AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He curved his arm the rest of the way around her waist,holding her close and struggling against the urge to pull her completely into his arms. “I can’t promise you everyone will be warm and welcoming right away,” he said. No matter how much he wished he could tell her otherwise. “But I meant it when I told you no harm would come to you here. I’ll introduce you to the pack, and whatever reactions they have, today will be the worst of it.”
She laid a hand on his abdomen and didn’t respond immediately. Her scent told him she was a little anxious, and also concerned. “You’re tense.”
He huffed out a brief, bitter laugh. “Feels like my entire life is on the line. Yeah, I’m tense.”
Amaia tipped her head up, brow scrunched in a frown. “Rhys.”
He bent down and pressed a chaste kiss to her brow line. “Don’t worry about it,” he said, breathing the words into her skin. Filling his lungs with her scent. He straightened, relaxed his grip on her, and stepped away. “We have a little time. Let me at least show you the property.”
****
Amaia had been so excited over the prospect of finally seeing where she was from and the hope that it might jog even just one more memory loose that the nerves hadn’t hit her until that conversation with Rhys by the picture window. She’d tried to put it out of her head since and semi-succeeded as he took her around back to the unfenced backyard every mountain lover would die for. It made sense, of course. Apparently his home—built by a previous generation alpha from his family—was one of many that backed right onto the protected wilderness behind Marlow. And it was beautiful.
The forest, the town, the home. The man.
She could hear a low murmur of voices through the wall that now separated her from presumably all the rest of Rhys’spack. She understood why he needed to speak with them, and to a degree even why he felt the need to formally introduce her. They were a small, private community who would question a stranger waltzing through their home, and especially staying at their alpha’s residence. If she wereintendingon being a guest, she suspected this would be easier. Also less formal.
But I’m not. That’s the problem.Amaia pulled in another deep breath and carefully released it through her nose. Slow, deep, measured breathing. It didn’t always help, but it was worth a try. Too bad calming breathing techniques didn’t come with magically guaranteed answers to the truly important questions. Namely the answer that was why Rhys was so nervous, and why she felt she had such reason to be cautious with his pack.
She’d spent a week with him now, more or less. From sunup to sundown, every day, Rhys had been beside her. They’d talked, shared meals, and he’d accompanied her pretty much wherever she’d needed to go. He hadn’t been pushy about it. He’d just simply beenthere. Present. Supportive, reassuring, encouraging, and perhaps a little protective. She’d found it odd in the beginning, after having grown so accustomed to being alone. But in retrospect, she didn’t think it’d taken her more than three days to get used to.
This was not California, though. This was not the overcrowded city she’d become invisible in. This was too-small-to-put-on-the-map Idaho, where everyone knew everyone and their family’s story at least two generations back. This was Rhys’s home. This was a werewolf pack, living a partially human life to accommodate progressing times, side-by-side with a sporadic few who were like her. What Rhys called human hybrids. Except unlike her, these people had stayed.That wasn’t my fault.But she couldn’t deny the fear that she’d be blamed for it, regardless.
Rhys assured her she’d be safe, and that whatevernegative response she might face today would be the worst of it, but she didn’t see how he could make such a promise. She didn’t see how his pack could just take a breath and welcome her with smiles and proverbially open arms. And if they didn’t, if they couldn’t get past her heritage or her history, she didn’t know if she could stay. How could she make a life in a small community where she was so unwanted? Let alone make a life with their alpha?
Her heart lurched at the thought at the same time as Thomas slipped into the small room. Was that what continued to hold her back? Was she waiting to see how this community of strangers reacted to her?
Thomas indicated the door that had already swung shut behind him. “It’s time,” he said, quietly. “Alpha’s ready to introduce you.”
Amaia’s throat swelled. She stood, her exhale wavering with her unsteady emotions. Yes, she was concerned about inserting herself into this community—about coming into such a seemingly critical role from out of nowhere. But was she really willing to let them control her future, so much so that she would even walk away from Rhys?No.She took one more deep, calming breath and rested her fingers over Thomas’s wrist to keep him from opening the door. “Thomas.” She knew he was the one who’d sent Rhys out to her. That was why Rhys had trusted him to pick them up at the airport. She smiled at him when he met her gaze. “Thank you.”
He returned her smile and opened the door, allowing her through first.
There was no dramatic change in lighting. In fact, spread before her was a large, open space with minimal furnishings and a sizable gathering of mostly seated people. She already knew they were in an old, repurposed church, so the high, steepled ceilings and tall, narrow windows didn’t surprise her.The varied, unfamiliar grouping of faces immediately challenged her newfound resolve. Amaia didn’t let her gaze linger on the proverbial sea of intimidation, but instead turned her focus to the side, toward the man she’d come to know.
Rhys stood a couple of feet to her right, and behind him was another male. Several inches shorter, probably as many years younger, and of course also watching her with curious eyes. Her attention didn’t linger on him as Rhys held his hand out for her expectantly. They hadn’t rehearsed anything beyond the idea of him speaking to the pack before calling her up to meet them, but she didn’t hesitate to slip her hand into his.
“Some of you may remember Amaia Reynolds,” Rhys said, facing forward again. “She is a daughter of Marlow. I expect all of you to treat her appropriately.” He motioned the nearby male closer and gave Amaia’s hand a subtle squeeze. “Amaia, this is Davis. The pack beta.”
Davis grinned and inclined his head, not making any effort to reach for a handshake or other physical greeting. “It’s nice to meet you,” he said. “Normally I’d be your liaison with the alpha, but you’ll still see me around a lot. I hope we can be friends.”
Amaia’s lips twitched. He hadn’t said anything inappropriate, yet she had the feeling he was teasing her all the same. She opened her mouth to respond, but a voice from the audience spoke out first.
“Alpha, I can’t accept this.”
Her bubble of amusement deflated, and Amaia reflexively moved closer to Rhys as her attention swung outward once more. The declaration had come from an agitated female voice, close enough that Amaia wasn’t surprised to see a woman standing up in the front row of onlookers. She was pretty, dressed to flatter her figure, and made no bones about glaring straight at Amaia in the stunned silence that followed.
Rhys tightened his hold on Amaia’s hand. “You would defy me, Sierra?”
Something in Amaia’s chest faltered. This was the beginning of the difficult reaction she had feared. The one Rhys had promised he could contain to this conversation, or at least this afternoon. She had to see it through. She had to endure this part. It was as much a test for the pack who didn’t know her as it was for herself.
Chapter Seven
Amaia watched as Sierra closed her eyes and squared her shoulders, as if bracing herself. Sierra’s expression became pleading when she blinked her pale, icy blue eyes open again and focused her attention on Rhys. “You left us for three weeks,” she said. “No one knew when you would return or if something terrible had happened. Still, we were prepared to welcome a stranger if you found your mate out there. But this is asking too much. You’ve finally come back to us—” Her eyes narrowed as her glare returned to Amaia. “And you brought this dirty human with you. What does she even understand about fate?”
Rhys growled low in his throat. “The next time I hear those words, someone loses a tongue. Am I clear?”
Everyone before them squirmed in discomfort, some rearing back or entirely turning their heads. He was reacting to Sierra’s words, but his threat was for the pack as a whole. She understood that, just as she understood why. Rhys had explained it to her, among many other things.Dirtywas a derogatory slang for humans like her—humans with shifter heritage, who hailed from an unmated coupling. Amaia was being insulted not just for existing, but for daring to have been born to lovers who themselves weren’t destined soulmates.Wait.She sought out Sierra’s face again, finding the she-wolf had averted her gaze completely, and asked, “So, you remember me, Sierra?”
