Page 12 of The Alpha King's Mate

“Good because the others made you cupcakes too!” Of course they did. “We’re gonna have a room full of cupcakes.”

Jake came running over, his face even more covered with frosting, as was his shirt, his hair, and somehow, his shoe. “Are we going to the fire tonight?”

They asked every time there was a s’mores night, and pretty much every time, the answer was no. Once in a while I’d cave, but it was rare, and only when I recruited extra help to watch over them. Was I being overprotective? Absolutely. Was I going to change? Not so much.

“Nah, we’re having movie night.”

The others ran over as Jake asked what that meant.

“We’re going to spread out all our blankets on the floor, and we’re going to watch a movie about a dragon and eat popcorn and stay up way too late.”

“Is there a fairy in it?” Becca asked.

“I don’t know. We’ll have to watch and find out.”

That seemed to satisfy her.

“Let’s get cleaned up for dinner.” Cleaned up turned into showers for all. The amount of frosting in their hair and clothing had me wondering how they had enough left for the cupcakes. We ended up late for dinner, but that was fine. There was always plenty, even if they didn’t understand that yet. They had been deprived for so long that it took them quite a while to feel safe and secure here.

Later that night, as all six of them fell asleep watching the movie, I looked down at their sweet faces. Would King like evenings like this? And the answer came to me immediately. Of course he would. He’d probably cherish these moments. And then, even though I missed him terribly and worried about him, everything felt okay. At least for now.

I turned off the television, lay on the couch with a blanket pulled over me, and closed my eyes. The sooner I fell asleep, the sooner King would come home to me—to us. The timing wouldn’t be exactly the same, but it would feel that way, and that was good enough for me.

Chapter Ten

King

I put in a call to Tyrus as soon as I left the compound. The bear knew who my mate was, but I wanted to make sure that if something happened, my mate was treated like any of the other mated omegas, even though we hadn’t made it that far yet.

The bear would take care of Ryan if something happened—along with his six cubs. They were a package deal and, as I scouted out the farmhouse I’d been sent to, I contemplated how my life had changed in the last day.

The fact I had tried to deny my fated mate was proof I was more brawn than brains. One look at him, standing there outside my room, saying how I was his mate—ended me. We hadn’t mated officially, but the taste of him was still on my lips. His sweet kisses were the things fantasies were made of.

Ryan came with six little ones. They were as attached to him today as they were when they first arrived, tacking themselves like shadows to his every move. They looked to him for everything. When to eat. When to go to sleep. Begged him for stories and walks outside.

He was their father for all intents and purposes and while we hadn’t discussed the issue, when we were mated, they would become my responsibility right alongside my omega’s.

I watched from a vantage point on the side of a mountain. The farmhouse was cute. Yellow paint. Gray door. But the only person I’d seen coming in or out of the place was an omega, a wolf from the smell of him, along with little ones—three of them all less than four years old.

This couldn’t be who I was supposed to go in and end.

And three pups with him? No way this was my target. If it was, I had something to say about it. I took a chance and calledthe number associated with the texts I’d been receiving. Wasn’t my usual way of doing things, but I’d be damned if I was going to go in and kill a daddy wolf omega.

Even I had lines I didn’t cross.

“Why are you calling, lion?” The voice that came over the phone was deep but robotic. They must’ve been using some kind of voice-changing software. It reminded me of a Halloween costume I’d had as a child, one that changed your voice to something scary.

“I think there’s been a mistake,” I answered.

“Go on.”

“The person at this farmhouse is an omega with three toddlers in tow.”

Crackling resounded over the connection. “Are you unclear about my orders? When I give you a target, you go in and take care of it. I don’t pay you to think, King.”

Oh, he did know my name.

“You want me to go in and slaughter an omega and his children.”

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