Moon Cursed (Book 2 in The Star and Her Moon Series)

Best Laid Plans

RAFF

"That's it."

Raff rubbed his eyes and glared at the witch fuming across the table from him. Even Lincoln looked shocked by Thorne's outburst, his amber eyes glowing faintly with irritation.

"Excuse me?" Raff demanded. He threaded his fingers together and rested his hand over the pile of papers they'd been going over. Mostly mundane things- bills, supply lists, pack requests and demands.

"I'm done. Call me when you decide to stop moping," Thorne replied, standing up and putting her jacket on. She cut her eyes at Raff's Beta. "That goes for you too."

"Me," Lincoln spluttered. "You're being absurd."

Thorne gripped the back of her chair and looked each man in the eye for far longer than either was comfortable with. Neither was used to that type of challenge- wolves would drop their gaze in seconds. If Thorne were pack, she'd give Raff a run for his Alpha status.

Aurora whimpered from her bed by the fire. Raff lifted his hand to soothe her, but she shook her head and looked at Thorne while whining. Of course- the dog was on the witch's side. Damn beast was almost human sometimes.

"Meribella has been gone for a month now."

Fissures spread through Raff's heart at the sound of her name. They always did. No matter that he whispered her name to himself in the darkest hours of every morning, hoping the four syllables could somehow conjure her warm curves into his bed or fill his nose with the scent of jasmine and the sea. But to hear it spoken aloud by someone else somehow hurt more.

"And your point?"

"Lincoln! The point is that we are supposed to be solving the mystery of who is working against the Orion Pack, not tallying up how much steak you need to order for a cookout."

"Thorne," Raff wiped his hand across his face, his fingers settling into the thick beard he'd grown. He scratched while he searched for the words that would convince her to calm down. "If I abandoned the daily running of the pack, there would be chaos. It won't do me any good to solve our mystery if my men are revolting over lack of leadership."

"Yes, that's what you've said every time we pull these reports. But the fact is you know enough to make a move. Nichols and Jett gave you the description of the witch who gave them that damn potion."

Raff growled. Lincoln bristled at his side, but his Beta's disquiet was directed at Raff- not Thorne. He didn't like anyone growling at the witch. He couldn't blame his friend. If the roles had been reversed- Lincoln growling at Meribella- Raff might've removed the other man's vocal cords. Then again- he was tightly wound these days.

He walked away from his desk and pressed his forehead against the cold glass of the office window. Outside snowflakes swirled softly in the air. It wasn't enough to stick- it was too early in the year for that- but the lacy flakes hovering about everything made the world look softer and kinder. Two things he knew were not true.

What was true were the words Thorne had spoken. Raff did know the identity of the witch who was working against him. He'd suspected it long before Nichols confirmed it. Raff had expected to be consumed by anger, but instead, he was swamped with hurt and disappointment.

"I know you miss her. I do too, but I know she can't come home until we figure this out. Don't you want her to come home?"

Lincoln slapped his hands on the table. "Of course he does. That's a stupid question. Hell, I didn't expect to ever say this, but I miss her."

"Please," Thorne said, rolling her eyes. The smile on her lips took the sting from her words, "you two are like best girlfriends. I've never seen a man and woman get along so well together who weren't also screwing each other's brains out."