One Insatiable(38)
Her head is shaking before she even starts to speak. “I’m coming with you. I’ve got a plan. I’ve been saving for this for years.”
“California is a tough place.”
She clears her throat, ready to argue to the end. She’s such my little lynx. “We’ll go to San Francisco together. We’ll find a gym… Andy will give me a good reference, and I’ll speak for you. Once we’re out there, we’ll find a place, the two of us together — we’ll make it Koa, you’ll see.”
“I won’t let you carry all the weight.”
“Of course not!” She’s blinking fast, struggling to smile. “But would you at least sleep on my couch until you don’t need me anymore?”
“Mercy,” I groan, and she steps into my arms, pulling her small body tight against my chest. “I’ll need you til I die,” I say holding her, kissing her head.
Her arms tighten around my waist. “My Koa,” she says softly, and it’s all over. With those words, I’m f*cking screwed. She can have anything she wants. Hell, seeing her cry nearly gutted me. “We’ll be all right. We will.”
My jaw is set, but she’s won. I hold her pretty face and look down into her eyes so bright with optimism. “You don’t fight fair.”
Another grin, and she steps back, reaching up to touch my cheek. “I’ll go and talk to Andy now. Meet you at Doris’s later?”
“Okay,” I say with a tight smile.
* * *
Mercy
I’m at the mansion, standing in my sister’s office, watching as she leans back in her leather chair to scowl at me. This afternoon has not gone the way I’d envisioned.
I went into Andy’s office intending to resign and ask for a reference for my relocation to California with Koa. He simply replied, “Go home and talk to your sister first.”
Immediately, I knew Dylan had been behind Koa’s firing — more of me associating with the “wrong kind” of people, I’m sure. She probably told Andy to warn him away from me in the first place. I stormed out of his office straight into the alley behind the gym.
I was furious, and I didn’t have any time to lose. A quick scan of the area told me no one was around. Discarding my clothes quickly, I shifted and ran at top speed all the way to the mansion and up to my room to pull on jeans and a shirt.
“You’re not going anywhere,” Dylan says. And with that she leans forward, returning to whatever crap she has on her desk. Lord knows I have no idea what she does with her time.
“I didn’t come for permission. I came to inform you.” I infuse my voice with the same authority as in my self-defense classes. “I’m leaving… tomorrow.” Although, Koa and I haven’t set a timeline. “I’m moving to San Francisco.”
“With the panther?”
So she does know. “Yes. We’re together now.”
“Mates?” Her lips curl in disgust.
“Unofficially…” I hate being in front of her without a plan. Dylan has the most infuriating way of making me feel every bit the youngest sister.
“Real smart, Mercy. One of your best ideas yet.” Her sarcasm is even worse. “Not that it matters. You can tell your panther goodbye. You belong to Hayden Cross.”
At that I see red. “I most certainly do NOT belong to Hayden!”
She stands and circles the desk to my side. “You’re the youngest sister of the fourth Quinlan generation. By order of the High Council, you belong to Hayden. He’s coming to collect you next week.”
My mouth drops open, but it takes a few seconds for my brain to catch up. “What the hell are you talking about!?” I’m almost shouting, but Dylan isn’t bothered.
She continues past me to the small table holding a decanter and two tumblers. “Scotch?” she says.
“Explain what you’re talking about this instant!”
My pulse ticks higher as I wait for her to remove the crystal stopper and pour herself a drink. I’ve never seen her drink during the day. She lifts the glass to her lips before continuing.
“I had hoped you might develop an attraction for him through our dinners. That is, until the panther showed up.” A deep breath, another sip. “Once I saw how you felt, I went to Chicago to try and plead your case. I spoke to every person in authority I could find. Most wouldn’t even see me. Hayden’s claim on our family is established. What’s done is irrevocable.”
I fight the pressure building behind my eyes. “What claim? I’ve only known Hayden two years. Did our parents arrange our marriage and not tell me?”
I can’t believe my beautiful mother would do something like that to me.
“If only it were that easy,” she mutters. “Hayden is a very powerful immortal, Mercy. When Woodland Creek was founded, one of our ancestors killed his immortal mate. Our family has been paying for it ever since. Every fourth generation, when his last Quinlan daughter dies, he comes here to claim his next one.”
For several moments, all I can do is stare at her, waiting for this to be a sick joke. I wait… I wait… She simply stares right back.
My panic starts to rise. I feel as if my world tilts on its side. “I… I don’t believe you. There has to be some way…” My voice has dropped to a whisper. “Please,” My eyes are burning, and I’m begging her. “Please, Dylan, tell me there’s a way out of this.”