Chapter 8

When Kaelen got back, Vivienne was right there with him.

He marched straight into the bedroom and started packing, making as much noise as humanly possible.

Vivienne lingered in the entryway, looking completely disgusted. "You've worked for years, and this tiny place is all you can afford, Clara?" she sneered. "Maybe you just aren't working hard enough. Kaelen told me today that you wanted a new werebeast. You really take him for granted. If I had a werebeast like him, I'd give up absolutely anything to provide for him. I'd never kick him out."

"Inferior people have trash taste," Kaelen scoffed from the other room. "She brings home a cheap mutt, and now the whole apartment stinks."

I only had to put up with this for two more days, so getting into an argument with them was pointless. Keeping my head down, I went back to brushing Silas's tail. The staff over at the Therian Registry hadn't bothered to groom him since no one wanted to buy him, and I made sure to brush him out thoroughly, knowing how painful matted fur could be.

Kaelen and Vivienne kept lobbing insults back and forth, tearing me down.

"Actually, foxes are the ones that stink," Silas chimed in out of nowhere.

Kaelen stormed out of the bedroom, livid. "What did you just say?"

Silas stepped in front of me. "I said you're a stinking fox. You flirt with other people when you already have an owner. You have zero loyalty and zero morals. I can say it ten times if you want."

I stared at him, stunned. For a guy who was supposed to be timid, he had a very sharp tongue. Was he defending me? A quiet warmth spread through my chest.

When I looked up at him, he just blinked innocently and shrank against my side.

Vivienne scoffed loudly. "Since you obviously can't stand Kaelen, Clarissa, I assume you won't mind if he crashes at my place?"

I nodded. "I don't mind at all."

Kaelen dropped the pile of clothes he was holding. "You've wanted to get rid of me this entire time, haven't you, Clarissa?"

I looked down at his feet. He was standing on a hundred-and-fifty-dollar shirt, while I sat there in a cheap sweatshirt I'd bought at a three-for-thirty sale.

I let out a sigh. "Kaelen, aren't you the one who wanted to leave?"

His jaw clenched as he shot me a glare. "Exactly. I want to leave you. It's not the other way around. I don't want to spend another minute in this dump."

"Don't worry, Kaelen," Vivienne chimed in, quick to placate him. "Come home with me. I'll give you everything you could ever want."

But Kaelen didn't answer her. The only sound in the room was his tail thumping a steady rhythm against the floor. After a long, tense pause, he took a few steps forward, stopped short, and looked back at me.

I kept my eyes glued to the floor, pretending not to notice.

Vivienne's smile vanished. "Kaelen?"

When Kaelen finally moved, it was to usher Vivienne toward the door. "I really don't want to be here, but the Therian Registry assigned me to Clarissa's house. I shouldn't break the rules. You can find me at the Atrium once I'm officially listed for sale, Vivienne."

He shut the front door firmly, cutting off her frustrated protests.

Silas watched Kaelen stand motionless by the door, then leaned in close. "Let's go back to the bedroom, Clara," he murmured in my ear. "It's getting late. We should go to sleep."

His warm breath brushed my skin, bringing a sudden, hot flush to my face. It was a totally ordinary suggestion, but something about the way he said it made me acutely self-conscious.

Kaelen whipped around. "You two are sleeping in the same bed?"

Silas draped an arm over my shoulders, pulling me flush against his chest. He gave Kaelen a wide-eyed, innocent look. "Of course we are. Isn't it normal to sleep next to my owner? Not that it's any of your business anyway. You're just Clara's ex now."