"What the…?", Mike's curse was cut short when someone grabbed his arm and yanked him out of the car before he could start the engine. They were in front of the packhouse, so Mike's guard was down, and he didn't expect it.
"Stay there!", James ordered Mike, who found himself stupefied by the fierceness of the teen in front of him. Mike recognized James, and even though there was no Alpha aura, James' physical strength was surprising.
James swiftly opened the back door to say to Cornelia, "Come out."
Cornelia didn't move a muscle as she tried to process what happened.
Cornelia saw James standing in the lounge area, and then at the door next to Marcy, and Cornelia did her best to ignore his presence. Even without looking, she could feel the pull and she suppressed the urge to go to him, believing that her emotions will stabilize once they put some distance between them.
Cornelia didn't expect that James will dash to the car so quickly that there were afterimages behind him, and then he violently pulled Mike out of the car. What was that about? And now he wanted her to come out?
James grit his teeth when he realized that Cornelia was not moving. He leaned so that his head was inside the car, and he could see her. "Can you get out? Please."
Cornelia scooted further away from him. "Why? Are you going to attack me also?" She could freeze him with a thought, but Cornelia didn't want to harm him.
James cursed under his breath. "I did it for you. Now can you get out so we can talk?"
Cornelia didn't believe him. He attacked one of the men who was supposed to escort her, for her? And she was confident that they didn't have anything to talk about. She shook her head, refusing to comply.
James was irritated. Why was she so stubborn? And just like that, he sat in the back seat next to Cornelia and closed the door behind him.
"You, get out.", James ordered Theo who was sitting in the front passenger's seat. "I want to talk to Cornelia in private."
'And close the door when you exit the car.', Maya's voice sounded in Theo's mind.
Maya was watching this from the window on the second floor of the packhouse.
Maya is one of the believers that Talia has a matchmaking ability, so when Mindy asked her for help with James and Cornelia, Maya didn't refuse. She was curious if Talia's power will reach someone who is only sixteen years old (aka James), so after the meeting with Marcy, Maya lingered in the hallway, in front of the open window that provided a good view of the driveway in front of the packhouse.
At first, Maya didn't understand why Mindy requested two handsome soldiers to escort Cornelia, and what was that with required dirty talk before they leave the packhouse? But now Maya wanted to congratulate Mindy on her plan to use James' possessiveness to trigger him. Once Mindy joins the pack officially, having such a sharp (and slightly twisted) mind will definitely come in handy and Maya hoped that Mindy will accept to be Talia's ranked member.
And this officially became another notch on Talia's post for matched mates!
Maya's eyes sparkled as she was imagining the advertising campaign. They will call it, "Talia's Cupid services" and have Valentine's and New Year's specials. They will make a fortune!
In the car…
Cornelia wanted to get away from James, yet she ended up confined with him in a tight space. She glanced at the door behind her while trying to figure out how to open it, but there were several buttons and notches, and she didn't know which one will allow her to get out.
James frowned at the sight of Cornelia who was leaning away from him, how much the car allowed. And why was her hand moving over the door? Was she trying to give him a slip?
"I won't harm you.", James said. "I heard them talking about seducing you and…"
"Should I thank you?", Cornelia interrupted him. "You ruined my day. Who knows if they will be willing to escort me now?" And getting replacements will probably take time.
James couldn't believe this. Was she still willing to go with those two? But her hand moved away from the door, and that was a good thing.
"Didn't you hear what I said?", he asked.
Cornelia closed her eyes and exhaled slowly to calm down. He was too close, and it was messing with her mind. But she couldn't give in to the pull, not when he didn't feel it.
"I heard you.", she said. "Do you think I can't take care of myself?"
"It's two of them, and only one you."
Cornelia made a face. "Why do you care?"
"Because…", James paused. Why did he care? "Because I feel a knot in my chest at the thought of you going with them."
Cornelia snorted. She had no intention of finding herself random guys as romantic companions, but James' behavior rubbed her the wrong way. "You don't want me, but no one else can have me either. If I knew it will end up like this, I wouldn't say anything last night."
"Cora…"
"Don't call me like that!", Cornelia snapped. She was irritated but mostly sad. She could feel the bond, and her emotions were not reciprocated, and it was killing her on the inside.
"Even if you didn't say anything, I would still feel it."
Cornelia's eyes widened. "Feel, what?"
"This…", James said and reached to hold her hand into his. "A need to be close to you, and not to share you. I don't want you to be with anyone else because I want you to be with me."
He scooted closer to her and put his other hand over Cornelia's. He was slightly disappointed that her hand was slack between his, but at least she didn't pull it away.
"I don't feel the bond, but I feel other things.", James said. "Last night, I couldn't sleep because you were racing in my mind. That never happened before. During breakfast, I fought against my urge to sit by your side and when I heard those two guys saying how you are easy on the eyes and they wanted to seduce you, I lost it. Werewolves are this protective only when they meet their mates."
Cornelia looked at her hand that was sandwiched between James'. "Are you saying that you believe me?"
"I just met you, there is absolutely no logic in me believing what you said.", James responded without missing a beat. "But I believe what I feel, and something inside me is urging me to be with you. Will you let me?"
"Let you do what?", Cornelia asked cautiously.
James paused. What the hell was he supposed to say? That he was turned on by just sitting next to Cornelia and holding her hand? He really wanted to rip her clothes off and pounce on her, but there was no way he would say that or act on it. It wouldn't end well.
Ah! Normally, he would come up with several great ideas and a few backup ones within a second, yet now his mind was full of Cornelia and the feeling of her soft hand in his, and there was nothing else.
