Page 326 of His Hungry Wolf

“I’m feeling tired. It’s been a long day. I hope you two don’t mind if I head to bed early.”

“Of course not. Do we, Nero?”

Nero met my unwavering glare and then relented.

“Of course not, Mama.”

She got up. “Then tell Cage and Quin I said goodnight.”

“We will,” I told her before she went inside and disappeared for the night.

When she was gone, Nero turned to me and snapped.

“What did you do that for?”

“What did I do?”

“You kept shutting me up like that.”

“You wanted answers, right? I was getting you your answers.”

“The only answer I got was that I’m here because Mama raped some man.”

“Shhh! Keep your voice down.”

“Don’t tell me to shut up. You heard her. She was mad because my dad took what she really wanted from her, so she drugged and raped him to get me. You heard her say it.”

I was trying to think of some other way I could frame it, but my mind wasn’t moving fast enough. He was right. That was what she had just explained. How do you make someone feel better once they learn that their existence is the result of rape?

“What are you two drinking?” Cage said standing in the doorway with a smile.

Nero looked at him with anger.

“What?”

Nero stared at him for a moment and then ripped off his shirt and shifted into a wolf. The suddenness of it startled me. Nero’s wolf looked me in the eyes and fear rushed through me. When it took a step toward me, I flinched. But instead of attacking me, it leaped over the railing and disappeared into the darkness.

My heart pounded. I had seen him shift before. But this time it was because he was angry at me. Could he have done to me what he had to Evan?

“What just happened?” Cage asked me confused.

I wasn’t sure how much to tell him. This had to do with him as much as it did Nero. But, was it my place to say anything? On the other hand, if he knew, maybe he could help Nero process it in a way I couldn’t.

“Your mother just shared something about how Nero was born,” I told him hesitantly.

“What?” He asked approaching me.

“I’m not sure if I should be the one to say.”

“What’s going on?” Quin said stepping outside and seeing the tension.

“Kendall said that Mama just told them something about how Nero was born and Nero shifted and took off.”

“She told you two something about their father?”

“Not exactly,” I said.

“Whatever it is, you have to tell us,” Quin insisted. “This has been something Cage has been wondering about his whole life. You need to tell us, Kendall. There’s no other choice you can make.”