Page 33 of Forced By the Alpha

It wasn’t what he’d been expecting, she could read that from his face. In some ways, it might have been easier if she’d asked for him to thrash the man who had accosted her to within an inch of his life. His pack was tattered; would he leave them just to take her away for a moment’s peace?

“That will be difficult. They need me right now, need me to be strong. Who knows what they'll do if I’m not here to keep them in line. We could get back and find Emma running the place. We could come back and find this house burned to the ground, and it wouldn’t surprise me.”

Beth ran her hand up Devon’s side. “Trust Jonah to take care of things. Just for a weekend? You promised me anything.”

She knew she was playing on his emotions, knew his weakness in his desire to appease her. He was mulling it over, weighing the risks of leaving the pack alone.

“Okay,” he said at last. “Just for a weekend. We have a cabin out in the woods, for just the two of us. I’ll leave Jonah and Emma in charge until we’re back and make sure they know to keep everyone in line. No hunts without me there. It’s too risky right now, the tensions with the Rosewoods are high, and they’ve been out patrolling more and more often.”

“Searching for me,” she said, looking up at him. “I wonder if Adria is out there.”

“Adria?” He tilted her chin up and stole a kiss, tender, the softest brush against her lips.

“My best friend. She’s mated with the alpha now. They have a baby. I’ve never seen her happier, but now, she must be so worried for me.”

She couldn’t imagine if the situation were reversed. She would be out of her mind looking for Adria, spending every minute wondering if she was safe. A strong wind blew through the window, and Beth tucked herself even closer to Devon, stealing his heat. He was always so much warmer than she was, something she very selfishly enjoyed.

“We could send her a message? Let her know that you’re alive and well.” Devon pulled a blanket up over the top of them, a patterned quilt that looked homemade. She wondered if his mother had made it.

“And tell her where I am? If we confirm that the White Winters took me, I’m afraid the Rosewoods will act. They might come here in force and try to break me out. I can’t imagine the fight.” Beth would do anything to stop more bloodshed.

As much as she wanted to speak to Adria, to let her know she was safe, it was too risky. If the Rosewoods suspected her location but weren’t positive, they were less likely to try and get her back. The more time they spent preparing to rescue her, the more time Beth had to convince Devon to propose a truce that would prevent all the fighting entirely. She just needed more time.

This time away with Devon was key. She could spend it convincing him of the merits of her plan, and they could set up a time to meet the Rosewoods. Still, it was risky. The Rosewoods might come prepared for a fight, and the White Winters would be only too happy to provide one. She had to ensure that only she and Devon were at the meeting, but would he risk that? If the Rosewoods brought more, he would feel threatened.

“Whatever you think is best. I hope I get to meet her one day if she’s that important to you. You’ve already gotten to meet my best friend.”

“He still seems so out of place here. So unlike the rest of the pack, like a gentleman lost in a pirate crew or something.” Beth marveled that anyone could stay as gentle as Jonah had, surrounded as he was by cruelties. Then again, he must participate in some degree in those brutalities, or he wouldn’t be part of the pack. She hadn’t been able to reconcile those facts.

She got up on her elbow to look at Devon. His eyes were closed, but he opened them when he sensed her watching him, smiling when he saw her face. He brushed the hair back from her face and tucked it behind her ear.

“What is it?” He asked. “You look worried. Is it about leaving?”

“Why leave Emma in charge? Jonah and Caleb, maybe, but Emma? She’ll have the pack ripping out the throats of the townsfolk while we’re gone. It might only be a weekend, but we both know she’s capable of that.”

Of all the White Winters, Emma seemed the lost cause. There was nothing redeemable in her, nothing to save. She was cruel all the way down.

“Think about it,” Devon said, crossing his arms behind his head, his muscles flexing in a way that pulled Beth’s gaze and sent heat spooling in her stomach. “She’s my Gamma. She’s a leader in her own right. If I put Caleb in charge before her, it will only make her angrier. I have to trust Jonah to keep her in line, and trust her to listen to my commands while I’m gone.”

Trusting Emma seemed like the last thing anyone should be doing, but Beth held back from telling him that. He did need to build a base of trust in the pack. It was vital to a healthy pack, the levels of command and the trust in your fellow pack mates. She’d taken it for granted among the Rosewoods, but in this fractured pack, it was something that needed to be nursed.

“You’re right, of course. It’s part of the pack growing and changing. I just wish…”

“That Emma wasn’t part of it?” He asked with a rueful smile.

She nodded. Without Emma, all of this would have been so much easier. She wouldn’t be challenged every step of the way. And that was just since she’d arrived. Devon had been dealing with her underhanded plots for the entirety of his reign.

“I promise, there’s more to her than meets the eye. Don’t give up on her, okay? She’s messed up, but we all are, and you’re the one who told us we’re worth saving.” Devon gazed up at the ceiling. He was baring his heart to her then, showing her his hopes and fears.

She bent to kiss his chest, his collarbone, the space beneath his jaw. “You’re right. We won’t give up on any of them. I’m sure it will be fine, and we won’t be gone for long.”

Beth tried to push her fears aside as she nestled in against him and closed her eyes.

“But, Beth, once I find out what wolf it was that cornered you, he’s gone.”

His voice was as hard as flint. There was no room for argument, she knew that pleading for mercy here would get her nowhere. And to be honest, she wanted him gone. Even her soft heart could only go so far, and she’d never feel safe with that man around, even if Devon were there. She knew what he was capable of, and their new pack had no place for that.

“You won’t kill him?” She kept her eyes closed, afraid to see the look on his face.

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