Page 12 of Cruel Alpha Daddy

I’ve deliberately ignored everything he said. The majority of the pack wants to get out of a life of crime, and this is not the time to call a meeting to clear it up.

Fiona is the only thing that matters to me, and I want Tobias to understand she’smine.

Tobias frowns and shakes his head. “You never cared about having a woman before. Like, ever. It seems strange you’d decide to do it today. Are you scared Bailey’s going to come after you if we drop her corpse in his territory?”

I don’t hesitate. My fist flies out, and I smash him in the jaw so hard, he stumbles back. While he’s staggering, I spin and kick him in the guts, using all the strength in my body. Tobias is thrown off his feet to land on the ground with enough force that his bones crack. The heel of my boot is on his throat before he can react.

“Bailey better fucking come for her!” I yell. “Because she’s mine! I claimed her, and she’s my property now. I’ll fight anyone that tries to get in my way, and I’ll fucking kill you if you even look at her sideways. Got it?”

Tobias glares at me, and I slowly lean forward, crushing his throat with my heel. His buddies don’t even twitch—none of them want to take me on. They remember how I fought in all of Jethro’s little games. I flogged Tobias more than once.

“Okay,” Tobias croaks. “I got it.”

I jam my heel down just a little more, letting him know I could break his neck if I wanted to. Then I step back and let him up.

“If you think I did this to avoid trouble with Bailey, then fine, fucking believe it,” I say, my voice harsh. “But the truth is,she is the tastiest little piece I’ve ever seen, and the only she-wolf I’ve ever wanted to own.”

Well, that’s the truth at least.

Tobias nods, rubbing his throat as he shuffles away with his cronies. I head to the main cookfire and grab a plate of potatoes and roast meat to take back to Fiona.

It’s more important than ever to keep her inside my tent. Making her my property keeps her safe, but it could also make her a target if Tobias decides to go after me.

I slip through the tent flap, looking around for Fiona. She’s turned on one of the lamps and is sitting on a pile of cushions near the table. She still looks sad, but at least she’s stopped crying.

“I brought you some food,” I say, walking over and putting it on the table. I deliberately stay out of her space, sitting on the floor at the opposite end of the low bench. We don’t have real chairs, only a few fold-up ones, and my bed is just a camp bed. I usually end up sleeping on the floor.

We move around so much, having actual furniture is a burden.

I used to enjoy living like this, but now I can’t help wondering what it would be like to have a house, a real home that’s all mine. In the past, the idea felt like confinement, but under the right circumstances, it could be a comfort.

And safety, security, and hope.

“Are you okay?” I ask Fiona, knowing she isn’t, but I have to break the silence somehow.

She turns her head and glares at me. Her eyes are such a deep blue, they look black in the low light. Her face is fierce and determined.

This is not the sweet girl I left in Delta all those years ago.

“Do you think I’m alright?” she snaps. “I got kidnapped, nearly violated, then forced into marriage. How is any of this okay?”

I swallow hard. “Look, I did what I had to do. Even though I’m trying to make changes, this pack is still unstable. Claiming you as my own was the only way to keep them off you.”

“You have to let me go,” she whispers, her face softening a little. “Please, you don’t understand.”

“I can’t,” I mutter. “The rest of the pack will shred me.”

That, and I can’t bear to lose you. Not again.

“Just pretend I escaped,” she says.

“I’d look fucking incompetent!” I answer, my voice rising. “You just don’t get it.”

“No, you don’t get it!” she yells, standing up. “I have to get back!”

“Why?” I shout, standing to face up with her. “What is so fucking important?”

She hesitates for a moment, and I see something flicker in her eyes. “My life!” she says, lowering her voice. “I have a good life in Silver Meadows. One I built for myself after you left me!”

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