Page 23 of Betrayed Wolf Mate

I could have just stayed in my room. But the need for a distraction was too much, and I was curious.

I walked down the stairs just in time to see Jameson stepping into the entryway. The dark and somber expression on his face made me stop halfway. He looked angry, and he looked like he was about to deliver some really bad news. My stomach tightened as he looked directly at me. From the first time I’d met him, the alpha had seemed sweet, even a little laid-back. This was an entirely different side of him.

Sam noticed it immediately, too. He straightened, almost like a soldier standing to attention.

“What?” he asked. “What happened?”

“We have a visitor,” Jameson said. “Luke found him on patrol and brought him to the mansion.”

“Who?” My voice cracked, but I had to know. I forced my hands to stop trembling.

Jameson looked directly at me. “His name is Farrow. He says he’s your alpha.”

No.

No, no, no.

He had found me.

My legs decided to stop working, and I collapsed on the stairs, one hand still gripping the banister. Blood pulsed in my ears, and my mind went numb.

“Stella?” Sam was next to me in an instant. His scent enveloped me, and I inhaled deeply. Musk and leather. Ifocused on that instead of the fear creeping through my body, threatening to consume me.

“I’m fine,” I managed to say, though it was fairly obvious I was anything but. I took another long breath. “What does he want?”

“He says he just wants to talk,” Jameson said. “He also tried to imply that we were holding you here and away from your own pack, which none of us took kindly to. He retracted that one pretty quickly, but he still says he’s your alpha and his responsibility. When I told him to leave, he said he was prepared to fight unless the two of you spoke.”

“She’s not going to,” Sam snarled. He had wrapped his arms around me, and I was leaning against him, listening to his heartbeat. “That asshole’s done enough.”

“It’s up to her,” Jameson agreed, nodding. “And you don’t have to talk to him if you don’t want to. We can run him off. I don’t think he’s as strong as he thinks he is.”

I shook my head. “No, he meant it when he said he would fight. That’s not happening on my account. I’ll talk to him.”

“Stella—” Sam began, but I held up my hand.

“I’ve made up my mind,” I said.

“I’m coming with you,” Sam insisted.

I nodded. I wasn’t going to admit it, but I wanted him there. Something about his comforting presence gave me a strength I didn’t otherwise have. Having him there would make the situation easier to handle.

“Let’s get this over with,” I said, getting to my feet and walking down the steps, not giving myself the time to talk myself out of it.

***

My entire body was shaking as I walked up to the mansion. Sam was on my right, so close that he was nearly brushing against me. Jameson was on my other side. Despite their presence, I couldn’t quell the surging fear threatening to consume me. Even with the shifters around us, I wouldn’t put it past Farrow to try and grab me. What would happen then? Would Jameson be willing to attack another alpha over something as trivial as me? Would Sam lash out and either kill Farrow or die himself?

“Relax,” Jameson said to me, as if sensing my unease. “I told Farrow you were under the protection of both the pack and the Silver Wolves. He’s not going to try anything. He’ll be breaking pack treaties if he did, and he also knows he would lose if he went against us. From what I can tell, he’s a whole lot of bluster.”

That calmed some of my nerves, but not all of them. Still, I nodded jerkily and continued walking.

Farrow was sitting in Jameson’s office. Two of his guards—Oscar and Weston—flanked either side of him, but Luke, Mark, and Rand were facing them, arms folded as they stared down the other guards.

All fears about Farrow trying to grab me vanished. The Silver Wolves made Farrow and his guards look like cubs. Farrow and the guards seemed to notice this, too. They were far more nervous and on edge than I’d ever seen them before.

Farrow turned to look at us as we walked into the office, his eyes narrowing in dislike and anger as they homed in on me. Right then, I realized how much he hated me. If it hadn’t beenfor the Silver Wolves, I wouldn’t have put it past Farrow to make a grab for me.

“Stella,” he said. “Good to see you.”

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