Otherworld Nights (12 page)

“Daniella!” he called as she started heading the other way.

When she saw him, her face lit up. As she took the rose, her cheeks turned as red as the petals. She murmured a thank-you. Then she noticed what he held in his other hand: a wrapped hamburger.

“That’s the romantic gesture,” he said, pointing at the rose. “This is the practical one. It’s late and you’re probably hungry.”

She gave a tiny laugh and then threw her arms around his neck. “My hero.” She hugged him as she said it, but he didn’t miss the catch in her voice and the way she clung to him, as if composing herself before pulling back.

“What’s wrong?” he whispered as he took her laptop bag.

“It’s noth—” She stopped. Pulled herself up straight. “No, it
is
something. I need to talk to you.”

“Okay,” he said carefully. “Let’s get out to my truck, and we’ll drive someplace and—”

“No.” She grasped his arm. “Now. If I wait, I’ll change my mind. I can’t change my mind.”

Actually, he had a feeling he’d be fine with skipping whatever conversation she had planned, but he let her lead him to an empty section of seats. She walked to the far corner and sat with her hands folded on her lap.

He knew what she was going to say.
There’s this guy … We broke up when I came to Melbourne, but I saw him when I went home and … I’m sorry, Reese …

He steeled himself against the words. He’d fight for her. If there was any hope at all, he’d fight.

“My father is Gavin Wright,” she said finally.

He jumped at the name, then tried to cover the reaction by shifting and coughing. He’d misheard. He must have misheard.

“You know who that is,” Daniella said. “I know you do.”

He forced a laugh. “Maybe I’m showing my ignorance, but no, I don’t. Is he a politician? A CEO? Local celebrity? Someone who isn’t very happy about his daughter dating a kid from the outback? Is that it?”

Temper flashed in her eyes. “Don’t play dumb, Reese.”

“Maybe I’m not playing.”

She got up and walked to the window. For a moment, she just stared out. Then she wheeled.

“Gavin Wright is the Alpha of the Australian Pack,” she said. “And if you pretend you don’t know what a Pack is, I’m …” She trailed off and lifted her hands. They were shaking. “Do you see that? Don’t play games with me, Reese. Please. This is hard enough already.”

He said nothing. He couldn’t, and if she really was Wright’s daughter, she should know that. He could not let on that he had any idea what she was talking about until she proved who she was and confirmed that she knew what he was.

She sat down again, two chairs away, twisted toward him. “Gavin Wright has two daughters. No sons. My older sister is engaged to the Alpha-elect. That’s how it works. Only the Alpha can marry. One of his daughters is mated with his successor. The others …” She shrugged. “Aren’t.”

Any other daughters were expected to devote their lives to the Pack—cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the men. A life of celibate servitude. Reese knew that from his father’s stories.

Daniella continued. “I wanted to go to college, but my father laughed at the idea. Then a lone wolf who was in trouble with the Pack gave them a tip. He’d smelled a young werewolf on campus here. My dad knew Wes Robinson had a college-aged son. So he decided I could go to Melbourne University. To find you.”

Reese realized he was gripping the seat. He let go. “Mission accomplished.”

“But I didn’t
want
to find you. I hoped I could string my father along until I got a degree. Then, with an education, I could …” She glanced away. “Escape.”

“Only he expected results, so you had to produce them. You saw me at the party—”

“And figured out who you were. Yes. I could smell you. I’m not a werewolf, obviously, but I have a good sense of smell and I can recognize a werewolf’s scent. That’s how my dad expected me to find you. Once I was sure who you were, I left the party. But I was so distracted that I walked right into those guys.”

She went quiet for a moment, then said, her voice soft, “That would have been ironic, wouldn’t it? Your mom gets raped. My dad’s trying to kill her because of it, and the same thing happens to his daughter. Poetic justice.”

“Don’t say that.”

“I know I’m not my father, but I still feel guilty about what he did. And now I feel even more guilty because I ended up doing exactly what he wanted. I should have stayed away from you. I tried. That’s why I took off so fast that night. But I couldn’t stay away.”

“So you told him I’m here. He’s coming for me.”

