Page 8 of Cursed Bonds: An Alpha's Destiny

Waylan’s smile returned. “Wow. Okay. Uh, welcome back, I guess.”

“You haven’t answered my question. Why do I need to meet the alpha? If it’s such a big deal, I can stop by his place tomorrow or something.”

“Well, that’s, um… the thing is… it’s the law.”

“The law?” I repeated in a monotone.

“The law. Yeah.”

“And it wasn’t the law twenty years ago?”

“Uh, no. It wasn’t. It’s a new law. All packs do it now,” Waylan said.

“But I’m not on your land, so the laws of your pack wouldn’t apply to me, would it?”

Waylan’s eyes widened a bit, but his smile never faltered. “You see,” he said quickly, “you’re close to our land, and that means you are under our protection. See, the neighboring pack isn’t so nice. We’re only looking out for your safety. Besides, if you want to do any shopping in Crestwood, you’ll want to meet the alpha. That way, he can let the rest of the pack know not to be freaked out by a strange human walking around.”

That made sense. Humans rarely visited shifter towns, mostly due to the worry that they’d make some mistake or break some unwritten rule and offend the shifters. And dammit, I did need to go shopping tomorrow.

“You’re not gonna take no for an answer, are you?” I asked wearily.

He shrugged and gave me a pained smile. “Sorry, boss’s orders. You don’t want me to get chewed out, do you?”

“Oh, for God’s sake. Fine,” I hissed. “Let me grab my stuff.”

Out on the porch, Waylan nodded toward a black Jeep parked behind my car. “I can give you a ride if you want.”

“Thanks, but I’ll follow in my car. No offense, but I’d rather have my own means of escape.”

Waylan looked truly distraught as he suddenly shook his head. “Miss—sorry, I’m an asshole, I never asked your name.”

“Kirsten. Kirsten Holly.”

Waylan nodded. “Miss Holly, you have no reason to worry about escape. Like I said, there’s nothing sinister about this meeting. I promise it’s only a formality. But it’s fine if you want to follow along.”

He climbed into his Jeep as I got into my car. Why was this happening? Sure, shifter towns were very insular, and a stranger would cause a bit of an uproar. I hadn’t really thought about that before coming here. That being said, why the hurry? Hell, they could have at least waited until the morning.

Another confused thought bounced into my head. Why hadn’t they come the day before when I’d first arrived? Had they only now found out I was at Nana’s cabin? How?

Those questions would have to wait, though, because we’d arrived. A large house, though not as big as I’d anticipated, sat with its back facing the forest behind it. Waylan exited his Jeep and hurried over to open my door. A gentleman, at least.

“What’s this alpha’s name, anyway?” I asked. “If he’s so fired up to meet me, I guess I should know his name.”

“Jace Stone. He’s a great guy, really. No need to be nervous.”

“Who said I was nervous?”

Waylan grinned. “I like you. You’ve got fire. Come on.”

He led me to the front door and inside. Waiting for us in the living room was the man who must have been the famous alpha shifter Waylan had been telling me about. My first impression, as much as I hated to admit it, was that he was the most attractive man I’d ever laid eyes on. It irritated me that this was the first thing that sprang to mind, but I couldn’t help it. His black hair was swept back and hung to his shoulders, his muscular frame tensing and readjusting as we walked in. His eyes—hazel—locked onto me, almost like he wanted to peer into my soul.

A warm flush crept up my neck, and I willed myself not to blush in front of this man. I didn’t know a thing about him. However attractive he was, it was nothing but superficial. I was an adult. I could admit when I found someone strikingly handsome.

As soon as he opened his mouth, though, any attraction I felt toward him began to dissipate.

“Why are you here?” Jace asked, blunt and to the point.

“Whoa, okay. Hi,” I said. “My name is Kirsten. Nice to meet you, too,” I added, hoping he could hear the sarcasm in my voice.

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