Page 11 of Defeated

A woman is laughing, her bright red curls bouncing as she runs. “Stop, Chris.”

But I don’t stop. I’m grinning as I sprint after Gracie, catch her around the waist and lift her, twirling her in a circle.

The sun bounces off her curls, illuminates her grinning face.

My beautiful mate.

“Chris?” Colton’s voice returns me to the present.

“How is the cake competition prep going?” I ask to distract myself.

Colton called me when I was approaching Jersey City to fill me in on his spontaneous decision to enter Penny into a cake competition. For all Penny is bright, bubbly, and cheerful, she possesses a deep well of insecurity.

I recall her bursting into my house early one morning, desperate to know what to do about a certain alpha who I was positive she’d fallen for, but who she was determined to keep at a distance. She’s beautiful, inside and out, and I’m not the least bit surprised Colton saw her and decided to make her his.

“She made lemon chiffon.” Colton sounds like he’s smiling. “Then when I told her I’d take her out to relax, she refused. Said she had to babysit the cake.”

“Babysit?” Is this a bad line, or did I hear what I thought I did?

I pause halfway across to the window to peer down into the street.

Zoe would have gone, but maybe she’s still hanging around. Something about the desperation in her eyes makes it impossible to just leave her out there. And the sun is setting. Does she even have somewhere to sleep tonight?

Colton snorts. “The woman who I think is going to be Penny’s biggest competition wasn’t particularly friendly. I don’t know what Penny thinks this woman will do to her cake, but she refused to leave the apartment.”

I gently nudge the curtain aside, trying to disturb it as little as possible as I peer out. “Since you don’t sound concerned, I’m guessing you’re not.”

“I left Penny sleeping, told her I’d babysit her cake for her.”

My eyebrows lift. “It’s early to be in bed.”

It’s not even four in the afternoon yet. A little late for a nap if you don’t want it to wreck your night’s sleep, but certainly way too early to be going to bed.

“Yes, it is,” Colton confirms.

Shaking my head, I pointedly don’t ask more questions about my packmates’ bedtime activities or about how they prefer to relax. Penny is like a sister to me, and the less I know, the better. “I should go. If you can, grab a slice or two of that cake for me.”

“That good, huh?”

I recall the last time Penny made her melt in the mouth lemon chiffon cake and how fast we decimated it. I swear I had dreams about it for days after.

“Better make it three slices.”

Colton snorts. “If it’s that good, you might not see even one.”

There’s no sign of Zoe outside on the street, and it’s quiet enough I’d have spotted her if she was still lurking around. Though she could have tucked herself behind one of the many parked cars.

I think about her being out there all alone and if she came here looking for Colton because she needed help. Do I want Penny and Colton to arrive amid more trouble?

Colton is saying his goodbyes when I interrupt him. “If you decide you want to stop along the way, take some time with Penny. I don’t mind getting the bulk of the packing done.”

Silence.

Colton’s footsteps creak over the floorboard and a door clicks shut before he says, “That sounds an awful lot like you want us to stay away.”

My eyes haven’t left the window. The road is quiet, but out there, a threat could be growing. One determined to hurt a female shifter who was trying to hide her trembling from me. I have to do something to help her.

Two packs had been fighting over this town, Colton had said. If one pack followed him to Winter Lake, and he dealt with a few members here before leaving the town to wait for things to die down, it means there might be a few hanging around.

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