when she was giving her speech earlier. In fact, he had practically felt her gaze brush the area around him without ever actually making eye contact with him.

“Elijah, now isn’t a good time. I have I don’t know how many more shifters to get through, and after that, I need to start contacting other packs, see if any of them can take these guys under their wing. It’s a good thing none of them are alphas. Otherwise, they would be screwed,” she said, tapping the pen she was holding against a notepad.

“I need to talk. They can wait a minute. It’s not as though any of them are going anywhere.” When she didn’t immediately stop him, he barreled on. “What happened back there? We were working together, and then you just seemed to have your own agenda and left me.”

“I left you?” she scoffed. “That’s rich. You ran out the door without waiting for even a split second to make sure it was the right move. Then I’m stuck fighting four mercenaries by myself, only to end up getting shot. I’m lucky I didn’t die.”

“Yeah, and who do you think stopped them from killing you? Who got you out of there while you were unconscious? Me.” He jabbed himself in the chest with his finger. “I saved your ass. One of them was literally standing over you with the gun aimed at your head when I tackled him. So yeah, you did almost die, and you would have if it weren’t for me.”

“My ass wouldn’t have been in danger if you had stuck with me to begin with.”

“What about you sticking with me? We went there to find the doctor to find out what happened, and when he took off, you stayed behind with the cat who did this to me!”

“I stayed behind because all his information was there. All his notes, records, everything. I figured he would get away, and I wanted to be sure that I could protect everything else, not to mention the man in the cage whom you just abandoned. A man who had no choice but to do that to you, I might add. It wasn’t as if he was in control of himself or his animal. The doctor forced him to shift and attack people.”

“We could have gone back for all that, and if you would have followed my lead, we may have even caught the doctor to prevent this from happening again.”

“Look, clearly you and I have different approaches to this kind of thing, and that’s fine, but now I have work to do.”

“Do you even want to know what happened to the guard?”

“I figured when I heard her scream cut off that you had killed her.”

“And you’d be okay with me being a murderer?”

“What you are is none of my business. Besides, I think it’s time for you to find your own pack. Two alphas under one roof is asking for trouble, and since we clearly have different methods, I think it’s best not to tempt fate, don’t you?” she said quietly as she looked at her notes.

Disappointment flowed through him, clenching his heart in an unexpected way. “Just so you know, when her scream cut off, it was because she passed out, not because I murdered her. I even left the keycard within her reach when I came upstairs to find you.” He turned to walk away. “Don’t worry, kitten, I’ll get out of your hair.”

He heard a sharp intake of breath behind him and paused for a second. When no rebuttal came, when she didn’t ask him to stay, he opened the door and stormed out. The wood and metal smacked on the stone facade next to it while he walked away. All he had to do was grab his bag and get out of there. He could shower back at his own place.

His gut churned with emotion, anger and disappointment being the top two, as he ran back to his room and gathered his things. He grabbed his phone and called a cab. All he wanted was to get the hell out of Dodge, and the last thing he was going to do was wait for someone to take him home.