Page 39 of The Alpha's Stolen Mate

My father wouldn’t even listen to me. I had another plan to protect our pack that I’d been working on, but he wouldn’t let me get a word in edgewise.

Eventually, the adrenaline in my body wore out, and my head injury took a toll on me. I went back into the hospital and rode the elevator up to the second floor. I’d already arranged to stay in an unoccupied room on this floor with the hospital staff. Even though I lived within three miles of my compound’s hospital, I wanted to spend the night in the same place as Summer and our son.

After a quick shower, I lay down in bed, wincing at the sharp pain at the back of my head. Just as I was closing my eyes, my phone vibrated on the wooden bedside table. I almost ignored it, but it could be Healer Nia with news about Summer. What if her injuries were worse than Healer Nia originally thought?

Anxiety coursed through me like a drug as I checked my phone. It was a message from my father.

I just got off the phone with King Ezekiel. You and Olivia will be married in two weeks at the king's castle. Please, Son. Do this to protect your pack. Do this for me.

My body burned with rage.

How could he make those kinds of arrangements without telling me? Didn't I have any choice in the matter? And how would Summer react if she found out about this? If the situation were reversed and I discovered that she was arranged to be married to someone else after everything we’d been through, my heart would shatter all over again, and I'd want to find the guy and kill him.

Was this how Summer felt when her parents wanted to spread the rumor of her illness? She'd mentioned that it was their idea, not hers. A fresh wave of guilt washed over me as I remembered Summer's panicked face from the night I broke the bond.

I stuffed my phone under my pillow and put it on silent, knowing that the message would still be there in the morning.

Chapter Thirteen: Accommodations

Summer POV

“Momma!” Grayson cried and scrambled onto my lap. I was sitting on one of the chairs in my hospital room.

I held him close, burying my face in his wavy hair. He still smelled the same as the day he was born. My heart pounded in relief at having him in my arms again. It was the morning after Axel bit me, and it had only been one night since I’d seen my son, but it had seemed like years.

I kissed the top of his head and squeezed him tightly, the scar on my shoulder screaming in protest. I could look past the pain because I had my son in my arms again.

“The moment he woke up, he was asking for you,” my aunt said from my hospital room’s doorway.

She was smiling, but her forehead was lined with worry for her brother. My aunt and dad didn’t look alike at first glance. Her hair was light brown, and when she was in the sun, there was a red tint to it. My dad was six feet tall, and my aunt barely reached five feet. But I noticed their similarities in their expressions. They were both easy to read. If I wanted to know what they were thinking, all I had to do was study their faces and body language.

“Thank you for watching him,” I said to my aunt.

She inclined her head and her smile faded.

“How are you feeling, Mommy?” my son asked and pulled away to examine my face. “Grandma said that you were hurt, but not as bad as Grandpa.”

“I feel fine, sweetheart. I just needed a night to rest up,” I said, still holding onto him, not ready to let go.

Aunt Mia and Grayson had showered and changed. After Healer Nia had cleared me to be discharged from her care early this morning, my mother had brought my green duffel bag from the Jeep. After I cleaned myself up and dressed in my own clothes, it was a relief. I’d only been in this hospital room for one night, but I was more than ready to leave.

“Have you eaten breakfast?” I asked Grayson.

“Yep.” He nodded and jumped off my lap. “Can we go see Grandpa now? That’s where Grandma is.”

A loaded look passed between my aunt and me.

“Did you see him last night?” I asked her, standing up from the chair and stretching.

“Just for a moment,” my aunt answered, and her face crumpled with sadness. “It's…” She swallowed, her voice thick with emotion. “A lot to take in all at once.”

“Do you think…” I glanced over at Grayson, who had taken out his toy soldier and was playing with it in the corner of the room.

“I think Grayson should see him,” my aunt said quietly, guessing what I'd been implying. “Just so he can better understand if…”

Now, she was the one to trail off. But I silently filled in what she was too afraid to say.

If the worst happens and my father dies.

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