Page 26 of Rising Reign

I simply stared at him. Why did he get to ask questions when I couldn’t ask any in return?

Ender’s cheek started to twitch. “Yes?” he pressed.

“Not sure you have a right to that answer,” I told him honestly.

The fluttering in his cheek intensified. “Don’t be immature.”

I bristled. “How are you feeling, Ender? You seemed stressed in the car. Tense. What’s going on?”

He stiffened, his amber eyes burning gold. “What is this? I’m rubber and you’re glue?”

“It’s making a point,” I snapped. “You expect me to jump when you say jump. Answer when you ask. But you won’t give me any of that respect back. So, who is truly immature?”

“She has a point,” Puck yelled from the kitchen.

“Stop eavesdropping,” Ender barked. He cast an annoyed look toward me. “I just wondered if your headache was better. But if you want to play games, fine.”

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from saying something I really regretted. “What I want is for you to remove the stick from your ass, get over your shit, and deal with the fact that you might actually—heaven forbid—like me.”

Ender’s teeth gnashed. “I do not like you.”

I scoffed. “What are you? In kindergarten?”

“I don’t,” he huffed.

But the twitch of his fingers and how his eyes shifted to the side told me differently. I grinned at him. “You are such a liar. But have fun in denial land.”

A deep chuckle sounded from the back hall, one I didn’t recognize, and then a voice just as deep as the tenor of the laugh spoke. “So, this is the little vixen who has turned your life upside down, End?”

The house erupted at the new voice.

16

ENDER

Angry shifters flew into the entryway, creating a wall in front of Wren as the man stepped into the light. I didn’t move because I knew the asshole currently making himself known.

Rhys looked part biker, part billionaire, and as much as he was concerned about staying under the radar, those two facts—plus his towering, six-foot-five stature—didn’t help with the endeavor. His sharp jaw was currently covered with thick scruff that offset the mirth in his golden-amber eyes. A mirth that was amplified as Kingston leveled a gun at his head.

“Who the hell are you?” King growled.

“And how the hell did you get onto our territory without tripping one of my alarms?” Locke snarled.

I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen Locke quite so angry, other than when Wren was in danger. The fact that someone could sneak past his defenses was a threat to everything Locke prized.

Rhys just grinned wider. “I’m Rhys. That asshole’s bestie.” He pointed at me.

“I told you, Brix is my best friend,” I clipped. “What are you doing here?”

King looked back and forth between us, the tension in him easing a bit when he saw I hadn’t reached for a weapon, but he still didn’t lower his gun.

Rhys’s gaze cut to Wren, moving so he could get a better look at her. “Told you. I wanted to meet the girl that turned your world upside down.”

I bared my teeth at him. “So, you broke onto our pack lands to do it? Haven’t you heard of ringing the damn bell?”

Rhys simply shrugged. “What’s the fun in that?”

“I want to know how you got past my system,” Locke ground out.