Hungry Like a Wolf (Claws Clause 1)

“When I heard him say—”

“He knows you’re my mate and he’s still trying to come between us.”

Evangeline huffed. “Jeez! Can I just say something?”

“I’ll fight for you first, Angie. I promise, I—”

“Maddox.”

That word, that one single word on her lips… it was enough to stop him in his tracks.

She said his name. She finally used it.

His grin came back. And it was even wider than it had been only moments ago when he realized she hadn’t left him.

“Finally,” Evangeline muttered. “You’re just as bad as he is. If you don’t want to hear what I was going to say, maybe I should leave after all.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”

Letting that sweetheart slip past her unmentioned, she sighed, unsure what to think. In the last couple of days she had had so much thrown at her—but there was one thing she was sure of and that was Adam Wright. She was absolutely positive that he would come for her eventually. Only she thought it was because he wanted her, not because he wanted to keep her from someone else.

Looking back on the past five weeks, how much of it was a lie? Twenty minutes ago, she was questioning her sanity when it came to the strength of her response to a shifter who had kidnapped her, for goodness sake. She refused to even entertain the idea that any of his crazy story could be true.

But now—

“The perfume,” she murmured. That stupid perfume in the signature purple bottle. Then there was Adam’s insistence that she put it on daily, and the satisfied way he told her that the girl who sold it to him guaranteed it. Purple—the official color of the witches. How hadn’t she seen that? She shuddered. Her gut had warned her against wearing the perfume. Had she listened? Nope. “It had to be in the perfume.”

“What do you mean, Angie?” His voice was calmer than it had been, the amber-colored sheen that rolled over his glowing eyes dimming down to a simmering gold. “What about the perfume?”

“Adam gave me perfume on our first date. He told you he found a way to cover my scent—it had to be the perfume. He made me put it on every day, always making sure I wore his gift. I thought it was his way of showing he cared, but it wasn’t about that at all. He was covering my scent on purpose long before we met at Mugs…”

Her voice trailed to a close. It was hard, working out what that could mean when she was still so lost, so confused. The truth was standing there, staring her right in the face, a gorgeous brute of an alpha wolf shifter who said he wanted to be with her forever.

But hadn’t Adam promised her the same?

Evangeline could feel the beginning of one of her headaches pulsing at the back of her skull. Gritting her teeth, she struggled to finish her thought.

“If he had the perfume made… then that means that he already knew there’d be a reason he’d need it. That I would need it. He knew about you.” Evangeline’s chin wavered, but she would be damned if she gave in to the emotions rushing through her. Or the pain. God, it hurt. She raised her hand, probing at the back of her head as she turned to look up at Maddox. “How?” she asked. “How did he know? That’s why I stayed. I couldn’t leave without asking you because...”

Maddox waited to see if she would continue speaking. Good luck. Evangeline didn’t even know what she was trying to say right then.

Clearing his throat, his voice coming out as a hoarse rasp, Maddox said softly, “Because?”

“Because I’m beginning to wonder if…” She shook her head. “If…” She sighed, defeated. “I don’t know.”

There was no way in hell that Maddox was going to leave it at that. He tread carefully, knowing that one wrong word would have her shutting down. Her scent had taken on a darker edge and he couldn’t tell if it was a physical hurt—or an emotional one.

Sometimes betrayal could be more painful than anything else

.

Except for a shot from his claws, he amended. Because when he got his paws on Wright and confirmed Evangeline’s suspicions about the perfume, Maddox was going to do a lot more damage than wounding the cop’s pride.

But that was later. This moment was for Evangeline. For his mate.

He could feel it. This was important. They were on the edge of something big and, if he fucked this up, it could set him all the way back. They didn’t have time for that.

“What’s on your mind, Angie? Listen to me. You can tell me anything. You have to believe that.”