8
“Let me come with you. I’ll help you.” Quinn followed me to my car.
“I’m perfectly capable of packing up my room.” I huffed and turned to face him. “I’m not some helpless chick who needs rescuing. I’m strong. I’m tough. I can do this.” I glared at him for emphasis.
The sides of his mouth twitched. I soon realized he was trying to hide a smile. This happened a lot around me. My cheeks began to burn. This seemed like a pretty normal response to being completely humiliated.
“You don’t think so? You think I’m some damsel in distress?” I unlocked my car door, yanked it open, and sank down in my seat while I jammed the key in the ignition. The engine roared to life, but before I could close my door, Quinn had squatted down beside me.
“Don’t be mad,” he murmured.
I looked away. If I stared into his eyes, I’d melt. I didn’t want to soften in the least. “I’m not mad,” I grumbled. Quinn laid his hand on my thigh. I could feel the warmth soothing me. Frowning, I stared down at my leg.
“So, what is it then? How did I upset you?” He stared at me silently.
I shook my head. We couldn’t discuss this. Anything we said would make me feel like the girl I claimed not to be. Instead, I pasted a smile on my face, took a deep breath, and faced him. “I’m fine. I’m just gonna go take care of some business.” I shrugged then reached for the door handle.
“Wow. I earned a ‘fine.’ You’re seriously pissed. Well, I’m gonna go take care of my business. I’m designing your house. Think you’ll be back tonight?” Quinn leaned in until he was inches from my face. “Because I’d love to show you some preliminary plans. I know you’re in a rush.”
I closed my eyes. Dammit. Why won’t he let me be mad? That would be so much easier. Inhaling deeply, I nodded. “Yeah. This won’t take long. I already started bringing stuff home during spring break a few weeks ago.”
“Stop by.” He smiled. “I’ll make dinner.”
“It could be late.” I bit my lip.
Quinn chuckled. “Then I’ll make a late dinner.” He took a step back so he could shut my door.
God help me, I nodded. I agreed. What the hell had I agreed to? Then I gave him a slight wave as I drove away. I spent the rest of the drive thinking. What was Quinn’s motivation? Why was he being so nice to me? If he was a shifter, I’d have suspected he was in line to woo me. I groaned. I was already fighting off Tanner, who apparently hadn’t given up, judging from his interactions with me in the meeting last night. I shivered as I recalled how he stared at me while Lennie sat demurely at his feet.
Crap. I’d forgotten to tell my sisters what was going on. As soon as I parked in front of my dorm, I sent them a group text.
Me: Had the initial meeting with the architect. Now packing up my dorm room. When I return to Asheville, I’ll meet with the architect again to finalize the plans. Home much later. Sorry! Dallas is in charge in my absence.
They were in class, but Shelby still managed to find a way to respond. While I climbed the steps, I heard my phone chime.
Shelby: I’m going to need to hear more about this architect. We haven’t met him yet.
I laughed. She had been groomed for mother’s role and seemed to be taking to it like the proverbial duck to water.
Me: We’ll talk later, Shelby, not that there’s anything to say.
Even as I typed it, my cheeks burned. The way he looked at me, this man was trouble. I took a deep breath as I reached my door. Though I had literally been here yesterday, it felt like years had passed. Walking in, I glanced around, wondering what I should take, what really mattered to me. The rest I’d have to haul out to the dumpsters. I could feel my wolf growling. She hated this kind of labor. Maybe I should’ve let Quinn join me after all.
For a moment, I leaned on the doorframe. The task seemed ridiculously time consuming, especially when time felt so precious. There was a tap on my shoulder. When I turned, I found my RA standing beside me holding her clipboard. “I seriously haven’t even done anything yet. Another violation?” I sighed. Over the past few years, I’d been in trouble more than once for silly infractions like music being too loud and the time I accidentally started a fire with my hot pot.
She shook her head sadly. “No violation.” She swallowed hard. “The Dean told me…everything. I’ve organized people to help you. I know you probably don’t even want to be here. Your sisters…” Her eyes watered.
“Please don’t cry. You’ll make me cry and so far, I’ve managed to hold it all in. I need to. I don’t have time to mourn yet.” My shoulders heaved and suddenly, I found myself in a hug, which soon turned into a group hug. So many arms wrapping around me, offering support. When they finally released me, I realized the jocks had joined us.
The RA sniffled. “Okay then. Tell us what goes where and we’ll handle it.”
“Seriously?” My brows peaked. I glanced in my room to see my old roommate from my freshman year yanking my suitcase from under my bed.
“I’ll load your clothes.” She smiled shyly.
My shoulders sagged from relief. “Thank you,” I whispered.
