Part Forty

Every morning I’d escort Sierra down to the dining hall for breakfast before joining Damon in his office to help lighten his workload. I’d meet up with her and Jett for lunch and again for dinner. We talked about anything but the bond and at times she seemed nervous to be alone with me.

I struggled to sleep at night and on the third night I snuck into her room while she was asleep and took one of her shirts. It was the only way I could sleep, with her scent close to me. Kane would snuggle up next to me so we could share her shirt. It was pretty pathetic, I know.

I hadn’t been down to the dungeon to see Samantha and I knew that at some point I’d have to do something about her. I was torn between torturing the shit out of her and just having her executed. Either way she had to die, pay for her sins, pay for the pain she caused this clowder.

I was in Damon’s office with him when I heard Sierra laugh and I walked to the window and looked out into the courtyard. She was with Jett and sudden jealousy gripped me as he threw her over his shoulder and spun her around.

“He’s just being her friend,” Damon said from behind me.

“I know,” I said and turned away from the window.

“Maybe you should talk to her about going to Greenville,” he suggested.

“I thought you liked having me here,” I said to him.

“I do, but I also think time alone will spark whatever there is between you two,” he said.

“It’s not a bad idea,” I said as he smiled.

“Then you don’t have to steal her clothes anymore,” he said and I laughed suddenly.

“How did you know?” I asked him.

“I can smell her scent whenever I walk into your room and I know she hasn’t been sleeping there,” he said.

“How did you do it with Mom?” I asked him.

“What do you mean?”

“When you forced her to live with you, separate rooms and her ignoring you but sharing me,” I said.

“Shit, I never realized I had that much self-control Griff, it was pure torture but you kept us together and then she announced she was going on a date,” he said and I looked up at him.

“Mom dated someone else?” I asked him.

“She tried, I kind of showed up at the restaurant and ruined it,” he said with a smile and I laughed.

“You crashed her date?”

“I had no choice, no way was another man ever touching her. I followed her home and pinned her against the door and ….”

“Shit, no, stop! I don’t want to hear about you marking my mother!” I said loudly as I closed my eyes and pressed my hands against my ears.

“The point is, I never let up, I won her back and I never regretted it. I loved your mother with everything in me, I still love her,” he said.

“She was never replaceable,” I said and Damon chuckled.

“She was unique in every way, hoovering the damn driveway,” he said and we both started laughing.

“Do you think you’ll bond again?” I asked him.

“I hope not, I wouldn’t ever want to forget what I had with Finley,” he said and looked out of the window again.

“For a long time that’s how I felt about Samantha,” I said.

“Stop blaming yourself, she fooled all of us,” he said and placed a hand on my shoulder.

“I’m making peace with it,” I said and walked back to the other chair and sat down, “let’s get this paperwork sorted so I can go home.”

Damon smiled at me as he sat down and for the next few hours we submerged ourselves in work, until we were interrupted by Chester and Louis, the Council members who had given Sierra time to fully recover and now that time was up.

“It’s been two weeks, Alpha Woods,” Chester said as they sat down on the couches opposite Damon and me.

“There’s been no new developments, she doesn’t remember,” I said as they both looked at me.

“You will be granted two more weeks before the Council has to take action for your unsanctioned killings,” Louis said to Damon, ignoring me.

“I gave the order to go to war, not my father,” I said.

“He remains the Alpha of the clowder and therefore responsible for his member’s actions,” Louis said.

“We will return in two weeks,” Chester said and they both stood up.

“Council members…”

“Leave them, Griff,” Damon said as they left the office and I looked at him.

“No!”

“I’m responsible and I’d follow you in there again, I don’t care what they do to me,” he said.

“I care, your clowder cares,” I said angrily.

“You’re a strong Alpha Griffin, exactly what this clowder needs to lead them forward,” he said.

“No.”

“Talk to Sierra, go home for two weeks, forge the bond and come back to take over from me,” he said and left me alone in his office.

