When Lia woke up, again, she was alone. Her naked body was wrapped up comfortably in the sheets, and the night before felt like a distant dream. She could hardly believe what she’d experienced. How was she ever going to be able to look Kane in the eye again? This engagement was supposed to be a sham. They weren’t actually going to get married or anything. What good was it for her to go and complicate things by getting physical with a man twice her age who would probably hate her guts if he knew who her family was? She had to be some kind of crazy.
Lia showered quickly and dressed for the day. She wanted nothing more than to blow off class after what had happened with Max.
Oh god. Max. Kane had gotten his revenge for her kidnapping right before her eyes. It had been the most horrifying event she’d ever witnessed, but if he hadn’t, she would have been killed. Still, it was strange that her school schedule would no longer include the stuck-up narcissistic jerk. On the plus side, though, she would never have to deal with his unfair grading scale again. Maybe it was better to count her blessings.
“Good morning,” Kane said, surprising Lia as she came into the living room from Kane’s bedroom.
“Oh, hi,” she said, trying to still her beating heart. For some reason, she had been afraid Courtney had come home early from her weekend with Eric. How would she ever be able to face her friend again after what she did with Courtney’s father? It was too messed up for words.
“I made breakfast,” Kane said, leading Lia into the kitchen. “I think we should talk.”
“Yeah, I think that’s a good idea,” Lia said with a sigh, slumping down onto one of the kitchen chairs. Kane pushed a plate of pancakes and bacon toward her and she smiled weakly at him. Everything that had happened had left her less than hungry, but the thought was really nice.
“About last night,” Kane began almost immediately after she took her first bite. “I’m so sorry. It should never have happened. And it cannot happen again.”
“I completely agree,” Lia said, unable to meet Kane’s eyes. “It’s not right. Courtney would flip. And besides, you’re old enough to be my dad.”
Kane’s eyes narrowed, but he nodded slowly.
“That’s true.”
“So…let’s never do that again.”
“Right,” Kane said.
“Right,” Lia agreed.
They spent the rest of the morning eating quietly together, until finally, Kane sighed and stood up to stretch.
“I’m going to have to talk to Franklin about Max. But considering all we know now, it will really tell me a lot about whose side he’s on, depending on how he handles this.”
“Do you think he’s going to disqualify you for killing Max?” Lia asked, worry tinging her voice. She had read the guidelines over and over again, hoping for some sort of loophole. Unfortunately, there had been none. The rules were clear.
“Well, those rules would only apply to a fellow wolf shifter,” Kane said darkly. “Max was hardly the typical case. I should probably talk to the council as well.”
“But you don’t know how many of them might actually be on the council. You couldn’t even tell he was a bear shifter! You probably just smelled another wolf.”
Kane opened and closed his mouth, stunned by the thought. Apparently, she had a point. Though, it was probably one of the only times in her life she didn’t want to be right.
“It’s not the kind of thing I can just keep to myself,” Kane said quietly. “But you’re right. If there are hybrids infiltrating the council, it would probably be best that they don’t know just how much we learned about them.”
“I’m afraid it will already be too late,” Lia said. “We left one alive, remember? He’ll know who we are.”
Kane nodded decidedly. “Then I’ll just tell the truth. As I always have. I didn’t know the hybrids were possible, but now that I do, everybody else has the right to know, too. I’ll discuss the best course of action with Franklin on Monday afternoon. We have another meeting scheduled.”
“All right,” Lia said. The whole thing was making her nervous. But they were going to get through it, one way or another. So far, it had been a hellish ride, but Kane didn’t have any other competition in the running to lead the school. Not without Max.
“What do you think his real name was?” Lia wondered out loud, suddenly remembering that the hybrids had gone by similar names.
“We probably will never know,” Kane said with a shrug. “And good fuckin’ riddance to the guy anyway.”
Lia had a feeling that if they weren’t inside right that moment, Kane would be tempted to spit on the ground to drive the point home. Max wasn’t a good person. She shouldn’t keep thinking about him. The whole situation had just been very extreme.
“Kane, can I tell you something?” Lia asked suddenly. “It’s been bothering me for a while.”
“Sure, kid,” Kane said, munching on a piece of toast. “Tell me anything. Except that you want to have sex. Because that isn’t going to happen. At least not with me.”
Lia grinned and threw a piece of crust at him.
“No, nothing like that. I just feel like now that we have, you know, gotten a little closer, you should know about my family.”
“Your…okay…”
Lia sighed. “Courtney told me you’re not a big fan of humans. Because of the war. And I just want you to know that I’m related to some not so great humans. They’re my parents, actually. They contributed to the war effort.”
Lia looked down at the table grimacing. What was she thinking, just coming out with something like that over a breakfast that Kane had made so carefully for her? It would probably be like a slap in the face to him.
To her surprise, Kane studied her as if he were puzzled.
“So what about it?” he asked, as if he didn’t see the point. “Aren’t most humans related to some anti-shifter humans? They’re everywhere. It’s a global problem.”
Lia was taken aback for a moment. This had been one of the biggest reasons she had tried talking herself out of her feelings for Kane. And he was acting like it was no big deal. What the hell was going on?
“I don’t know…I just thought you should know. In case that changes anything, I guess.”
“There’s nothing for something like that to change. We’re not actually getting married, you know,” Kane said, suddenly agitated. “Nothing we did meant anything. If you take it too seriously, or tell my daughter about what we’ve done, you’re going to end up regretting it.”
“Are you threatening me?” Lia asked. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. It was almost like a switch had been flipped and Kane was acting like a completely different person. It was bizarre, really.
“I’m just saying,” Kane said, his low voice dark. “That you should really know more about what you’re messing with before you mess with it. You play things like you have been, keep your head down for the rest of the time this stupid engagement shit is happening, and everything will work out in your favor. If not, then you don’t want to see what I’m capable of.”
And with that, Kane left the room, leaving Lia, feeling deeply bewildered and hurt, behind him.