Page 13 of Mates & Mercenaries

Sam shifts first and I follow suit. “It’s time for us to switch shifts,” he informs me. “I think we should go get Creed and Rex for them to take their turn.”

I nod, only able to let go of being on watch because it gives me a chance to get closer to Skylar for a little while. I hope she hasn’t been crying without me. I want to be the shoulder for her to cry on whenever she needs one.

Sam and I race back to the cabin, slowing down only when we get close enough to the window to peer in. Sam stops dead, and his eyes damn near pop out of his head in shock at what he sees.

I move closer and my heart stops dead in my chest. I blink a few times, unable to believe that I’m seeing. Skylar is sitting on Creed’s lap as she softly strokes a finger down his cheek in a terribly loving manner. Instinctively, I reach up and touch my own face as if it’s her fingers touching me. I so wish she was touching me.

“What are they talking about?” Sam whispers, his voice trembling with nerves. I can tell he doesn’t like this any more than I do. That makes me feel a little better because I’m not on my own in this. But it also adds to the complication. We’re not going to fight over her, are we? As if this isn’t all messy enough.

Every fiber of my being screams at me not to listen in on them, but I somehow manage to ignore all my instincts. Sam cracks the window open a little and I lean in. Admittedly, I can’t hear too much of what is being said, but I get enough to pick up the gist of it.

By the time I lean back to tell Sam what we’ve just witnessed, my heart is absolutely sinking. “Something is going on between them,” I inform him morosely. “Something serious. Creed is basically telling Skylar that if they want to keep on doingthis, whatever this is, then they need to keep it a secret from us.”

I don’t know what hurts more. The fact that Creed and Skylar have this connection, just as I previously suspected, and that I don’t stand a chance with her, or the fact that our alpha is keeping secrets from us. That isn’t the way things are supposed to be.

Sam doesn’t look as level headed as he normally does. There’s a fire burning behind his eyes, a desperation vibrating off him. I don’t know what I can say to calm him down, because this isn’t something I usually need to do.

“I don’t like this.” His hands clench into fists by his sides. “Not at all. I don’t like any of it. I’m not happy with Creed wanting to dive into the organized crime world, I don’t see that working out for any of us, and I don’t like this with Skylar. It doesn’t feel right. It feels like everything is falling apart around us. Likeweare falling apart.”

Funny how things have turned on their head. One minute he’s dragging me out of the cabin so I don’t make a scene and now he’s the one about to lose his shit. “We shouldn’t do anything right now. We need to have a talk about this to make sure we’re all on the same page.”

Sam’s breathing is raspy. With his knuckles turning white because he has his fists so tightly balled up, I fear this might be the only way to talk him down. How the hell are we going to deal with this?

Creed might have been right to keep his little affair a secret because it really is causing issues between us already. I’m going to have to keep a serious eye on this.

“Come on.” I pull Sam away from the window. “Let’s head inside. Act like we don’t know anything. Keep the peace for now and deal with this later on.”

Thankfully, Sam seems to understand that this is the best for all of us. To keep the peace until we work out how we want to handle this. What I’m not expecting is for him to storm inside the cabin to interrupt the moment.

I follow Sam to see Skylar leaping off of Creed’s lap with an embarrassed redness staining her cheeks. No one knows quite what to say, so I guess that leaves it up to me to keep the peace. I step between Sam and Creed to make sure nothing gets out of hand.

“Time to switch places,” I say to Creed with an easy smile as if I know nothing. “Sam and I haven’t found anything to worry about, but it’s about to get dark soon.”

“Right, yes. I will get Rex.” Creed leaps to his feet, barely wanting to stick around us and in this hideous awkwardness. “Then we can take over and see…”

He seems to sense that Sam isn’t happy, so Creed puts his head down and walks away. Shit, this is going to be hard. I don’t know how I’m going to make sure everything doesn’t go to shit since we’re stuck with each other for an indeterminate amount of time.

SKYLAR

ONE WEEK LATER

This is not the exciting adventure I thought it was going to be. I might as well be locked away at home for all this is doing for me. I’m still trapped indoors, bound by Creed’s rules, unable to go anywhere. I thought I would be able to explore the prairie, but not a chance in hell. Creed is so overprotective, it’s crazy.

I don’t want to be under my father’s roof again at the moment, but I would like to have all my things around me. There isn’t anything to do here. It isn’t a safe house built for having fun. To say that I’m bored would be an understatement.

I miss Maeve. I didn’t even tell my best friend that I was leaving town. God knows what she thinks has happened to me. I bet she thinks I’ve been killed. My cell phone is sitting safely in my bedroom, likely filled with messages I would love to reply to.

I don’t even know if Creed is aware of how desperate my wolf side is to burst free. He probably hasn’t even thought about it. She’s there on the edge inside me, wanting desperately to be set free.

Glancing up at the moon is only making that need more intense because I really might go crazy in these four walls. I look down to see how far the ground is beneath my window. Not too far. I could jump if I wanted to. If I could get away with it.

I lean back to check and spot Creed snoring lightly by my door. If Rex, Sam, and Clay are downstairs, then they won’t hear me either. And if any of them are out on a perimeter check, then I can just avoid them. I do have a great nose, so I should be able to smell anyone in my way.

I really need to see the stars. I can’t stand it here, just glancing up through the window. It’s frustrating and I want more. I open the window and half slide out feet first before leaping and hitting the grass with a soft thump.

My heart thunders like crazy as I pause for a moment to see if Creed has heard me. But when his looming face doesn’t appear at the window, I decide I’ve made it. But this might not last forever, so I need to take off right now.

I want to cry out with joy as my sleek black wolf bursts free. My golden eyes pierce through the thicket of trees as I take off. It feels wonderful to have the wind surging through my fur. I can run at unhampered speeds over the vast expanse of the prairie, which is absolutely beautiful. If Creed would just let me explore this place, then I wouldn’t be thinking about all the entertainment that I have at home.

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