Filed to story: The Alpha’s Pen Pal Book
It gives me hope and tells me there is a way forward for us. I just have to fight for it. Just like I knew I would.
“If you need me for anything, just have someone mindlink me, and I’ll come back in a heartbeat,” I say, walking to the door.
She doesn’t respond, and I depart without another word, leaving my heart behind with her.
I shut the door and lean against it, burying my face in my hand. Goddess, I am such a fool. It will be a miracle if she doesn’t reject me. It would be what I deserve for even considering rejecting her.
“Hey, Reid,”
Wesley mindlinks me.
“I know it’s been a long night, and you’re probably talking with Taryn and sorting things out with her, but I’m having a debriefing with all the ranked members in my office. Totally optional for you, of course, because I know things are probably… rocky with you two, but I wanted to let you know. Nolan, Sebastian, and Haven are here, and we’re going to discuss what happened with Silver Ridge and our next steps. I’ll catch you up on the details later.”
“No, it’s okay. I’m on my way,”
I say, pushing off from the door.
I shake myself as I walk, ridding myself of the remnants of exhaustion and emotional turmoil. I ask a nurse to let Taryn know I’m in a meeting with Wesley, and then I make my way to the packhouse.
The biting chill of the early morning air has me rushing across the grounds, my bare feet slapping against the cold concrete. The wind picks up, whipping around me, so cold it sends slivers of ice into my skin. I glance to the horizon, where huge, dark clouds loom, signaling an impending storm.
How fitting. An external storm of nature to match my internal, emotional storm and the storm between my mate and me.
My pace picks up more until I’m jogging the last few steps up the stairs and into the packhouse, relaxing into the enveloping warmth of the interior as soon as the door shuts behind me. A fire roars in the living area and several wolves sit there, wrapped in blankets and drinking coffee, others asleep next to them or on the floor—a mix of our pack members and members from the other two packs. Our guest rooms and suites are probably filled to capacity, and even with some of our single, unmated warriors offering their apartments in the packhouse during a situation like this, there is still only so much space available.
A few of our warriors call out to me in greeting, and I wave back, but I don’t pause. I’m in beta mode—I have a job to do.
I knock twice on the door to the alpha office and then enter, shutting it behind me. Seb and Nolan glance at me from the two chairs opposite Wesley’s desk, and Haven and Wesley look up from the laptop. Then all four of them exchange glances, matching smirks on their faces.
But none of them say anything. Yet. It’s just a matter of time before one of them makes some snide remark to me about my mate bond, about how I’ve fallen hard and fast for my girl, but I sigh in relief at the momentary reprieve from the teasing of my friends.
“You really didn’t have to join us,” Wesley says, sitting in his desk chair.
“I need the distraction,” I reply, leaning against the wall.
He nods his response, his hand rubbing Haven’s back, his eyes flicking to the scars on her neck. She glances over at him, then perches herself on his lap, his arm winding around her waist as he pulls her closer. Matching shadows of exhaustion linger on their faces, veins of red marring the whites of their eyes. The attack ruined their wedding and honeymoon, but they both press forward, acting like this is just another day for them.
I suppose it is when you’re the alpha and the luna.
“What’s our status?” I ask, looking out the window towards the dark gray sky.
It’s early morning, and usually, from the windows in Wesley’s office, we can see the sun peeking over the ridges of the mountains, but not today. Today, all we can see are the looming, heavy, almost black clouds filled with snow that will be here sooner than we think.
“Several injuries. No deaths,” Wesley says, breaking his eye contact with Haven. “Maddie has my phone and is waiting for Ben to call about his pack. Beta Dawson is at Amber Forest still, doing a census of Silver Ridge members there, and he’ll come here once he’s finished.”
“And Dominic?” I ask, even though I don’t want to know.
He can rot in the forest for all I care, after what he did to my girl. Who knows what else he may have tried to alpha command her to do. I don’t want to think about it.
“He’s MIA,” Seb says. “No one has seen him, and we haven’t found a body, either.”
I grit my teeth and groan, rubbing my face. Dickhead or not, it’s not a good sign if he’s missing. It leaves Silver Ridge in limbo until he’s found. “What about their pack? The grounds and buildings?”
“The fire set by the rogues damaged almost everything,” Wesley says. “There wasn’t much left when we arrived. Thankfully, they have a solid evacuation plan, and it seems as though all their members made it out. But like I said, we’re still waiting for Beta Dawson to finish at Amber Forest and then come here.”
“And the rogues?”
“Untrackable. For now,” Sebastian growls. “They’re probably working with a covenless witch.” He shakes his head. “Fucking covenless witches. Keeping Haven hidden for almost twelve years, helping Tiny Tim and his fucked up agenda, messing with the mate bonds at Silver Ridge…”
“Was it just Silver Ridge?” Haven asks. “Are we sure it’s not all three packs?”
“Dr. Russo tested a handful of our unmated members for the potion—Maya and Levi included—and the results were negative. And since some of the Silver Ridge members have found their mates among our pack members since receiving the antidote, I’m pretty sure it was just their pack,” Wesley says.
I look at Nolan and Seb, raising a brow in curiosity. “Not us,” Nolan says, shaking his head. “We’re the two lone bachelor wolfketeers.”
Haven and Wesley laugh. Seb’s lips twitch, and I just roll my eyes.
“What about those with chosen mates?” I ask. “How will this affect them?”
Wesley’s laughter is cut short, and he grimaces, glancing at Haven again. “It will depend on the strength of their chosen bond. The stronger it is, the more likely it is that their original true mate bond has dissolved, and Selene will have given their original mate a ‘second chance mate.’ Although, they wouldn’t know it was a second chance mate.”
“That sounds like a complicated slippery slope.”
“Yes,” Wesley agrees, nodding. “But we will deal with it if it happens. The king and council have been alerted, and King Malachi is arranging a visit, although”—he glances at the darkening sky and fast-moving clouds, and the tree branches whipping around in the icy wind—“they will probably have to hold off on their visit until the storm passes. It’s going to break within the next few hours. Even if they use a transport stone, they wouldn’t be able to do much while waiting out the storm.”
“What timing,” I sigh. “I’d blame witches and the rogues for that, too, except I know neither group controls the weather.” I glance at Haven. “What about your family? The wedding guests?”
“Jack, Shirley, Tiffany and her family, and Scott are staying here to wait out the storm and the rogues,” she says. “Alton and Nicole are at Amber Forest with Ben. And Imogen…” Her lips curl into a sly smile. “Let’s just say she’s safe.”
Wes groans and puts his forehead in his hand. “The others were mostly pack members from here anyway, so everyone is fine. My mom is organizing sleeping arrangements for the displaced pack members and anyone else who is staying here. We’re all getting ready to hunker down for the storm, and we’re upping security the best we can since we know there are rogues in the area, and we don’t know if or when they will attack again.”
“Wait, can we back up? What’s going on with Imogen?” I ask, looking between them.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?