Page 10 of Alpha's Unclaimed Mate

I continue scrolling through messages on my phone. I think I know what she’s on about, but I refuse to play ball.

Suddenly, her hand shoots out, grabbing my wrist like a damn vise, making me turn to her.

“That stunt with the girl in the gold dress,” Vanessa starts, her voice low and tight. “Why?”

I shrug off her grip and put my phone away, my mind still tangled in the night’s events. I check the locks of the car and let out a sigh, readying myself for another round of pointless interrogation.

“I thought we were building something real here, Theron. Not some act for everyone else’s benefit.”

Her sincerity catches me off guard, the tremor in her voice making my muscles tense. I didn’t sign up for this. “It sounds like you want to be my keeper. But that’s not how I roll,honey.” I purposely use her favorite word, enunciating it in a way I hope will make her stop using it on me.

She lets out a humorless laugh. I almost feel bad for her, but then she reaches up and brushes a finger down my jaw, making me jerk away from her touch.

“What do you want?” I don’t bother keeping my voice down. My fingers tighten around the steering wheel, my knuckles turning white.

“She left her mark on you, Theron,” she whispers. “She did it on purpose. She wanted me to find it, I’m guessing.”

I lock eyes with Vanessa, my gaze hardening. “Look, Vanessa, this isn’t a big deal. It’s business as usual. You know the game. You’re playing it too.”

She growls, and I can tell she’s holding back her wolf. “I’ve spent years building my image and making connections so I can be a good match for someone like you.”

I shrug my shoulders. “So? I never asked for that. Never asked for you, either. Do you hear me complaining?”

“Complaining?” Her voice is suddenly an octave higher. “I’m busting my butt building connections for you. While you were doing your thing with that girl, I spent time with the Moonstone pack’s alpha and luna. For you. And this is how you repay me?”

Sighing, I glance at her and notice the hurt in her eyes, but they only remind me of the gorgeous hazel ones at home. The ones that look at me with hope and silent questions, but never complain. My throat tightens.

“We both know the game, V,” I say, softly this time. “But if you aren’t up for it, you need to take it up with your father.”

Her gaze narrows. I can sense her frustration, but I know she can’t say no. But I can’t be the one making compromises for her.

“I’m all in for this, for whatever we have going on. But disrespect? That’s not part of the deal.” Her voice carries a note of finality.

My alpha ceremony is just around the corner, and I don’t want to unbalance the apple cart. But there’s no way I’m promising things to Vanessa that I know I won’t be able to give.

I push my foot to the pedal, picking up speed on the empty highway. Two hours later, the car rolls to a stop in front of Vanessa’s sleek cabin and she steps out without a word or a backward glance. That works for me.

I drive a few hundred meters before rolling all the windows down to clear out the vanilla-scented air. Relief floods my lungs, pushing away the stifling weight of the evening.

Instead of zipping straight down the main road, I take the longer route home, checking in the rearview mirror to see if that stupid woman’s mark is still visible on my face.

She so wasn’t worth the trouble, especially since I didn’t even get to reach my high.

Guilt coils in my insides. It only exacerbates when I’m driving up the hill and notice the light still on in Seren’s window, haloed around the lonely figure pressed to the side. She probably fell asleep there hours ago. It’s three in the morning.

Fuck! I hate this.

Why does she always do this? She makes me out to be the bad guy, when it’s all her fault.

This is the reason I stayed away for three years. She makes me feel like a criminal.

Just as the estate’s iron gates come into view, I decide to turn at the last minute. The tires screech on the concrete, the noise echoing in the otherwise silent night. I drive around aimlessly until I spot the lake, where I can escape the night’s chaos.

I park by the edge, strip off my clothes, and plunge into the freezing water. The water feels like a thousand damn needles stabbing me, but hell if it isn’t working. The bitter cold washes away the stench of the evening that hangs on me like cheap perfume.

Knowing my wolf would love this, I call him repeatedly, but the stubborn jerk refuses to show up.

I can only stand a few minutes before swimming back to shore. I refuse to plead with Titan until he makes an appearance.Instead, I grab the bottle of Everclear from the car, along with the blunt I swiped from Phil.

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