Lola walked upstairs without looking at anyone or anything that she passed. Jax was outside still enjoying the party thrown in his honor and everyone was congratulating him on this new journey and elevated status. The smell of alcohol and testosterone filled every inch of the mansion and made her nauseous as it seeped up her nose.
She slammed the door behind her and was hit with the silence in the empty room. It was serene, beautiful, and quiet; the complete opposite of the madness going on outside.
A knock on the door made her fall into the room but she held her breath in hopes that maybe the person would leave.
Another knock echoed, slower this time and Lola pressed herself back against the bed.
"You can hold your breath all you want but you can't quiet your heartbeat,"
she sighed, the air sizzled from her lips and she ran a hand through her hair.
"What is it?" She called.
Ash opened the door and stepped inside as if answering an invitation.
He looked around and saw her shaken state sitting slumped on the bed.
"You disappeared pretty quickly, I just wanted to make sure that you were alright," he said whilst slowly closing the door behind him.
"I'm fine, it was just a little overwhelming," Lola said.
She stood up and patted the dress free from any wrinkles. She plastered on a smile that wouldn't be questioned and took a deep breath. Ash watched carefully as her appearance shifted from exhaustion to armed and ready with a facade she had perfected seamlessly.
"Drop it," he said and stepped closer. The smile on Lola's face twitched but it didn't fall.
"Excuse me?"
His eyes flickered with darkness and his body, earlier stiff and hard, suddenly relaxed the closer he got to her.
"I said, drop it." He repeated darkly.
"Drop what?" Lola asked and gulped.
"The walls, the smile that doesn't belong on your face, and the whole act that you're putting on right now just to survive the night," he stepped closer, his eyes darkened as he ordered again, "Drop it."
He closed the distance and cupped her face. His thumb graced the surface in slow circles and he hesitantly moved closer, wondering if she would object or push him away- knowing he was crossing a line.
"You don't have to be okay with any of this, nobody is expecting you to get it right on the first try." His voice was husky and deep, a serious shift from what Lola was used to hearing from him. There was no anger or double-entendre, no underlying threat or thinly veiled insult.
The warm touch of his skin against hers sent a soothing spark down her body, a tingle in her core that she insisted was a flutter of nerves jumbling together and her throat grew drier by the second.
As they gazed into each other's eyes they could see each other, the real people behind the many masks they so often wore. Lola melted into his touch and her brows furrowed in question when her emotions grew larger than the container they were in.
"Ash," she whispered. Her tongue dragged over her lips to moisten them after the heat wave that washed over her.
"You've dropped it," he leaned in.
Her lip pulled up in a shadowed smile and her eyes glistened as she gazed into his.
The air shifted as a gust of wind circled them, it thickened with each breath and the tension rose when the door opened up, they turned to see Jax stepping into the guest room. Ash took his time to lower his hand and turn around to face his cousin. He shielded Lola from Jax's hardened gaze though he was mistaken in thinking that she was his to shield.
"Jax," Lola stepped around Ash and locked eyes with her husband.
"Aren't you two looking cozy," Jax stepped inside the room with a twisted smile playing on his lips. He did seem bothered by the sight of Ash and Lola but there was a darkness shadowing his face and his eyes were glittering with a mischievous glint. Jax walked up and flicked his tongue over his lips.
"Why so worried?" He asked and looked down at her baffled expression.
The words were stuck on her tongue though there was plenty she wanted to say but the words refused to exit her lips.
She choked on a breath and Jax's smile widened, his teeth glistened and he stepped close enough for his chest to rub up against Lola's.
"Words, sweetheart, it's difficult to communicate without them."
Her brows furrowed and her fingers rolled up.
"What is wrong with you?" She spat, finally finding her voice amidst the shock of Jax's behavior.
He chuckled, his hand shot out and he roughly grabbed her chin and forced her head back.
"I wasn't the one about to cheat on my spouse." The poison that was laced in his words burned into her ears.
She yelped from the pain that surged through her. The voice with which he had spoken wasn't his own, she didn't recognize it at all and his grip tightened roughly when she didn't respond. He leaned in, seething in rage before his hand was ripped away from Lola and she stumbled back a step.
"Knock it off!" Ash growled and his chest swelled, his shoulders rose and he reminded Jax that he was not the only Alpha on the pack grounds.
Jax's eyes darkened and his lips pulled up in a manic smile.
"Remember who you're dealing with, Ash," Jax said. His eyes glowed as his wolf stepped up.
Ash met his cousin's glare with his own, his wolf joining them as well and the air weighed heavy on all three as the tension rose to a dangerous high.
"Don't worry, cousin, I know very well which spoiled, bratty little kid I'm dealing with. The second that the title was passed I saw the hunger in your eyes. The power trip has only begun and don't think for a second that I won't be here to slow knock you on your ass each time you fuck up." He seethed.
Jax's face contorted in anger and his fists tensed by his sides.
"Is that so," He clenched his jaw, "and what fuck-up is that?" He stepped closer to Ash and drew to his fullest size.
"Fuck ups like disrespecting your wife."
Jax stopped. He stepped back and raised his head.
"Careful, Ash, you're misplacing your sense of responsibility. She's mine, not yours."
Lola stepped back and watched in the darkroom as the guys challenged each other.
"Wrong again, cousin. As my job states- I'm here to keep her safe from everyone, including you."
The door opened up once again and Lavina stood in the hallway.
"Where did everyone go?" She whined and tossed her arms in the air, "Everyone is outside throwing their heads back and you're all hiding out in the bedroom? Maybe you forgot, Jax, but you're kind of the man of honor." She exclaimed dramatically.
Jax grinned and turned on his heels.
"I was just about to head down," he said to her.
"Wait, Jax-" Lola said but was met with a dead silence when he turned to Lavina and joined her in the hallway.
"Jax!" The anger over his childlike behavior rose to the surface and it seemed to baffle Lavina where she stood with her hand reached out to him.
"Lola, he's your Alpha, you can't yell at him like that." She warned cautiously.
Lola narrowed her eyes and stepped out into the hallway. She walked up to Lavina who took a step back.
"First and foremost he's my husband, not my leader." She spat.
Lavina bowed her head, remembering that though Jax was an Alpha, Lola was still the Luna and as much a leader as her husband.
"Why don't we all go downstairs and continue the celebrations before the pack comes looking for you," Lavina said and Jax smirkingly agreed.
"You two take your time," Jax said and looked between Ash and Lola, "Lavina will fill in for you."
Lola gasped and stared in shock as he walked away. Lavina sighed, she cast a pitiful look on Lola and shook her head before she lifted the dress and walked down the stairs with grace. She looked over her shoulder for a moment, her eyes landing on Lola and her lip pulled down in a faint pout.
"Why can't I read her?" Lola whispered.
"Because she's a bitch with an agenda,"
"You keep saying that but I'm not so sure, she seems sweet. Her mate died, maybe that's why she's clamoring for Jax like that," Lola said.
Ash turned sideways and scanned her face.
"Right, maybe that's it." He said and left her standing there in her wishful bubble.