Chapter Twenty-One
“You’re sure about this?” Killian said, his face serious.
“Yes. My sources are never wrong. And you’ve read these reports yourself.”
Killian let out a low whistle. “Shit, Quinn, who the hell did you piss off that would want you dead?”
“Who the hell wouldn’t want me dead? You know the type of work we were in. We always knew we would be in danger.”
Connor shifted in his seat uncomfortably. “Yeah, well, that’s why Archie taught us to be careful.”
“Any leads on the guy on the subway platform?” Killian asked.
“I’m working on it now. I have about a hundred or so names of adult male Lycans in New York to sift through. Then, once I narrow them down to those who fit the description, I can start looking at alibis.”
“Good. Let me know when you have the names and we can split up the work.” Killian took a folder from under his desk. “Now, we need to discuss Lone Wolf business, but, Quinn, finding this guy is your priority. I’ll take care of Creed.”
Quinn nodded. He was glad his brothers had his back. After all, he had no one else in the world after Archie died and his birth father all but sent him away. A small voice suddenly told him there was one more person. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he thought about Selena last night. How she could possibly think he would choose those airhead sisters of hers was beyond him. Okay, so once upon a time, he was shallow enough to have gone after them or girls like them. But who the hell would want chuck steak when they had grade A filet mignon at home? He licked his lips, thinking of how he was going to feast on Selena tonight. He quickly glanced at the clock on his phone. He was counting down the hours until he was out of here.
The rest of the afternoon passed by quickly enough, especially with the amount of work he had to do. By five p.m., he had only whittled his list down to half. New York was one of the biggest Lycan clans in the world. But shifters were loyal to their Alpha and clan and, with their dwindling numbers, few would dare kill another of their kind. Whoever was out to get him was powerful and had loyal people under his command. His thoughts strayed to Grant Anderson, but he dismissed that. The Alpha of New York would never attempt to cover up a murder. As the leader of the clan and the territory, he could kill Quinn himself if he had reason to and no one would even bat an eyelash.
His brain fried from work, Quinn decided to call it a day and walked down to the parking garage. He was always on his guard, and he took every precaution. He drove Selena and himself to work every day, even if they could easily walk or cab it. Before he even opened the door to his vehicle, he used a portable electronic scanner over the entire car to ensure no one had tampered with it or attached a bomb or a tracking device. He also locked down the onboard computer and added his own security features. No one would mess with his ride, especially not when he and Selena were in it.
The drive to the library was quick, and he was lucky enough to find a parking spot right in front. Quinn put the car into park and cut the engine.
As he was walking to the front door, he let out a groan. Alexis and Katrina were outside the library. They saw him and locked eyes, so it was too late to walk away or hide.
“Quinn,” Alexis said in that voice that made Quinn’s ears bleed. “What happened to you last night? I thought you were going to show us the private rooms at Merlin’s?”
“An emergency came up. With my … sister. But Connor was with you, right?”
Katrina pouted. “Your brother may be hot, but he’s rude as fuck. He shoved us into the VIP room and then closed the door behind us.”
Quinn tried not to laugh. “Oh, maybe he had an emergency, too.”
“What are you doing here?” Alexis said, her painted-on eyebrow rising up to her hairline.
“I was … uh …” Shit, he and Selena never talked about what they would tell everyone. He supposed he was her boyfriend now, a realization that smacked him in the face. He never thought he’d be a one-woman man, but here he was, about to pick up his girlfriend from work and bring her home. He was so whipped, and he had never been happier. “I was going to drive Selena home,” he said, which technically wasn’t a lie. His heart raced, thinking about Selena in his home. No, their home. He’d ask her to move in tonight. The thought of being away from her for another minute made his chest ache. Wolf was getting impatient too, wanting these bitches to get out of the way.
Katrina and Alexis looked at each other, then they gave him twin smiles.
“Oh, you’re an awfully nice friend,” Alexis said. “I’m sure Jason would appreciate a friend like you taking care of Selena.”
“Who?”
“Jason Ward,” Katrina tittered. “You know, Selena’s fiancé.”
