Scion (Norseton Wolves Book 4) by Holley Trent

credit card statement.”
    Knowing Queen Tess and her cousin Nadia as Ashley did, she suspected they would indeed investigate the charge, if only to see if it were accidental. “That could potentially be awkward.”
    “That is why I have you, is it not? You are supposed to teach me to be independent.”
    “Okay, so here is one of the most important lessons I’ll ever give you—get a prepaid card and use that for unsavory Internet stuff.”
    “Oh, you are a crafty one, Ashley.”
    Ashley shrugged. “I kind of had to be, given the way I grew up.”
    Ashley was having a better understanding of exactly how she’d grown up the longer she spent away from her birthpack. There’d been nothing normal about her upbringing, or about how much of her education about the world had been suppressed. She didn’t know how fucked up her life was until she’d had something to compare it to. The more she thought about it, the more depressed it made her.
    Ótama chucked Ashley’s chin and clucked her tongue. “You are not one of mine, so I cannot read your mood, but I can tell from looking at you that something is bothering you.”
    Ashley put on a smile and scooped checker pieces out of the open box. “Don’t worry about it. My mind’s just going places it shouldn’t.”
    “I see.”
    “Yeah, don’t worry about it. I’ll work it out.” Somehow.
    She’d spent the past month being so angry in general. At first, she was angry with Vic, then her parents, then herself. For a while, she was angry with everyone —just generally angry—and being so impotently mad was exhausting. Her uterine hitchhiker wasn’t helping matters any, either.
    She hadn’t told anyone, but everyone would know soon enough. Mrs. Carbone had already figured it out. It had taken her one sniff. She’d probably known even before Ashley did. Ashley hadn’t been able to believe it. She kept taking tests, expecting one day she’d pee on one and it would tell her all the previous ones were just flukes. But that was unreasonable. The midwife was pretty sure that the kid was going to stick, but Ashley had to do her part to make sure that he or she did. She wanted that baby—she wanted one person to love her just as she was and not because she was some kind of pawn. She’d do anything to protect it, even going away if she had to. Although she was growing quite comfortable in Norseton and for once in her life felt productive in a genuinely useful way, she’d leave if she and Vic couldn’t see eye to eye. The baby was innocent of everything that had happened in the past. If he couldn’t get that through his thick skull, she’d do all she could to cut off his access.
    And speak of the devil…
    His energy lapped at her from across the room, seeking her out. She pushed down the standing hairs on her neck and shook off the chills.
    “Hello, Mr. Carbone. Do I need to be somewhere soon?” Ótama asked him.
    “Nah, your schedule is clear for the day,” Vic said. “Do you mind if I grab my wife for a few minutes?”
    Ashley pinched the bridge of her nose. Fuck. The last thing they needed was a mansion full of people to potentially overhear them screaming at each other.
    “It is fine with me if it is fine with her. I think I will visit the kitchen and see if your mother has brought me any new treats. She is working today, is she not?”
    “She just left. Knowing Mom, though, she probably put enough leftovers into the fridge to keep you going back all night.”
    “Splendid.” Ótama gave Ashley a nod of farewell, pulled her cloak around her, and padded to the hall.
    Still, Ashley didn’t turn.
    It didn’t matter. Even if she hadn’t been able to hear the falls of his booted feet, she would have felt his approach. His energy lapped at her and sought her out as if she were some thing that belonged to him and he demanded back.
    He pulled out the seat Ótama had vacated and slid a couple of clear vials across the table.
    She looked from the drugs to him, and