Hollis glanced at Olivia then, truly sympathetic. Killing, for Olivia, would be hard every time. She wasn’t made for it. She should never have had to do it. She and Jessa were…gentle.
“Y-yes.” Olivia sniffed, hesitating before adding. “It is. But I’m fine.”
“She was amazing,” Dante attempted a compliment. “As soon as that gun went off, she was on him. Saved Mal’s ass.”
“I’m fine,” she repeated.
If Hollis had needed evidence that Olivia wasn’t fine, that was it. His gaze crashed into Ellen, but she shook her head—nodding pointedly at Mal. She was right. Mal could fix this, he needed to. The sooner the better.
“Leave her alone.” Mal’s growl silenced the room.
“I don’t need you to talk for me.” At least she wasn’t crying anymore. Anger coated every word.
He sat back, watching the couple with interest. The whole bond-pairing thing was still a fairly new occurrence for their pack. He’d yet to truly study the dynamics of a mated pair. Since there seemed to be no way of avoiding their altercation, this was as good a time as any to start.
Mal’s eyes narrowed.
But Olivia didn’t back down. “Or make decisions for me. Or lie to me. Or…or leave me when you swore, you promised, you never would. I’m fine.”
Score one for Olivia. Mal was a fuck-up. They all knew it. Sadly, Olivia was just figuring it out.
All eyes swung to Mal, the energy in the room charged. He wasn’t the only one watching with interest. Mal was floundering, squirming under the microscope. It was awesome.
“Olivia,” Mal said in a low voice, awkward and tight. “Let’s go talk—”
“Somewhere private?” Olivia shook her head. “I don’t think being alone with you is a good idea.”
Hollis grinned. The idea of Olivia unleashing her wrath on Mal was sort of comical. Mal radiated threat. Anders’s chuckle turned into a smothered cough.
“You’re mad?” Mal ground out.
Hollis almost laughed this time.
Olivia stared at her mate, stunned. “That is one of the many emotions I’m experiencing.”
Mal’s nostrils flared. “My day hasn’t been a fucking picnic, either.”
“No?” Her voice shook.
Hollis had never seen Mal like this. Raw and…vulnerable. He didn’t understand it. Olivia was a wolf. She was naive and a little too trusting, but according to Ellen, she was a very capable, very lethal, wolf. If Mal doubted that, why had he fucking turned her? It had to be the whole mate thing—something he hoped he never understood. If somehow, he fell victim to a mate, he’d make damn sure the rest of the pack didn’t know about every bump or snag in their relationship.
“No.” The word erupted from Mal, grabbing the attention of every person in the room. “Once I knew you were in danger, I couldn’t get back here fast enough.” Mal pushed out of his chair and stalked around the table. “I didn’t give a shit about anything but you. And it scared the shit out of me. Be pissed. Yell at me. Do whatever you need to do. But don’t expect me to let you out of my sight again.” He leaned forward, his hands gripping the chair. “I can’t go through that again.”
That should do it. Now everyone could get back to eating.
A ragged sob slipped from Olivia.
Or not. Hollis sighed, holding in his breath. No more speeches or declarations, please. He’d met his quota for emotional duress before noon and his patience not too long after.
Thankfully, Mal had always been an action man—something Hollis was incredibly grateful of at that moment. Mal scooped Olivia up and carried from the dining room, the distant slam of their bedroom door effectively ending the evening’s drama. He hoped.
At least it was over. Hollis spun a healthy heaping of spaghetti onto his fork.
“Maybe I don’t want a mate,” Anders murmured, returning to his meal with gusto.
Exactly. Hollis swallowed down his pasta and went back for more.
Finn laughed. “It doesn’t work that way.”