Robbing the Alpha

Ch. 16: Honesty and Lies

BROOKE

Warm lips pressed against mine. The wrong shape. The wrong size. The wrong man. Everything happened too fast, leaving me no time to think—to pretend. On instinct, I shoved him as hard as I could away from me.

Titan pulled back, his brow creasing. "Forgive me. I thought..." His lips pursed. "Forgive me." He turned to retrieve his phone.

Huck handed it over with the stoicism of a statue. Mother would envy his composure, but he couldn't fool me. Darkness permeated the air around him, and his eyes spoke of murder. He was a ghost, but he'd never been terrifying until that moment. Despite knowing he was on my side, I took a step backward.

"We look good together, don't we?" Titan said, jarring my attention back to him.

I looked down at his screen, glimpsing myself through Huck's eyes. My hands were on Titan's chest, our heads at such an angle no one would ever know what was coming. If it were an image of him with the blonde, my wolf would...

My brow furrowed. Now that I thought about it, my wolf was unnaturally quiet. It was as if she'd buried herself.

"I'm sorry I made assumptions."

I chewed the inside of my cheek and glanced up at him. "You surprised me."

Titan studied me for a moment, then he nodded slowly. "Allow me to make it up to you." He led the way inside the diner, directing the two sentinels to stand guard outside the front door.

A short hostess with strawberry blonde hair smiled when we entered. "Three?" she asked, counting the ghost behind me. He was as silent as he'd ever been, but his presence felt like a fire at risk of spreading. How long would we have to live like this? Would there ever come a day when we wouldn't need to pretend?

"Two," Titan said. "Our bodyguard won't be eating."

Her eyes skimmed over Huck. "Of course. Please, follow me." She weaved her way through the crowded dining room, past potted plants, and patrons, seating us across from each other at a small table in the back.

Huck moved to stand against the far wall, putting him directly within my line of sight and conveniently behind Titan. Dark wood paired with white ceramic reminded me of us—opposites that somehow fit together perfectly. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't keep my focus away from him. Not after what had just happened. I wanted to kiss him, to have him kiss me, to have his lips wipe away all traces of anyone else, and to let him know that mine belonged to him. Only him.

"You like him," Titan said.

My lungs deflated, and my gaze shot to his. "Who?"

"Your bodyguard."

Before I could think of a response, the server arrived, and Titan turned his attention toward ordering for both of us, leaving me to sweat.

I shifted in my seat, fighting to keep my face expressionless. My hands shook beneath the table. I'd known this would happen. I'd been reckless too many times, it would be a wonder if he hadn't figured it out. But even now, I kept silent, hoping for a miracle.

When the server left, Titan spread his napkin across his lap. "What was I saying?"

Was this some kind of game? I remained silent. No way was I going to remind him—if he even needed me to.

"Oh, right! The bodyguard," he said. "I'll admit, I was surprised you chose him over the other. He's quite small in comparison."

There was nothing small about him, and I'd barely gotten a peek. "I can see why they call him Ghost," I said. "He's so quiet, I often forget he's there."