Page 11 of The Reluctant Wolf and His Fated Mate
Damon gulped, but the shame didn’t dislodge from his throat. “Yes.”
“Shit.” Rafe ground his jaw. “This isn’t good. How did it end?”
“I had the upper hand, but released him.” Damon snorted inside. As if letting the enforcer go would make anything better. A wolf with wounded pride could be erratic and extremely dangerous.
Rafe blew out a low exhale with a whoosh and pinned his gaze on Damon. “You know this breaks the condition of our peace treaty?”
“I do,” Damon admitted with a solemn nod and lowered his head. “And I will do whatever it takes to make amends.”
“I need to think about this before I talk to their alpha.”
Damon kept his head bowed. He’d violated pack law and endangered his fellow wolves’ safety. “I apologize, alpha. I will do whatever you think best.”
Rafe didn’t speak for a few seconds. “Why was she wandering from territory to territory? Is she a lone wolf?”
“No. She’s not a wolf,” Damon admitted. “She’s human.”
Having a human involved in shifter affairs was dangerous.Everythingabout this situation was dangerous.
No wonder he had wrestled against the idea of a mate his entire life. They were nothing but trouble.
“A human,” Rafe repeated with incredulity. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. That’s what makes this situation exponentially worse. My mother was a shifter, she knew better. But what happens if who your wolf senses is your mate doesn’t even know your kind exists?”
The anger dropped from his alpha’s face. “Still, you’ve found your mate. So many others are still searching. Like me.” His expression turned sympathetic, maybe a bit wistful. “An alpha without a mate is empty, lacking. Craving.”
Rafe’s yearning for a mate was well known among the pack. Many female wolves had offered themselves to him, but he didn’t want to settle with a partner. He wanted to find his fated mate.
Damon let out a mirthless laugh. “Too bad we can’t swap our situations.”
Rafe snorted. “Nope, Fate doesn’t work that way.” He released a low sigh. “How did your mate end up in Sacco territory, anyway?”
His mate.That sounded so odd to Damon. Still, now wasn’t the time to argue the fact. Despite what his wolf desired, Damon would not claim a mate.
He ran one hand over his temples and through his hair. “Maybe she got lost in the woods. I don’t know. I haven’t asked her.”
“Why not”
“She must have hit her head. She was unconscious when I carried her into my guest room and hasn’t woken yet.” Damon gestured back toward his cabin. “That’s why I need to stay here.”
Rafe exhaled and shifted his stare from Damon’s house to the direction of Sacco territory. “I need to go deal with this situation before it escalates.” He treaded through the snow back to his SUV. He paused before climbing in. “Congratulations. I envy you.” He drove out of the parking space with a squeal.
Envy? Damon had screwed up the treaty and possibly his life. After pinching the bridge of his nose, he turned back to his cabin.
Chapter 4
Sophie
Sunlight drifted over Sophie’s face. Her eyelids were still so heavy, and she dragged them open.
Where the hell was she?
She scanned the log walls, through a window revealing snow-covered pine and spruce trees, and then over a dark wooden dresser before skidding to a halt at a man sitting in an armchair.
The stranger she’d danced with at the club. And kissed. The one with massive shoulders.
Damon.
