Page 25 of The Alpha King's Fate

“I know you’re there! Let me out! What are you going to do? Are you going to kill me, Layla?” Britney screamed.

He sensed a lot of anger and agitation from the young girl instead of the fear and anxiety he expected after such a revelation.

Layla linked her arm through his and turned him to head back down the stairs. Her panic ramped up a lot.

“Let’s hurry,” she said.

“I take it the talk didn’t go as planned?” he asked, allowing her to lead him away.

“She... You were right. I should have waited,” Layla said.

He paused on the steps to look at her face. She was keeping something from him. He could sense it in their bond and see it in the guilty look on her face.

“What happened, Layla?”

“Nothing,” she said again with a bright smile.

And it occurred to him that it was the same smile she gave him only days before when she promised not to leave him. Was that a lie, too?

He couldn’t stop the lead that settled in his stomach as his mate led him to see their daughter.

Chapter 12

Layla landed hard on her elbow, knocking the wind out of herself for the millionth time. And for the millionth time, Jax rushed over to help her back to her feet.

“I’m fine,” she said through her teeth.

“You’re not fine. You’re distracted. I look like I’m beating up my mate,” Jax growled. “Do you want to do this or not?”

“Of course, I want to do this,” she snapped, pushing him off and testing the movement in her arm. The pain had already subsided.

She looked around the field and saw several trainees sitting around the perimeter, watching her make a fool of herself. They were probably regretting putting their faith in her now. She’d been crap for the last couple of hours, and if it weren’t for her sleeping wolf, she would have bled all over the place.

“Then stop fucking around and get your head in the game,” Jax growled before he walked back to his side.

He’d been angry with her since they got back. She didn’t know if it was because he’d figured out that Britney was a little scam artist or if it was about the messenger. He’d told her it was nothing, but she wasn’t sure.

“I’m not fucking around,” she growled back.

“Then take me fucking down.”

Jax lowered into a fighting stance, his gaze hard as he waited for her to make a move. It was how he used to look at her before he admitted he was in love with her. The longer she stared at him, the more she felt the distance that somehow formed between them, and she hated that. She wasn’t supposed to worry about her relationship; they had much bigger problems than that.

But still, she felt her frustration with him well up inside her as she readied herself to attack. The things she wanted to say to him whirled in her head until she wasn’t sure if she was angry or just frustrated.

Her fists clenched at her sides as she focused on him the way he’d taught her. She heard the steady beating of his heart and tuned out all the unnecessary sounds around them. She watched the drops of sweat roll down the side of his face as if everything had become slow motion. She saw his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed.

It was a bright afternoon—not a shadow anywhere on the field—yet she felt like the shadows were still calling her somehow. Her feet felt lighter as she wriggled her toes in the grass.

One second she was standing across the makeshift ring from Jax, and the very next, her fist almost connected with his face. Jax’s brows rose as if she surprised him, but she didn’t give him a chance to counterattack. She whirled around and wrapped her arm around his neck as she wrapped her legs around him to keep him in place.

But because she was fighting a beast, she didn’t have a real chance to secure her hold. Jax rolled and untangled himself, so she ended up on her back with him between her legs.

He looked down at her mouth, heat flaring up instantly.

But how dare he assume she would give in to him when he’d acted like such a dick?

Or maybe he didn’t assume that because he rolled off her and stood before she could push him off.

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