Chapter 85
#Chapter 85 – Jane Sets a Date
Jane
“I swear he’s losing it.” The man in question is back home with our pups, while I try to wrap my head
around what just happened with the help of Linda and Eric. I’m seated on my friend’s plush sofa, with
Eric beside me and Linda looking on from the kitchen while she brews a pot of tea. “He threatened to
ckmail me tonight.”
“I warned you he wasn’t really going to let the pups go.” Eric frowns, “what on earth did he try to
ckmail you with?”
My face flushes with color as I stare at myp, fidgeting nervously. “Well…” I begin, trying to find the
courage to speak the
words aloud.
“Oh I know that look!” Linda chimes in, a
note of humor in her voice. “What did you do, you bad girl?”
“I sort of slept with him.” I confess,
burying my face in my hands rather than
face their scrutiny. “So he threatened to tell Eric so he’d call of our wedding.”
“I knew it!” Linda exims, “How did it
happen, when did it happen – I want
details!”
“You slept with him?!” Eric adds,
sounding appalled.
“It was the other day, when we went wine
tasting.” I share, peeking at Eric through my fingers and seeing his furious face.” We got a little tipsy and
-”
“You were drunk?” Eric repeats,
immediately rising to my defense. “He took advantage of you!”
“He didn’t.” I murmur. “I mean yes I
lowered my inhibitions, but I wanted it.
I’ve been resisting him for so long.” Eric is fuming, and I suddenly feel very guilty for sharing this with him
when I know he has feelings for me. “I’m sorry.” I profess, resting my hand on his arm, “I shouldn’t be
sharing this kind of thing
with you. I’m not trying to be insensitive, I just… I told him you already knew.”
“No it’s okay.” He assures me, quickly covering my hand with his own, “I need to know these things if I’m
going to help you. If he says anything about it, I’ll pretend I knew all along.”
“Are you sure?” I inquire hesitantly. “I feel like I’m asking way too much of you.”
“I’m sure.” Eric promises, “and if you ask me Ethan isn’t losing it, he’s just showing you his true colors. If
you want to see the man behind the mask you should keep pushing him, otherwise
you’ll simply be letting him fool you
again.”
Linda, clearly reading my slightly affronted energy, interjects, “I don’t think she “let” him do anything.” She
says with a frown, her eyes locked on Eric even as she speaks to me. “And I don’t know that pushing him
is a good idea, Janey. He’s clearly feeling desperate and
more conflict isn’t good for anyone. I
don’t believe he’s trying to repeat history here, but if you force him into a corner he mightsh out and do
it anyway.”
“You underestimate the depth of his
cruelty.” Eric tells her bleakly.
I can’t recall ever seeing Linda argue with Eric, they’ve always gotten along like gangbusters, but now
she actually seems annoyed with him. “If I’m
underestimating him then it’s all the
Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.
more reason to be cautious. Why are you giving her such bad advice?” 1
“Please don’t argue, you guys.” I beg, ”
I’ve got enough discord at home. I just want to rx with my friends.” 1
Eric softens almost immediately, patting my leg infort, “I’m sorry, you’re right.”
Linda seems more reluctant to drop the matter at hand, still seeming preupied with Eric. If I didn’t
know any better I might think she was angry he’s giving me so much attention, but surely if she liked him
she would have told me. She’s known
Eric for years and never even hinted at being interested in him. “I don’t understand.” She muses, finally
turning away from him. “How did the pups even find out about Ethan enving you?”
“I don’t know.” I answer simply, pursing my lips, “my best guess is that they were eavesdropping again.
Eric you were with them today, did they mention anything to you?”
Eric blinks, looking off into the distance and racking his brain. “No, they seemed fine. But if they
overheard something and asked Ethan about it, I doubt they waited very long – which means whatever
they heard probably happened tonight. Is there any reason Ethan might have been talking to someone
about it?” 1
This hadn’t urred to me, but I realize he’s right. The pups would have certainly been impatient to find
out the truth about whatever they heard, so it must have happened today. A niggling doubt enters the
back of my mind. The only two people who were with them today were Eric and Ethan. I know Eric would
never do anything to hurt me… but Ethan just found out the pups belonged to him…
“What is it?” Linda presses, her brow furrowed in concern as she reads my
expression.
“Nothing,” I deflect, “I just…” Trailing off, I rise to my feet, beginning to pace. Is that tea ready yet?”
