Page 133 of Alpha Theo

I take a step back so he can walk through the doorway. My throat feels raw, like Theo’s pain is my own.

What kind of mate would I be if I just stood by?

I’m not sure if it’s the protective instinct of the mate bond, but I get a surge of confidence. I wriggle my arm away from Theo, stepping around him and back into the doorway. “With all due respect, Alpha Anders,” I begin, my voice shaky.

Anders’ eyes fly up to meet mine, a startled expression on his face.So I guess he didn’t know I was standing there.

I clear my throat, drawing a deep breath. Shoring up every bit of confidence I have to stand across from my alpha and say what I’m about to.

“Theo has been ensuring all of our safety with the new border security system he put into place,” I say, my voice calm, even though I’m wringing my hands in front of me as I speak. “The whole system is his design, and the entire six-pack will benefit from it. If there’s an attack, we’ll know a lot sooner and we’ll be able to coordinate a defense faster.”

Anders just stares at me, folding his hands on the desk in front of him.

“He deserves a lot more credit than what you give him,” I continue, my voice wavering a little bit. “He’s smart, he’s dedicated, he’s determined… he’s going to make a hell of an alpha one day.”

“Brooke,” Anders says curtly, holding up a hand.

I shake my head. “Please, Alpha, I’m not finished.”

His eyes narrow, like he’s surprised that I’m still pushing, and it takes every ounce of courage I have to continue challenging him.

“All of us at the complex can see how hard Theo’s working for the six-pack. And I know it isn’t my place, but I think that if you really took a look at your son and stopped blaming him for the past, then maybe you could see it, too.”

“That’s enough,” Anders barks, and I flinch at his tone.

I feel Theo’s hand gripping my arm, tugging me back.

“Come on, Brooke,” he mumbles quietly. “Let’s just go.”

I’m finished anyways, so I allow him to pull me backwards, into the hallway. I’m shaky on my feet as I follow him down it toward the foyer.

“I’m sorry,” I croak, my adrenaline still pumping.

Holy crap. I can’t believe I just did that. Anders is my alpha-what the hell was I thinking?!

“Don’t be,” Theo breathes. He takes my hand, traveling down the corridor in long strides. I struggle to keep up with him.

We reach the foyer and exit the packhouse through the front door, and as soon as we’re outside, it feels like some of the tension eases.

I’m standing on the front stoop trying to steady my breaths when Theo pulls me in by the waist, crushing his lips against mine, taking it away again. His hands roam- one to my nape, the other to my butt- as he kisses me hard, like he means it, like it’s the last thing he’ll ever do. My body melts into his, arms looping around his neck.

He kisses away my anxiety- all my nervous, jittery energy after that confrontation with his father. Then he pulls back, staring down at me with those beautiful hazel eyes, so much adoration in them that I feel like my heart could burst.

“Thank you,” he breathes, stroking my hair behind my ear.

I swallow hard, wrapping my arms around his body, pulling tightly into him. I press the side of my face against his hard chest, feeling the thump of his heartbeat against my cheek as he drops a kiss on the top of my head.

I know it isn’t my place to fight his battles for him, but damnit if I don’t feel good about what I just did in there. I doubt it’ll make a difference with his dad, but at least Theo knows that I’m squarely in his corner; that we’re a united front.

It wouldn’t matter to me if he never became alpha- I want to be with Theo for the man he is, not his position. It’s something he wants, though, so I’ll do anything I can to help him get it. That’s what mates are supposed to do, right? Support one another, lift each other up?

Hopefully I didn’t just make things worse for him. I don’t regret standing up for my man, but I wish I’d done it more thoughtfully rather than acting on emotion.

“Let’s go home,” I whisper, pulling back and gazing up at Theo.

He nods, taking my hand again, leading me to his bike. And even though things went to hell inside that packhouse, I know it’s going to be okay somehow. Because now, no matter what happens, we’re in this together.

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

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