Page 2 of The Alpha's Rejected Mate

The sound of the engine cut out as I skidded to a halt in front of the impressive structure of Hexen Manor. I sprayed up a cloud of dust from the dirt track just as David got out of his black truck. He wasn’t a particularly tall man, about five foot ten, but what he lacked in stature, he made up for in his cold, blue eyes that took in everything in an instant. His graying hair gave him a distinguished look. Otherwise, his clean-shaven face looked much as it always had over the years.

My heart raced as I faced my adoptive father’s disapproving glare. I knew I’d disobeyed, but the temptation to watch the Dalesbloom wolves in action had been too much. My stomach lurched as I forced myself to walk toward him. My arms hung like dead weight, and I felt how flushed and clammy I was. David’s strict demeanor as my provider seemed to loom over me as surely as the shadow of Hexen Manor behind him.

“So, you’ve been shirking your chores again, eh, Billie?” he said.

Guilt and defiance warred within me. I chastised myself for getting caught out of the house,notfor taking a much-needed break from the mountain of chores that always fell on my shoulders.

“I’m sorry, David,” I said, hanging my head in what I hoped passed for remorse. There was no point in trying to justify why I’d been outside. I knew from living eighteen years under his roof that, when it came to me, David expected me to take hisword as gospel. There was no excuse, especially not anything to do with how Ifelt, that could excuse my disobedience.

“I’ll go tidy the kitchen,” I offered.

He grunted as I traipsed around the side of the handsome manor house, knowing that I wouldn’t have any downtime for the rest of the day. David would be sure to heap more chores on my list, seeing that I clearly had time for trips out.

David’s usual rebukes played around my head,“This is the thanks I get for taking you in, is it? You’re work-shy, Billie. Do you know how lucky you are that I took you in?”

Resentment simmered through me. I appreciated David adopting me.

By Vana, who knows where I’d be otherwise?

I’d heard enough about the care system to count my lucky stars that I’d grown up in my adoptive family, but I couldn’t help feeling hard done by. I was the one who did all the cooking and cleaning without any sign of gratitude or affection from my adoptive father. I thought of the mountain bluebird carrying off food for its young, and my chest ached as I wondered what it would feel like to becaredfor.

I sidled past the few mounds of discarded clothes. The pack tended to shift out back and leave their clothes there for their return. I knew the females of the pack shifted and left their clothes by the taxidermy shed to give themselves a little privacy from the guys. Even the sight of the wrinkled jeans, T-shirts, and sneakers made me feel lacking. What would it be like to have that freedom? To truly meet the wilderness with nothing but fur as Vana had meant all of us shifters to be?

I let myself in the back door. The kitchen had two rooms, one large area with sinks, and a huge wooden table in the part nearest the back door. I wandered into the other room, which housed the main kitchen. It was fitted with wooden counters and an island, and there was plenty of space to prep and cook for the family and whichever pack members were about.

The pack had left their breakfast stuff on the massive table that took up most of the room. I reallyhadmeant to clear this stuff earlier, but when I’d seen the others going hunting, I had to watch.

As I filled the sink with hot water and dish soap, I gawked at the sight out the window. Four wolves dragged the female elk toward the house. Judging by the elk’s size, it was a substantial kill and weighed a hundred pounds or so.

“By Vana, that’s a decent one!” David exclaimed from outside as he greeted the returning pack.

I gripped the bowl in the warm water and bubbles as my hands began to tremble.

Sweet mother Vana, if you bring me my wolf, maybe David will welcome me like that.

Chapter 2

Gavin

My bones broke, and my fur receded as I rose from four legs to two. Picking up my pair of Levi’s, I dragged them on.

The black wolf nearby soon melted away, too, and Colt tugged on his jeans.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Colt offered as he buttoned up his waistband.

Shame washed over me. I’d almost cost the Dalesbloom Pack their kill. My wayward movement had startled the cow into the woods, and it had only been Colt and Catrina’s quick movements that meant we hadn’t returned empty-handed.

I clamped my mouth shut, gritting my teeth, and shook my head stiffly.

I opted to leave my flannel shirt off as I went to examine the elk as if she were the most interesting thing in the world. “Wanna give me a hand with this?”

Colt, thank Vana, didn’t push it. After pulling on his black T-shirt, he wordlessly came to help with the carcass.

I’d heard some of the Grandbay Pack talk about the Hexens acting too proud. With Hexen Manor towering over us, I could see how people might get that impression. With its grand Colonial Revival style, it would look better placed in Denver than way out here in Gunnison National Park. Some of my pack said they sensed the Hexens thought of themselves as better than the Grandbay Pack. But anyone who talked like that didn’t know the diligent Alpha and Hexen siblings like I did.

“Heads or tails?” Colt asked in a carefree tone that my stressed-out mind hungered for.

“Heads,” I opted for, moving round to the cow’s front while Colt took the rear. Colt and I hefted the carcass by the legs off the ground, slowly making our way to the back door.

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