Page 30 of Draven

"Soon is preferable. If he really is your mate, then he has the right to know about what he's involved in," Zane said.

"Any news of Belladonna?" I asked, desperate to change the topic.

“Doyle tells me he's lost sight of her as she was leaving Raven Port, and there's been no word of her since. We can assume she noticed she was being followed and is laying low," Zane said.

A wave of relief filled me. "Okay then," I said.

We ended the call, but Zane's words lingered in my head. He was right, as usual. Tobias deserved to know the truth, the entire truth this time.

TOBIAS

As Lucinda and I were about to close up for the day, someone unexpected turned up at the front desk. Tom gave me a friendly wave, and I furrowed my brows.

Things had been better between us lately. Although Tom had found a job at the gas station, we still lived together.

He was still searching for an apartment to rent, but he promised that once he did, he'd move out.

"Tom," I said, trying to read his expression. "Is something wrong?"

Did Tom have some kind of emergency? Suddenly, I was worried.

"Nothing's wrong," Tom said. "I just figured I'd drop by and, uh, return this book I borrowed ages ago."

Tom handed me the taped-together suspense novel and I narrowed my eyes. My brother wasn't much of a reader, and I couldn't recall the last time he borrowed a book, let alone returned one.

Glancing at the date stamped on the back cover, my suspicion grew. Two years ago. That meant he wasn't here to return a book at all.

I had mentioned to Tom that I might be home late because of meeting Draven after work.

Wait... was Tom here on some kind of brotherly mission to... I didn't know, see and meet Draven for himself?

It wasn't like I was hiding Draven from Tom. There just hadn't been an opportunity to introduce them yet.

"That's $56.38," I informed him.

Tom's eyes widened in surprise. "What?" he exclaimed.

"Overdue fees," I explained.

Tom grumbled and cursed under his breath, but eventually, he begrudgingly handed over the amount.

The familiar rumble of Draven's motorcycle usually put me in a good mood, but with Tom here to potentially stir up trouble, I couldn't help but tense up a little.

Okay, maybe Tom didn't have that intention, but still, I didn't appreciate him turning up like this all of a sudden.

As Draven strolled in, my heart skipped a beat at the sight of him.

Even though he dressed as he usually did, in boots, worn jeans, a plain shirt, and a battered leather jacket, he looked downright good.

My sleeping wolf woke inside me, excited as a puppy with a treat. Tom looked at me, frowned, then finally glanced at Draven.

It dawned on me that my brother had let some of his wolf out because he gazed at Draven with his amber-tinted eyes and snarled softly under his breath.

This wasn’t good. Tom was immediately going for some kind of pissing contest, not realizing he was about to lose it instantly.

I swiftly positioned myself in front of my brother, ensuring I was the first thing Draven saw.

Draven didn't even notice Tom, or perhaps Tom didn't register as a threat to him. Draven beamed at me, and for those few seconds, I forgot about Tom and where we were.