“What the fuck did you just say?” Quinn snarled. Because surely she didn’t just say ‘fiancé.’
Alexis gave Quinn a smug smile. “Doesn’t Selena talk about him? The engagement party’s next week, so she must have mentioned it to you.”
“No. She did not.” Quinn stood very still, and blood roared in his ears.
“They’ve been friends since childhood,” Katrina added. “It’s quite sweet, isn’t it, Alexis? Childhood best friends turned sweethearts and soon to be man and wife.”
“Really sweet.” Alexis’ eyes glinted. “Don’t you think so, Quinn?”
“I should go see if Selena’s ready,” he said through gritted teeth. His mind was reeling as he walked through the doors of the library. He would get to the bottom of this.
***
Selena stretched her arms over her head, pushing the last book from the trolley onto the top shelf. “Finally.” She breathed aloud as the book slipped into position without any problem. She brushed her palms together, mentally patting herself for a job well done. Having spent most of the afternoon putting books back into circulation and straightening up the shelves, she felt like she had walked miles today. But she was all done now. The library was also empty, which meant she could close up as soon as she clocked out.
Checking her watch, she saw it was five minutes past the hour. Quinn was probably out by her desk, already waiting for her. Her heart fluttered, thinking of him. At the same time, that pit in her stomach was getting bigger. For some reason, her father stopped calling and leaving her messages. She thought she was free, but a cryptic text from him this morning made the pit grow into the size of the Grand Canyon.
Stop ignoring me. If you don’t decide, I’ll do it for you.
It sent a chill straight to her bones but also cemented her decision. It was time she grew up. If she didn’t fight for herself, then no one would.
Selena had already bought her train tickets to Philadelphia for the next day to turn down Jason’s proposal. She would do it in person, of course. This was not a conversation to be done over text. Tonight though, she would tell Quinn. She had been practicing her speech the whole day. First, she would explain that this was how things were done in their society. Next, she would show him the tickets and tell him she was determined to do this. She prepared herself for the worst, in case he got mad about the whole marriage proposal thing, but surely he would understand. She and Jason hardly knew each other and hadn’t even kissed or held hands. It was only Quinn. She was choosing him over her own family and her coven. It was risky, but she believed Quinn would see reason, especially since she was coming clean.
“Selena.”
She nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard his voice. “Jesus, Quinn, you scared me,” she said with a laugh, pressing her hand on her chest to calm herself. Hmmm…he had this brooding expression on his face that made him seem oh-so-sexy. As far as she knew, there should be no one else around. What if…
“Come closer, tiger,” she purred. Oh wow. Did she really say that? Could she possibly…
Quinn moved closer, the blue of his eyes almost glowing. It made her skittish and nervous, but, also excited. He placed two hands on her shoulders and backed her up against the wall between the stacks.
“You really must be a witch,” he whispered in an oddly cool voice. “Because you’ve cast some sort of spell on me that no matter how many times I fuck you, I can’t get enough.” A rough hand moved up between her legs and fingers yanked her lace panties aside as he pushed them into her.
She gasped and grabbed at his shoulders to steady herself. “Yes, Quinn…don’t stop.” This really was happening. A zing of excitement raced through her body. “Quinn!” she shuddered, her body convulsing with pleasure. Her orgasm wasn’t even done when he twisted her around, pressing her against the cold concrete.
“Did you like that, kitten?” His smile didn’t reach his eyes.
“Yes,” she moaned. “Please.”
“Please what, Selena? Tell me what you want.”
“I want you. Here. Now.”
“Beg me for it.”
“Take me, Quinn. Fuck me now.”
He let out a cold laugh. “Tell me, Selena. Would you beg Jason Ward for it?”
Her eyes flew open and she looked up at him. The blue of his eyes was hard and emotionless, sending chills down the back of her legs. Selena’s heart dropped all the way down to her stomach, and she swallowed loudly. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
His mouth spread into a thin-lipped smile. “Well? Were you going to tell me?”
