Page 48 of The Werewolf's Deputy
With Zephyr’s help, they moved the chair to the edge of the picnic setup and helped Tony into it. Jonah didn't need to ask why, he could see the scarring on Tony’s face and neck, and figured the guy needed something more comfortable than sitting on the ground.
Taron plopped down next to Jonah, putting an arm around him and squeezing tight enough to make his bones creak. Jonah schooled his face not to grimace, Emmett’s reaction to a little rough play that morning had been kind of freaky, and he didn'twant to set him off again, but he breathed a sigh of relief when Taron let him go.
As Emmett passed out the take out containers, Jonah shot him a questioning look. The picnic thing was nice, but it was honestly pretty low key from what he’d been expecting. And he didn’t understand why Emmett invited new people instead of their usual crowd.
Emmett caught his look and did a doubletake, frowning at him. “What?”
“Nothing. Just… confused, I guess.”
“You’re wondering why you were invited to eat with us,” Taron piped up, drawing Jonah’s attention to him.
“Well, not you,” Jonah shook his head. “You join us for lunch at least twice a week.”
Taron looked like he wanted to be offended, then pursed his lips thoughtfully when he realized it wasn’t an insult. “Okay, true. But this lunch wasn’t Emmett’s idea, it was mine.” Taron shifted himself around on the blanket so Jonah had no choice but to meet his eyes. “He didn’t tell me much—boy’s locked up tighter than a vault—but I didn’t need a full report to see you could use a reminder. You’re not on an island here. There aren’t a ton of humans at Spellbound yet, but the ones who are? They’re worth knowing. And you don’t have to figure all this out alone. You’ve got people now—me included, whether you like it or not.”
His expression was more serious than Jonah was used to, but the words struck deep and Jonah wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of emotion that followed. The ache of the loss was still a livewire of pain in his chest, despite his friends’ best efforts, but Taron’s steady insistence was like a balm, and he felt tears prick his eyes as he looked around. Avery smiled softly at him, and Tony nodded in agreement. Roz gave him a pointed look, silently telling him Taron was right and he should listen. Andwhen Jonah looked up at Emmett, the werewolf smiled softly at him.
“You’ve got people here, Jonah. I know it feels like you’re on your own, but you’re not. We’ve got you. You’re not alone.”
His breath left him in a rush, and he couldn’t help huffing out a choked laugh. “Gods, this wasn’t what I’d thought this lunch would be like,” he croaked.
It was a lot, and while it didn't take away the pain, it did ease it a little. Enough to let himself breathe without feeling like he was moments from falling apart. He cast another look at Emmett, leaning into him when Emmett wrapped an arm around his shoulders and squeezed gently. Maybe they were right. He didn’t have to do it all alone. He had people in his corner. Not the people he’d expected, but people who cared. That was enough for him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Emmett felt when the tension left Jonah’s shoulders, and once the conversation moved into lighter territory, his smile came back. There was still a little tension around his eyes, and the scent of grief hadn’t disappeared entirely, but he was improving, little by little.
When lunch was over and everyone dispersed back to their offices, Jonah took Emmett’s hand, lacing their fingers together, and Emmett absolutely melted at the gesture. It still felt like the wrong time to ask about making their relationship real, but he loved the easy way Jonah latched onto him.
“So… you aren’t mad at me, right?” he asked hesitantly.
Jonah shook his head. “I wanted to be–”
Emmett whined, his tail drooping, but before he could explain his reasoning, Jonah continued.
“But I knew from the start you were only trying to help. I was just worried people were going to pity me, and it’d make things awkward. Lunch was nice, though. I had no idea there were other humans at Spellbound.” He looked around with a frown. “Where’d Roz go?”
Emmett looked around as well, confused. “She was right behind us.”
They backtracked together, and Isaac looked amused when he tipped his head toward the terrace again. “Missing someone?”
Roz was still sitting on a bench off to one side, her gaze glued to her phone as she chewed on her lip. She didn’t notice Emmet and Jonah approach, and there were no lights to flicker to get her attention.
Emmett, being nosy, leaned over her phone to see what she was looking at. She snatched the screen away so fast, he only saw the name in the text conversation before it was gone again.
“Are you texting Tasha?”
Roz glared at him, shoving her phone into her pocket. “None of your business. Jonah, I need to go to the IT floor to update them on how things are going. Do me a favor and check my computer to make sure the update is progressing like it should.”
Jonah nodded, watching in amusement as she flew off without a backward glance. Emmett cocked his head at him.
“Why would she be texting Tasha? Does she think there’s a security problem?”
“Not as far as I’m aware,” Jonah replied, but he had this smirk on his face that Emmett felt was him hiding something. He poked the little human’s side, pouting at him.
“What aren’t you telling me?”
Jonah raised an eyebrow at him. “Unlike some people, I know how to keep a secret. Now, come on. I’ve got work to do, and I’m sure you do, too.”
