~Damn it.~
Maya was heading back to her room, expecting to find Julian there. But no. She could sense him. Down the hall. With Alex.
The last time that fool teamed up with Alex, it didnât end well. So she was certain whatever they were up to was a terrible idea.
Not her problem.
If he wanted to play the fool, she should let him.
Yet, her feet were pulling her towards Alexâs office. ~Damn it~.
Unfortunately for Julian, she had indulged a bit too much in the bottle, and her usual charm and politeness were ~long~ gone.
Not that she needed liquid courage to confront him and put him in his place, but it ~did~ help.
Maya ~intended~ to move quietly, but her actions didnât quite match her intentions. Her first hint of this was when she saw the door to Alexâs office swing open, revealing Julian.
He wasnât angry, but he was ~puzzled~. His eyebrows were furrowed, his body language tense, muscles bulging from his biceps, exposed by the short sleeves of his white T-shirt.
~Well, hello~. Yes, she remembered how those arms felt wrapped around her.
~Calm down~.
Now wasnât the time to be thinking about ~that~. There were plenty of other times to think about ~that~, and this was not one of them.
~Orâ¦or~ a good alternative would be to give him a piece of her mind, ensure he wasnât about to do something foolishâ¦
~And then sleep with him~.
That was a plan she could get behind.
For a fleeting moment, she saw Alex behind him, but as soon as their eyes met, he disappeared from view.
Then Julian was pushed out of the room and the door slammed shut behind him. ~Thank you, Alex~.
So he ~could~ be sensible sometimes. Maybe Olivia was responsible for this change.
~Cornered Alpha~. Wellâ~very large~ Alpha, but that was completely irrelevant.
He took a few steps away from the door, reducing the distance between them, before stopping and crossing his arms over his chest.
~If he thought she would be intimidated, he was mistaken~.
âHave you been drinking?â he asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.
âPerhaps,â she replied, smacking her lips. âDealing with a bunch of idiots is easier when Iâve had a drink.â
âI take it Iâm one of the idiots youâre referring to?â
âYouâre the main reason I drink, if that clears things up for you.â
âIâm guessing thatâs not a good thing?â
âNot at all.â She flared her nostrils. âWhy were you with Alex?â
âIs there a reason I shouldnât be with Alex?â
She laughed. âAre you trying to be funny now? Or do you think you can distract me with humor? We both know you two canât stand each other.â ~That was an understatement.~
âMaybe we found something we agree on.â
Hearing that, her stomach churned with unease. ~That was a frightening thought.~
âYeah, that canât be good. The only thing you two could possibly agree on is something utterly foolish.
âAnd since Alex values his life and you canât remember most of yours, Iâm going to ~assume~ it involves you taking unnecessary risks.â
Julian remained silent, but his expression said it all. ~When did I start understanding his facial cues so well~? His body had tensed up, his eyes held a bewildered look, and his head had jerked back.
~He didnât anticipate me figuring it out so soon. Especially while Iâm drunk.~ What a ~jerk~. Honestly.
If he believed he was being discreet, he needed to rethink his strategy. He couldnât have been more conspicuous.
âSo, Iâm going to ask ~once~. What kind of dumb shit are you planning?â Maya questioned.
âWhy do you assume itâs dumb shit? Maybe itâs incrediblyâ¦smart. Or perhaps Iâm not planning anything.â
Mayaâs nose twitched as her eyes narrowed. ~I can sense his dishonesty~.
She disregarded his charming smile, the tender look in his eyes, and instead trusted what her ~other~ senses were telling her.
âBecause youâre lying, and I donât appreciate it.â She let out a heavy sigh.
âYou donât know anything about yourself. I donât know a damn thing about you. So, if youâre going to start lying, good sex or not, Iâm going to show you the door.â
âIâm glad to hear you enjoyed yourself.â
âGet lost. You know I did.â
She wasnât conceited enough to deny it had been ~obvious. Heâs trying to provoke you. Heâs trying to divert your attention. Donât let him~.
What would he do next? Remove his shirt? Sure, he might be a momentary distraction, but she had her priorities straight.
~Concentrate~.
âJulian. You need to be honest with me.â
âYou donât want to know,â he finally responded, leaning against the wall.
âWhy not?â she quickly retorted, crossing her arms. The movement momentarily threw her off balance, causing her to stumble backward, but she managed to steady herself. ~Stupid booze~.
âBecause you wouldnât want to know,â he replied, his voice dropping to a lower pitch. The sparkle in his eyes, the playful smile, all gone.â
~He was serious~. More serious than she had ever seen him.
~Yeah, I donât like this~.
Maya had been careful not to get ~too~ involved. Sheâd kept her distance, suspecting he might not be who she thought he was.
It would be simpler if he turned out to be a homicidal jerkâ¦but ~this~ was different.
She hadnât considered the possibility of him dying.
âSo, that means you shouldnât be doing it,â she stated, her fingers tightening. She wanted to hurl something at his head. She wanted to let her anger out, but she restrained herself.
~A conversation~. She could have a damn conversation with him like a mature adult. She could do it. Breathe, and stay in control. ~It would be simple~.
âListen, Mayaâ¦â
Nope. It wouldnât be what she wanted to hear. She didnât want nonsense. She didnât want half-truths.â
What Maya wanted was the ~damn~ truth. If he wasnât prepared to give it to her, then she had no interest in his words.
He couldnât have it both ways.
âYou can either be honest with me, or you can go sleep with ~Alex~. Since you two are such great friends now, you can take advantage of that.
âOr go sleep outside. Because I donât have time for lies and foolish plans.â She puffed out her cheeks. âThis is why Iâll be keeping my kisses to ~myself~.â
A wave of sadness emerged from her heart, rising in her throat and threatening to make her voice tremble.
~Hold it back, keep it in~. Yet she felt her lips quiver. âMates are supposed to trust each other and communicate. Not pull whatever damn stunt youâre pulling.â
Maya pursed her lips before jabbing her index finger into his chest. âI donât care that youâre an Alpha. I have some directives for you.
âHere are your options. You can either be honest, or you can leave and face death. But you canât have it both ways.â
~I have to stand my ground. This is my life. ~They had a rough beginning, but she refused to let lies and deceit make it worse.
âSo if you make the choice not to ~reveal~ to me what the ~hell~ is happening, you can walk out. Because I wonât be your mate. I ~never~ will.â
A sob was lodged in her chest. Maya was acutely aware of ~where~ it originated. She was laying down an ultimatum.
She was risking the chance of losing her mate forever. Her inner wolf was displeased, but it would have to come to terms with it.
~This was the better option~.
Maya was straightforward. Maya didnât deceive. ~Fine,~ she might have left out some crap, and she had foolish notions. But she didnât get herself killed.
~Sure, she almost lost her life~. But she hadnât ~orchestrated it~. She didnât ~mean~ for that to occur.
He was scheming something perilous. ~She could sense it in her heart; she could hear it in her mind~.
âGive me an answer by sunrise,â she finally voiced when silence was the only thing left between them.
âThen Iâll inform Alex that he can toss your stupid ass out. Heâll be thrilled to hear that.â
Despite the tremors in her body, Maya strode past him, her head held high. Her eyelids felt heavy, her stomach roiling from the emotions and the liquor.
But she would handle this ~her~ way.
~Your move, Julian~.