Page 8 of Fated to the Warrior Wolf

A relieved smile broke across Brielle’s face, and I watched with awe as Leigh rolled with the situation, jumping in and taking the new girl under her wing.

“Excellent. We’re heading to Romania. Have you ever been? I haven’t,” she rambled as she led Olivia to the jet, one arm tossed around her shoulders, gesturing with her other hand.

So a complete stranger, she could embrace like it was nothing. But me, the father of her child?

I was dog shit to be scraped off her shoe.

Perfect. Just fucking perfect.

FIVE

Leigh

Iwas trying not to freak the fuck out, but it wasn’t working, so I talked. That’s what I did when things went wrong. I talked too much, until the bad things went away or everybody forgot why they were mad.

It worked when I was a kid, and my mom was too drunk to take care of me. She’d go on a bender every Friday night after she got paid and stagger through the front door well after dark, muttering about how my father was a lowlife werewolf who abandoned her for “some furry bitch,” and I’d pull a blanket over her on the couch and talk until she passed out.

I’d been doing it ever since, and frankly, why change what worked?

So, I rambled a whole lot of nothing at Olivia to cover up my utter panic over the fact that I’d been marked with some freaky glowing mark that had knocked my bestie on her ass. I didn’t want to be a human glow bug, please and thanks.

But as usual, I got a big old fuck-you from the universe, because when did I ever get what I wanted? Absolutely never.

I bit my bottom lip as we strapped into the luxurious leather seats and had to backpedal a bit.

I wanted Petal. She was maybe the first—okay, my besties were the first good thing, I amended. She was only the second truly good thing to ever happen to me.

The jet was ritzy, with soft lighting and plush seats in intimate groups of four, with low tables set into the floor between each pod. There was squidgy carpeting underfoot that I bet would feel great under my bare toes. A chipper flight attendant with one of those little blue neck scarves and a starched white shirt appeared like magic at my elbow, a tray of real crystal stemware in hand and wearing a hat like Mary Poppins’s on her head.

“Good morning. Would anyone like a mimosa for the flight? We’ve also got an assortment of fresh-pressed juices, sodas, and sparkling or still water.”

“Apparently, we’re bougie, now,” I said under my breath, staring across at Bri, who looked as shocked as I felt.

“Water’s fine, thanks,” Kane said with a polished smile.

The rest of us also placed a drink order, and Mary flitted off to procure them. We waited in silence for her to pass them out and retreat to her station behind the cockpit for takeoff. It was only once we’d leveled off in the air and my stomach had done about twelve backflips that Brielle leaned in and waved the others over.

All four of my packmates were out of their seats and huddled around in seconds, eager to hear what she had to say.

“So, I think I had a vision or something? I’m not sure how else to describe it.”

“Like the dream walking from the wine?” Shay asked.

“No, I was still aware. It was almost like a… download? Like a bunch of information poured into my brain all at once. I could still see and hear. It was just overwhelming.”

“Your eyes turned completely white,” Kane said, worry edging his words.

She squeezed his hand and gave him a tight smile. “I’m surethat was scary, but it didn’t hurt, I promise.” She sucked in a fortifying breath, and nerves danced through me.

“Just spit it out, Bri,” I begged, the tension killing me. Now wasn’t the time for deep thought. I just wanted her to tell me what the heck was on my palm.

“Sorry, it’s just surreal. That”—she pointed to my palm, and then Olivia’s—“is the omega seal.”

Olivia’s face blanched white as a sheet, and she fell back against her seat in shock. She didn’t know that Briellewasan omega, so she was probably shitting herself right about now.

Not that I wasn’t. I totally was.

“What the fuck is that?” I blurted, unable to control my motor mouth in times of stress. And you could definitely say I was stressed right now.

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