“No. Never,” she said vehemently. “I didn’t say anything. I just—I had to tell you the truth. I know this means it’s over, but I won’t put your life in danger.”

“And staying with you means it is in danger?”

She nodded.

“What if I disagree?”

“Then you’d be wrong. Your death is my father’s idea of the perfect revenge. But you don’t need to run. He won’t let any of the Pack come here, for fear you’ll scent them. So you’re safe at school. Just not with me. I’m going to drop out. I’ll tell my father I couldn’t find you and I’m homesick and—”

“No.”

“I have to. As long as I’m here—”

“—your dad and the Pack are almost a thousand kilometers away. I’m safe from them. You’re safe from them. And that’s just as important.”

He kissed her. It took a moment for her to kiss him back, unsure at first, then heating up until she was in his lap, kissing him deeply and desperately, and when she finally pulled back and whispered, “Will you come to my place tonight?” he got the feeling she meant it as a goodbye. He’d make sure it wasn’t.

If sex was her goodbye gift, it turned out to be a bigger offering than he’d expected. She was a virgin. They’d been taking things slow, but he’d attributed that to her rape scare. When he’d figured it out, he tried to stop. But Daniella hadn’t wanted to stop. Really,
really
hadn’t wanted to stop. While he’d have loved to credit that to his sexual prowess, he suspected she’d been so determined because it was, for her, the point of no return.

After they made love, there was no more talk of Daniella going back to Sydney. She’d made her choice, and she’d picked him over the Pack. He understood the magnitude of that decision.

He understood what it meant for him, too. He’d slept with the Pack Alpha’s daughter. His father’s crime paled beside that.

It wasn’t until his mother’s next call that Reese realized how much trouble he was in. He didn’t tell his mother about Daniella. He’d already had that conversation with Daniella, and even the suggestion had terrified her. His parents could help, but he needed to convince her that his father wasn’t like the Pack werewolves. To convince Daniella that she’d be safe with them. The problem, as he now realized, was that they wouldn’t be safe with her.

How
was
he going to tell his parents that his girlfriend was Gavin Wright’s daughter? They’d understand her situation, of course.
They’d protect her, help her get away from the Pack. But taking her in meant Wright would redouble his efforts, and wouldn’t rest until he got Daniella back and wiped out Reese’s family.

So, when Daniella begged him not to tell his parents, he was relieved. That gave him time to figure out how he was going to handle this. In the meantime, he was too caught up in the relationship to think much about the repercussions.

If he thought he’d liked Daniella before, it was nothing compared with how he felt now. For the first time, he could really be himself with a girl. He hadn’t realized how much he’d longed for that, how much he’d envied that bond between his parents.

As deeply in love as his parents were, it had been hard for them at first, as his mother had learned to handle all the things that made her husband different, all the things he had to hide from the world. Now Reese had a lover who not only knew his secret but considered it normal. She brought him food when he was dashing between classes. She made sure he got lots of exercise—in and out of bed. She indulged his protective streak and gave him no cause for jealousy. She prodded him to Change, even going with him, staying with him. She figured out his penchant for delaying his run, and taking the edge off with sex, and she accommodated that, too—enthusiastically.

They were in class, three weeks later, when she texted him to remind him it was getting “close to his time,” and asking if he was “feeling it” yet. When he’d said he was, she told him to meet her in a nook behind one of the campus buildings.

As he headed there, knowing what was coming, his blood ran so hot that when he smelled a werewolf, he thought, for one confused moment, that it was her. Luckily, his brain kicked in and stopped him. That and the sound of Daniella’s voice.

“I
am
looking for him,” she was saying. “But it’s a big campus and I have classes—”

“We aren’t sending you here to go to classes, Daniella,” a man answered.

Reese peered around the corner and saw a dark-haired man. He looked about thirty, which meant, with a werewolf’s slow aging, he was probably a decade older. Daniella’s father? He was acting like it, towering over her, speaking in a growl that made her press back against the wall, books clutched to her chest.

There was nothing in his scent that suggested they were related, though. And the man’s stance was a little too familiar to be familial. He was leaning over Daniella, his body a hairbreadth from hers. When Reese saw that, his hands clenched and he stepped out.

