Page 28 of The Alpha's Forced Rejected Mate

He hummed with familiarity and went to shake her hand. “You mind if I ask you a favor right off the bat, Jillian?”

She looked between us suspiciously. “Uh, sure. What’s up?”

“Can you watch Sydney for a few hours?”

Jillian wiggled her eyebrows. “You thinking of taking my girl on a date?”

“Maybe.” Cliff glanced at me. “Is that alright with you, Robby?”

I was totally speechless. Every time I tried to say something, I ended up stumbling over syllables and staring at my toes. I shook off the funk and straightened my posture. “Yeah, sure. Let’s do it. I mean, let’s dosomething.”

Jillian burst into giggles as Cliff walked up to me, wearing a sly grin. I knew how hazardous that grin could be in the right lighting—and right now, all I wanted to do was smash my lips against his lips until we were both a whimpering mess.

I pushed my hands into the pockets of my jeans. “What about the challenge?”

“I’ll do that tomorrow.” He winked. “First, I want to take my mate on a date.”

“I’m not your mate.” But I couldn’t help smiling at the sound of that word directed at me. “Where are we going?”

He winked. “It’s a surprise. Now get your sneakers on.”

I smiled.

I loved how excited he sounded.

Chapter 9 - Cliff

Security was a pain in the ass at the wall. Every time the floodlight passed over the gate, I ducked Robyn into the bushes, ignoring her irritated chuffing sounds and the tiny pinches she gave me on my side. Even through the thickness of the flannel sweater, they still hurt. She had nails, and she wasn’t afraid to use them.

Right as the shadows engulfed the area again, I flung Robyn over the gate, laughing quietly when she landed with a loudoofinto the brush on the other side. I sailed over the gate, scooped her up, and sprinted out of the way of the searching spotlight. Gruff voices discussed possibly hearing something. We were long gone when they broke out the flashlights.

Since their pack territory was tucked away from the main road, I hid my car in the woods and hiked my way in. This way was easier—I could slip in and out without being noticed. Hopefully, without the influencing voices of her pack, I could convince her to marry me before the sun rose.

I slowed my pace near the car. As soon as I got her safely inside with her belt over her lap, I hopped into the driver’s seat, popped the parking brake, and started the vehicle. The headlights splashed the trees with blinding white for a split second. After that, I maneuvered the car out of the spot and turned right, heading into town. However, we weren’t goinginto town. I had a special spot picked out for our conversation.

It was sure to be a walk down memory lane.

Several minutes went by in silence as my Mazda chugged along the two-lane road. I kept my hand resting on the gear shift. Every so often, I checked on Robyn, trying to read her expression through my peripheral vision. No luck therewithout streetlights. She kept wiping her cheeks and feeling her forehead. It made me wonder if she was worrying about Sydney or something.

“You okay?” I reached for her thigh. “Talk to me.”

She swatted my hand playfully. “Be a gentleman.”

“You mean tell you what to do? Got it.” I pulled her hand away from her forehead. “Stop touching your face. You’ll make it break out with pimples, and I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“I did thatone time, Cliff.”

I laughed. “You did itall the time. You never believed me. You smeared grease on your face at the diner and had acne for a whole month. Never heard of the end of it.”

“I’ll give you an ending.” She jokingly held up a fist at me. “Don’t tempt me.”

“I’ll pull this car over and kiss you wherever we stop.”

She whimpered as her fist crumbled in her lap.

I chortled. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

“Why are you so mean to me?”

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