Page 66 of Wanted Beta

It takes me a moment to realize what my Alpha’s really asking.

My heart sinks into my stomach as he goes on.

“I need to check outside. No matter what, you need to stay in here.”

He’s deadly serious, stopping just short of making it a command.

His dark eyes soften slightly, and he lets out a sigh. “Tell me you won’t come outside, Arrow.”

I can’t agree to that. Neither of us know what happened to Jack, exactly.

If something happens to Enzo …

“You don’t know who’s out there,” I start, dread growing. “We should just call the cops.”

“This is a pack matter. You can call the cops if I’m not back in five.”

He leaves me with the briefest of kisses.

Then, he’s outside and the sound of the door being locked behind him makes my stomach churn. I try to focus on Jack, but it’s no use. I’m too emotionally shaky to be calm for him.

I hope whoever did this is gone, and I hope they don’t come back.

Counting down the minutes in my head, I get ready to jump to my feet and call the police.

If Enzo’s out there for a second longer than five minutes …

No, don’t think like that, Arrow.

I can’t help it. The thought of losing either of them would destroy me, and sitting here holding Jack’s hand while he’s unconscious on the floor is making me think all kinds of awful thoughts about who might have hurt him, and whether they might still be outside.

The city has a much higher crime rate than the small town we came here from.

Hate crimes are especially prevalent, probably because most of the cops don’t seem to take them seriously.

Packs have been on the rise for years, but they’re not the norm and they might never be as accepted as monogamous couples are.

The stone-cold truth is a lot of people hate that packs exist.

And if one or more of those people have been watching us, it wouldn’t take much investigating to find out that we’re a pack.

It’s not something we try to hide.

We shouldn’t have to.

But maybe we need to be more careful.

I’m shaking as I decide five minutes have passed, and I start to get to my feet.

My heart leaps into my throat as I hear the key in the door.

I freeze in place, until Enzo steps back inside.

Seeing he’s unharmed, I can finally let go of my worries.

“Well?” I ask, as I sit back down at Jack’s side, ready to give him calm, healing energy.

He sighs as he locks the door, checking it twice before he puts the keys in his pocket and turns around. He’s frowning, and I realize he’s annoyed so I can guess what he’s about to say before he says it.

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