“How did you know?” she managed to say. Oh God. Her father. His message to her this morning. This was what he was trying to say. He probably found out about Quinn.
“Does it matter? You’re not denying it, so it must be true.”
“Quinn, you don’t understand—”
“I don’t understand?” he said, his voice rising. “All this time … you were fucking me and you had a fiancé.”
A fist wrapped around her heart and Selena couldn’t breathe. No, this wasn’t the plan. She was going to come clean to him and explain. She could still explain. “I don't. I mean, it’s not what you think. I haven’t told him—”
“Then tell me what I’m supposed to think? You jump into bed with me, and this entire time you had another guy waiting in the wings?” The anger rolling off him was palpable now. “Well, at least I popped your cherry,” he whispered into her ear, his breath hot. “Hope he doesn’t mind that a Lycan got to your pretty little snatch first.”
Quinn’s cruel words sliced into her, and her knees buckled. Large hands propped her up and held her against the wall. “What do you say, Selena? One last fuck before you walk down the aisle?”
Asshole. Why wouldn’t he let her explain? “Let go of me,” she said weakly, her resolve weakening as Quinn’s warm hands inched up her ribcage to cup her breasts.
“I can smell you. You want me.” He nuzzled her neck, eliciting a whimper from her throat.
This was all her fault. If only she’d told him about Jason right away. But Leonard got to him somehow.
“Fuck, Selena, I can’t believe how much I want you still … even though you’re a liar,” he growled.
“No!” She wrenched away from him, grabbing the shelves for support as she forced her legs to put as much space between them as she could.
“Why, Selena?” he asked in an anguished voice.
She took a deep breath and turned around. Quinn stood there, his face tight with strain. Why didn’t she tell him? Because she was a fucking coward, that’s why. Scared of her feelings for him and scared of his reaction. She was hedging her bets, trying to be sure and wanting to have her cake and eat it, too. Now was the time for honesty, even if it was too late. “Because I didn’t want to fall in love with you. Not when I knew I couldn’t keep you forever. It would have destroyed me to see you move on to the next pretty thing that caught your eye when you got tired of me.”
“That’s bullshit.”
“Is it, Quinn?” she challenged. “You didn’t want anything more than a quick lay from me. Have you honestly not tried to fuck other girls since you slept with me?”
Her question was met with silence. “You should have told me.”
“Yes, yes, I know,” she shot back. “And I’m sorry. I made a mistake in not telling you. I wish I could turn back time and do it all over again, but I can’t.”
His jaw ticked, and his eyes burned bright blue. “Shit … I can’t be here … not now …” He whipped around savagely and tore down the stacks like he was on fire, disappearing from her view.
Tears burned at her eyes, and the sob stuck in her throat escaped, a guttural sound ripping from her mouth. She should have listened to her instincts and stayed away from him. Her brain screamed at her. Loving Quinn would only lead to hurt, and, now, all she wanted to do was rip out her heart so she wouldn’t feel the pain anymore.
She walked back to her desk, so ready to leave and go home so she could drown her sorrows in a bottle of wine or a carton of ice cream. She had left her phone on her desk, and it started ringing the moment she got back, which only made her want to throw it across the room. When she saw her father’s name flash on the screen, she picked it up impulsively.
“What do you want?”
“Selena,” Leonard answered. “Are you ready to give me your answer now?”
“What did you do?” she accused. How did he get to Quinn?
He snorted. “I didn’t do anything, but you might as well know I’ve made it clear to the Wards and Jason that your answer will be the one they’re hoping for. And that there are no other impediments to your marriage.”
“Are you crazy?” she roared into the phone, her anger boiling over. “I’m never marrying him. Never!”
“Selena, you will do as I say or suffer the consequences.”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
“Try me,” Leonard challenged. “You’ll never step foot in Philadelphia again. The coven will shun you and you’ll never visit your mother’s grave.”
She already lost Quinn. What else could she lose now? “All right,” she answered, swallowing the lump in her throat. “Fine. I mean, yes.”
“Good. I’ll send you a message with all the details of the engagement party.”