War of Hearts(37)

People, she discovered, loved talking about the things that made them happy. Perhaps if she found out more about Conall, if she showed an interest, that—along with her pretending she needed him to protect her—might soften him a little.

Friendship, Thea realized.

What she was suggesting was something akin to friendship.

Afterall, it was hard to hand over a friend to her worst enemy.

Would Conall see through it?

There was nothing Thea could do but try.

She looked over at him again and he shot her a quizzical look. “What is it, lass?” he asked impatiently.

“Ashforth is holding your sister prisoner, isn’t he?”

“How clever of you to deduce that from your eary-wiggin’.”

“‘Eary-wiggin’? Does that mean listening in?” she asked, genuinely curious.

“Aye.” He flicked her another impatient look. “Earwigging.”

“It was hard not to. We were in the same room.”

He grunted.

Thea tried not to smirk. He had serious caveman qualities. “Tell me about her. About your pack. How does that work?”

Conall’s expression grew tight with obvious suspicion.

Jesus, he really was paranoid. Thea felt a prick of something that almost felt like hurt. She shouldn’t be. Hurt, that was. Why should he trust her with anything when she didn’t trust him?

And she definitely didn’t trust him.

However, she was wondering if maybe she’d stopped fearing him. Okay, she feared where he was taking her, whom he was taking her to, but Conall? No. She didn’t think so.

God, she was an idiot—listening to the words of a strange girl in a club and letting them dictate her feelings toward this werewolf. An image of him punching his clawed fists through the two vampires’ chests as if they were made of polystyrene instead of flesh and bone came to her. Never mind the fact he’d decapitated a powerful vampire with one swipe of his claws.

She needed to remind herself the bastard was just as deadly as she was.

More so. She’d tried not to kill the vamps. Conall had taken them out without even thinking about it.

“We’re going to be stuck in this car a while,” she said, the words flat, “and since you refuse to put on the radio, I thought a little conversation might pass the time.”

“Chart music is shite,” he offered as an excuse for the lack of radio.

“Well, it’s music or conversation. Those are your choices.”

“I choose the lesser of two evils … My pack is the last in Scotland.”

“And you’re the alpha.” It wasn’t a question. She’d never met a wolf with more alpha in him than Conall.

“Aye. We’re also one of the last clans in the Highlands that still operate like a traditional clan. I’m the chief. But that’s hereditary. It has nothing to do with my wolf.”

“Your wolf? So, do you think of that part of you as a separate being?” She was genuinely curious to know.

“Aye and no. It’s complicated.” His tone was brusque. “Next question.”

Thea studied him thoughtfully, wondering if she should ask what was on the tip of her tongue. Finally, she went for it. “If you’re the chief, then I take it your mom and dad aren’t around anymore?”

His fists tightened around the steering wheel, the action betraying emotion his face sought to hide. “My dad invested in shares in oil and was invited to tour some rigs in the North Sea. He was on the platform of one when the rig exploded, killing him and many of the workers.” He let out a huff of bitter laughter. “He was Clan MacLennan’s strongest alpha in centuries, and he was felled by an oil rig explosion.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. And she truly was. If anyone knew what it felt like to lose someone in such a horrific way, it was Thea.

“Aye, well, my mum was devastated. She was an alpha female, so she advanced not only to pack alpha but to chief of the clan. Predators came out of the woodwork to take advantage of her grief.”

“What do you mean?”

“Any alpha can challenge another for control of their pack.”

“Any? From anywhere? How is that fair?”

He smirked at her indignation. “It’s the way of things. Most packs dinnae suffer from strangers challenging their leadership. But Pack MacLennan is not only the last pack in Scotland, we’re also the owners of GlenTorr Whisky and a profitable fishing company.”

Thea raised an eyebrow. GlenTorr Whisky was one of the most famous whisky brands in the world. She’d served more than a few glasses of the stuff in her time as a bartender.

“These greedy bastards came in and challenged your mom?”

“Aye. And a challenge cannot be unmet.”

Realization dawned. “One of them killed your mom.”

Conall looked at her again and Thea’s breath caught at the fury in his eyes. Oh, this wolf carried a lot of anger. I know the feeling, Wolf Boy, she whispered to herself, feeling a sudden affinity with him.

“I think she wanted to lose.” He looked away, that muscle ticking in his jaw again. “I dinnae think she could bear life without my dad.”

For some stupid reason, Thea felt her throat thicken with emotion and she turned to look out the window while she tried to control the feeling. It was just … She couldn’t imagine what it must be like to love that deeply. Or to be loved like that.