Page 221 of The Alpha's Pen Pal

I turned my attention to my mate. My Haven. My Sugar Plum. Her eyes held that same determination from before, but underneath, I could see her worry. Her fear. I wished I could promise her everything would be fine, but I couldn’t. I didn’t know that for sure.

I hoped it would, hoped with everything in me this wouldn’t be the end of our story. But I couldn’t guarantee that.

I pulled her to me, holding onto her as though I would never get to touch her again. My nose pressed into the top of her hair, and the strands tickled my lips and stuck in my short beard as I spoke to her.

“If… if something happens to me, you run with Nolan. You run as fast as you can, and you don’t look back. Let him carry you if you have to. I don’t care. Just get away from Pierce.”

“If you lose, we won’t let him take her. He’ll be dead before he can even touch her,” Nolan reassured me.

“He is not going to lose,” Haven declared, her arms tightening around me. “You are not going to lose,” she whispered, looking up and into my eyes.

Her words and her gaze left no room for argument. It wasn’t a request. It was an order from my luna. A command I had to follow.

My throat tightened as we continued to stare at each other. Our hearts beat as one entity as we continued to hold on to each other, neither of us wanting to be the first to give in and let go.

“I know he’s not. I’m just letting him know. Just in case,” Nolan said.

But neither of us spared him a glance or a thought. His words were important, but not as important as this moment with each other.

Nolan understood the unspoken dismissal, understood we weren’t ignoring him or being rude. He knew we needed each other, needed to be alone and have this time together. He walked away, joining my brother and Reid near my parents.

“Fight him and take him out,” Haven whispered. “Show him why Selene chose you to be my mate. Show everyone what kind of man you are and what kind of alpha you can be.”

The shine in her eyes and the quiver in her voice told me what her words didn’t. I pulled her somehow closer and smashed my lips against hers. Brutal and bruising, the kiss left no doubt in anyone’s mind as to whom she belonged to, whom she would always belong to, no matter what happened to me.

Her hands moved to my face, scratching through my beard, holding me in place so I couldn’t pull away from her. Not that I wanted to.

But I had to. I had to face this challenge. I had to follow through. I could not go back on my word because losing her that way wasn’t an option. If I was going to lose her, it would be because I fought with everything I had, fought until my last breath.

I would do as she said. I would show everyone why she was mine. I would show Pierce exactly who he had challenged.

We broke apart, and I squeezed her shoulders with my hands. “I love you, Wesley,” she breathed. “And I will be standing right here when you are done.”

I nodded at her, then turned and walked to Pierce before either of us could say anything else. I felt her eyes on me, though, as I strode through the training field, my shoulders back and my head held high, my lycan mimicking me in my head. Her love, her pride, and her faith in me pushed through the bond towards my end, and I drew on it, using it to keep my thoughts focused and my movements controlled.

“You should say thank you, pup,” Pierce told me as I approached. “You should be grateful I allowed you one last kiss with your mate before she becomes mine.”

“I am ready to fight you, Pierce,” I snarled, my fists clenched at my sides, ignoring his taunting as Sebastian had advised.

“Perfect,” he sneered, crouching and readying his stance. “Let’s begin.”

CHAPTER 76

WESLEY

I readied myself, crouching into position just as Pierce had done. I focused on my breathing and the extra resolve Haven sent my way, and trusted my body, my mind, and my lycan knew what to do.

“The challenge will begin with my word,” King Malachi stated loud and clear for everyone to hear. “And it will end upon the death of one or both of the participants.”

I breathed in again, making sure to keep my eyes open and focused on Pierce. He was my target. We knew he was working with a witch, knew he was using her somehow to strengthen himself. I needed to keep him engaged, needed to stay in the fight until they found the witch and took her out.

My lycan stayed at the forefront of my mind, so I could be ready to shift at a moment’s notice. I cleared my mind, letting my sole focus be on this fight. And I prayed to Selene—to my mate’s mother—that Pierce would not let his witch do to me what she’d done to Maddie to render her defenseless.

“Begin,” King Malachi commanded.

On his word, neither of us made a move, but that was to be expected. I knew he was still sizing me up, and I was hoping to drag it out until they caught his witch. Then I could take him down with a quick, clean kill.

Pierce stalked to his right, and I mimicked him, measuring his steps with my eyes, evaluating his movements, stance, and posture critically. There was definitely something off about him, something not quite right, but I couldn’t pinpoint it. Not with the magical help he was receiving from his witch.

---