An hour later, we’d finished. I passed on my posters and most of my décor, keeping only my college mug and all my family photos. The time passed so quickly, I didn’t even have time to feel, which was precisely what I needed.
Finally, I returned to my vehicle. The RA had joined me. “I really appreciate all the help.”
“Of course.” She grinned shyly and then frowned. “Wait. If your house burned down, where are you going to keep all this stuff?”
I slapped my forehead. “You make a valid point. Guess I need a storage unit.” I hopped in my car. “Take care,” I murmured, my attention already on my phone as I searched for a place near the homestead. Then my phone rang. I recognized the number. “Hello, Quinn.” My heart beat erratically for a second.
“Hello, Savvy.” His voice positively caressed me through the phone. “So, I was wondering how everything was going, if you had an estimate for when I should plan dinner…” His voice trailed off and I knew it was my cue to fill in the blank.
“Yeah. I’m on my way back.”
He clapped his hands together. “Perfect. I’ll start prepping for dinner.”
“Whoa, Chef Boyardee. I still have a few things to do before I can stop by.” I shook my head at his impatience.
“Oh. Want me to come with you?” There was an edge to his voice.
I frowned. “No. I’ve got it.”
“Right. Tough. Strong.” He sighed. “I didn’t forget. Still, I’m coming with you. This is for your safety.”
The idea of companionship was truly tempting, but I had responsibilities that were meant for me and me alone. “That’s silly. I’ll see you soon.” Then I ended the call.
I drove straight to the Public Storage closest to the homestead and rented a unit. With all the people staying at Phoenix House, I didn’t need to clutter it up with anything more than my clothes. Plus, we’d need a place to store anything we managed to salvage from the fire. Then I unloaded my vehicle and secured my unit with the lock the manager provided. This was the easy part. Now, I needed to go to the homestead. There were secrets I needed to hide before demolition and then construction began.
As expected, by the time I arrived, the rest of the pack had returned to Phoenix House. I parked as close to the house as I dared. The sun was slowly descending in the sky. My wolf paced impatiently. Tonight, I promised her. Once more I made my way to the study. Before opening the bookcase, I closed my eyes and listened. Greeted by silence, I finally unlocked it and punched the code into the safe. There were bank bags, the kind that required a key to access. And while I’d taken the check ledger earlier, I now turned my attention to the gold which had been dug out of our mines. Pulling out my keyring, I unlocked the bags and quickly loaded them with nuggets and containers of gold. Then I locked them, pocketed the keys, and stuffed the bags in my satchel, which now felt considerably heavier. Careful to cover my tracks and return everything as it had been, I finally moved toward my vehicle.
When I reached the porch, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Something had changed. I sniffed the air. Shifters. I smelled two. My heart beat erratically. I wanted to jump in my car, but I knew instinctively they planned to prevent my escape. While the eyes in the forest had stayed away yesterday with so many people around, tonight, on my own, I wouldn’t be so lucky. “Well, fuck. Just fuck,” I muttered. Sure enough, the moment I stepped off the porch, the wolves came racing out of the tree line. I couldn’t shift and leave the gold unattended. The most I could hope for was I’d somehow evade their efforts. As a human, I was definitely no match for them. Before I fully prepared, they were within fifteen feet of me. While I stood there, bracing for impact, an animal cut them off and knocked them over. My protector looked to be part Siberian Husky, part wolf. While the shifters were distracted, I threw the gold in the car and locked the door, ready to step into the fray. Only I soon realized I wasn’t needed. The huge husky had backed the shifters into the woods while snarling and snapping his jaws. Finally, they disappeared, but he remained on guard, the hairs on his neck at attention, a low growl coming from his throat.
“It’s okay, boy.” I stiffened. What made me talk to him? He certainly wouldn’t understand me, and as soon as he took one whiff of my hand, he’d turn on me too. My spray had surely worn off by now, and I hadn’t taken the time to reapply. Raking my hands through my hair, I leaned against my vehicle. “Quinn is waiting on me.” I sighed. Then I felt the fur against my legs and the comforting pressure of a warm body pressed against mine. “Thank you,” I whispered. He whined and nuzzled my hand. I stiffened at first, expecting a snarl, but instead, he licked me. With a laugh, I murmured, “I like you too.”
Feeling particularly brave and confident, I squatted down beside him. Then I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his fur. He wore no collar, but he seemed too comfortable around me to be a stray. “I’ll be back tomorrow. If you’re still around, I might just take you home with me.” I bit my cheek. The last thing I needed was a dog. Then Quinn’s words echoed in my head. Having a guardian might not be so bad after all.