My mouth went dry, and I had a terrible urge to teleport her far, far away from him. Or I could make her blind so she couldn’t stare at him that way.
Was this feeling jealousy?
I’d gotten protective with Deb, but this feeling was different. Deb I could trust, this woman had a different way about her.
“I knew you’d come back.” A smug smile overtook her features.
His hand found its way onto my lap, and he squeezed my hand tight. “I’m not back for good, Caroline. Just until we take out Lockhart.”
Her smile dropped as she zeroed in on our hands. “Who are you?”
“Harlow.” My tone was leveled, but inside I was seething.
“Harlow is Xavier’s mate, Caroline.” Riley gave her a look that could best be described as a warning.
“How is that even possible?” She frowned, locking eyes at me briefly before staring at Xavier again.
He shrugged. “I’m not sure, but I’m thankful for her. She’s everything I could ever want.”
“More than Olivia?” The question popped out of Caroline before she could stop it as her hand slapped over her own mouth. “I’m sorry.”
He shook his head. “This matebond I share with Harlow is stronger than what I shared with Olivia.”
Caroline looked me up and down, and whatever she found didn’t seem to make her happy, but she didn’t say anything else.
Gabe broke the silence. “Caroline actually took over as Beta.”
I clamped my mouth shut. I wanted to make a snide remark or turn the bitch into a toad, but that wasn’t like me at all. I had to pull myself together.
“Alright, so it’s settled.” Riley placed her hands on the desk and stood up. “We will meet with the elders in the morning to devise a plan to take down Lockhart.”
Xavier stood, pulling me up and against his chest. My jealousy calmed immediately. “Sounds great. Thank you, Alpha Riley.”
“Don’t thank me. We’re practically family.” She grinned. “Now, Caroline, could you show them to the new guest room?”
Caroline nodded, curls bobbing along with her head. “Absolutely, it’ll give Xavier and I time to catch up.”
A burst of heat came off me in a gust. The wolves in the room stared at me like I was crazy aside from my wolf. Xav had to have felt my jealousy through the bond.
I shrugged. “Sorry.”
I was not a fan, at all.
EIGHTEEN
Xavier
Caroline showed us the room, which was stupid unnecessary since I used to live here and knew where the room was. The walk from the office to the room was a clusterfuck of awkwardness. Flaming hot jealousy coursed through the matebond as soon as Caroline came in. Not that the woman was helping the situation with all the sultry looks my way and the suspicious glances at Harlow.
It pissed me off that everyone was unsure of my mate. They were like that with Liv, for good reason sure, but Harlow wasn’t Liv.
“If you guys need anything, just find me.” Caroline hesitated. “Actually, do you mind if I have a word with you? Alone.” Her eyes flicked toward Harlow and back to me.
Anger shot through the bond, and I bent down and kissed Harlow’s cheek for a few seconds. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Harlow cleared her throat and glared at Caroline. “No, it’s fine, but just so you know, Xavier is my soulmate, and I don’t appreciate the way you’re staring at him.” She flung open the door and slammed it shut behind her with her powers, which made her look that much more badass.
Fuck, Harlow was sexy when she was jealous. And I couldn’t get over how she spoke her mind. It was the hottest quality ever.
I chuckled as I turned toward Caroline whose mouth was hanging open. “What do you want to talk about?”
“She seems pleasant.” Her voice wavered. “I’m just going to come right out and ask. Are you sure Harlow isn’t tricking you somehow? It doesn’t make any sense that you are having a second chance mate because Olivia died and didn’t reject you. There hasn’t been any record of this happening before. Trust me, I’ve done my research after my mate died.”
I raked a hand through my hair. “I thought the same at first, but Harlow is definitely my mate. I cared for Liv, but with Harlow, it’s so much more. It makes me wonder if I ever really loved Liv.”
Her eyes widened. “You’re joking.”
“I’m not.”
“Okay.” She sighed. “But I have to address this because it’s been eating me up inside since you left.”
My stomach sank. I wanted to fucking vomit thinking of that stupid night before I left the pack. I knew she’d bring it up.
“You slept with me, and then left. You were wrong for doing that. You knew how I cared for you.” Her eyes glossed up.
“I’m sorry. You’re right. It was wrong.” I glanced at the door that separated me from Harlow. “I hadn’t desired another woman since Olivia until I met Harlow. You came onto me that night, and I used you to try to feel again. It didn’t fucking work.”
“I used you too. In more ways than one.” She pushed her glasses up on her nose. “It sucks to hear it, but I knew it all along.”
I reached for the door handle when she placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Be careful of Harlow.”
“Why don’t you fuck off, Caroline?” I knocked her hand off me as I spun around. I was sick and tired of the way my former pack had been treating my mate. “Mind your own business. Harlow is my mate. It’s that fucking simple.”
I grabbed the handle and stormed into the room, the door slamming behind me with a loud bang.
Fear coiled through me when that door shut because on the other side was a bloodthirsty witch who had heard everything.
NINETEEN
Harlow
I was livid. How did people like that even exist? I’d met women in this pack that made Mean Girls seem like
