Chapter 16
Grayson’s POV
The entire room fell silent. Liam’s eyes flickered with unease. Elaine’s face paled, as if all the blood had drained from it. Ava’s eyes narrowed, disbelief and irritation flashing across her face. “Seriously, Bel?”
Isabella shrugged, completely unfazed. “You said you wouldn’t tell. I made no such promises.”
I remained silent. There was no need to rush. The silence itself was a weapon, and I knew how to wield it well. I wasn’t stupid—far from it. I’d known for a while that Liam and Elaine were sneaking around, trying to cover their tracks with a guise of mutual hatred. The stolen glances, the awkward tension—they couldn’t hide it from me, not even if they tried.
They were all waiting, expecting me to say something.
I kept quiet, letting the tension build, letting the threat of silence hang heavy in the air.
Liam finally broke the silence, stepping forward with a slight bow of his head. His voice was steady but tight. “Grayson, I meant no disrespect. Elaine and I… it just happened.”
My gaze flickered from him to Elaine, who stared at me with wide, almost pleading eyes. Then, to Ava, who looked torn between irritation at Isabella’s recklessness and curiosity about my next move. I let the moment stretch, enjoying the weight of their discomfort before I spoke.
“Okay.”
The single word cut through the air like a knife. Simple. Cold. But loaded with enough weight to keep them on edge.
Elaine’s voice wavered, unsure of where this was going. “Okay? You’re… fine with it?”
The corners of my lips twitched—not quite a smile, but close enough to make the atmosphere more suffocating. “Do you not want me to be?”
The question hung heavy with implication. The truth was, I didn’t care much that they were sneaking around. Liam was competent, loyal, and I trusted him enough to let him be with my baby cousin. But that didn’t mean I was going to make it easy for them. I had no intention of giving them an easy way out of this discomfort. If they were going to be together, they’d have to earn it.
Elaine opened her mouth to respond but hesitated, unsure what to say. She searched for some kind of confirmation, but none came. Her eyes darted between me and Liam.
Then, Isabella chimed in, completely oblivious—or perhaps entirely aware—of the tension in the room. “I didn’t know it was possible for her to be this mellow,” she mused with a sly grin.
My wolf growled with something akin to interest. Not the type he felt for Ava, which was like a spark of fire, but the type that told me he liked Isabella’s bravery and the fact that she said what was on her mind.
Elaine’s head snapped in her direction, and for a moment, it looked like she was going to snap back, but Ava intervened, grabbing Isabella’s arm and pulling her away from the conversation before it escalated. “We’re leaving,” Ava muttered under her breath, clearly trying to defuse the situation.
Isabella, however, didn’t seem to get the memo, laughing softly as she let Ava pull her out of the room. “Come on, I was just getting started,” she whispered with a wink as they left.
Now, it was just me, Liam, and Elaine. The tension in the room still lingered, though it had shifted slightly. Liam, always one to try and fix things, cleared his throat, stepping in front of Elaine as if to shield her from whatever I might say next.
“I apologize that this happened the way it did, Grayson,” Liam began, his voice low and measured. “But my feelings for Elaine are real.”
Elaine crossed her arms, trying hard to look composed, but I could hear the slight tremor in her voice. “I know I should’ve come to you first, considering the relationship between all of us. I’m sorry. I know I messed up. But Liam…” She sighed, defeated. “Liam makes those feelings a little better.”
I said nothing. I just stared, letting her words hang in the air. I could see her wavering, but I didn’t offer her any relief. I wasn’t in the mood to make this easy for anyone tonight. My gaze moved between the two of them, my expression deliberately blank.
Then I smiled. “Well, if that’s the case, how could I possibly refuse?”
Elaine blinked, probably caught off guard by my response, but she forced a smile in return, choosing to ignore the sharp edge in my tone. Typical. She had always been good at avoidance.
“I need to shower,” she muttered, more to herself than anyone else. “I’ll see you later.”
I watched her glance at Liam, her eyes softening for a split second before she turned to me. I saw the unease in her gaze as she masked her discomfort. Smart girl. Then she walked out, leaving me alone with Liam.