I noticed that lunch had come and gone and I had remained in the office, fighting an internal battle between Sierra and Damon. I wanted to forge the bond with her but I also wanted to save my father. I couldn’t lose him after just getting him back but I couldn’t lose her either.

“Come in,” I said at the knock sounding on the office door.

“Damon said you wanted to talk to me,” Sierra said as she closed the door behind her softly.

“Yes, uhm,” I said and cleared my throat.

“I’d like to talk to you as well,” she said as she sat down on the couch next to me.

“Okay, go ahead,” I said.

“I’m sorry that I don’t remember anything, I’m really trying to,” she said and stopped talking.

“It’s not your fault Sierra,” I said as she looked down.

“The thing is I don’t think you would all lie to me, you know too much about me but I know nothing about you and I don’t really know how to get to know you,” she said.

“Damon actually suggested that we go to my house for a bit, spend some time alone to get to know each other,” I said as she lifted her gaze and looked into my eyes.

If the situation was different I’d pull her into my arms and kiss her, kiss the vulnerability away, the awkward silences and every reservation that she might have about me. Looking into her eyes just made the pull stronger and I felt myself lean forward.

“Alone?” she asked.

“Kane would be with us, he likes you more than he likes me,” I said and she laughed.

“What if we realize we don’t get along at all?” she asked me.

“You’re not a prisoner Sierra, you can go and do whatever you like, nobody will ever force you into anything, least of all me, I understand that you’re hesitant, I’d be too, but I’d never hurt you, I’ve kept my distance from you because I wanted you to settle in,” I said to her.

“I’ll do it,” she said, “I’ll go home with you.”

She smiled as I grinned at her, I couldn’t be any happier that she had agreed to go to Greenville with me and I knew Kane was missing home as well. I also needed to make a decision about Samantha, but I’d take care of her after I saved my bond.

“Great, I’ll make the arrangements for us to leave tonight,” I said.

“I guess I’ll go pack then,” she said as she stood up.

“Sierra,” I said as she reached the door, “you won’t regret this, I promise.”

“For some odd reason I want to believe you,” she said.

She left the office then and I was still smiling, for about two seconds, until Jett walked in and threw himself across my lap on the couch. He sighed dramatically and then reached a hand towards my cheek which I slapped away as he laughed.

“There’s something seriously wrong with you,” I said to him.

“I know,” he sighed and then laughed again.

“Sierra and I are leaving tonight,” I said as I pushed him off me and he landed on the floor with a loud thud.

“Honeymoon already?” he asked me and winked as he propped his head up with his arm.

“We’re going home,” I said as he stood up.

“Alone?” he asked me.

“Yeah alone, so don’t get any ideas,” I said to him.

“But I’ll miss you,” he said in a whiny voice.

“I’ll find you an assignment, in Antarctica or somewhere far,” I said to him with a smile.

“You know you could always cut the electricity, light some candles, make it romantic,” he said as I looked at him.

“What’s wrong with you?” I asked him.

“Nothing, you have no imagination!” he said loudly.

“I don’t need to light candles or cut the electricity,” I said.

“Women want romance, they want to be swept off their feet, surprise gifts and flowers,” Jett said as he batted his eyelashes at me.

“Oh like you’ve been doing with Tanith?” I asked him and his smile disappeared.

“That was low Griffin even for you,” he said as I laughed.

“Why don’t you take your own advice?” I asked him.

“Because after all that comes hot sex, I can’t touch her,” he said.

“Poor celibate Jett,” I said.

“It’s no laughing matter Griff, this girl is a serious cockblocker,” he said.

“I think you did that all by yourself by dating her sister,” I said.

“How was I supposed to know she’d be my bonded half?” he asked me.

“By waiting for her,” I said and opened the office door.

“One day I’ll be telling this story to our children, about you cutting the electricity to woo their mother!” he yelled after me as I tried to block him out.