Damon cursed internally. Stupid Nora! How is it possible that she ignored the fact that Damon didn't spare her a glance since she arrived at the Dark Howlers pack? Did she think how he was playing coy? And why did she come to the study and flap her mouth?
Damon felt like strangling Nora. The mental image of her dying felt oddly satisfying. Didn't James say no one would miss her?
'Now we are talking!', Damon's wolf exclaimed in his head.
Damon cursed silently. 'Stop with that nonsense. We need to pacify Talia who is about to explode.'
'Mate will be pacified when we snap Nora like a twig.', Damon's wolf said excitedly while urging Damon to spill blood. 'If you did that right away, we wouldn't be in this trouble. Tear her limbs off!'
'You are NOT helping!'
Damon decided to ignore the voice in his head and focus on what mattered. Talia.
"Kit…", he swallowed the rest when Talia shot him a glare, and he understood that the soft approach won't work. He needed a different strategy.
Damon cleared his throat. "Talia, good that you are here. I was just telling Miss Nora how she should go and have fun with other guests."
Nora eyed Talia condescendingly. Yes, Nora noticed the cozy mood between Damon and Talia during dinner, but Nora saw Talia as an assistant who was warming Damon's bed. Surely, a Beta's daughter has an advantage over some skinny nobody, and also… Damon didn't kick her out, which should mean Nora has a chance, and this was not a chance she was willing to pass on easily.
"You think that Miss Nora should go?", Talia asked Damon without removing her gaze from Nora. "I would like her to explain why she is here. It must be important when she came to visit you so late in the evening. I must wonder, if you were not here but in the bedroom, would she go to look for you there?"
Nora rolled her eyes at Talia. "There is no need to talk in riddles. You know very well why I am here."
Talia felt her insides boiling from anger. "What gave you the courage to come and offer yourself to Alpha Damon?"
"What makes you think that you can monopolize him?", Nora responded with a question. "A man like him has a big appetite that little you can't satisfy. Why don't you think about what Alpha Damon needs?"
Talia couldn't believe this. "And you think that he needs you?"
"Well, I am still here. If he didn't want me, he would tell me to scram."
Damon swallowed a mouthful of air. Didn't he tell her to leave already? It seems that Nora filtered out those parts.
Talia's eyes moved to Damon. "Do you want her here?"
Damon shook his head like a rattle drum, but he was behind Nora, so she didn't see how panicked he became.
"Why do you make it sound like I need an invitation?", Nora asked Talia with a frown. "I am a guest in this packhouse, and it's not like I sneaked in without permission. I knocked and Alpha Damon said I can come in. Who are you to decide if I should stay or leave?" Nora's lips lifted into a grin. "Alpha Damon and I are not strangers. You see, when he visited the Red…"
'PAK!'
Damon karate-chopped Nora at the back of her neck and she fell on the floor like a ragdoll.
When Talia appeared, Damon was caught by surprise and he needed a moment to find the right approach and minimize his losses. He knew that if Nora continued talking, he will be in a heap of trouble. He needed to shut her up, and he needed to do it fast, and he did… but how can he explain that he just knocked Nora out?
And here it was, Talia's question full of anger, "Why did you do that?"
Damon felt beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
Think, Damon! Think!
And just like that, in a moment of crisis, Damon got an idea.
"Your eyes."
Talia was confused. "My eyes?"
Damon nodded earnestly. "Specks of silver were emerging, and I had to take Nora out before she realizes how awesome you are. You saw the situation. Nora was here throwing herself shamelessly at me and trying to sow discord in our relationship. I could deal with all that, and I wanted to send her away amicably in order not to escalate and potentially owe James a favor, but if Nora saw your ability, we would be in trouble. I had to act swiftly."
Talia's brows came together. Specks of silver in her eyes? Talia was not sure if Damon was telling the truth or if he was trying to swindle her. Yes, she was angry, and she wanted to slap Nora into tomorrow, but she was not out of control, and there was no hot sensation in her stomach.
After all, everyone knew that Nora was sleeping around and targeting high-ranking members, and Talia was mentally ready that Nora will make her move on Damon. It was just a matter of when.
However, the biggest giveaway of how something was off were Damon's emotions. He was a nervous wreck, and Talia could feel it.
"What was she trying to say, Damon? It sounded like you know each other very well. How come you were not friendly with Nora during dinner? Don't tell me that you fucked her also!? Is that why you made sure she can't talk?", Talia squeezed through her teeth.
Damon's insides were tied into painful knots. Talia said the word 'fuck', which meant she was furious. His kitten never uses such crass words.
He wanted to deny it, but he knew that would be just one lie on top of another.
Damon didn't tell Talia about Nora because it would only upset her, and it wouldn't change anything. When they were at the Lightclaw pack, Damon pretended that he didn't know why Nora would come to his room.
The truth was that Damon barely remembered Nora from the Red Moon pack. Taking Nora from behind was just one of the thousands of similar experiences, and it didn't stand out in any way other than him feeling unsatisfied because he wished that was Talia. If Damon knew that Nora would repeatedly come for seconds, he would chase her away from his room at the Red Moon pack, even without Talia in the picture.
But this was not about one annoying she-wolf who wouldn't take no for an answer. This was about Talia and his guilt that was clashing with Talia's anger and wreaking havoc in his body. His insides were churning, and he thought that he was about to throw up.
Damon shoved his hand into his hair. There was no way he would say that he fucked Nora, but he couldn't lie.
"Do you really want me to answer that?"
Talia pressed her lips into a line, and Damon was quick to approach her.
He wanted to hold her hands, but she stepped away to avoid him. "Don't touch me!"