“Let me check,” Linda responds, jumping
“What’s going on Jane, this clearly isn’t nothing.” Eric observes, standing as well.
“I think I’m bing paranoid.” I moan, wringing my hands. “I mean Ethan just made a very public
statement ming Eve for Petra’s murder. He’s defended me with the investigator at
every turn and he truly seems to regret
what happened between us…
“But?” Eric prompts.
“Well, what if he was talking on the phone to his beta or something, about taking me prisoner again now
that he has proof the pups are his?” I fret.
“I think that’s entirely possible.” Eric
agrees gravely, moving closer as if he wants tofort me, but isn’t sure if I’ll ept it. I can’t help but
think how
different he and Ethan are – Ethan wouldfort me regardless. If he thought I needed it he’d impose it
even if I fought him tooth and nail… and he’d probably be right. How twisted is it that he’s the reason I’m
afraid of letting people get too close to me, and yet he’s the only one hard -headed enough to force his
way in and give me what I won’t let myself have? (1
“And I think that’s a total leap!” Linda calls from the kitchen, strolling back in a few momentster with a
tea tray. “You
have absolutely no reason to think that,
Jane. And if he was talking to someone
about it, it was probably his regrets about the past.”
“And how is that not a leap?” Eric
questions her stiffly.
“First of all because the pups found out
about the past, if he’d been talking about doing something in the future they probably would have told
Jane, especially because they clearly turned against him.” Linda reasons, “And second, because I’ve
been here thest four years watching
him like a hawk. I’ve seen him raising
Paisley and I’m telling you he’s changed. He isn’t faking it.”
My friend’s words are a wee balm to
my tormented nerves. I know Eric wants
to help, but he seems so protective of me
that he’s be as paranoid as I am — as
if he was vicariously traumatized
watching me try to recover from Ethan, while Linda’s heart softened watching
Ethan cope with my death. I know they’re
both on my side, and I know Linda might
be biased in the other direction, but she’s sounding more logical than Eric at the
moment.
“Thank you.” I breathe, epting a cup
of tea and letting the warm steam waft
over me. “You’re right, I’m being a little
crazy.”
“It’s okay babes, we all get a bit crazy sometimes.” Linda reminds me, ncing
pointedly at Eric, who is mutinously grumbling under his breath.
I sip my tea and return to my seat. “I
think this just shows that I was right about leaving. I can’t wait for the perfumeunch, I need to get the
pups
back home sooner rather thanter.”
“What about Paisley’s physical therapy?”
Linda asks.
“I’ll have to find a therapist there.” I suggest. “And I know it’s going to be hard
for her to leave Ethan, but it will be better
for all of us to rip the bandaid off rather
than drawing out the pain.”
“You may be right.” She agrees, “but
what about the investigation, you’re not
supposed to leave the territory.”
“They can only stop me if they catch me before I get out.” I remind her. “The Dark
Moon pack isn’t going to extradite their
top business woman when the Alpha of
this territory doesn’t even support the
investigation.”
“That’s right.” Eric agrees with a wide smile, looking much calmer now. “And if they try they’ll have to go
through me.”
I grin at his cheesy line. I still don’t feel sure about starting to date anyone, but I
have to think that after everything he’s
done for me.
Could Eric at least deserve a chance? Will
it be a fresh start for all of us? It seems so.
But something about Eric just doesn’t make me feel right.
I so hope I would have my wolf to discuss about it and to clear my confusions.
Two nightster I’m lying awake in my bed, trying to list everything I need to do
before we leave – including the not-so-
little details of telling Ethan and Paisley,
when I hear an odd scraping sound at the
door. At first I assume it’s Ethaning
home he went out with his beta and I
–
haven’t heard hime in yet, even
though it’s nearly three am.
Still, the scraping doesn’t end with a slight jingle of keys and the door clicking open and shut. Instead it
drags on for two full minutes, soon followed by a few dull thumps. My heart rate increasing, I slide out of
bed and edge toward the door.” Who’s there?” I whisper anxiously. Has
Eve escaped? Is someone else breaking in?
The scraping begins again as I draw closer, and my heart races in my chest. Someone is trying to get
into the house, and that means my pups are in danger.
I grab a knife from the kitchen, and edge towards the door – prepared to defend my family at all costs.