She knew him so well. I couldn't deny it. And she had a right to call him hers, in the manner that she meant it.
Pack. Family. Life.
"Jacob basically said that the reason he doesn't want to explore what might be between us, is because I unbalance him too, and he doesn't like it."
Was he right about it being too volatile for us both? I mean, I had survived this long by ensuring I never cared enough to get hurt. It meant I could always walk away.
Jacob was going to make me care. He was going to make it so I could never leave.
Maybe I wasn’t strong enough for that either.
The front door opened, and only Grace and I jumped at the slam of it against the wall. The shifters in the room heard them coming before they were even on the front porch. As soon as the Compasses stepped inside, I felt the cool nature-vibe of Jacob's energy. It was like the scent of freshly cut grass and rain on dry dusty days.
Two of my favorite smells, reminding me of being on the farm with Grams.
Maximus was first into the room, moving straight to Mischa, wrapping his long arms around her and hauling her up into his body. "Hey, baby," he murmured, lips pressing to hers, like it had been weeks since he'd seen her and not an hour.
She melted against him, face all blissed out.
Fuck. I loved them. They were couple goals.
Everyone in this freaking room was.
Except Jacob and me, two messed-up messes scared of losing our hearts.
Speaking of, he crossed straight to me. "Did he send the evidence?" I asked him, surprised by his intense stare. His gaze ran over me, like he was checking everything was in one piece, only relaxing when he saw I was okay.
"Yep, email came through,” he said with a resigned rumble. “He has even more than he said, enough to fuck us up if it goes to the world media, so we have no choice but to play along for now."
I forced myself not to react as strongly as I felt. "I was really hoping you wouldn't say that."
He stepped closer and my lips tingled. What the hell? Not. Okay.
"Don’t worry about it, we’ll get it handled," Jacob told me, and I jerked my head up so I was staring him dead in the eyes.
"What does that mean?"
Braxton answered this time: "He has requested a service of fifty supernaturals, from all four races. His stipulation is that they can blend in with humans. This group will be his personal hit squad, taking care of everything he needs, and winning battles for him."
"No!" Jessa snarled, the room suddenly filled with shifter and dragon energy. She might not actively have a dragon, but she still felt like one. "We will not make our people do that! Just imagine the evidence he'll collect during the time he controls fifty supes." She turned to Braxton. "Brax, seriously, we can't let this happen. I will literally fly over there and kill him myself before I allow my people to be used and abused like that."
Braxton was the leader of all shifters in America, all except one.
"Jessa babe…" he said slowly.
"No!" she pointed her finger right in his face, or as close as she could reach. "Don't Jessa babe me. That won't change my mind. Neither will your tongue, so don't even bother trying that shit again."
Jacob shook his head, looking amused, and I felt a pang again. This family was so fucking amazing. Did they even know—truly know—how lucky they were to have loyalty and love like they did? To be able to question each other and fight and know they'd still have each others’ back tomorrow?
That was as rare as any jewel in the world. And I knew my fair share of priceless jewels.
"What's our other options?" Braxton asked, his arms out as he tried to placate his furious mate.
Jessa shook her head. "We’re supernaturals. We bow down to no one. I say we call his bluff and go to war."
The quads exchanged a glance, and I felt a buzz of energy like they were communicating between each other silently. I knew the four of them could join the same way the jeweled princesses could, and right then I missed Cam and Gretley more than ever.
"Surely war is the last thing you want, Jess?" Maximus asked. "We’ve been fighting for so many years already, one battle after another, and since we have