Page 5 of Wilde Beta

“I want you to tell me the truth. Did you really sleep out there all night in wolf form?” Mel wondered.

“Yes, I did. You are mine to protect," Adam explained.

“I don't want you to protect me. You couldn't have gotten a good night's sleep that way," Mel pointed out.

“Let me escort you to breakfast. I'm sure everyone is eating." Adam had no intention of arguing. She was his. He would do whatever it took to keep her safe.

Mel shot him an irritated look but walked next to him. He had no idea how to handle her and wished he could make her see that she and he belonged together. Adam suspected he may have gotten the most challenging mate in the bunch. They got to the kitchen, and they each fixed their plate. She moved away from him, but he followed and sat beside her. Why did she think he wouldn't follow? Eventually, he was sure she would see they belonged together and should never be a part of it.

“How did things go last night?” Janie asked.

She wasn't the most social person, but Adam believed even she could feel the tension in the room. Maybe she was trying to break the ice, but it didn't work.

“He slept outside my door all night. Who does that anyway?” Mel asked.

“Someone who cares a lot about your safety," Janie observed.

Mel turned red, but he wasn't sure why. Instantly, she protested, "It was unnecessary. No one even knows I'm here yet. Hopefully, they never will."

“How will we know when they know?” Janie asked.

“We won't. They'll attack, then we will find out what they know," Trev assessed.

That's what Adam thought, too. Why would they tell them anything when they wanted their attack to surprise them?

Mel didn't know how serious the danger was. So far, she had been lucky because other white wolves were more visible. It made her feel unwanted, but that wasn't true. She'd stayed in the background, unnoticed, and that was not the same thing. It would be hard to protect her if they found out where she was, but he would do his best.

“After we finish breakfast, I would like to go to the woods to show you how to evade an attacker," Janie explained.

“Would I even end up in the woods?” Mel asked.

“I didn't think I would, yet that was where I found myself. If they are after you, and you have the opportunity to run, you need to go somewhere you can hide. The forest is the best. It gives you different places to lose them. It's one option because who knows where you might be when they come after you again," Janie said.

“All right already. You've convinced me. After I finish my breakfast, we'll go to the woods, and you can teach me all that you know, oh, great one," Mel sarcastically agreed.

Adam listened as the two cousins talked. He immediately realized that his fated mate was very sarcastic. He had not been around much of that. It would take some getting used to, but he was sure there were things about him she would have to get used to as well.

Chapter 2

What is a Mate

Mel felt trapped. She was somewhere she didn't want to be. There were people after her that she was afraid might catch her, and a mate she never wanted who was trying to defend her. It was even worse that he was a handsome devil and persistent. She suspected he would never quit or be happy until she was his.

Melina was just a little bit older than Joey. Her name was unusual. She was sure most people thought it was Melissa, but her mother liked unusual things. What would she think of it all if she knew? She would probably think it was all very cool since she was unusual. Because her mother loved unusual and odd things, Mel had gone the other way and didn't like anything unusual or strange. Oh, she hadn't minded when Joey and others had mated wolves. She only cared when those things happened to her directly.

It was just too much for her to handle. Everything was odd or unusual, and it wouldn't change any time soon.

It had been a big step when she allowed Ariel to change her to a wolf. She had done it out of fear of those coming after her, fear of being taken, and fear of losing the ability to make her own choices. Wouldn't anyone do it under those circumstances?

Except for all the fear, she never would have taken that step. It was simply too odd and unusual for someone who liked everything to go as expected. However, Ariel pointed out that the blood of wolves ran through Mel, which meant it wasn't unusual at all, at least not for her. That was when she decided to do it.

Unfortunately, that decision in and of itself was not enough to protect her. She needed more. That was why she had been forced to come to her cousin, where protection was everywhere. It was too bad that part of the protection was Adam.

She worried because he appealed to her, and she didn't want to mate, especially not a wolf. At first, she resented Adam for what he had done to Naqi. How could someone do something like that to their own brother and treat him in such an uncivilized manner?

Then she heard more about his upbringing and what happened to him. It made her feel bad for him, but she still didn't want to mate him.

She understood what led him to do what he did, even as wrong as it was, and Mel saw that he was beginning to understand how bad it was and why. He had even developed relationships with Naqi and Trev and was starting to work his way back into his pack in a way they would respect him.

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