Daniella sensed him and glanced over. She looked away fast, but he saw the panic in her eyes. She inched to the side, making the werewolf turn his back to Reese. Then she discreetly waved Reese back.

It took him a minute to obey. He knew he should. If he went after the guy and didn’t kill him, this man would expose their relationship. Protecting Daniella meant backing down, as cowardly as it felt.

He didn’t leave, though, only moved out of sight, where he could keep listening. They argued for a few minutes, then she led the man away, in the opposite direction, so he wouldn’t cross Reese’s scent trail. At the road, Daniella escaped by joining a couple of girls she knew and telling the guy she’d “call him later.”

Reese followed the werewolf to a visitors’ lot, where he climbed into a brand-new SUV and roared off.

Two hours later, Reese met Daniella at an off-campus pub. After the encounter, she’d gone straight to a gift store, where she’d bought a bagful of scented candles. Then to her flat, to light them, change the bedding, and get rid of any sign—and scent—of Reese.

Now they were alone in the back of the noisy pub, clutching beers they had no intention of drinking.

“His name is Keith Tynes,” she said. “He’s—”

“The Alpha-elect. I know the name. My father … talked about him.”

“Nothing good, I’m sure. My dad isn’t the nicest guy, but Keith?” She shivered. “I feel sorry for my sister. The Alpha’s mate is treated like a queen, but it’s not worth it. Not with Keith.”

“Is he sticking around to hunt for me?”

She shook her head. “He wasn’t even supposed to be on campus. I can’t believe he disobeyed my dad like that. He’s starting to throw his weight around, see how far he can push it, but usually he knows not to push it too far. One call to my dad and he’ll get the usual punishment. Dad will make him wait another six months before he gets my sister.” A faint sparkle lit her eyes. “Keith was supposed to get her when she turned eighteen, almost two years ago, and he’s really getting anxious.”

“Horny.”

She laughed. “Yes, horny. Speaking of which …” Her fingers crept up his leg.

He put his hand on hers. “So Keith will leave?”

“He will.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

She leaned over and kissed him, whispering, “He will.”

Keith did leave. But the close call was a wakeup for Reese. This situation wasn’t going to resolve itself. Daniella needed to get away from the Pack and he needed to get away from Melbourne. That meant dropping out and going home, and as much as that would hurt his parents, it would hurt a lot more if the Pack killed their only child.

Step one, though, was getting Daniella to agree to meet his parents. The day after her encounter with Keith, he began a concentrated campaign to convince her they wouldn’t murder her in her sleep and send her severed head back to her father.

He started taking every opportunity to talk about his family. Before rugby, he’d tell her about skirmishes with his dad. After a run, he’d talk about their tailgate parties. At dinner, he’d tell tales of his mother’s disastrous attempts to cook new dishes. Before long, Daniella was the one encouraging the stories. There was a wistfulness in her eyes when he talked about his family, and he could tell her own childhood hadn’t been nearly so happy.

Within a week, she was ready to meet them. That’s when Reese started having second thoughts.

Was it really wise to take Daniella to his parents, when they’d spent half their lives hiding from her father? He trusted her completely, but he had to think about his parents’ safety. Most importantly, was there any
reason
to take Daniella to them? He was an adult. He had enough money to get them to America or England. Maybe he should just do that. Leave and tell his parents after he was gone, as much as that would hurt.

Daniella seemed a little disappointed, but she agreed with his logic. They’d go to England. Then he’d call and break the news.

Two days later, he was heading to class, thinking it was kind of silly to keep attending. But he supposed there was still part of him that hoped he wouldn’t have to leave, that the situation would miraculously resolve itself. Immature, he knew. Daniella wasn’t stalling. She was out emptying her bank account and following up on his lead to get a fake passport.

He was debating skipping class when his phone rang.

“Got it!” Daniella sang when he answered.

“You’re a criminal now, you know. Buying fake ID is a criminal offense.”

She laughed. “Then I’ve been a criminal from birth.”

True. All her ID was fake, common among werewolves.

“So who am I taking to England?” he asked.

“Gabriella. She’s much sexier than Daniella. You’ll love—Oh God.”