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Nyte: Yes. And count yourself lucky you’re too far away for me to kick you in your ass for that attitude.
Me: I can’t stay here Nyte.
Nyte: You don’t have a choice. You have already committed to this. If you leave early, don’t bother coming back to San Diego. And don’t come back thinking that Paige will change my mind.
Me: Fine, I’ll stay, but only because you insist.
Nyte: I do.
I growled in frustration and set my phone back down on the bedside table, my emotions simmering. I knew my alpha well enough to know when he was serious. And this was one of those moments. I doubted he would banish me forever, but I wasn’t too keen on even a temporary banishment from my pack.
“Maybe I should just take Diego back with me,” I thought aloud.
The sound of the children playing in the yard drew my attention to the window. I found Diego instantly with his friends. They were still laying claim over the swings, but it seemed that another group of children was trying to challenge that.
I couldn’t help but smile, watching him assert himself with everything he’d learned at school. I knew it would be selfish to take him out of the program. He was already learning so much, things that no one had thought to teach me when I was his age. Granted, no one knew how strong of a wolf I would someday be. No one ever suspected a female beta could beat many of the male alphas in the area, especially in my hometown.
Diego was at least recognized early as the proper next in line. He was already displaying the strength of a strong beta, strong enough to be the second to the Alpha King’s heir. Strong enough to replace me someday.
Unlike most packs, our pack did not rely on bloodlines. Even though Diego’s uncle held the beta position before me, it didn’t automatically make Diego my successor. Demonstrating one’s place was highly valued in our pack, and Diego was currently showing that his place was clear. So, no, I couldn’t take him out of the program. If I was being completely honest with myself, I couldn’t lose out on my training, either. Not over Brady.
I had lost out on too many things as a child because of Brady. Leaving would only do me a disservice. And what was it that I really had to run from?
I held the position of beta to the only known Alpha King in centuries. My position earned by being the closest in strength to him. I had become a resilient woman, strong and confident, not easily pushed around or made to feel inferior.
What exactly could he do to me now? What was it that made me so nervous about staying here and completing the training that I eagerly anticipated ever since I received the invitation? Did I honestly believe he still held the power to make me feel weak? Or was I afraid of something else?
My gaze moved from Diego to the front porch. Somehow, I knew Brady was still standing there. His gaze met mine through the window, an unspoken connection momentarily bridging the distance between us.
I backed away from the window, suddenly feeling insecure, a feeling of my heart pressed against my chest as that ache began again. It felt as though my heart would leap through my body just to be with him, and I knew then exactly what it was that I feared staying in the Rigel pack would do to me.
If I stayed here too long, I feared I might succumb to the bond. I just might start to believe that he was a changed man. That he wasn’t who I thought he was anymore. And worst of all, as I started to believe all of that, he might just turn around and prove me exactly right, leaving me broken and weak all over again.
Chapter Four
Brady
“While the feral rogues have been maintaining their distance, we have reported incidents of discovering suspicious triggers along the boundary lines,” Edwardo said, pointing to a displayed map of our pack territory.
I was sitting in for Liberty and Xander since they hadn’t returned yet. While they were on their trip, they unexpectedly received an invitation to tour the Pacific Academy of Magick. There was now talk of setting a deal with the academy to accept graduates of the Rigel-Crete Academy upon enrollment as a colligate stage in their education.
As Liberty and Xander took on the role of spokespeople for my parents’ deal with the Pacific Academy, I assumed their duties as a future pack alpha. However, I found myself completely distracted by my resistant mate.
I watched as she seemed to do her best to ignore me. Watched every twitch of her fingers and every lick of her lips. It was clear that she sensed my presence and I was causing her anxiety.
My gaze followed her tongue once again, wetting her lips. A nervous tick I was certain she didn’t realize she had. And Gods, did I envy that tongue of hers.
The sight of her tongue caressing her lips, lips that I yearned to taste, ignited a surge of sinful thoughts in my mind as I continued to watch her. I had to thank my lucky stars that I was male. If I wasn’t, everyone in this room would have been able to scent the thoughts that ran through my mind as I watched her.
“Has there been any more disruption with The Feral Tide? Xander had worked hard to gain that property legally and bring it in as part of the pack’s territory. I understand that there had been some vandalism before he left, and I promised we would monitor it while he and Liberty were away.”
Dad’s voice sounded a million miles away as the meeting around me began to blur and fade from my view. My attention was now firmly on Madilyn as her cheeks burned under my gaze.
I traced the curve of her neck, exactly where my mark belonged with my eyes, and watched as the pink of her cheeks moved to follow my gaze. My eyes made out every goose bump that rose along her skin, and my mouth curved into a smirk.
My eyes traced every curve of her body, exploring the hidden depths of my imagination. I visualized the blush peeking through her clothes, aware that she could sense my eyes on her, even if she pretended otherwise.
I closed my eyes as I allowed myself to fall deep into the imagery my mind created. The parting of her lips on a moan, the way those lips might taste on my tongue. I imagined her taste like a tropical drink, much like the scent of her skin.
