Page 100 of A University of Betrayal

Except for the little disagreement a month ago and his stupid comment about my mother, for which I would still like to beat him black and blue.

“Indeed.” I stopped and looked at him firmly. “And you should know that the rumor mill is the spiciest.”

Hunter stepped back with dismissive hands. “Never mind.” I turned away from him to keep walking. “Then it seems Emely’s descriptions are also just...rumors.”

I narrowed my eyes and quickened my pace. “I’m all ears.”

“I was surprised you wanted Nash’s opinion first and not hers, since you seem to be so important to her.”

I wheeled around quickly. The look on my face was probably one of bewilderment.

Had I really been that blind?

“If she means as much to you, you should join the pack.”

Emely and the pack.Two inseparable things. That was the problem.

“I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” I grumbled, displeased that I hadn’t just gone to Mia.

“You may be right.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

Hunter sighed. “She is to be married.”

A few seconds passed before I burst out laughing. “You make good jokes. I’ll give you that.”

He grabbed my shoulder and I paused.

“I’m not joking.” His expression darkened. “You know exactly how it works with us.”

“But Emely is just the sister of the future…”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“It doesn’t make any sense.”

It really didn’t. Nickolas would never do anything like that to his daughter. He wasn’t a dominant father. Sometimes, I even had the feeling that he had already completely forgotten about Emely. And now he wanted a marriage for her? With whom anyway?

“Don’t question the Alpha’s decisions,” he pressed out.

I raised my eyebrows. “Don’t you do the same?”

He narrowed his eyes, seemed to be fighting something inside. And I knew it was the bond with the Alpha. This bond was currently putting him in an extremely dangerous inner conflict.

Although an Alpha didn’t know when his pack members doubted him or disagreed with him, it was harder for them to misstep in the first place because the Alpha bond gave them something like a mild migraine.

Somehow, though, Hunter managed to stay focused on me.

“That’s the reason you have more chance of changing anything about Emely’s fate.”

He sounded like he cared about her. Like her life was at stake. Like itreallyhadn’t been a joke…

“If that’s what Nickolas has decided...” he began. “There’s nothing anyone can do about it except join the games.”

“Games?”Anger rose in me. “You’replayingfor her hand?” I pressed out in disbelief.

Hunter’s eyes narrowed into slits. “I’d do anything to keep her from being married to a stranger and disappearing, even if it meant taking part in the games.”

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