Page 24 of Alpha's Forbidden Bond

She winced. “Er—not to sound like a mom or anything, but I’ve noticed that you’ve been a little absentminded the whole day. Also, again, not trying to be a pain, but you look completely exhausted. Did you get any sleep last night after your prowler?”

I shook my head. “Not really.”

“Maybe you should go home early and get some rest,” she said. “There’s not a lot to do here today, and I really don’t anticipate any sort of late afternoon rush of customers.” She put a loving hand on my upper arm. “I’m worried about you, Di. This might sound selfish, but you’re basically the only friend I have, so I need you to take care of yourself.”

I laughed. “So I have to get more sleep because you don’t want to be lonely?”

“Among other reasons,” she said. She grabbed my keys and bag from the front desk and then ushered me towards the door. “Now go home and take a long nap. I’ll come by later tonight to check on you, and to steal some of that nice wine my grandmother’s boyfriend dropped off.”

Georgie’s nan had a male suitor who worked at a winery and always came around with boxes full of expensive reds. It was one of the many perks of living in that house.

“Let me know if you need me to pick you up anything to eat for dinner on my way.”

“I’ll be fine,” I said. “I think just the nap will do me some good.”

“You want me to walk you home? I could close up shop for a bit.”

“Nah, it’s fine. It’s the middle of the day, and since it really warmed up after that cold snap this morning, I think plenty of people will be outside.” Georgie nodded but still made me promise that I would text her when I got home.

I was right that there were a lot of locals out and about, and I didn’t feel suspicious at all on my walk home. Once inside my apartment, I informed Georgie of my whereabouts, then crashed into my unmade bed without even bothering to take my jeans off. I immediately fell into a deep and heavy sleep.

Chapter 11

Andreas

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

This was really the only thing rattling around in my head as I drove back to the compound that day, and even after I was back home and overseeing the swapping out of mattresses. I couldn’t believe I had done something so monumentally stupid. To let myself lose control like that. To have sex with a woman I didn’t even know—a human, no less—it was completely irresponsible. I had just been lecturing Mikeal this morning about how mature I was and how I was so focused on being a good leader. Now, I felt like a joke.

I’d slept with human women before, but not since I was much younger. And never had I allowed myself to have unprotected sex with a human. That was strictly forbidden within the Vilks pack, as well as many others. It was too risky. Shifters were supposed to take every precaution they could not to impregnate a human with a werewolf baby. Without proper medical care, the woman would surely die long before the baby was born. Doctors wouldn’t have a clue what was wrong with her, and the death would be bloody and painful. Diana struck me as the kind of modern woman who would be on birth control, but I had no way of knowing for sure.

My frustration only grew the longer the day dragged on, so by the time Becc came around the house to complain about his new mattress, I was seconds away from boiling over.

“They were the most expensive ones at the store,” I said. “And the sales associate assured me that they were very comfortable.”

“Well, that person lied to you. They are terrible, and both my father and I would like you to switch them out for the old ones. At least those weren’t as stiff.”

I sighed and rubbed my temples. We were standing in the kitchen, and I knew if I had to listen to this man gripe for much longer, I was going to strangle him. By the grace of god, the back door opened, and Mikeal walked in. He smiled mischievously when he saw the two of us. “Well, this can’t be good.”

“Becc wants the old mattresses back.”

Mikeal sucked air through his teeth. “Oof, sorry, big man. No can do. I already took them to the dumpsters and tossed them in. They are covered in all sorts of slime and grime at this point. But hey, I helped my brother put the new ones down, and they seemed really nice.”

“If that’s what you qualify as a nice mattress,” Becc said. “Then I am worried we are going to clash on more things than I thought we would. This is just another reason this merger was a terrible idea. I need to go speak with my sister.”

He was out the door before I could stop him. I thought about chasing after the guy but then realized it was a waste of energy. I slumped down into the nearest kitchen chair and sighed with my entire body. Mikeal laughed softly and took a seat next to me.

“Don’t let that asshole get to you,” he said. “Sarafina knows he’s being ridiculous, and if he does somehow convince her that the new ones are trash, then she can just go feel the mattress for herself. I mean, really, the ones you bought are even nicer than our beds.”

“I know. And they weren’t cheap.”

“I’m sure not.” He clapped me on the back. “Really, it’s not a big deal. Just let him have his little temper tantrum. No need to get yourself all worked up over someone as stupid as Becc.”

I refrained from telling Mikeal that Becc wasn’t the reason I was upset. I couldn’t handle seeing the look on my brother’s face when I told him what I’d gotten up to this morning in a public parking lot. It would be some humiliating combination of amusement and disappointment, and I felt bad enough as it was.

There was, however, someone I did have to talk to about this.

Sarafina. She deserved to know the truth.

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