Chapter 7
The Shrewd Wolves (H&HP Series #3)
Hi Lovelies,
Presenting Chapter 7, which is dedicated to @Lujoca :D
Pic on the side is of>>>
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âI understand what you're saying, and your comments are valuable, but I'm gonna ignore your advice.â
â Roald Dahl, Fantastic Mr. Fox
DARYA P.O.V
How do I tell Sel and Duncan? What should I tell to Sel and Duncan? That the asshole somehow managed to convince me into doing what he wanted and that my wolf wasnât much helpful either?
My wolf just sighed refusing to argue with my thoughts. That clever female played me like a violin. She kept repeating that it would be my fault if I ended up miserable and grouchy.
Plus Quillonâs generous words didnât help me either. In fact, those very words were exactly what sealed the deal.
Nevertheless, I didnât let it completely control me. I would never let my wolf control me. She is a disaster because she is an animal and thinks like one. My wolf is downright selfish and I will be the first one to admit that.
So, I placed my own deal- I donât join his pack. He had to agree. If he plays me like a violin, I decided to return the favor. It was win-win for both of us. My wolf wasnât that happy, but unexpectedly, she kept her mouth shut.
Right now, I was standing in front of Duncanâs house wondering what I should do. I have to tell them. Thatâs the only option I have.
Taking a deep breath, I raised my hand and was about to knock the door, when it opened all of a sudden.
âOhâ I said startled, when my gaze collided with Selâs chocolate brown eyes.
âWere you even planning on coming inside?â Sel questioned amused, cocking an eyebrow.
âI was after I gathered enough courageâ I mumbled lowly following her to the dining room, where Duncan and Lorcan were having breakfast.
âGood morning Darooâ Lorcan grinned at me and I kissed his cheek which he wiped quickly. âYuckyâ he grumbled and I poked my tongue out.
âSo⦠whatâs the shocking news you were contemplating breaking to us?â Sel asked setting a plate for me.
âWho cooked?â I asked Duncan through the link because if Sel cooked breakfast then I would prefer eating in a café.
âBetsyâ Duncan answered with a wink and I stifled a smile. Betsy, their part-time maid, was a great cook.
âDarya?â Sel called.
âQuillon asked me to move in with him and give us being mates sixty days try to which I agreedâ I said in one breath. In the end, I was so relieved that I felt Mount Everest was beneath me.
Letting out a breath, I finally looked up. Duncan was staring at me in have-you-lost-your-mind look, while Sel had her poker face on, which I really hated, and Lorcan⦠he was drinking his mango juice. I doubt he even heard me.
âYou agreed?â Duncan said in disbelief and that finally earned Lorcanâs interest because he looked at his father with wide eyes.
âHe is my mateâ I mumbled as an explanation.
âSo?â Duncan shouted which made me flinch along with Lorcan.
âSo, it means, they are destined to be together and no force can separate themâ Sel adjoined shooting Duncan a critical look.
âBut why has she to move in with him?â Duncan demanded.
âWhy did you ask meto move in with you?â Sel queried and dark red flared Duncanâs prominent cheekbones. When Duncan was speechless, Sel said, âExactly the same reason Quillon asked her to move in.â
I flushed to the roots of my hair and lowered my head.
âAre we moving?â Lorcan asked all of a sudden with a pout.
âNo, baby, we are notâ Sel soothed him.
Duncan sighed and then looked at me, âWhen are you leaving?â he asked.
âNext weekâ I mumbled. âI am not joining his pack thoughâ I added.
âYou are not?â both asked in a surprised tone.
âNo. We are just trying being matesâ I explained. âIf this doesnât work out, we part waysâ I said with a shrug, however my wolf growled not appreciating that bitter truth.
âAnd who suggested that âpart waysâ in this mutual agreement?â Sel demanded. For some reason, I felt Sel didnât like what I was doing, even though she supported my cause earlier.
âHe did, but I agreed to itâ I watched Sel who just nodded, but I didnât miss the way, her eyes turned into a glare after I said it.
âItâs not as simple as it sounds Daryaâ Duncan said staring at me, âEspecially when it concerns youâ Duncan concluded and I gulped.
âI am not going to reveal about my gifts to himâ I stated firmly. I have decided that last night, even before I agreed to Quillon. âI will reveal it to him only if this works outâ I swore.
âYou will be able to control yourself?â Sel cross-questioned.
âI canât promise that but I know I will try my best in not revealing it to him for the next sixty daysâ I said through determination.
âAfter that?â Duncan asked.
âI decided to think about it if and only if the âafter thatâ situation arisesâ I declared with a shrug.
âFair enoughâ Duncan muttered with a smile.
