Page 151 of Wolf Blood

"Neve can be difficult, but I could be there too. We could explain what happened, and—" Bloom began.

"No." Rhone basically snarled the word. His free hand was creeping up my stomach, like he needed to touch more of me.

"He looked like that right before he made a big, public scene about me being wrong for the guy I was dating," Sutton said, gesturing toward my mate.

Rhone's entire body went still.

"He was trying to protect Mav then, and he's trying to protect me now. He went about it the wrong way, but his heart is usually in the right place," I said loudly.

Literally everyone around us looked taken aback. I didn't have to glance backward to know that Rhone probably looked the same way.

"I shouldn't have been as harsh as I was," Rhone admitted. "It didn't need to be public, either."

"Is that an apology?" Sutton asked.

"In Rhone speak, yes," I said.

"I guess I accept."

"Maybe you guys can stop hating each other now." I pulled my phone out of my pocket. When I lifted it and snapped a quick picture of me smiling and giving the camera a thumbs-up, Rhone plucked the device away quickly.

I took it back."I can handle a few messages and potentially a meeting with her to prevent any more of my ex-coworkers from dying. I didn't like Steven, or Arthur, or Celeste, but I liked Ozzy. We were friends. He didn't deserve what happened to him."

"I don't want you hurting because of her."

"You can lick it better."

The hand he had on my hip, digging into my skin lightly, pressed a little harder.

I sent the picture to Neve along with a message.

Me

We need to talk

When the message said it was delivered, I drained the rest of my cup, then rose to my feet and slipped my phone back into my pocket.

Looking at Bloom, I held a hand out. "I think I need to dance. Are you in?"

She smiled.

Before she could get up, Rhone had already stolen my hand and was towing me toward the dance floor.

I didn't have to look over my shoulder to see if everyone was gaping, but I did. And they were.

Except Maverick.

He was just grinning.

CHAPTER THIRTY

harper

Rhone was a betterdancer than I would've guessed. I should've expected it after watching him fight.

The alcohol probably helped, too.

He still seemed mostly sober, though his hands wandered significantly more than usual. The way he was grinding up against me in public said he wasn't feeling anywhere near uptight.