Page 76 of Waiting for Fate
I guide her further into the room, pausing every so often to greet someone I know. Networking like this will give Bea bigger opportunities within Soulbound as she grows into her manager role. One day we will see her promoted to executive manager. Leading the company into the future with her love of music and passion to help growing bands shine in the spotlight.
Making a loop back toward the bar in the front corner, I stumble over my feet when I see Jericho and his pack in the crowd ahead of us. Before I can steer us away, he glances up and sees me. His smile slips into a frown when his eyes fall on Bea beside me. They narrow back on me and I know I’ve been caught in the lie I spun that day at the bistro.
Steeling my spine, I join his pack, greeting his mates by name so Bea knows who they are. “Jericho, this is Miss Powell. One of our new managers at the label.” Glancing down at Bea, I add, “Jericho is my younger brother.”
“It’s lovely to meet you all,” Bea says with a strained smile. She swallows thickly, so I slip my arm from hers and step away with a muttered promise to return with drinks for us both.
Someone steps up beside me as I wait at the bar. I don’t have to look to the side to know it is Jericho. There is no way he was going to let me withholding information go so easily.
“So, you’ve finally met your mate?”
I choke, head whipping to glare at him. How the fuck-
“A few weeks ago, I went on an assignment to North Carolina with Lex Ferguson and Ridley Hale. While we were there, the DAU let both men knowtheir omegahad been in direct danger and relocated to your apartment for safekeeping until the attacker is caught.”
The bartender slides Bea’s and my drink across with a nod. I grab both and move to the side so we aren’t in the way of the other guests. “Allowing my employee to temporarily stay in my apartment means there is a connection between us?”
“No. Ridley seems to think there is, though. Before tonight, I wouldn’t have put much faith in his idea, but the way you look at her tells me everything.”
“And how do I look at her?”
“Like your heart would stop beating if she wasn’t in your arms.”
Scoffing, I stare out into the crowd. My gaze is naturally drawn to where she stands with my brother’s pack, laughing easily with his omega mate. “She can’t be mine, Jericho. You know what would happen if she was.”
“You’re an idiot.”
I scowl at his blunt response but brush it aside. We’re brothers. We grew up calling each other on our bullshit and fighting over everything under the sun.
“Look, Shiloh, I know what happened with Cedes left scars on your heart, but what happened then isn’t the same as what you’ve found now.” His hand grips my shoulder tight, eyes following my gaze to his pack. “With Cedes and the others, you were a square peg trying to fit into a round hole. Being part of a pack where everyone shared a Fated connection except you wasn’t going to work.”
“Because I am a selfish bastard who cannot stomach the thought of sharing my mate with someone else.”
“You couldn’t handle sharingCedeswith someone else because of the imbalance in your relationships. No matter how hard the two of you tried, you were never going to be as close to her as the others. Even if you didn’t see it, your alpha felt it. That is why you lashed out the way you did.”
I hate hearing what I already know spill from his mouth. When the truth is spoken aloud, it makes it harder to keep pretending it is cautiousness keeping me away from my Fated. “And if I react the same to Sabine and her other mates?”
“Have you seen her with them?”
“Yes.” He gives me a hard look, so I relent. “Only in a professional capacity.”
“Exactly.” Jericho squeezes my shoulder again before dropping his hand and heading back to his mates. “Give them a chance, brother. Her other mates are a part of your Fate as much as she is.”
Trailing behind him, I swallow the refusal resting at the tip of my tongue. Am I letting my fear of being on the outside of another pack affect my chances with Bea? And if I am, can I overcome that fear long enough to give this pack a chance?
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
AFTER OUR CONTACTSat the FCDA confirmed the Silverstone police department hadn’t done more than log the initial missing persons reports for the slew of missing women we’d discovered, Ridley and I began combing the city. We have to stay under the radar while pretending to play nice with Captain Orelta and his officers.
Someone in their precinct knows more than they’re saying.
I fucking hate dirty cops. Growing up, I dealt with more than enough of that type of asshole. They used their position to line their pockets without a care for the lives their ‘friends’ destroyed. It’s despicable.
Adjusting my hood, I jog along the dark dirt path known to be a hot spot for addicts to find a fix. We’ve been tracking rumors of an underground market for pharmaceutical drugs for over a week now. Progress is slow with local law enforcement monitoring our every move, but we’re getting closer.
Movement ahead has me ducking behind one of the cement pillars from the highway that runs above us. I watch as two men stumble down the path beneath the overpass. They’re obviously intoxicated, bouncing off of each other and talking loudly. Too loud for their topic of conversation.
“This place really has crazy shit like that?”
