Page 18 of The Alpha's Rejected Mate

I told myself to stop feeling so jittery. But surprise beat through me at her friendliness. There was none of the hostility that I’d sensed from Gavin in the clearing when his fur had bristled along his back as he’d focused on me.

“Come on,” Aislin said, gesturing toward the cabin. “Let’s get you something to wear.” I noticed that the other women around us were already pulling on their clothes. Aislin had gathered her discarded clothes into her arms. Eager not to be the only nude female, I followed her.

My gaze snagged on the silvery-haired woman, Muriel, on the veranda, and she smiled gently at me. A middle-aged woman with the same mahogany-colored hair as Aislin had given Muriel a blanket that she was wrapping around herself. Gratitude beat through me as I remembered how Muriel, in her unicorn form, had healed my wound. In the clearing, I’d been conscious enough to catch her name as Gavin spoke to her. Anticipation beat through me at the thought of talking to her.

First, clothes.

Aislin led me into a cozy living room with bare timber walls, a sofa, and armchairs. A hearth with embers still glowing in it was the focal point of the room.

In a moment, we’d reached what must be Aislin’s bedroom. She pulled out clothes from a drawer and chucked them on the bed.

“What size are you?” she said, eying the shoes in her wardrobe.

“7.5,” I answered.

“Snap.” She grinned.

“Thanks,” I said, taking the sneakers from her.

I pulled on the knickers and sports bra and then the leggings. They fit well, and I realized that Aislin was much closer to my size and height than Catrina. I could see that Aislin had a broader build than me. She had more muscle. But with leggings, it didn’t matter. The T-shirt I pulled on was a little baggy, but not half as much as Catrina’s were on me. I looked down at the All-Seeing Eye symbol with the wordsJoin the Illuminatiscrawled across the front. “Cool design,” I said.

She chuckled. “My family and friends think I’m something of a conspiracy nut.”

As I pulled on the long-sleeved zip top she’d given me, I took in the tight black T-shirt she wore, which hadX-Filesacross it andThe Truth is Out There. I smiled as I read it, and Aislin’s lips lifted.

Once I’d laced up the sneakers, she said, “Come on, Scully. The truth ain’t gonna find itself.”

I giggled, feeling buoyed up by her playfulness and very much looking forward to finding out the truth about what had happened to get those dragons on Muriel’s tail.

When we got back outside, the middle-aged, mahogany-haired woman, who I discovered was Aislin’s mum, Gretel, had lit lots of lanterns around their veranda. Some of the pack were sitting around on the wicker sofas and chairs on both this and the main cabin’s veranda, while others had wandered to a campfire between all the cabins. The night was full of mellow bonfire smoke. Here on the veranda, the warm scent of beeswax candles suffused the air. The gentle sound of chatter washed away a lot of my tension.

I wandered over to the silvery-haired woman, now dressed in a pretty loose flowing dress, taking the seat opposite her. “Hi Muriel,” I said, offering my hand. “Thanks for healing me.”

She grasped my hand, surprising me as she squeezed it with both of hers, and smiled sweetly at me. “You’re welcome, Billie. I should be thanking you for taking on those dragons with me.”

I’d hardly done much to help. I’d only succeeded in getting wounded, and if it hadn’t been for the Grandbay Pack showing up, who knew what would have happened to us.

As Muriel released my hand, Aislin saved me from answering as she interjected. “Whywerethose dragons hunting you?”

Muriel’s silver stare darkened. “You witnessed my horn’s healing magic. Unfortunately, the Inkscales clan have been hunting me for that valuable resource for a while.”

“That’s awful,” I exclaimed.

Muriel’s gaze softened again as she looked at me. “Unfortunately, not everyone is as pure-hearted as you.”

I shrugged, unsure of what to say and unused to someone praising me. But the movement made my side ache. I pressed a hand to my ribcage.

“How silly of me. I forgot, you still need healing,” Muriel said, my pain not going unnoticed. “The pack healer just checked me over and is waiting for you in the main cabin,” she added, pointing over to the main one. “Go see her,” Muriel said.

Concern suffused her tone, and her expression was so open and honest that she reminded me of her animal form as if she was still enshrined in that pure bright light.

I took her advice, and noticing that Gavin was by the campfire with the majority of the pack, I let out a relieved breath as I tracked to the main cabin.

As I pushed open the door, the healer was sitting on the leather couch in front of the fire. An assortment of bottles and herbs lay on the coffee table.

“Come have a seat, Billie,” she said, gesturing beside her. “My name’s Helen,” she added.

The woman was middle-aged, and she wore her dark brown hair up in a bun and wore a loose-flowing dress like Muriel. She had pretty hazel eyes, which were striking, as I’d noticed that most of the shifters in Grandbay Pack, like Aislin and Gavin, had dark eyes.

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