Shay nodded and remained quiet the rest of the way to the truck. She hummed with the radio as they rode home and, as soon as they walked in the house, began stripping. She announced, “I need a shower. I reek.”
“I’m sorry,” he forced out. He detested apologizing but hated more that he’d broken his promise.
She paused with one foot on the stairs, shirt dangling from her fingers, and glanced over her shoulder. “For what?”
“Tonight.”
“You’re not responsible for the way the pack acted. You told me they were jacked up. I sort of expected their response.” She continued up the stairs.
“Not that,” he said, a hint of the annoyance he felt slipping out. Did he have to spell it out? Part of him said let it go. It didn’t seem to be bothering her, so why push the issue? But Rory wanted trust between them. That being the case, just “letting it go” wouldn’t work.
She stopped several steps above him and turned to face him fully. “Then what?” she asked impatiently.
“The sex,” he ground out. “I said I wouldn’t, then did anyway.”
The skin between her brows furrowed. “But I pushed you into it.”
The reminder brought him up short. Confused, he stated, “You did, didn’t you. Why?”
“Can we discuss this in the shower? I’ve been sitting on the ground in the dirt, leaves, and God knows what else. I’m really grungy.”
Knowing if he got anywhere near her wet, naked body, talking was the last thing he’d be interested in, Rory told her, “Go ahead. I have something I need to do down here first.”
Shay ran her fingers through her hair, muttering when a clump of dried, brown leaves fell to the floor. “Fine. What the hell is a city girl like me doing in the woods at night? There’d better not be any bugs in my hair.”
Chapter Eleven
Rory stood watching the sensuous sway of Shay’s hips until she disappeared from sight. Then, realizing he was hungry, he went into the kitchen to prepare a late-night snack. Shifting always burned a lot of calories, which was why shifters tended to be lean and muscular, and he needed to refuel.
Ten minutes later, he had a plate full of meaty sandwiches on the table along with a bag of cookies and a cup of milk. Shay joined him wearing another of his shirts. Though he loved seeing her in his stuff, to needle her he said, “You’ve seemed to acquire a fondness for wearing my clothes.”
“That’s because you have a fondness for ripping mine off,” she shot back.
He grunted rather than acknowledge the truth of her words.
“You didn’t want a shower?” she asked while pouring herself a glass of milk.
He shook his head. “Too hungry. I’ll clean up after I eat.” Rory motioned her to a chair. “Hungry?”
“I’ll take some cookies.” She grabbed a handful of the chocolate-cream-filled sandwich cookies, twisted one open, and licked the cream filling, just like on the commercials. He couldn’t help but smile.
“So did they recognize us or not?”
His smile faded. “Shay, as alpha, I have final say in all things. When I established the council, I gave them some of my minor duties to give them something to do and to free my time for more important matters. They’ve never had a say in my choice of mate.
“Recognizing you as my mate is to their benefit, not ours. The council needs me. They rule on my authority. I can and will disband them in a heartbeat if they cross me.”
“So basically they’re just figureheads?” she asked, grabbing another cookie.
He rose to pour Shay another glass of milk. “No. Shifters believe elders should be respected. These men are all that remain of the Sparrowhawks’ male elders. By giving them a title and duties, I hope to show them respect and at the same time teach the younger ones how the elders are to be treated.”
“What about the women?” She dipped a cookie in his milk and popped it in her mouth.
Amused at her actions, he answered, “From what I could see, you did a good job of winning them over.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about. Do none of the women have power? Oh, and thanks for leaving me alone with women who could tear out my throat in the blink of an eye,” she groused, frowning at him.
He smirked. “None of them are that fast, and as long as all the men were with me, you were safe.”
Shay stared, her mouth gaping the tiniest bit, before she snapped it shut and shook her head.
“What?”
She examined him. “You don’t get it, do you?”
He arched an eyebrow. “Get what?”
“Women. Don’t you realize in ninety percent of all species, females are the most deadly, the most treacherous?”
Rory frowned, mentally reviewing the women of the pack. “The strongest one of them is a beta, at the most. You’re an alpha like me, or will be once you learn how to tap into your wolf. Besides, you’re my mate. They wouldn’t dare touch you.”
Shay snorted, ending in an amused chuckle. “God, you are so clueless it’s funny.”
Offended because she was calling him stupid, he tried to puzzle out what she meant, but honestly in this he was clueless. Male shifters were much stronger than females. It was the men of the pack he needed to watch out for.
Shay twirled her tongue around the cookie, catching the cream on its tip before pulling it into her mouth with a look of carnal ecstasy on her face. The sight reminded him of the way she’d looked sucking his cock earlier. Immediately he lost his train of thought as the majority of his reasoning power pooled below his waist.
“Don’t worry. I handled myself. How’d your run go with your friends?”
The question snapped him back, and he shrugged, baffled and slightly uncomfortable. “It was a run. We shifted, ran until we got tired, then came back to the women.”
Shay made a small humming sound, eyed him for a moment like she was trying to see into him, then selected another cookie.
Rory decided he didn’t even want to know what that was about. His stomach growled, reminding him he’d prepared food but had yet to eat. He took a sandwich and snagged a handful of cookies before his mate could consume them all and began eating.
He’d devoured two sandwiches, drank his first glass of milk and poured another, and was munching on cookies before Shay spoke again.
“I’ve been introduced to the pack. Now what?”
“Now we get back to normal.”
Shay tilted her head to the side. “Do we have a normal?”
“We will. I’ll show you the different business systems the pack uses so you can get started on a program that will integrate them all into one, or at least let them speak to each other, and I need to get back to work. Half days, at least. I can do paperwork here at the house so I can be available to answer any questions you might have. I’ve seen how involved you get when you’re working on a project, so don’t worry about the house. Ashley’s paid to keep it clean. When you’re ready, I’ll let Caleb know it’s okay for her to return.”
Through the bond, he felt her instant and vehement recoil. “It’s just the two of us. I don’t need anyone cleaning behind me.”
Rory tried not to frown. This mate business was tricky. He thought she’d be glad not to do housework. But if that’s how she felt… “It’s your house. Your choice, but…”
“But what?” she asked, eyes narrowed suspiciously.
With a sigh, he admitted, “Ashley’s father was one of the men I killed during the challenge. In the beginning I paid her to clean as a way of earning extra money for her family. Now she uses the money to help with college expenses.”
Shay bit her lower lip and stared hard at the table. Finally, after the silence had drawn out, she said, “Fine. She can clean, but I don’t want anyone in our room, for any reason. In fact, I prefer she not come up the stairs at all.”