Page 27 of Fated Alpha Protector

Missouri River, where I’d first been discovered by Alpha Theo. If I hadn’t been such a clutz, I wouldn’t have fallen into the river and crossed into Nightwalker territory.

It’s only been a few nights, yet it feels like a lifetime ago since I’d been rescued to the other side. Now that I’m here, with this new discovery hanging like a dark cloud over my head, I want to leave.

‘Mate…’ my wolf calls again, this time tugging my heartstrings as if to drive in the knowledge. My mind still remains at war with my heart, but it’s a battle it’s never going to win.

My pack did not kick me out. They will never agree to the union. What will happen when Theo finds out.

Because even if I’m here at my crossroads, I’ve already decided to stay in Overton. With the Nightwalker's.

With Theo Marrock.

Lord knows what the future might hold for an Omega fated to the Alpha of a powerful pack. But I cannot ignore that the Moon Goddess probably has a good reason for this.

At least I will no longer feel guilty about sleeping with the Alpha. Maybe, just maybe, we can forge an agreement that would suit us both.

If there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s that I cannot go back to Blackclaw. In all the time I’ve been away, I haven’t missed a single thing about that pack. And here, I’ve made friends with the Alpha’s sister. And the Alpha is my fated mate.

The Alpha is my fated mate…

As I have that thought, my wolf lips curl into a smile. I look down at the river, the glistening surface becoming the perfect mirror on which I see my wolf’s reflection. Earlier tonight, I could barely appreciate seeing myself when Theo’s voice entered my mind.

Now it makes sense. I can hear his mind link because he’s my fated mate. I take a deep breath, filling my wolf nose with air just before I’m about to drink from the river.

I part my lips in preparation for drinking when I hear rustling in the bushes.

If it wasn’t for how loud it was, I probably wouldn’t have noticed. I lift my head in the direction of the disruption, where the source is across the stream. The fern bushes sway uncontrollably when suddenly, a figure emerges from the side.

A hooded figure wielding a crossbow points his weapon at my face. Startled, I lose my breath for the split second it takes for the man to aim the bow between my eyes.

When his finger pulls the trigger to release the bow from the barrel, it’s my wolf instincts that kick in.

Just in time to dodge the hit, I fling my wolf body to one side. The bow punctures a tree trunk so fiercely that it splits the wood as it makes an impact.

Lucky save…

I’m not quite out of trouble yet when another hooded figure appears beside the first one. He looks exactly the same, except for one tiny detail – he’s carrying a shotgun.

A million thoughts race through my mind as if it’s become a grand prix of possible solutions. None of them win the race, with only one of those thoughts making a pitstop.

‘Theo!’ I call out, praying he can hear me. With my life in danger, it’s the only thing I can do.

The only one I can call out to for help.

‘Theo! Please!’ my wolf begs through the mind link. ‘I need you!’

As the armed man aims his shotgun at me, I can only pray the mind link has worked. I can only pray that the fated mate bond is real, and that I hadn’t been imagining the link we shared earlier.

Chapter 10

THEO

She doesn’t believe me.

She doesn’t believe me!

Kicking the potted plant on the porch with frustration, the ceramic pot splits in half. As it crumbles to the floor, the heap of soil it once carried spills out. The plant itself is covered in dirt now, the entire fixture ruined.

Great!

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