Page 93 of Pucking the Enemy

“They’re colossal assholes, but this is a new level of fucked up, even for them! I knew we were right to not trust them,” Sebastian snarled as he stalked over to us.

We all wore matching pissed-off expressions. Cormac was bouncing up and down on his toes while Roman stood still… too still.

“So we’re clear, we’re never leaving her alone with her family again, are we?” I growled. I didn’t really care what that answer was, because there was no way in hell I was going to allow it to happen. It just would have been nice to be backed up by my pack mates.

“No fucking way,” Seb agreed. “They are a bunch of emotionally abusive assholes, and yet she’s always put up with them.”

Everything I had heard about these people was negative. I hated that Hazel had to experience an upbringing like that.

“Well, let’s fucking go get Duchess!” Roman shouted, walking toward the front door.

“Do we have to be polite?” Cormac asked excitedly, hot on his heels.

His reply was simple. “Nope.”

This was going to be a shit show… I wasn’t even mad about it.

A staff member wearing black and white opened the door, the pleasant smile dropping at the four large, athletic alphas rushing to the entrance.

“Sweetness!” Cormac bellowed as soon as he was through the door.

“It’s a fucking party, all right,” Roman muttered with a frown, glancing around at the entrance to the large reception room full of people.

“Cormac?” The beautiful, honey-sweet voice echoed in the entry hall as Hazel appeared from a corridor, a woman who I assumed to be her mother hot on her heels. “How on earth did you all get here so fast?”

“We didn’t trust your parents, so we followed a few minutes behind you and were at a diner nearby when you messaged.”

“I never actually went anywhere,” Seb confessed. “Drove about five minutes away and parked, just in case.”

Red rimmed Hazel’s eyes. Had she been crying? My anger grew into unadulterated fury at the sight. Her mother sauntered up behind her. Who the fuck was this woman who thought she could make my pregnant omega cry without any consequences?

The mother’s eyes went wide at the sight of all of us, and she took a quick moment to compose herself before speaking. “This is a private party. You’re going to have to leave immediately,” she said in a fake, pleasant tone. She clearly wanted to get us out before too many people noticed.

Too bad. I was fairly certain Cormac was in the mood to cause a scene.

“Mother!” Hazel hissed, whipping around to glare at her mother.

Cormac wasn’t waiting. He strode forward, looping an arm around her waist and pulling her toward him.

“Hazel, please, for the love of god, tell me these boys aren’t the reason you’ve been too ‘sick’ to see us lately.” The hag of a woman Hazel called a mother didn’t manage to keep the sneer off her face.

“Yes,” Hazel declared, looking at us with an expression I could only describe as nervous pride. “This is my pack.”

The announcement hung in the air for a moment, and all our expressions warped from angry to goofy, lovestruck grins.

She’d called us her pack.

We would make sure that, after this, she knew, without a doubt, that we were a pack. All five of us.

Mrs. Giltbrook’s face became panicked as she glanced between us. Crossing my arms, I raised my eyebrows at her in a go ahead, try it look. It wasn’t the right time to beam like a love-drunk fool.

That could—would—happen later.

Guests had started milling out from the reception room and were watching us, whispering between one another as they sipped on their glasses of champagne.

“Hazel, sweetheart, I think you’re a little confused.” Her mother’s tone was simpering and seriously infuriating. She grabbed Hazel’s wrist, keeping her close. “We need to get back to the party. Your fiancé is waiting.” She attempted to tug Hazel toward the main room, but our omega remained still, her feet planted on the ground.

The irrational urge to break the wrist of this woman for putting her hands on Hazel was powerful. How fucking dare she fuck with our girl?

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