I returned that smile and looked at Sel, who had her arms crossed against her chest. âYou have that calculative look in your faceâ I couldnât help but state. âYou are plotting something. What?â I demanded to know.
âNothing. I am just thinking if this situation will really work out as smoothly as you stated itâ she was blunt and her bluntness made a shiver run down my spine.
âThey are strangersâ Duncan imparted. âNot just those wolves, but the whole packâ he added.
âI know thatâ I said. I could deal with it.
âThey hate usâ Sel pointed out and I closed my eyes shut. That was the second biggest con about my moving in. It came after âliving with Quillon.â
I knew how much my pack hates Serene. If they didnât then Nick and Fox, would have never put Quinton in that trunk and sent him to Quillon. But I also knew the hatred was twice as much in their pack.
But I wouldnât let that bother me. I could face anything of that sort.
âSo?â Sel questioned.
âKonrad hates meâ I stated looking into her eyes. âI am sure the Serene wolves arenât half as bad as him.â If I can deal with Konrad, the ultimate monster, then I could definitely deal with them.
At my reply, Sel smirked, âWell saidâ she murmured and then proceeded to hug me.
âI am sure you will be fine, butâ¦â Duncan added and I stiffened, âIf a drop of tear comes from your eyes, then I am going to slay Quillon in the streets of his own pack.â
My wolf growled but I pushed her back, âFair enoughâ I said with a smile.
âWho is Quillon?â Lorcan asked curiously.
âThat guy who was shouting at your papa the other dayâ I reminded him.
Immediately Lorcanâs face scrunched up as if Quillon was some mean bug, âI donât like himâ he repeated the same words.
Welcome to my club.
âThere is just one more thingâ¦â Sel said and I furrowed my brows in bewilderment. âYou are going to be the one who will tell it to Tyson, Granel and Cortez about moving to Sereneâ she concluded with a cheeky grin and I groaned.
âI will just text themâ I mumbled as an afterthought.
I knew all the three of them would have their own personal interrogation, which would conclude with some sort of threat towards Quillon.
âLetâs have breakfastâ Duncan decided.
âHey, thanksâ Sel said to Duncan. âIt just reminded me that I have made hash brown potatoes. I am going to ge-.â
âNoâ Duncan, me and surprisingly, even Lorcan shouted at the same time.
QUILLON P.O.V
âSo, when is she coming here?â Harvey asked me, while we were unloading and transferring new furnitureâs to the showroom. I hate sitting in the showroom. Luckily, it is only for two more weeks. After that, I am joining my dadâs company.
I received a MBA degree this year and I plan to use it to full use. Sitting in the showroom, for twelve hours a day is definitely not my thing. My dad is officially retiring after two weeks and then I will be taking over as the CEO. I have already received majority votes from all the directors of the company and it was a good thing. When I worked as an intern there, my work was appreciated and hence directors considered me fit enough to take over the company.
âNext weekâ I answered setting the sofa on the floor. âTake it to the warehouse. Weâll get the othersâ I said to Ram and Clay, who nodded as a reply.
âAnd where will she stay?â Harvery questioned while we picked another similar sofa set.
âMy placeâ I grumbled. Harvey cocked an eyebrow amused but quickly looked away when I growled in warning.
âI hope your house will be in one piece until the end. I actually love your games roomâ he joked and I purposely dropped the hold I had on the sofa, which caused him to lose balance and drop the sofa on his own feet.
âThat bloody hurtâ Harvey screamed in pain and I smirked in satisfaction.
âOne more joke, I will pound your head inside thisâ I threatened and he continued whining. âStop being a baby and pick it upâ I snapped. He did as he was told.
While we were picking up the third sofa set, Isaac, who was on guard duty, called me through the link. âYes?â
âThereâs someone here asking to meet youâ he told me and I furrowed my brows.
âWho?â
âEmperor Pack Lunaâ he replied and I frowned. Why is Duncanâs mate here? âWhat should I do?â
âIs she alone?â I demanded to know.
âYes.â I was surprised to hear it.
âLet her in. Ask someone to escort her to the showroomâ I commanded. I wanted to know why Emperor Pack Luna was here. Did Darya send her? Is she coming to threaten me or something stupid like that? But then why would she come alone? What does she want?
My curiosity got the better of me and so I let her come into my territory.
âShe is dangerous manâ Isaac commented after few minutes.
âYou scared of a she-wolf now?â I cocked an eyebrow amused to hear it.
âNo. But she is threatening. The way she was staring at me, I felt she would have come inside the territory even without your permissionâ he imparted.
âI donât think soâ I declared firmly.
âI am serious Q. She can be intimidatingâ he said and I growled. I was about to yell at him, but then I realized Isaac would definitely find her intimidating because, Orseline Rhoades, was a complete Alpha blood, just like me.
