Page 174 of The Alpha's Pen Pal

Wesley stomped to the front door, and I picked up my blanket and backpack and took them back into our bedroom with me. Even though Wesley’s shirt provided more than enough coverage, I still felt awkward talking to his dad while wearing nothing else. Especially since we’d only met one time.

I slipped on a pair of the pajama pants Wesley had grabbed for me that belonged to Maddie, then I made my way back into the kitchen. I found Harrison sitting at the counter on a barstool and Wesley washing dishes at the sink, avoiding his dad’s gaze. Annoyance rolled off Wesley in waves, filling the room with tension as thick and sticky as tar.

My head swiveled back and forth between the two of them, observing the similarities in their body language, the way they wouldn’t look at each other, and the fact that neither wanted to be the first to speak. I had to hold in my laugh because even though I found it amusing, I knew my laughter would only have a negative effect on the situation.

“Would you like some coffee?” I asked Harrison instead, hoping to diffuse some of the awkwardness.

Wesley sighed, but through the bond, I felt a small flicker of pride. I wasn’t sure why, but I made a mental note to ask him about it later.

Harrison lifted his gaze from the counter, where he watched his fingers as they tapped against the white marble. “Oh. Um. Yes, thank you,” he said, giving me a stiff smile.

I smiled back and turned to get a mug down from the cabinets. I had taken the time that morning to open every cabinet in the kitchen so I could learn where Wesley stored everything and take an inventory of what he had or didn’t have. And he had just about everything.

As I poured Harrison his coffee, I asked over my shoulder, “What would you like in it?”

“Just black is fine,” he replied.

I nodded and set the pot back down, then slid his mug to him across the counter. I felt Wesley’s eyes on me the entire time I moved around our kitchen, so I walked over to him after handing Harrison his coffee.

My hand grazed his bicep, and he turned to look down at me, his eyes softening as they landed on me. He sighed and leaned down to kiss my forehead, my eyes closing at the warmth and tenderness behind the simple gesture.

I smiled at him as he pulled back, then grabbed a dish towel and began drying the dishes he had already washed as we waited for Harrison to speak again.

“How’s your shoulder?” he asked.

Wesley tensed, and I reached over to rub his arm again, reassuring him.

I rolled my shoulder around, testing it, even though it hadn’t been giving me any issues. “Aside from the scarring, it’s completely fine,” I said.

“And you? How are you feeling?”

Before I could even think about how to answer that question, Wesley growled, dropped the pan in his hands, and gave his dad a sharp glare as he gripped the edge of the sink. “How do you think she is feeling? Her ex attacked her after he turned into a lycan. He tried to mark her in his lycan form. She almost bled out on the ground in a dirt alley and Sebastian barely made it here in time. We’re lucky he and Nolan went around your order and went to the club that night, otherwise—”

He stopped himself, pressing his lips together and looking up at the ceiling to hide the pain in his face, in his eyes. His whole body vibrated as he tried to not blurt out whatever else he wanted to say to his dad as he fought against the anger racing through his body.

He lowered his eyes to his dad again, his gaze icy and unmoving. “Why are you really here?” he asked. “Because I know it’s not to check on my luna. You haven’t even called or mindlinked me to see how we’re doing since you left the hospital that night.”

“I was giving you space. She was healing, and you needed to speak with her and explain everything. You needed time to bond and accept each other,” Harrison answered.

“Wes…” I whispered, covering his hand with mine. “I am okay. I am okay,” I repeated, looking at Harrison, my hand still on Wesley’s. “Mostly, I’m just trying to wrap my mind around everything still. It’s a lot to take in, you know?”

Wesley’s hand rotated, his fingers lacing with mine as he gave my hand a tight squeeze. “Has Sebby found Lennox yet?” I asked Harrison.

He shook his head, and I took a deep breath, my hand returning Wes’s squeeze. He stepped closer to me, and his arms came around my waist, his head dipping down to my ear. “Sebastian will find him, Sugar Plum. We won’t let him get away with hurting you,” he murmured, placing a kiss right next to my ear. “And I won’t let him near you. You’re mine to protect and protect you, I will.”

I nodded, my arms crossing over his to hold him in place around me. I needed his touch and his support to keep from crumbling, to keep the fear away. Even with his promise to protect me, I couldn’t help but still be worried about Lennox somehow getting to me and finishing what he intended.

“I did come to ask Haven something, actually,” Harrison said. “If you’re feeling up to it, the royal council member, Frederick, would like to ask you some things about Lennox.”

“Dad…” Wes warned, his voice low.

“Frederick just wants Haven to tell him what she can,” he assured Wes. “He won’t force you to talk about anything that makes you uncomfortable. He just figured, since he’s here, it would make sense to get the information from you so the council can then work on figuring out where he came from and how he was unregistered. And maybe it can help us find him as well,” he added.

“But—”

“It’s fine, Wes,” I said, my hand rubbing his arms soothingly. His grip on me relaxed a little, and I turned to Harrison. “I’ll talk to him before he leaves. Thank you for letting me know, sir. Alpha.”

He chuckled a bit. “I told you before, Harrison is fine.”

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