The silence between us was heavy, deliberate. Liam shifted his weight like he was ready for me to explode.
“You’re thinking of all the ways you could skin me alive and hang me out for everyone to see, aren’t you?” Liam finally broke the tension, his voice low but laced with humor, trying to diffuse the situation.
I tilted my head, giving him a measured look. “And what gave you that impression?”
He exhaled a shaky laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. “Come on, Grayson. I’ve known you long enough to know when you’re not reacting—that’s when I should worry. So just… tell me what my punishment is for sneaking around with Elaine.”
I didn’t respond immediately. Instead, I turned away from him and went to the bar, grabbing a bottle and pouring myself a drink. The sound of the liquid filling the glass was the only noise in the room for a few seconds.
I held the glass up, inspecting it. “I should probably have everything in here sterilized.”
Liam didn’t respond, and I didn’t expect him to. I took a slow sip before turning my attention back to him.
“I swore to protect her,” I said quietly, my voice steady but cold. “After everything that happened between us in the past, you, more than anyone, understand how important that is. How volatile she can be. So if you’ve chosen to be with her,” I took another sip, “then you better be ready to make sure nothing happens to tick her off. Understand?”
Liam’s posture straightened, and he nodded, his expression serious. “I do.”
Satisfied, I poured another drink and handed it to him. “Then I’m not mad.” I paused, letting my words sink in. “But if you hurt her…”
“Yeah, yeah,” Liam interrupted with a chuckle, accepting the glass. “My skin being flayed will be the least of my worries, right?”
I didn’t respond, just raised an eyebrow. The two of us sat down in silence, the tension slowly ebbing away but never fully leaving the room. I didn’t do emotions. I never had. And Liam understood that. He’d been by my side since the beginning. He knew how I operated, and he knew the lines he couldn’t cross.
If there was anyone I trusted with Elaine, it was him.
The silence stretched on for a few moments before Liam spoke again. “Why her?”
I didn’t need to ask who he was talking about, but I didn’t answer right away. I just stared into my drink, letting the question linger.
“I get that you need a llama,” Liam continued when I didn’t respond. “That the circumstances around Ava are… odd, to say the least. And now her father’s declaring war.”
I clenched my jaw; the mention of Luther Pierce already setting my blood on fire. “I’ll handle Luther Pierce,” I growled, my wolf stirring inside me. “His ego will be his downfall if he tries to take her away from me.”
Liam’s eyebrows shot up at the venom in my tone. “Is she… is she your mate?”
Mate. The word echoed in my head, stirring something dangerous. No, Ava wasn’t my mate. She had found the one destined for her. I wasn’t part of that equation. But something had happened between us in my study, something I couldn’t explain, and now I was entangled in a mess I hadn’t foreseen.
I downed the rest of my drink without answering and stood up abruptly. Liam didn’t push the subject, smart enough to know when to back off.
Without another word, I headed for the door. I needed air. I needed space. My wolf was restless, clawing at me from the inside, begging to be let loose. I needed a run, something to clear my head. Anything to escape the mess that was building around me.
As I stepped outside, the cold night air hit me, but it did little to cool the fire burning inside. That’s when I heard voices. Familiar voices. Ava and… Dylan?
My steps quickened as the voices grew louder, and when I rounded the corner, I saw them. Ava was standing in front of Dylan, her posture tense. “Leave, Dylan, before he realizes you’re here,” she snapped, her voice sharp and full of warning.
“I’m not scared of him, Ava,” Dylan growled back. “And if you don’t get out of my way, I’ll—”
“You’ll what?” My voice cut through the night like a knife as I stepped into the light. My wolf was practically vibrating under my skin, hungry for a fight. “I dare you to finish that sentence.”
Note: I corrected numerous grammatical errors, improved sentence structure, and addressed punctuation issues throughout the passage. I also made a few minor edits for clarity and flow. There was one instance where "llama" seemed to be a typo and I corrected it to "lama" assuming that's what was intended. If it is not a typo, then revert that change.