âI can deal with herâ I professed and blocked Isaac from the link.
Almost an hour later, Orseline Rhoades, was escorted to where I was at, by Rocky, a wolf, who recently joined the guardâs team.
Nevin, who had shifted into his wolf, was also running beside her car. I frowned when I saw him. What was that idiot doing?
I stopped in my tracks and stood at least ten foot away from her, now parked, Mercedes. Harvey, Clay and Ram, stood behind me while Nevin stood almost four foot away from her car door.
âWhat is she doing here?â Harvey asked abruptly with a growl, while Nevin asked the same through the link.
âShe wanted to talk to me and so I let her inâ I told to both of them through the link, in my Alpha tone. They didnât probe anything further after that.
Five seconds later, the driverâs side of the door opened and Orseline Rhoades, climbed out of the car. She removed her sunglasses and then her gaze clashed against mine.
Smirking, she walked ahead and then leaned against the bonnet of her car.
âQuillonâ she said and nodded once.
âLunaâ I said in respect. âYou came alone to the enemyâs territoryâ I couldnât help but point out.
âI donât think you as my enemy. At least not anymoreâ she was honest enough to add the last part. âAnd as for coming alone, there is no one in your pack, who can touch a single hair in my body, without my permissionâ she stated calmly, yet her tone held quite a threatening note in it.
I smirked, but wolves around us growled after hearing her words. The Luna was wrong. Others might not be able to harm her. But I can.
Agreed both her parents are Alpha bloods just like mine, but I am way powerful than she can imagine.
âIs that so?â I queried.
âYou can send your wolves to fight against me but itâs them who are going to get hurt in the endâ she said with a shrug. Again wolves around us growled, but I just shook my head.
âSince you donât consider my pack your enemy, we will not eitherâ I said.
âFair enoughâ she said with a smile.
âYou said you wanted to talk, What about?â I demanded.
âAbout Daryaâ she said and my wolf perked up. What about Darya?
âGo onâ I urged.
âYou seem wise Quillon. You seem like a good person tooâ she said and I frowned, not knowing where she was going with this. âSo, I want to know the genuine reason of you calling Darya to come to your pack.â
âShe is my mateâ I growled out.
âThatâs what you told her. But exactly why do you want her here?â she grilled.
âShe is mineâ I snarled. That should be enough of an explanation!
âShe isnât yet yoursâ the Luna pointed out and I growled murderously. Wolves around us took a step back, but the Luna stayed in her place.
âI donât know what kind of sick games both of you are playingâ¦â the Luna began, âNor am I interested in knowing it. But remember these two things I am telling youâ she added and I stiffened.
What two things?
â1. Never provoke Darya until she is forced to give into her temper.â I growled as I heard it but the Luna continued talking, feigning ignorance. â2. Never take Daryaâs threats lightlyâ she said coolly and I cocked an eyebrow.
My wolf just narrowed his eyes to see if the Luna was jesting with us. However, the gravity in her brown eyes told me that she wasnât.
âAnd If I do?â I had to ask it to know what exactly the Luna was warning me about. What would Darya do if she loses her temper?
âIf you do, youâll regret having an ulterior motive into asking Darya to come to your packâ she told me in a tone of finality.
âSince I donât have any ulterior motive, I donât think your words of advice are necessaryâ I sneered and the Luna smirked.
âFor her sake, I hope what you are saying is trueâ she said with a soft smile and then strode towards her car. Before climbing in, she paused and then looked at me, âRemember Quillon, you are welcoming fire to your pack and we all know what fire does.â
I was amused to hear it.
My wolf was confused.
Wolves around me were just growling lowly.
I know Darya has a temper, but I donât think she is that harmful.
âHow come the âfireâ didnât burn your pack?â I queried using quote on the word fire, which is how the Luna represented Darya.
âWe knew never to play with fireâ she said smartly, with a wink, and then climbed inside the car.
I watched her as she turned her car and followed after Rocky.
âWhat was that?â Nevin asked from beside me and trust me; I wanted to know the same.
What the hell was that?
A warning? A Threat? Or an advice?
I didnât need any of those three. I knew enough about Darya and I am sure she is harmless. My wolf agreed with me too but he wasnât ready to take Orseline Rhoadesâs words lightly either.
âYou think she was serious?â Harvey questioned from beside me.
My wolf was confused. He didnât know what the hidden message behind the Lunaâs words was. What did she mean welcoming fire?
Darya? Fire?
No way! She looks as delicate as a flower. She might have a temper and she may be smart but she is nothing I cannot cope with.
I have seen people way worse with their wolves and Darya was nowhere close to them.
âNoâ I brushed off and then proceeded with my work.
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Next update will be on 20th because I know this is short :)
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