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Rustling sounded from behind me, and I almost ignored it but remembered that I was out here for anyone to see. Dressed in jeans and a red crop top, my markings were on display. Anyone nearby would see them.
Fuck!
I stepped behind a tree, hiding my left side so whoever appeared wouldn’t see it immediately. I crossed my fingers, hoping it was just another late-night stroller like me.
The face I saw was the last one I expected, but it nevertheless made my heart lurch. Stormy green-gray eyes spotted me rooted behind the tree, my jaw hanging open.
“Rylan?”
“Pearl.” My name on his lips did funny things to my heart.
I took several steps toward him, the need to be in his arms too strong for me to fight. He raised his hands, stopping me in my tracks.
He moved closer, stopping a foot away from me. His jaw clenched as he met my eyes. Before I could react, he fell to his knees, never breaking eye contact.
“I swore to myself that if you gave me a chance, I’d never do anything to make you doubt me. Then, I did. I walked away like a coward, using a lame excuse to justify it.” His jaw clenched again, and I could tell he was angry with himself. “Now, I’m here on my fucking knees, asking you… begging you for one more chance.”
He reached out and grabbed my hands, squeezing my fingers. “I’m ready to do whatever it takes, whatever I need to do for the honor of standing by your side. If I have to unite the packs or tear down the world, I will. If you asked me to, I’d give it all us. I would. For you, I’d do anything.”
I pressed my lips together to keep from smirking. Seeing him on his knees and begging was a sight to behold, something I wouldn’t be forgetting any time soon. I pulled on his hands until he climbed to his feet.
Gazing up into his face, I could see that he meant every single word. There was a fire in his eyes that I hadn’t noticed before, or I did and just chose to ignore it.
“I’ll have you, any way I can get you. I’ll have you. There’s no one else I’d rather have at my side. I can’t do this without you. I need you,” I barely completed the sentence before Rylan grabbed my cheeks, looking deeply into my eyes before leaning in and pressing his lips to mine.
It was a tender kiss, full of hope and free of pain. We were in this together now.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Rylan
My teeth were clenched so hard that they were in danger of breaking. Ledger demanded my presence, and if I kept denying him, he’d for sure be suspicious. So, instead of making sweet love to my mate, I was here, studying a diagram of the lower archives, where the Gala would be held.
The last thing I wanted to do was go over plans for the Gala. Since I didn’t give a shit, I was having a hard time sitting here pretending.
“Is there a point to this?” I asked, then instantly regretted it. “I mean, is there a threat?”
“Not a proper one, but the alpha doesn’t want any surprises,” Ledger retorted, looking frazzled, and I almost felt bad for him. Almost.
“He must know something we don’t.”
“Regardless, best to be prepared.” If my cousin wasn’t a shit alpha-apparent, he might have been a good person. “From what I can tell, Aibek is the biggest threat.”
I suppressed a snort. Aibek was the last pack we needed to be threatened by. They were the ones who started the enforcers. They had ties to every pack, and yet they hadn’t used any of that leverage. They wouldn’t be starting now.
“After that it’s us, followed by Aruna. Aruna has always been neutral, but that could change.”
“Why are we worrying about this? There’s no evidence…”
“I know that!” Ledger slammed his hand down on the table. “All I know is that we need to be prepared.”
I ran my tongue over my teeth, frustrated by the situation and trying not to picture my mate markless and waiting for me in bed. My whole body tensed at the thought of Pearl naked. I’d had a night and most of the day naked with her, and it wasn’t enough, not nearly enough.
She needed my bite mark on her body, and my cock inside her. Being here was torture.
“All right,” I growled, doing my best to hold in my anger and annoyance. “What have you done so far?”
Ledger explained, in detail, the measures he’d taken to ensure our safety. None of it was going to matter after a certain point because, regardless, guards and anyone else would abandon their posts for some wolf tail.
