Page 18 of Cursed
Ryland smirks. “And what if I don’t agree to these terms?”
Bade picks that moment to chime in, “She’s scared!”
Still angry from the whole-body takeover, Ryland yells at him. “Shut! Up!”
Nori looks down at the table of remaining food and around the room. Slowly, she shifts her eyes back to the Prince. “Well, I would thank you for the shower and the truly excellent food. Then, I would ask that you take me back to the dungeon with that crazy-eyed Rogue, or maybe send me on my way to a Pack that maybe won’t care where I come from. Are there any Packs that might take me in without knowing my history? Or maybe I’ll hang with the humans for a while.”
Ryland leans forward. “That is a lot of maybes.”
Bade’s voice is loud and insistent in his head. “Don’t you dare let her leave! We need to protect our Mate.”
He leans back again and sighs at the ceiling. He can’tbelieve how attached Bade is already. He considers her request. What could it hurt to promise not to kill her or send her back to her Pack? When she rejects him, he can help her get settled in any number of Packs.
Ryland mulls over these thoughts for a moment. Then it hits him. Of course, this is the reason she has not rejected him. She’s in trouble, and he’s in a position of great importance and can easily help her if he chooses to do so.
He looks at Nori and sighs heavily. “Alright, I’ll agree to your terms.”
Nori tilts her head. “I have your word?”
Trying not to sound irritated, Ryland says, “Yes. Now, who are you?”
She nods sadly, and Aylin tries to comfort her. “It’ll be alright. No matter what, it will be alright.”
Tears form in Nori’s eyes, and she buries her face in her hands as her breath hitches. She wonders if he’ll actually keep his word when she tells him the truth. Is there any way to avoid answering his very direct questions? At this moment, she really hates Rule #2, but she knows what will happen if she doesn’t answer.
Ryland leans forward with his arms on the table and says softly, “It can’t be that bad.”
Nori laughs and wipes the tears from her face, straightening her shoulders, and says, “Right.” She looks at the Prince and says, “My—”
Aylin sounds the alarm in Nori’s head. “She-Wolf!”
Nori’s head whips to the doors moments before they burst open. In swoops a woman so beautiful that she’s hard to look at.
Ryland growls at the interruption. The she-wolf was just about to tell him her name. He looks at her and notices that she practically jumps out of her skin at the intrusion. Her heart is beating a mile a minute. Ryland realizes that Bade was right. She is terrified.
“Calm down. It’s only my very nosy younger sister.”
Turning his head toward his sister, Ryland says as sarcastically as he can, “Adele, how good of you to join us, uninvited.”
Adele takes in the scene of her brother and the wide-eyed she-wolf sitting at the table. She flips her hair out of her face. “So, the rumors are true. You do have a female in your room. You haven’t run across a new Mate in years, Ry. How lucky for you.” Her tone is also dripping with sarcasm.
Garek runs in right after her, looking contrite. “Sorry, Ry. I did try to stop her, but she is fucking slippery.” He pours himself a drink, takes a seat at the table, and stares at Nori. “You look better without all that mud.”
Ryland shakes his head, thinking of all the ways he’s going to kill them later.
Adele plops down in a side chair, putting her feet up on the ottoman like she owns the place. She gives Nori a once-over and flippantly says, “She’s awfully thin, Ry. Is she waiting for the dessert course before rejecting the Bond?”
Nori studies Adele, admiring her thick, long, jet-black hair. Adele is the picture of an Alpha’s sister. She looks strong and confident, wearing expensive and stylish clothes—brown leather pants with tall boots, and a flowy white blouse paired with a tight leather vest, accentuating her large breasts. But her most striking feature is her big blue eyes—strange for a wolf with dark hair. She is in a whole other league than Nori.
With a heavy sigh, Ryland briefly thinks maybe the she-wolf is actually waiting until after the meal. He looks at his temporary Mate, who still has a death grip on the table, and says again, “Relax.”
Nori nods, takes a deep breath, and releases the table. She keeps her hands up in case she needs to grab the knife, in defense, of course. Not that she’s ever fought with anyone before.
Aylin chimes in, “They are very familiar with the Alpha.”
Nori responds to her with a slight shrug. “I guess this is how families behave? I don’t know.”
Adele continues her assessment of Nori. “This one looks like a little mouse, Ry.” She focuses her penetrating gaze on Nori. “Do us a favor, little mouse, and reject my brother already. We have better things to do than wait around while you drag your feet.”
