killed our friend Gabe. It’s not like him to ask questions first.”
“Did it ever occur to you that I might not have had anything to do with Gabe, or that I’m a person just like you?”
“It’s irrelevant now that one of my Pack is dead.”
“You just assume since a jaguar did it, I must be the one?” I didn’t mean to raise my voice, but I couldn’t help it. “We jaguars are all alike, right? Heartless killers who deserve to die.” I stood up from the bench, pointing at his chest as I went on. “How can you be so prejudiced? It’s pissing me off.”
A hand touched my shoulder, and I flinched. When I turned, Adam was standing behind me, but his smile vanished when he saw who was sitting beside me.
“Aren? What are you doing here?”
“I might ask you the same thing,” his brother said.
Adam looked at me again. “Are you all right?”
“Shouldn’t you be asking me that?” Aren stood up.
I wheeled on him. “Why? Because I’m a jaguar so I shouldn’t matter?” Before Aren could respond I turned to Adam again. “I know you told me you were born in sets of twin males, but I stared at those pictures in your house and you never even told me his name.” Insecurity crept through me and that gross feeling of being an outcast thrummed in my veins. I sighed and shook my head. “I guess it doesn’t matter anyway since you were never going to introduce me to your family.” I looked from one hot guy to the other. It really wasn’t fair to have them both looking at me with their green eyes, muscles taunt. “Now, I just want to go back up to my room and sleep, okay? I’ll talk to you later, Adam. And Aren”—I tipped my chin up toward his face—“I can’t say it was a pleasure.”
I squared my shoulders and headed for the corner, clinging to my anger like a shield. Once I was across the street and in my hotel, I held myself together until the elevator doors closed. As the floor lifted, my spirits sank. It was all so unfair. When I slipped my room key into the door and it closed behind me, I fell onto the bed and a strangled sob escaped my throat.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“What the hell is this?” my brother barked.
I watched Lana walk through the crosswalk and into the hotel. She never looked back.
I shook my head. “It’s complicated.”
“Complicated?” Aren crossed his arms over his chest. “Just because she’s got a nice body and a pretty face doesn’t change the fact that she’s a jaguar in our territory and Gabe is dead. Connect the dots, Adam.”
I’d never wanted to punch my brother as badly in my life. “I have connected them, Aren. I told you I know who killed Gabe, and it’s not Lana. A male jaguar dumped him at the lake to frame Lana for his murder.”
“Did she tell you that story?” Aren shook his head. “She’s a cat. She’ll tell you anything. You know how they operate.”
“She isn’t like that. She didn’t even know what she was when I met her.”
“How long have you known her?” Aren’s brow furrowed, and his arms slid back down to his sides. “I knew you were hiding something, but this is too much.”
“It wasn’t like I planned for any of this to happen.”
“Any of what exactly?”
I glanced over at the hotel. Lana was right—my family would never accept her. But she was also wrong; if they didn’t want her, I wouldn’t want to stay. I’d never be able to forgive them. I clenched my jaw as I faced Aren again.
“Look, I caught the scent of a jaguar on the night of the new moon near the Hot Rod Cafe. I went inside to deal with it, but the second I met Lana something inside of me…” I shook my head. “I’m not sure how to describe it, but when I touched her I knew. I felt this tug inside, like she was bound to me. I didn’t plan it, and I’ve been trying to deny it, but this feeling won’t go away.”
“What are you saying?”
“I love her, Aren. She’s my mate. My instinct to protect her hit me like a Mack truck. I stayed with her through her change. She was scared and didn’t know what was happening to her. She’s not like the other jaguars who have come through here before.”
Aren was speechless. That didn’t happen very often. My brother always had something to say. I waited, but Aren just kept staring at me.
Finally he took a step back, his voice was low. “This is a mistake. You can’t take a jaguar for your mate, Adam. This will kill Dad. You know it will.”
“You can’t tell Malcolm, or anyone. I haven’t even told Lana yet.”
“The Pack will never accept her.”
I raked my hand back through my hair in frustration and growled. “You think I don’t know that? I’m not stupid, all right? I realize this is hard for you to understand, but Lana is the most amazing woman I’ve ever known.” I sighed and met his eyes again. “She’s gutsy, smart, and beautiful. You’ve already seen that she’s hardheaded enough to take on both of us at once. How many women have you ever met who could do that, huh?”
“So what are you going to do, leave the Pack?”
“I don’t know.” I couldn’t tell my brother that the thought had crossed my mind more than once.
Aren’s eyes widened. “You’re actually thinking about leaving with her?” He shook his head slowly. “You barely know her, Adam.”
“I know it sounds crazy. Malcolm came by the other day telling me that I needed to trust my instincts, and my instincts are screaming to be with her and keep her safe.”
“Your instincts are wrong,” Aren interrupted, raising his voice. “All of this is wrong. She’s playing you. I can’t believe you’re willing to give up your family and your Pack for a hot piece of tail.”
I hit Aren so hard that he fell backward onto the bench. Blood trickled down from his nose. He reached up, tentatively wiped at his face and saw the blood. Aren’s eyes cut back to me, and a heavy mantle of guilt settled on my shoulders. But right then the wolf inside of me was in control and he was pissed.
“Don’t ever talk about Lana like that,” I growled.
Aren stood up and took a step closer, encroaching on my personal space, but I didn’t retreat. For a moment we stood in silence, two immovable walls. So much had suddenly changed between us, but I couldn’t go back to the way things were.
Finally Aren broke the silence. “I won’t tell the Pack about this, but you should find out all you can about this girl before you abandon the people who
“I’m going to bring in the jaguar that killed Gabe, and when I do, you’ll owe Lana an apology.”
“She’ll still be a jaguar, Adam. It’s only a matter of time before she betrays you. It’s how they operate. And we can’t have treachery in the Pack. Our strength is being able to count on every member to watch each other’s back. I won’t depend on a jaguar when my life or my brother’s is on the line.”
My fists were clenched, but somehow I forced my voice to stay even. I’d done enough damage to my relationship with my brother today. “I just need some time to figure this out.”
Aren nodded and turned to leave. He stopped and looked back over his shoulder. “You better think long and hard. It almost killed Dad when we lost Mom. We can’t lose you too, Adam.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
I’m not sure when Adam came up to the room, but when I woke up I found his arm draped over me. I smiled in spite of myself. Through the sheer hotel curtain I could see the sky starting to brighten. Morning. The
