Page 72 of Rejected Plus-Size Mate

The Sawpit Pack begins to retreat. Rider watches Bailey, who just glares at him. Eventually, it is Rider who looks away from his gaze and gazes at the ground.

“You honor us, Alpha Bailey,” he mutters.

“See that my mercy is not misconstrued as weakness,” Bailey hisses. “I mean every word of what I just said.”

“I don’t doubt it,” Rider answers.

He looks at me one more time, then turns and shifts, bounding into the forest to follow the others. We watch them go, and nobody moves until the valley is quiet and empty again.

All the wolves in the woods start howling and baying in excitement. I turn towards Leslie, my heart so full, I think my chest might burst.

I open my arms, and she runs to me. We embrace fiercely, clinging to each other hard enough to leave bruises.

“Are you alright?” she asks, wrapping her arms around my waist.

“Yes, my love. Are you?”

She nods, staring up at me with her beautiful, pale gray eyes. I stroke her hair, feeling a sense of peace inside me.

After all I’ve suffered, finally, I have come home.

Chapter 26 - Leslie

I press my cheek against Kyle’s chest, hugging him as tightly as I can. Seeing him fighting Jethro scared me more than anything has in my entire life.

There’s losing him… and then there is really losing him.

Kyle puts his hands on my shoulders and pulls back a little. His deep aqua eyes are full of joy, and he looks more relaxed than I’ve ever seen him. Somehow, I just know he won’t have nightmares anymore.

Especially with me curled up beside him, keeping his heart safe.

“Leslie,” Kyle says softly. “I love you, so much. I always support you… but please, don’t ever put yourself in danger like that again.”

I shake my head, my eyes filling with tears. “I had to. They were going to kill Lena. I couldn’t let it happen.”

“I know, my love. But if I lost you, there would be nothing for me to hold onto in this world.”

I wrap my arms around him again, squeezing him as tightly as I can. “I’m holding onto you,” I whisper. “So you don’t have to worry about that ever again.”

Slowly, I become aware of the others gathered around us. Blankets and robes are handed out from our stash at the camping ground so that we can make introductions without being completely butt-naked.

Shifters have to get used to nakedness, but it doesn’t mean I want to strut around all day completely bare—especially when we have new friends to meet.

There is a lot of talking, laughing, and hand-shaking as we meet the new wolves. A very tall, imposing man with bright blue eyes and pale blond hair approaches Bailey with his eyes lowered.

“I have to ask your forgiveness, Bailey,” he says. “Jethro approached us, begging for our help. There is a network of sorts amongst rogues, and we had loose connections with him for trade.”

“Black market,” Jack snaps.

The tall man looks at him and nods. “I make no excuses for myself. We survive as best we can, but we have never hurt anyone the way Jethro did. He told us that the Decker Pack had stolen his mate and it was a matter of honor to get her back. He also promised us food and clothing and cash. We live wild, far into the mountains, so this was a very valuable offer, as well as sounding honorable.”

“Let me guess,” Bae says. “He didn’t come through with your payment?”

He shakes his head. “No. He also promised to back us up as a second wave of attack in Silverton, but he never came. When we retreated, we found our supplies were not where he said they would be, and that’s when Sasha found us.”

“You weren’t hard to track,” Sasha says, coming out of the crowd. “I could tell by the damage done to the village that you had no intention of hurting anyone. When Kyle said he didn’t recognize any of you, I decided I had to get to the bottom of it.”

“I’m glad you did,” the tall guy says, smiling. He bows his head and extends a hand to Bae.

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