Page 29 of The Alpha's Forced Rejected Mate

“Because I like you.”

Though her responding silence made me nervous, I found it endearing. Robyn was a complicated woman with intense feelings. She was gifted at researching for professional debates and could probably convince anyone of anything—and while she could use that power for evil, she didn’t. She refused to give the forces of darkness a chance.

That made her intensely beautiful.

Ahead of us, the road forked. I slowed to a halt, flipped my blinker to turn left, and paused. “I’m not just saying thatbecause you should mate with me, Robyn. I’m saying that because I never got to say it before.”

“You said it with your actions.”

“And then I left.”

She hissed and turned to look out the window. I took that opportunity to turn and follow the road at a brisk fifteen miles per hour to get to the water tower. After parking on the dirt road’s curb, I hopped out of the vehicle and rounded the front to get to the passenger side.

The doorclickedas I opened it. “And this is me making up for that.”

“So, this is all a ploy to win my favor.”

“Is it working?”

She stepped onto the cement walkway and hovered next to the passenger door. I didn’t move my arm to allow her passage—and she didn’t complain about it. We just stood there staring at each other.

Until a smile curved her lips. “Let’s not get carried away again.” She blinked once, hard. “I lose again. There.”

“I wasn’t starting anything.”

She traced my chin to my throat. “Cliff, you always start something.”

Then, she ducked under my arm and walked over the gravel to the water tower’s ladder. The rhythmiccrunchof her sneakers sounded behind me as I shut the car door. I shoved the keys into my pocket as I turned around, immediately thrown back into a core memory from several years ago.

Back then, the sun was shimmering brilliantly above the tower, haloing the structure like it was a spectacular futuristicbuilding. Robyn stood with her right foot perched on the first step of the ladder and her left hand on her hip. She peeked back at me with a confident grin that shined as bright as the star above our heads.

“You coming?”

I blinked, and the memory dissipated, revealing the shadowy night blanketed around her shoulders as she mimicked that same position. Her hand was on her hip. Her smile was radiant. Her eyes were sparkling like miniature crystals illuminated with candlelight. I wandered over the gravel toward her, listening to the distinctcrunchthat splashed through the night.

Here, under the stars, everything felt natural with her. Everything felt right.

Why was she fighting me so hard about it?

I touched her cheek. “You remember the diner, right?”

“I remember everything.”

My heart quivered. “Yeah, I was afraid of that.”

She licked her lips, smiled, and then scaled the ladder, leaving me in the dust on the ground as her voluptuous ass teased me. Those flared jeans were taut enough to enhance her bottom, giving me something truly magnificent to observe as I tried to gather my thoughts.

Well, the view wasn’t helping much.

About halfway, I stared after her, watching the flannel jacket she wore billow slightly in the breeze. The higher we got, the windier it felt until we were climbing under those domed safety bars installed for tower workers. Near the top, a big gust of wind slapped the side of my face. It felt like the universe sucker-punched me for not doing this sooner. Maybe I could have stopped Bill from getting possessed.

Maybe I could have ended up being Sydney’s father instead of some deadbeat jerk-off who was probably a criminal.

Robyn disappeared over the last bar. She reappeared with her hair in her face, red-auburn hair like fire in the yellow floodlight from the tower’s sign. She stuck out her hand. “Come on, loser.”

“I thought you were the one who lost.” I clutched her hand. “Didn’t we say we can’t afford another staring match?”

She stuck out her tongue while she helped me up the rest of the way. “We did.”

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