Page 106 of Alpha's Impostor Bride

My attention turns back to Finn, and when he makes one final attempt, I snap my teeth inches from his nose. That makes him stop. He stares up at me, and then his ears finally go flat in submission. Having made my point, I release him. He rubs against me once before trotting off to his mother, who licks him lovingly. But when Leanna meets my gaze, I see a reluctant understanding. She finally knows what I meant when I told her that he needs a more dominant wolf in his life.

As we reach the woods surrounding the palace, we are met by Erik’s soldiers. They patrol the trees to prevent both humans and wolves from entering the palace grounds or accessing the area where the Veil is. We shift back to our human forms, and it doesn’t take us much longer to get to the palace, where an office space has been set up for my mate.

“Can I go play outside?” Finn asks eagerly.

“Sure,” Leanna agrees. “But stick to the grounds, and don’t cross the lake. I want you to stay within earshot. If I call, you’d better answer.”

Finn nods, bouncing around the room that overlooks the lavish palace gardens.

“Derrick will watch him. He’s outside.”

Leanna jerks at my words. “Derrick? But—”

“He won’t let anything happen to our son,” I say gruffly. “Unless he wants to lose his ability to produce his own children at some point.” Finn is already climbing out the window, and I grab him by the back of the shirt without so much as a look. “Are you okay with that?”

My eyes are on Leanna.

This is new. I’ve never asked anybody for permission in my life. But Leanna holds more power over me in her small fist than anyone ever has. She says she was desperate to please me eight years ago, to survive. Now the roles have reversed. I’m at risk of losing my family, and there’s nothing I won’t do to keep her and my son.

Leanna nods, and I point out Derrick to Finn. “See the man standing there, near the gazebo?”

Dangling one foot off the ground due to my grip on the back of his shirt, Finn nods.

“He’ll be watching you.”

“I don’t need a babysitter!” he protests.

“I say you do.”

“Mom!”

“He’s your father’s friend.” Leanna turns her attention to the files stacked before her. “Do what he says and behave yourself.”

“I always behave myself,” Finn mutters. “Fine. Can I go now?”

I release him, and he bounds out the window, shifting in mid-air. Once we’re alone, Leanna gazes at me. “I’ll be working here with Cassian for a while. What are you going to do?”

“I have something to discuss with Erik.”

Her lips part as if she wants to say something, but she hesitates. “Okay. I’ll be here.”

Her voice is soft and hesitant. I wish I could ask her what she wanted to say, but there is a wall between us, and I’m starting to think I may never be able to cross it.

Erik is in his office.

I’ve been in this marbled room with its high ceilings and large windows before. He’s pacing, his lean, muscled body hidden under one of the ridiculous suits that he likes wearing so much. He sees me and holds up a finger, a phone pressed to his ear. He’s speaking in another language, arguing with someone.

I lean against the door jamb, hands in my pockets, waiting for him to be done.

The tension in his voice is rising with each word, and at one point, he slams his fist against the wall. That has me raising my eyebrows. Erik is not a man who is easily rattled. He’s normally extremely cunning and dangerously calm, even in the face of potential death.

I would know.

Before his brother’s disappearance, Erik was the commander of the Human Wolf Kingdom’s army. The Human Wolf Kingdom and the North have always shared a good relationship, and Erik battled the monsters at the Veil with me several times when we needed reinforcements. I’ve seen him fight in both human and wolf form. He’s unflinching, the masterful control he has over his temper making him a terrifying opponent.

He doesn’t have warrior blood like me, but he fights just as viciously and relentlessly.

When he ends the call, I ask, “What was that about?”

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