Page 24 of The Alpha's Rejected Mate

An angry flush mottled my face and neck. I couldn’t hide the hurt. Worse was seeing the guilt there as his mouth tightened.

I turned my back on him, looking out at the meadow and the forest line but feeling as though the outside had gotten even farther from me now. After all, it was clear from Colt’s expression that he’d known I was locked up. But he was only just visiting me after three days.

“Billie—” he started.

“Don’t bother,” I snapped. My breath was coming in short, angry bursts, and I felt the clawing of my wolf beneath my skin as she reacted to my anger as if there was a threat in the room.

“I wanted to come to see you,” Colt blurted out, “but…” He’d come closer, and I swore if he was going to mumble some lame excuse aboutDavidpreventing him, I was going to snarl.

But he surprised me as his voice dipped to a whisper, “But I didn’t know what to do after I saw something the day we got back.”

My gaze darted to him as he came to stand on the other side of the window. His blue eyes were cast down, and his fingers gripped his other hand, his forefinger tapping out a beat nervously.

My pulse spiked. What had shaken him up?

“Tell me, Colt,” I demanded, the defensiveness of my wolf still evident in the growl in my voice.

Colt’s eyes snapped up to meet mine. He took a breath. “The other evening, I was just returning from Joseph’s house when I heard Dad’s voice in the woods. I assumed he was talking to one of the packmates.” He swallowed. “But when I heard this guy’s voice, I stopped because I didn’t recognize it.”

Color crept along his pale skin as he said, “I eavesdropped when I heard Dad mention the Grandbay Pack and the unicorn called Muriel to the guy … ”

“What else did they say to each other?” I demanded, adrenaline spiking through me as I thought about my kind-hearted friend. If she was in danger, there was even more reason I needed to get out of here.

Colt shook his head. “Not much else. Something about Eastpeak getting involved in protecting the unicorn.” He paused. “Thenthis guy said that he and his clan would be ready to move when they got the signal.” His eyes widened as he added, “And the worst bit of it,” Colt confided, “is that I’m almost definitely sure this guy Dad was talking to was a dragon shifter. He reeked of ozone and sulfur,” he explained, his blue eyes swimming with apprehension.

My pulse picked up as fear pummeled me. I’d always known David was distant and cold, but was he really working with the dragon shifters that were hunting Muriel? My stomach twisted with a knot of tension, and again, I wished I had a mobile and Aislin’s number so that I could text her to be on the alert and guard Muriel.

It hit me that Colt could warn them. “You need to alert Grandbay. You could text Aislin about what you overheard,” I said.

He flinched. “I can’t go against my dad, Billie.”

I gritted my jaw and ground out, “And I suppose because he’s your dad, him locking me up is okay, too?”

He paled, and sadness swam in his eyes. “Of course, that’s not okay.”

I held my breath for a moment but wasn’t surprised when Colt said, “We’re just gonna have to get you out of here so that you can sound the alarm at Grandbay.”

A glimmer of warmth moved through me. I knew it. Colt was good to the bone and would always come through for me. So, by the fading light, we started to hatch a plan to get me the hell out of here.

Chapter 12

Gavin

It was only dawn when the Eastpeak Alpha pulled up outside my cabin in his pickup truck. Even at this early hour, there were signs of the pack’s stirrings: wisps of smoke curled from a number of chimneys into the pale gray morning. I suppressed a smile as I thought there’d be more than a few curtains twitching and tongues wagging when they spied the elusive Everett.

The mountain men. That’s what folks down here call the Eastpeakers.

As the man climbed out of his car, my gaze brushed over Everett who was built like the mountain peak he and his pack lived on. Standing at an impressive six foot five and with his plaid shirt straining across his chest and shoulders he was a formidable-looking man. I strode down the steps of my cabin to greet him. “Everett, thanks for coming.”

“No problem, Gavin,” he said, shaking my hand with an iron grip.

As he loomed a good few inches over me, his impressive bulk made me feel like I should get to the gym and get lifting. I reminded myself that that was just the typical effect the Eastpeak folk had on you. It was said that the mountain air thatVana had blessed their pack with gave them the strength and rootedness of the mountains.

The Eastpeak Alpha had dirty blond hair and a neat, close-shaven beard. His sharp gray eyes were as pale as the sky at dawn. Like the low light, they seemed to hide much.

Damn, Gavin. You’re starting to sound as suspicious as Aislin.

Speaking of whom, my best friend appeared from out of her cabin, clearly determined to join us.

---