Talons

Chapter 137: The Worthless

Colton’s POV

I swear that neither of us are breathing as we drive Rhea’s car, which I noticed she affectionately called Suvi. I’m glad she didn’t give it a boy's name because I really don’t want to know if I could become jealous of an inanimate object.

The silence is finally broken by Trey, who wants to stop and take pictures, but he also mentions a very valid fact, that while on the back of my mind, it was pushed aside by my overall excitement.

"I wonder why B bought an SUV… She isn’t the biggest she-wolf I’ve ever seen, and this seems like a lot of car for her.”

"That’s right; who did she buy it to accommodate?" Orlin adds his two cents, and while it's a reasonable concern, I need to figure out a way to ask without accusing her. She and I are already in a bad place, so I don’t want to make it worse.

“Maybe she wanted to take her parents places.” Carter adds. “Alpha Jay is my height.” I know he’s trying to coddle me, and truthfully, I appreciate it.

“Sorry bro,” Trey says, seeming to remember that my jealousy is heightened by the bond. “I didn’t mean it in a bad way.”

Rhea’s POV

Dolton hasn’t put my cousin down yet, and it's making me slightly uncomfortable. He keeps following me around, so I kindly remind him that while the three top ranking members are off territory, he has defaulted to acting alpha because he’s Colton’s brother.

He smirks at me, and once again, I’m creeped out. I start walking faster, trying to get to Colton’s suite but Dolton actually puts Miracle down to block my path.

“Why do you look so guilty?” He asks, but I have no idea what he’s talking about. “Why did you buy that car?”

“I needed transportation,” I reply, but my cousin decides she doesn’t like my answer, and follows up with a more specific question. “I liked how it looked.” I quip through gritted teeth, and push past Dolton, who snags the back of my shirt and pulls me backward. “Be careful. I can’t defend myself against your brother, not you.” The man smiles at me, and once again, I’m weirded out. “Miracle, call off your mate,” I say. She does with a chuckle, but I find nothing funny.

I get to the suite, expecting to rest, but the woman I saw in Colton’s office is standing at the door, likely looking for him. Before I get close, I tell the woman that he went for a drive, but she ignores my statement and verbally attacks me instead.

“You know, Colt and I were good before you came along. I’m in line to be the next luna of this pack; you're nothing but the woman he’s using right now.”

“I don’t know what you are talking about, but I have no intention of becoming luna. If Colton means so much to you, stick around; he will reject me soon.” The woman looks shocked by my candid response, and she steps into my path wearing a hopeful expression.

“Do you really not want to be with him?”

“I do not.”

“Then… Why are you here?”

“My rejection request was denied.” I don’t know why, but I feel bad for the woman who looks like she’s in serious pain. “Listen, I really had no intention of messing up whatever you and Colton had or have.” Jack’s words reverberate through my mind, and I feel like this is the woman Colton forced to reject her mate. “If you want, I can try and set up an opportunity for you to speak to him.”

“Why would you do that for me?”

“Because I remember the text you sent. You’ve been with him for a long time, and for him to just abandon you is wrong.” The woman freezes before perking up, and after a quick discussion, we plan to have dinner later in the evening.

With that out of the way, I get straight into the shower, have a quick snack, and start making business calls. The company is doing well, and in addition to my organic deodorant, they want me to send them a sample of my antibiotic ointment.

It was during that conversation that I realized I’ve gotten lucky with the people who work with me, because they don’t seem all that interested in pushing me out, despite me not being active.

“You have value to them,” Sylvia says, and because of my current ‘mate’ situation, those words make us both sad.

Dolton’s POV

Miracle has made up her mind to return with me, but she still wants me to meet with her mother first. She says it isn’t a test, but I know there is a little apprehension on her end.

The good news is that her mother will be on the territory in a day; the bad news is that she will be around for a week, and my mate wants to stay until her mother leaves. She isn’t asking for much, but I’m dying.

When my mate falls asleep, I creep out of the bed intending to go bully her cousin without her intervention. She doesn’t like when I press B about Colt, but he’s my brother, and I feel like I have to help him where I can.

