Page 51 of The Alpha Wolf's Pregnant Bride

“This is great, Alpha Cyrus,” Simon, the leader of Misty Creek, commends as he reads the address on the page. “We need to move fast.”

“We can't just rush in there,” I warn them, going on to explain how secure the compound is, with too many rogues surrounding the area.

From what I've gathered with the recent attack on my pack, the rogues have a good formation that seems to work. We have to work strategically to get Dorian out safely.

“How many soldiers do you have, Damian?” Theodore asks Dorian's brother. “Does Nightclaw have enough soldiers?”

“My brother's pack is very small,” Damian reveals about Nightclaw. “His pack wasn't prepared for the attack. That's why he was captured in the first place.”

“We're gonna have to round up everyone,” Simon says. “So far, Moon Shine, Blood Moon, and Blackmaw have the most experience fighting the rogues.”

Alpha Flynn nods his agreement. “With our special ops training and recruiting the younger wolves, Blood Moon is prepared for war,” Flynn says. “We're gonna have to come together and form a strategy to fight them.”

With all the Alphas in agreement, we decide to put our forces together and form a battalion of all our fighters to go towar with the rogues and extract Dorian from the warehouse in Wichita Falls.

The night drags on as we put our heads together, forging a plan of action and deciding on a schedule to come together for training. The soldiers in Dorian's pack are to be informed of our plans, and we decide to move in during the next full moon in two weeks.

It's when our inner wolves are the strongest, following the Moon Goddess's cycle of strength. Tensions are high, with Damian concerned about the time frame and worried that it's too long of a wait.

“Simon is right,” I tell Damian, who, for the first time, is really involved in getting his brother back.

I can only imagine that whatever beef they had before is long forgotten ever since Dorian was kidnapped. After all, they're brothers.Blood. A connection I don't fully understand because I have no siblings.

“... We can't afford to rush in without a proper plan of action,” I continue, glancing around the room and noting that everyone nods in agreement. “I fought those things, and they're no ordinary wolves. Barbaric and fast. A recipe for disaster.”

When all the Alphas are finally in agreement on our forthcoming plan, the meeting is dismissed, with each of us shouldering the weight of our responsibilities.

We're doing something that hasn't been done before. Up until a few months ago, the werewolf packs of the region could barely see eye to eye. Alpha Flynn's late older brother tried to rally the packs by making friends outside of his own.

Dorian Walker was his closest ally at the time, nine years ago when Finch was in line to become Blood Moon's Alpha.A freak accident involving rogue wolves took Finch's life and forced Flynn into stepping in as the leader of the pack.

Now, it seems that those rogues are back, almost a decade later, picking up where they left off by abducting Dorian.

But it's not like they're stopping with Nightclaw. Last night's attack on both Moon Shine and Blackmaw proves that the rogues have a more extensive agenda. We just don't know what it is yet.

Soon, we'll find out. Until then, we have a lot to prepare.

I make my way back home with that heaviness looming over me, knowing that my only consolation awaits me in the small town. For years, that town had been empty, void of any kind of solace, when the only one I ever anticipated seeing left Mysthaven.

Going back and forth between the town and city became a necessary routine. Between being the owner and CEO of Rudolph Inc. and the Alpha of the Moon Shine Pack, I'd adjusted to my duties. Yet, something was always amiss in my life.

That “something” came back and showed me that she was everything. For years, I dismissed the idea of being attracted to a she-wolf like Cassandra. I was in denial of the inevitable, pushing her away when all I wanted was to be near her.

Good Goddess! How wrong I was to think that those curves, that luscious body, couldn't induce the most thrilling experience of my life.

It's more than that, I realize as I pull into town and the tires crush over the gravel road leading toward Cassandra's cottage. The peace and tranquility I find whenever I'm around her has me forgetting about all my troubles and being present inthe moment where I can be free from the worldly qualms that plague me.

A gentle smile lifts my lips as I hop out and make my way toward her porch. A moment of regret passes when a thought crosses my mind—I should have brought flowers to extend my gratitude to her. Quickly slipping off to her backyard, I pluck a few daisies from the garden and pray that the gesture alone will suffice.

I don't know what's come over me except that I'm not who I was before. A changed man, perhaps, but the details don't matter right now. All that matters is getting to her. Even if it's almost the stroke of midnight, my inner wolf needs soothing. So does my heart.

“Cassie…?” I call out when the first round of knocks on her front door isn't answered. Frowning, I try the handle, surprised when I find it unlocked.

Of course it is, I chuckle bemusedly, stepping into the cozy cottage with a self-assured smirk. She must have been expecting my return, just as she did last night when I returned from the fight with the rogues, only to discover that the door was unlocked.

Flicking the light switch, the room becomes shrouded in soft, warm light, but an unwarranted cold shiver passes through my spine. The empty expanse of the living room is anything but warm, and panic sets in.

Did something happen to her? With a worried frown setting in like a permanent fixture on my face, I wander off toward Cassandra’s bedroom.

---