Page 81 of Wild Wolf Betrothal

“What are you going to do with her?”

“Like I told Lucy, I’ll take her to the cabin. She’ll eventually figure out that she has to live in a shifter community and be happy about it.”

“You are going to bring a tremendous amount of trouble down on us,” Micah fumed.

“I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it,” Dean replied.

Micah growled into the phone and ended the call.

He had no idea what Dean was going to do about Alexis. He might have had her write the note, and he might have even put it someplace besides the room he had stayed in. However, it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to see that Dean and Alexis left at the exact same time. They would figure it out, sooner rather than later. If they went looking for Alexis, they would find her. She would tell them that she didn’t leave on her free will and all hell would break loose. It would affect all the shifter clans in the area, not just Dean’s.

Lucy and Micah ordered pizza and watchedBill and Ted Face the Music.It was a funny movie, but it didn’t lighten either of their moods. The next movie started to play, but neither of them paid attention to it.

They made a half-hearted attempt at a conversation.

“It’s hard to believe that Ted is the same actor as John Wick. I know it’s Keanu Reeves. It looks like him, but the characters are completely opposite,” Lucy said.

“I guess that’s what makes him such a great actor. He can play any role. He becomes the character. He’s not just an actor playing a role.”

Lucy nodded.

Micah took Lucy’s hand.

“I’m going back to Montana. Not only do I have to prepare for the ceremony to make me alpha, it is getting too uncomfortable in this city. It will only get worse.”

Lucy nodded.

“I came here to make you fall in love with me. You described the kind of love you were looking for, and I laughed, and asked whether that kind of love was even possible.”

“I remember,” Lucy replied.

“The truth is, somewhere along the way, I fell in love with you. I realized that you are my fated mate, and I do want to spend the rest of my life with you. Lucy, will you go back with me and go through the mating ceremony with me? I promise that you can still go to school, open your own practice, and do all the things you dreamed of. I just want to be a part of your life.”

Lucy’s eyes opened wide, and her mouth moved a little, but no sound came out. After a few seconds, when she didn’t answer him, Micah figured that she still wasn’t interested in being with him. He stood, kissed her cheek, and left without another word.

Sitting on his bed, he stared at the documentary about the super volcano that exists under Yellowstone National Park, without hearing the words or comprehending anything.

Running his fingers through his hair, he laughed at himself.

In less than a month, he was going to be the alpha of his clan. He was strong and never gave up on a challenge, and had always gotten what he wanted, one way or another. Micah wanted Lucy, but she didn’t want him. He knew that, as alpha, he could order her to go through the mating ceremony with him, but he didn’t want her like that. She would hate him. Besides, even though the alpha made a lot of decisions that affected people’s lives, he wasn’t going to make that kind of decision for anyone, let alone Lucy. He would never interfere with anyone’s personal life.

He laid on the bed and stared at the ceiling for what seemed like hours. The dull voice in the background droned on. A million thoughts jumbled in his mind like a chaotic mess. It was like a giant jigsaw puzzle, with all the pieces scattered everywhere and none of them fit together.

Finally, he fell asleep, but tossed and turned all night long. When he woke up the next morning, he was tired and cranky, but there was no way that he could go back to sleep.

Stretching, he rolled out of bed and hopped in the shower. The hot water woke him up a little. A pot of coffee helped, too. Figuring that Lucy had already left for the café, he went down for breakfast, still trying to sort out everything that had happened since he came to Ivy Springs. He came to the conclusion that he never should have left home.

Dillon was finishing up with a customer when he walked in.

“Good morning. You look a lot better than you did the last time I saw you.”

Micah chuckled and said, “That is because the last time you saw me, I had been up and down a mountain, in one day, a couple of days after I was shot.”

“True enough,” Dillon replied.

“I just wanted to stop by to bid you farewell. It’s time for me to head back to Montana.”

“I’m sorry to see you go. I really like you. You’re a good man.”

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