Page 18 of Stealing Sloane

But he didn’t exactly have a choice anymore.

“Er, I have to make a call.”

“Yeah. But, uh …” Cliff glanced around sheepishly. “I just want you to be the first to know, before we leave, I’m going to ask Stella’s parents for her hand in marriage.”

“Old fashioned—they’ll love it.” He chuckled and patted his cousin’s shoulder. “Good luck, though I don’t think you’ll get an objection.”

“Yeah, thanks, man.”

Giving him a thumbs-up, Jacob turned and walked out of the living room and closed the door behind him. With a deep, calming breath, he dialed a number from his list of contacts.

“Acme Grill and Cafe, you kill ’em, we cook ’em, how can I help you?”

“Cut the crap, Lizzie,” he groaned. “You know it’s me.”

“What’s up, baby bro?” His older sister, Lizzie had answered with a laugh.

He groaned inwardly. “You know I’m like, a foot taller and have a hundred pounds on you, right?”

“Yeah, but you’ll always be the baby,” she teased. “Anyway, to what do I owe the honor of a phone call?”

“I need your help.”

“Oh my.Moi? You need my help?”

He could practically hear the glee in her voice. “Look, this is serious. If you’re gonna be an ass about this?—”

“I’m not.” She paused. “All right, what do you need?”

“I need a meeting with the Alpha. Well, not me, but for Devon’s twin sisters.” He gave her a short summary of what he told Sloane.

“That’s it?” She clucked her tongue. “Sure, when do you want to see him?”

“Today.”

“All right, done.”

He frowned. “That’s it? You’re not going to torture me?”

“Do you want me to?” She cackled. “But hey, Stella and Devon are family now, I’d do anything for them.”

“Thanks, Liz.” He breathed a sigh of relief.

“Sure thing, baby bro. Now let me make a call and I’ll get back to you.”

“Bye, Liz.” Jacob slipped the phone back into his pocket.

Well, that wasn’t as bad as I’d thought.

It wasn’t that he hated Lizzie, but she was always a pain to deal with—nosey, demanding, and forever getting into his business. He didn’t want her asking a ton of questions, like who Sloane was to him and why he wanted to stop her from going after Forte.

Because if he were honest, he didn’t know the answer; but if something did happened to her, he would never forgive himself.

His wolf let out a growl, as if to say it wouldn’t forgive him either.

He scrubbed a hand down his face. Surely once he heard Sloane’s story, the Alpha would agree to bring a case against Forte. That bastard was a murderer, plus, he’d turned an innocent young girl into a criminal. It made his blood boil, thinking of how he’d used Sloane. He almost wished the Alphawoulddeny their request, so he could get his hands on the asshole himself. Though he told Sloane he’d help her go after Forte, putting him away was the best way to get justice and keep her safe.

Once the Alpha agreed to help them, he could finally wash his hands of the smart-ass she-wolf.