Eugene texted her? He probably guarded her too since she was … I dunno, were they royal? She was the alpha’s niece, so obviously that was special. My head was spinning. I did need clothes, like … I didn’t even have extra underwear. They basically kidnapped me midday without any of my stuff.
“Sure … um, let me just freshen up. Call my parents.”
She nodded. “Meet you in the lobby in thirty minutes?”
I gave her a thumbs-up and then she gestured down the hall. “You’re on the first floor, down to the right.”
I started to walk that way, and she broke off to talk to some girls who were playing ping pong. I was pleased to see that the bedroom doors were not in fact made of glass. A few of them were open and girls were sitting on each other’s beds talking, but they quieted when I passed. Suite eight, suite nine, suite—
There was a tall blond leaning against my doorframe, wearing a feral grin. My wolf immediately rose to the surface as the blond pushed off the door and looked me up and down. “This is the girl Sawyer begged his dad to free from banishment? Hmm, I expected more.” She stalked a slow circle around me, looking at me like I was a piece of trash.
A low growl rose in my throat, and she matched it with a growl of her own. Stepping forward quickly, she forced me to back up until my back slammed against the door.
“Sawyer and I dated for two years. He only broke up with me because the bylaws state you must be single when you enter your mating year. He’s mine, so don’t even think about entertaining this as anything other than a charity case.”
She’d caged me against the door and my wolf did not like it.
“Back. Up.” Fur rippled down my arms, but she didn’t look scared or surprised, she looked … excited.
“Meredith! I thought that was your shrill voice I heard,” Sage called out as she barreled down the hallway.
Meredith, AKA Darth Vader, backed up then and plastered a fake smile on her face. “Sage. Hey, girl!” Her voice held so much fakeness it made me sick. “Just welcoming our new little friend.”
“How sweet of you.” Obvious sarcasm dripped from Sage’s voice. “Brittney is asking for you.”
Meredith gave me one last venomous look and then turned and left with Sage following after her.
Bitch fight averted.
Using my keycard, I slipped into the room, shutting the door behind me as the auto lock clicked into place.
When I looked up at the room, the breath caught in my throat.
I was in a Las Vegas penthouse. At least that’s what this looked like. Travertine floors, fine linens, rich woods, and a huge standing mirror.
“Holy shit,” I whispered as I stepped into the master with an attached bathroom. A huge soaking tub with a rain shower and vanity counter sat along the wall. There was a giant walk-in closet that I would never have enough clothes for. I walked back into the living room and checked out the flat screen TV on the wall in front of a small two-seater couch. This wasn’t a dorm, it was a luxury apartment.
On the coffee table in front of the couch was a small gift basket and note. I picked up the note and scanned it. There was a typed paragraph that was a generic welcome from Sawyer to the mating selection year, but someone had crossed it out with a big X. Along the bottom was written:
I couldn’t let you stay in that place.
Sawyer.
Emotion tightened my throat.
I couldn’t let you stay in that place.
I knew literally nothing about Sawyer, except that he was kind, and I would never forget that. He’d seen a fellow wolf in a bad situation and took pity on me, and I would have to find a nice way to thank him.
In the gift basket was a collection of teas, cookies, and dried fruits. It was sweet, but I couldn’t really focus on it. I needed to call my parents. They were no doubt losing their damn minds.
Holding my phone in my hand … I powered it up.
Sixty-eight missed calls and thirty texts. All the calls were my parents and all the texts were Raven. With a shaky hand, I dialed my mom’s cell.
She picked up on the first ring. “Demi Calloway! Tell me this is a prank.”
I gulped. “No mom. I’m at Sterling Hill—”
“Demi!” my dad yelled—I was clearly on speaker phone. “You left without telling us?”
I was quiet for a moment. I never thought they would be mad … all they ever talked about was how much easier life would be if we were back in Werewolf City. Now I had my chance.
“I had sixty seconds to decide. I thought you would want this for me.”
Two heavy sighs reached through the phone and into my heart.
“We are,” my mom said. “We do, hun.”
“We just never expected it,” my father cut in. “We assumed our banishment extended to you, forever.”
I blew air out through my lips. “Maybe it did … I dunno, but then I met the alpha’s son, Sawyer, at Delphi, and … a few hours later I was being invited here. Now I have a room, and everything is paid for and it’s crazy.”
Silence.
“Mom?”
“I know … I was a mating year girl too. It’s nice, they give you a nice life.” Her voice sounded hollow. Why did she sound sad? OMG did she almost marry Sawyer’s dad?
“What happened?” I asked her. “Did you and the alpha…?”
“No. I never even made the top twenty.” She laughed nervously but it didn’t sound real.
“Mom?”
“Yes, hun?”
“Why did you and dad get banished? You made this place sound awful, but it doesn’t seem so bad.”
I was afraid I was going to hear about it from someone like Meredith, and I wanted to hear it from them instead. I’d asked a handful of times over the past twenty years and always got the same answer.
Silence.
“Tell her.” My father’s voice was low.
“No, dammit,” she growled at my father, and chills ran the length of my arms. It must be worse than I thought; they never argued.
“Mom. I’m twenty, I’m not a kid anymore.” Whatever it was, I deserved to hear it from my own parents.
She sighed. “I can’t. I’m not ready.”
Holy shit … this whole time I’d been told we were banished because of something my father did, but now I wondered if it was in fact my mother.
My hands shook. “Mom, you’re scaring me.”
“I’ll tell you when I’m ready,” she said. “Your father and I are surprised, but happy for you. Even if Sawyer doesn’t pick you, you’ll get a top-notch education, a great job upon graduation, and a nice house in Werewolf City. It’s great news … we’re just shocked is all.”
I knew she was trying to steer things away from talking about her, so I let her. “How many window washers does this place have?” I went for humor and was rewarded with her laughter, followed by my father’s. I’d give her a week or so to settle into the idea that I was here and then I needed to know everything. We made a bit more small talk before we hung up and I promised to call them every day.
When I left the room, I found Sage leaning against the hallway wall tapping on her phone. “Ready to shop until you drop?”