Page 24 of Rogue Games

Wyatt narrows his eyes and shakes his head.

WYATT: Don’t do it.

He knows better than to expect me to listen. He may be bigger, but we’re equals. His commands register as no more than an enthusiastic suggestion and do nothing to sway me from my plans.

WYATT: We should be thankful we got in and made it through this evening without getting into a fight with anyone. Don’t push our luck.

I wave away his concern and point upstairs, telling him to go ahead.

With a frustrated shake of his head, he turns to join me, always my protective shadow, but I raise my hand.

JAMIE: We can’t risk both of us getting kicked out. We need you to actually win. You go to bed, and I’ll see what I can find.

WYATT: This is a bad idea.

The best ones always seem that way at first.

JAMIE: His office is down there. I’ll make sure to steer clear.

The alpha’s office and boardroom are on one side of the property. He’ll be stewing down there, sulking over the shifter invasion he doesn’t want and was probably forced into by Blake Steel. I’ll stick to the other wing.

Wyatt rolls his eyes, but does as I say, continuing up the stairs, his hand trailing along the polished wooden bannister, making sure to leave an obvious scent trail, so hopefully, anyone looking for us will assume we’ve both gone to our rooms.

As I stand there, waiting for him to disappear from sight, I smile at a young girl hurrying past with a tray of soft drinks.

“Excuse me,” I say politely. “May I ask you something?”

She practically skids to a halt halfway down the hall, and I hear her heartbeat faster as I walk toward her. I feel bad now, forgetting once more that these wolves aren’t used to outsiders, let alone rogues. I should be more conscious of that.

“I didn’t mean to startle you. I just…”

The girl stares up at me, wide-eyed, and I give her my kindest, most gentle smile. It feels a bit rusty.

Her apron says Ava, so I run with that. “Ava, do you like it here?”

She narrows her eyes, immediately suspicious.

“It’s just… I wondered whether many people left after the old alpha passed. Looking for a fresh start or a change of scenery. It must be hard to stay somewhere with so many… memories.”

Ava’s expression softens, and she smiles back. “You’ll see for yourself tomorrow. There is nowhere more beautiful than Silver Creek.”

The urge to disagree with her is immediate. She’s never been anywhere else. Of course, she thinks it’s lovely. But there’s no point arguing with a brainwashed teenager.

“And as for the old alpha…” Ava bites her lip and dips her head, looking around to make sure nobody’s listening. My pulse quickens. Maybe she’s going to tell me something useful. “Once Graham was dead, there was no reason to leave.”

She just smiles at me, completely openly, no guile or deceit in her body language or scent that I can detect. She’s not holding back out of fear, either.

Huh. How about that? She really loves it here.

“But what about Dean? He seems a bit… you know, grumpy.” I make it sound like I’m teasing, and she laughs along.

“Dean’s the best.” Her expression goes all dreamy as she thinks about her handsome alpha. “I think he started that rumour so people would leave him alone. But he’s been nothing less than incredible since he took over. Don’t worry, it’s safe here now.”

It’s clear she has a little crush, and I don’t blame her. He may be a jerk, but he’s a good-looking one. No woman could deny how attractive he is.

I want to ask more, but I’m nervous about being too obvious, so I hold back.

“Thanks Ava.” I smile and nod, allowing the teenager to go back to her duties with an uneasy feeling in my gut.

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