Page 42 of Alpha Hunt

I push the thoughts aside for now, focusing instead on the prospect of dinner with friends and the chance to see the babies. But in the back of my mind, the questions linger, waiting for answers that may be harder to come by than I’d like.

What is he up to?

Chapter 16

Edirn

“Oh, look at you, you adorable thing. I could just eat you all up from your little tiny toes to your little tiny nose.” Casey is crooning and gurgling to Savannah’s daughter in a way that is completely unlike her.

I watch, transfixed for a moment by the sight of my mate with a baby in her arms.

It warms something inside me.

The tough, no-nonsense warrior has melted away, replaced by a nurturing, gentle woman who can’t seem to get enough of the baby’s soft skin and sweet scent.

“Would you look at that?” says Gage.

“Quiet,” Savannah tells her mate. “You’ll ruin the moment.” The couple are watching Casey with as much interest as I am. We’ve been here half an hour, and she’s barely given the rest of us a second glance, completely consumed by the child she’s holding.

Gage looks totally surprised by the transformation. He catches my eye and raises an eyebrow as if to say, “Can you believe this?” I shrug, but I can’t help the smile that tugs at my lips. It’s clear that Casey has a softer side, one that’s been hidden beneath her tough exterior.

Savannah, on the other hand, doesn’t seem shocked at all. She watches Casey with a knowing smile, bouncing the other twin gently in her arms. “I always knew she had it in her,” she says, her voice low so as not to disturb the peaceful moment. “She just needed someone to bring it out.”

Her eyes flit to me. I look away. It’s no secret that Casey and I haven’t sealed our mate bond yet, and I can sense the unspoken question in Savannah’s gaze. Wolves have a powerful sense of smell, and it’s impossible to hide the fact that we haven’t been intimate. Simply sharing a bed isn’t going to disguise that.

Gage clears his throat uncomfortably, clearly picking up on the undercurrents in the room. “So, uh, how’s everything going with you two?” he asks, his tone a little too casual to be entirely convincing.

Casey shoots him a glare, but there’s no real heat behind it. “Just fine, thanks,” she says, her attention still focused on the baby in her arms.

Savannah, however, isn’t quite so willing to let the subject drop. She gives me a sly smile, her eyes twinkling with mischief. “You know, there’s no rush,” she says, her voice laced with gentle teasing. “But I have to say, I’m surprised you two haven’t sealed the deal yet. I mean, with all that sexual energy between you, I’d have put money on the pair of you going at it like bunnies for days.”

Casey’s head snaps up, her cheeks flushing a deep red. “Sav!” she hisses, looking mortified.

I can’t help but chuckle, not feeling embarrassed in the slightest. It’s true; there’s been an undeniable attraction between us from the start. Maybe it was disguised beneath a layer of animosity, but I’ve always known there was something there. Something irresistible.

Now, she simply needs to stop fighting it so hard. It doesn’t bother me, though. Either way, I know we’ll get there in our own time.

For now, I’m content to watch Casey with the twins, marveling at the way she seems to glow with a new kind of beauty. It’s a side of her I never knew existed.

I’m watching Casey with the baby, fascinated by the transformation in her when Gage sidles up beside me. “Any updates on the search for the Wildview wolves?” he asks, his voice low.

I tear my gaze away from Casey and focus on Gage. “I’m planning to meet up with Barrett soon, see what he’s learned so far. Then I’ll head out and investigate more on my own.”

As I speak, I can feel a shift in Casey’s emotions. Her thoughts are suddenly tinged with apprehension, a tightness that wasn’t there moments ago. I glance over at her, but she’s still cooing at the baby, seemingly absorbed in the little one’s every move.

But I know better. I can read her like an open book, even if she’s trying to hide it.

She doesn’t like the idea of me going out alone. That much is clear. What I can’t pinpoint is why. Her thoughts are jumbled, too tangled for me to decipher.

Is she worried about me? The thought tightens something in my chest. It’s not like Casey to show concern, especially not for me. We’ve been at odds since the moment we met.

She thinks she hates me.

Or, she did.

But now, beneath the layers of irritation and stubbornness, I sense something else. Something softer, more vulnerable. It’s fleeting, gone as quickly as it appeared, but it was there.

I watch her, trying to read her expression, but she keeps her face carefully neutral. Only the slightest tightness of her lips gives away her inner turmoil.

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