AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Squaring his shoulders with a warning growl, he said, “Whatever game you’re playing, I’ve made it clear that I’m mated and nothing you have to say is of interest to me. Be on your way, or I’ll move you myself.”
Suddenly, the two in opposition to him and Kismet weren’t alone. There had been seven with Stef at the meeting, but she had twice that number now. And these new males looked like the sort you’d find at a dangerous shifter bar somewhere in a bad part of town, all menace and muscles.
She’d been recruiting.
Stef’s mouth quirked up on one side. “Your poor little mate is too scared to say hello? That hardly seems like the right sort of mate for a powerful male such as yourself, Ren. Really, I’m disappointed.”
Kismet moved to Ren’s side and when she looked at him, her eyes blazed bright green with fury. She slowly turned to look at Stef.
“Whatever you’ve come for concerning my mate, you’re wasting your time.”
Ren was proud of Kismet for not appearing to look worried in the slightest. Through their connection as truemates, however, he could feel her worry, and he agreed. There was something decidedly ominous about Stef’s behavior.
“Aren’t you just too precious?” Stef asked, her voice high pitched and condescending, as if she were talking to a toddler.
Ren snarled, and squeezed Kismet’s hand. Then he marched forward, keeping her close. She stayed right in step with him until they stopped just feet from Stef and her group. A tense moment passed and then Stef hummed and stepped to the side, and the males followed suit, leaving a cleared space for them to get to Ren’s truck. He didn’t like giving them his back because it went against his natural instincts when it came to enemies, but he didn’t have a choice.
He unlocked the truck and opened the door for Kismet. Her face was blank, but her eyes were still that shockingly bright green. Before he could shut the door, Stef called out to him.
“Remember how much fun we had on the full moons, Ren? We’d fuck in the woods, shift and hunt, and then fuck again until dawn. It’s why taking anotheras a mate never works. The wolf hates how he has to hold back.”
His hand cranked down on the door so hard the metal squeaked in protest.
Kismet’s eyes flashed even brighter and she murmured, “Take me home now.”
Ren looked over his shoulder. Stef wore a triumphant smile.
“Whatever you think happened between us as teenagers, my memories are quite different in that Ibarelyrecall anything about you. And what the fuck ever anyway, Stef. I’m mated and I’m not going anywhere. I willneverbe yours, because I wasneveryours in the first place. Don’t come to me again, or it will be the last thing you do.”
He let the threat hang in the air. The only thing that let him know she’d heard him was when her smug smile dropped to a frown and her eyes narrowed. She was pissed? Good. He wasn’t the sort of male to throw a punch at a female, but he would absolutely put down any threats to his mate, male or female.
“I’m your destiny, Ren,” Stef said evenly. “I know it. You know it. That bitch in your truck knows it. The longer you keep me waiting, the worse it will be forher.”
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kismet move, and he quickly shut the door to keep her inside. He moved around to the driver’s side and jerked the door open.
“We’re not done,” Stef said.
“Fuck off,” Ren said, sitting down and slamming the door. He turned the truck on and slammed it into reverse, backing out of the space and heading toward the street. He looked in the rear view before he turned onto the road and saw the group that at eight, had seemed inconsequential, to now sixteen, appeared to be a more formidable force.
“You should have let me do something,” Kismet said.
He reached for her hand and linked their fingers, his wolf calming at her touch.
“What would you have done?”
“I don’t know. But something. What the hell is her problem, anyway?”
“She wants me to be her alpha male.”
“Well that sucks for her, because you’re mine and I’m not letting you go.”
He snorted. Damn she was feisty.
“Good. I’m not letting you go either.”
“Why can’t she just take one of those with her as her alpha?”
He shook his head. The thought had crossed his mind, too. “She’s looking for something specific I guess. She wants to be the leader, but males don’t take to females leading for too long. If she wants to lead, she’ll want a male she can control. She may feel like she can control me.”
