Chapter 4

I immediately rip my eyes away from him, looking around… to escape or maybe to find something to bash him in the head with. The limo we’ve been riding in for the entire time comes to a stop in front of the familiar luxury aparthotel that still haunts my dreams. The last time I was here my heart got steamrolled and I left in the middle of the tears with my tail tucked between my legs, licking my wounds that still refuse to fucking heal.

Why am I here? Why am I back here? What the fuck is wrong with me to return to the scene of the crime where I was murdered by the love of my life sitting currently right next to me?

“C’mon,” he tells me, drawing my attention. “Let me show you to your new home.”

Home? I chuckle at the absurdity that. “You mean my new room.”

“Sure. Same thing.” No, it fucking isn’t! It’s not the same.

Home used to be where he was. Home hasn’t felt like home since he broke it. I’ll never tell him that, because he probably doesn’t give a fuck. He probably created his home with that shewolf he was breeding that night he destroyed my entire world.

Once I get paid for my service and work, I’ll be hightailing out of here, hopefully with my dignity still intact. Doubtful. Either way, this case will help my company. I’ll be taking back my life, my self respect, and my closure the way I see fit without a jackass calling the shots.

He winks at me… and I forgot how to breathe. What was that about me calling all the shots?

His eyes just sparkle mischievously and I can’t help but feel like we’re playing a game. He’s the hunter and I’m the mouse. Can I not be the mouse? Can I not be hunted? Whatever this is, it has to stop. It has to stop right now, because he broke me once. He’ll do it again if I’m not careful.

* * *

All eyes are on me when I walk through those doors of that infamous aparhotel that is connected to a luxury high-end 7-level shopping mall, a movie theater, a train station, and a subway station. What makes me think this is the best and wisest choice to return to the scene of the crime?

Scratch that! I don't think I'm even thinking at all, but alas, here I am, standing in the grand lobby of the nightmare with that obnoxiously shimmery huge extravagant crystal chandelier above me. I still think it's absolutely outrageous to have that level of richy rich oozing. It's like coughing and vomiting up diamonds rich. Yet again, I question my level of sanity and intelligence.

Why am I here?

"You're here for a job," he reminds me, making me realize I asked that question aloud.

His chuckle and his amusement aren't lost on me. My eyes snap to him, stabbing him with my wicked intent. He only smirks at my reaction. I'm not someone you mess with buddy. I've taken down humongous egocentric males without blinking. You seem to obviously forget that!

Okay, so maybe those humongous egocentric males were drunk at the time and he might've been the one that wolf-handled them. I'm really skilled at being stealthy. Now you see me... and now you don't type of menace. I'm like a magician. Oh, how I wish I could disappear. Poof! Vanish! Maybe I should've been a magician instead?

"I'm questioning my life choices," I mutter to myself while I follow him as he walks across the lobby.

"I heard that," he tells me.

I roll my eyes. "You were supposed to."

He shakes his head. There is that chuckling again. He thinks everything is amusing. My eyes have a mind of their own as they settle quite clearly on his ass.

Fuck me. No, no, don't fuck me. Bad Vixi.

I wrench my eyes away from him and look around... which I totally regret when my eyes land on Mr. and Mrs. Carrigan-Holland and their glamorous daughter, Misty, with her glorious wavy brown hair. They effectively cut in front of Maverick to stop him. The elevator bay is right there for fuck's sake!

"Maverick, we missed you at the meeting," Mr. Carrigan-Holland tells him.

Maverick draws in a sharp breath before he releases it as if he has to prepare himself for entering that land of the rich and the obnoxious. If he didn't get suckered back in, he wouldn't need to do that at all. Now, this pack has their claws into them and I can't help but be wickedly amused by all of it.

Serves him right. Suffer for your sins.

"I had business to attend to," he finally explains with a fake pleasantness like artificial sugar that's overly too sweet.

I chuckle, causing him to stiffen at that because he knows I'm having a ball at his expense. He glances over his shoulder at me and I give him a bright smile. I savor the scowl, his narrowed eyes, and the getting under his skin. I live for it.

Wait a second? Did he just refer to me as business to attend to? That little shit. Wait. He's right. This is business. That's it.

Mr. Carrigan-Holland coughs, drawing my attention. It's so unnecessary, but whatever, I'll oblige his ego this once.

"Looks like we didn't chase you off fully." The wolf is all jokes, huh? He chuckles like it's one, but we all know he isn't joking at all.

I shrug. "I'm like a cat. I got nine lives."

"Aren't you a fox though?" Misty asks.

Yes, Capt. Obvious, I'm indeed a fox. My sarcastic remark is on the tip of my tongue when Maverick pierces me with a warning look. I swallow down those words regrettably. I take a deep breath like Maverick did and then I release it.

"Yes, Misty, I'm indeed a fox," I manage to get out with a weak smile. "Thanks for remembering."

Maverick coughs and I know he's trying desperately to cover up the urge to laugh. Misty smiles big and wide like she's accomplished all her life goals and thinks I'm her biggest supporter. I think I'm going to throw up. By the end of this conversation, I guarantee I'll have no lives.

"It looks like I'll be hanging around for awhile," I tell them with fake politeness and pleasantries. Oh, I really do want to throw up! "Mav and I decided to walk down memory lane--"

Misty's eyes widen in joy and glee. "Oh, you two must go to my birthday event then together!"

Together?! I swallow. Oh, no. That's not what I meant. "We're not--"

"We'll be happy to," Maverick cuts in and my eyes pop out as I swing my gaze over to him. What the hell is he on about? Why hasn't he corrected her? "Don't you think, love?"

My mouth drops open. What the fuck? No, I didn't sign up for this! This is not a part of the plan. This is not going to be the fucking plan. Abort. Abort mission.

Mrs. Cardigan-Holland’s eyebrows rise up in shock. "Oh, you two are back together?"

I feel all their eyes burning into me. My heart is racing in my chest. I want nothing more to just toss my bags up and run for the hills. My eyes glance up at Maverick who looks entirely too calm about this and way too amused by the obvious panic I'm feeling. Oh, I hate him. If I didn't already hate him, I'd hate him even more. He's on the list. At the top. He's number one.

I look over at Mr. and Mrs. Carrigan-Holland. They had been one of many that consistently looked down on our relationship. I remember Mrs. Carrigan-Holland and Mrs. Lansing laughing about how hard I tried to fit in and never would when Ginger Milan 'accidentally' spilled wine all over my dress. It truly would be a slap in the face for all of them, wouldn't it?

They took bets and everything. They made me the laughingstock of Silver City. I never told Maverick what I had overheard that night. I was too embarrassed, humiliated, and ashamed of myself. Here I thought I was making a good impression, because I had to make a good impression for Maverick's sake and instead I was the punchline to an insider’s joke.

"He couldn't keep away," I giggle, snuggling up into Maverick's side. He automatically wraps his arm around my shoulder as I place a possessive hand over his chest. "You know what they say about werewolves, you can never go back after having one."