I get to their suite, and B literally tries to slam the door in my face, but I stop it from closing, a little surprised by the amount of strength the little alien has.

“You and I need to talk,” I say, and she rolls her eyes at me, not even bothering to pretend to be at least a little afraid.

“Listen, I played devils advocate with Miracle. I knew she wanted to be with you, just like I knew she was going to come to the decision that she couldn’t be with you. The best thing for me to have done in that position was say what her mind was already telling her. Sometimes, your own thoughts from a different person can put them into perspective.”

“And what about you? Doesn’t Colt deserve that same benefit?”

“Colton almost killed me, so no, he does not.” It's a valid point. In fact, if she were my relative, I wouldn’t want her anywhere near Colt, but the council was clearly against her, and she doesn’t have a choice, so she might as well make the most of it.

“Did you buy that car with your ex-boyfriend in mind?”

"He wishes," she replies, making me chuckle. “Look, I’m going to be honest with you; I bought it with someone in mind, but it wasn't ‘my ex,’ or any other man Colton may have told you about."

I know that B ran away and hid from General, so there’s no dispute there, but the girl is a packless rogue, and buying that make and model of car must have cost her a fortune.

“Be honest, did that football player buy it for you?” B raises a brow at me, clearly offended, and she points to the door. "Sorry, I just don’t understand how you could afford it." I can’t help but to laugh at her extended finger, but I take a seat instead of going away like she wanted.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but like I told your brother; I have good credit. Happy?"

“Nope.” I study her for a long time because I can tell that my line of questioning is making her worried. “You bought it with someone in mind, right? Who?”

“Leave,” she says in a monotone voice, and I chuckle again

"You bought it for my brother, didn't you?"

"Be quiet," Rhea whispers, looking around the room as if there could be people listening in. “I didn’t know it was him okay? I just-” The girl rubs at her face, and I feel like I may have pushed her a little too far. “Please don’t give him the wrong idea. I didn’t know who the wolf belonged to.” That confuses me, but I feel like I’ve done enough for one day, so I leave.

Colton’s POV

When I got back to my suite, Rhea was in the middle of serving dinner. She asked me to change, and still riding the high of being in my dream car, I do exactly what she asked without question.

There is a new table in the room, but I recognize it as one from the cafeteria, and I wonder why she had it brought up.

She dishes out two plates, but before she sits, the door knocks, and she quickly goes to open it. My eyes widen with the sight of Jessica, and when I notice that my mate is still wearing casual clothing, I realize that this dinner wasn’t for us.

“What is she doing here?” I snarl, and Rhea tries to calm me, but I’m beyond angry. I feel betrayed and hurt because it's almost like she’s giving me away.

“Colton, weren’t you together before the bond was triggered? Please give her a chance to-”

“Together?” I question. “Is that what she told you? She and I were falling apart way before I knew you were my mate. After she slept with me the same night that she met her fated partner, all feelings and respect I had toward her completely disappeared.” My mate looks taken aback by my words and Jessica steps forward to defend herself.

“I did it because I love you.”

“No, you didn’t. I wasn’t even nice to you. You did it because you wanted the luna title.”

“It was promised to me!” Jessica shouts, and I can see my mate's face bunch in confusion.

“Leave my suite,” I say in a low tone, and Jessica knows that my calm is limited, so she leaves without me having to repeat myself.

Rhea looks so confused by the turn of events that she doesn’t know what to do, and while I feel bad for her, I can’t believe that she just tried to push me onto someone else.

“Colton, I-”

“No Rhea. You don’t get to apologize for this one. Like I told you before, I feel the bond, and this… this was too much.”

“She lied to me…”

“Yes, she did. It’s in her nature to do that, but you could have asked me about it, and I would have told you the truth. Instead, you sent me to another woman. Do you know how that makes me feel?” I stand without even touching my food, making my way into my room where I melt onto the floor.

“Why can’t she see it?” Orlin asks, but I don’t have an answer. I just hope I never feel this worthless again.