Page 106 of The Beta's Heart

“Sounds great!” Grace said with a grin. “I like hanging out with Peri.”

“Yeah,Peri, notyou,” Lan laughed and shoved my shoulder playfully.

Ty-Ty, Q here!River suddenly piped up, his tail wagging, but then it dropped.Uh-oh. Him got dah grumps.

“Yeah, he’s in a bit of a temper,” Lan muttered, then grinned at me. “Well,beta, since you’re higher ranking than me, looks like you’re his opponent today. Go say hi.”

“Any idea what set him off?” I grunted.

“Apparently, Lark wanted him to take her for a run this morning, but he told her no. That made Lark a little sad, and Q’s tail has been in a knot ever since.”

“Why didn’t he just go for a run with her?” Grace asked.

“Doesn’t want to take the slightest risk while those beta triplets are still visiting from Russia. I can’t wait until they leave tomorrow!” Lan scowled. “Then again, if they keep up their antics, we might have only three dead bodies to load on their plane.”

I nodded in agreement.

I did not like those triplets.

I did not like them one little bit.

King Modest of the Russian Kingdom had sent them on his private plane to collect a valuable Lamborghini that Dad had restored for him, and they became thorns in everyone’s sides the second they disembarked.

They were traveling as much as possible to look for their mate, which I could understand, but their minds were filthy and their mouths filthier. Gamma Adam Bishop—who was as mild as a lamb off the field—had picked them up from our airport the day they arrived, and he’d nearly shut them up permanently when they asked if he had any sisters, the younger the better, since they didn’t sense their mate at Five Fangs.

All this week, they hassled any she-wolf who crossed their path, including Landry’s older sister, Olivia. When I told Peri about them so she’d know to steer clear, she shook her head and frowned.

“Some people are just beautifully wrapped boxes of bullshit. You be careful, too, baby. Assholes don’t hesitate to use anyone as their toilet paper.”

And my mate’s words proved true when the triplets somehow heard about River and poked at him anytime we crossed their path. I didn’t know why they were so set on making him go off, but Ididknow they’d be lucky to survive if they were successful.

The alphas had a talk with them, we betas had a talk with them, and the gammas had a talk with them. None of it made an impact, and there were quite a lot of us who couldn’t wait until they flew back to the Motherland tomorrow.

“Better get going,” Landry prodded my shoulder with his fingertips. “Before Q creates an international incident.”

I sighed. Jay’s wolf was tricky to handle when hedidn’thave ‘the grumps,’ as River called it. I’d have to find a few other shifters to help me offer Quartz enough of a fight to improve his day.

If I’d known that Em and Angelo were coming and bringing along Konstantin Russo, the half-dragon currently living with them, I would have been certain of it, but I didn’t learn that little fun fact until the fickle finger of fate had already flipped me off.

#

My first inkling that everything was about to go pear-shaped came when the Hall twins linked me as they were leaving the field.

Bro, there’s something going down between Misha Popov and those Russian triplets,Bowie said.

Don’t look good,Becks added.Put your butt in hustle gear, beta, because Bowie and me got to git to Combat Club.

I got it. Go ahead,I told them.

Watch yourself, man. You know they’ve been trying to get River to go off all week,Bowie gave me one last warning.

I won’t let them get my goat,I replied with determination, then closed the link because I’d arrived.

I didn’t know a lick of Russian, but from Misha’s red face and clenched fists, I knew the triplets were bedeviling him over something important and prayed it wasn’t about his late mate, Jeannie.

I broke through the circle of shifters, recognizing all of them, including Mike McFlynn, the head of the pack’s construction crew and Misha’s boss. I knew none of them spoke any more Russian than I did, but they had Misha’s back no matter what words were being tossed out, I was proud to see.

Quickly moving to stand in front of Misha, I faced the triplets, who laughed and gave each other fist bumps.

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