Page 47 of My Ruthless Alpha

When I finally reached my feet, my legs felt unsteady beneath me, and my whole body was rippling with adrenaline. I so badly wanted to run more than anything, but I couldn’t just leave. Margo was upstairs, and I knew I had to protect her above all else.

Colton stopped a few feet away from us as he sized me up, then Miles. As if deciding he wasn’t much of a threat, he chuckled. “I’m the alpha this one ran away from…but now I’m here to collect her while your ignorant friends are distracted.”

I didn’t know what he meant at first, but the pieces clicked together, and my brows furrowed. “What did you do?”

He grinned in satisfaction. “I just sent some guys out to the bar to make sure they’re preoccupied…. I can’t have those meatheads coming here and interrupting our reunion, can I?”

Miles glanced between us nervously while I grappled with the overwhelming emotions coursing through me, and he moved subtly to put some space between me and Colton. He gave him a hard look. “It doesn’t matter what you’ve done…you’re not taking her anywhere.”

A satisfied yet vaguely irritated look moved through Colton’s features. “And what, you’re going to stop me?”

Miles gritted his teeth and took on a more defensive stance. “I’ll damn well try.”

Panic moved through me, aware of the precarious position we were both in.

With Beau still at the bar with the others, only the two of us were here to defend ourselves and Margo. It wouldn’t have been too unevenly matched if Colton weren’t an alpha. That and Hunter’s size and raw strength, despite him being a beta, put them at an even greater advantage.

But looking at them both, I didn’t like our odds. I also didn’t like that Miles’ life was being put on the line just because he happened to be there.

“Nobody has to do anything,” I said, taking on a hint of desperation I couldn’t quite hide. “Just go before Beau comes back.”

Colton chuckled at that and shook his head. “You don’t need to worry about that, Faye. I’m sure he’s well and truly distracted. Bar’s can get quite busy on a Friday night, hm?”

Narrowing my eyes at him, I didn’t like what he was implying. More than that, I was afraid that his confidence wasn’t misplaced.

“Whatever you try and pull, he will find you regardless.”

“He can try, just like his little bro here, right?” Colton grinned, stepping forward again. “Now I’m finished with talking…let’s go, Faye.”

My heart felt like it was in my throat, and every part of me was screaming to run away as fast as I physically could.

But Miles swung before I could try and de-escalate anything.

He clipped Colton in the jaw, forcing his head to the side. With a sigh, he looked back down at the smaller shifter, expression sour as he wiped the side of his mouth. “I see…you think you’re a big man, do you? Come on, hit me again.”

Miles clenched his teeth at Colton’s taunts and swung again, but the latter grabbed his fist before he could and twisted his arm back.

“Now, now. Didn’t your brother teach you any kind of restraint?”

With an irritated grunt, Miles withstood the pain inflicted upon him. “No…but he taught me to be opportunistic.”

As Colton’s expression dropped slightly, Miles sank his teeth into his forearm and crunched down.

Surprised, his eyes widened, but he was quick to grab Miles by the back of the neck and yank him off to expose the bloodied marks his teeth left behind. He hissed in pain before gripping him tighter as he sneered at him.

“You wanna try your luck? We’ll see how much you can take then.”

Miles bared his teeth in response, fighting to get out of his grip to no avail. He was quick and feisty, but there was no denying how much bigger and stronger Colton was as he kept his solid hold on him.

Unable to stand and watch while Colton started retaliating against him, I rushed over and tried to get him off.

“Leave him alone!” I snapped, scratching at his arm.

But Hunter was on me before I could cause any real damage. He grabbed both my arms and hoisted me up to pull me away from the fight. His grip was hard and unyielding, and it made my chest ache, knowing I couldn’t break free from it regardless of how I squirmed and tried to fight against him.

I didn’t want Miles to suffer because of me, and every punch Colton delivered, putting him in his place, made my skin go cold.

“Stop—leave him—”

---