Page 4 of Betrayed Wolf Mate

“Why jabber on when just a few words are enough?” I asked. “And there’s nothing wrong with a bit of introspection.”

But Mark was right—I had always been a bit on the quiet side. But that trait had gotten more prominent over the last few years.

And I knew exactly when it had happened.

“Wait,” Klyte said to Mark, his eyes glinting mischievously, “you knew Sam before the Silver Wolves. Which meansyouactually might be able to tell us all the juicy details of Sam’s life before we knew him.”

My body tensed, my grip on my beer bottle tightening as I waited to hear what Mark would say. I glanced at Mark, whose blond hair glinted in the sunlight, turning it an almost golden color. I wasn’t sure what he was going to say, but I really hoped it wasn’t what my mind had instantly jumped to.

Mark frowned, rubbing his chin as he looked off to one side. “Hate to break it to you, but I don’t think Sam has any juicy details.”

My shoulders relaxed somewhat, even as my friends groaned comically at that statement.

“There has to be something you can give us,” Alek pressed. “He can’t be this enigmatic without some deep, dark secrets.”

“Wait.” Mark snapped his fingers, and my stomach instantly sank as he glanced at me. “Wasn’t there a girl at one place who you liked?”

“Really?” Klyte grinned over at me.

“Yeah,” Mark said. “We were in the military moving through an area, taking care of some dispute or something like that. There was a pack nearby, and there was an absolutely gorgeous woman there. Sandra or Sydney or—”

“Stella,” I said tightly, and a gorgeous woman with silky dark hair that fell in waves around her heart-shaped face filled my vision, even as I tried to push the thought of her away.

“That’s right,” Mark continued. “Anyway, her pack apparently didn’t like outsiders, especially outsiders who showed an interest in one of their females. But I kept seeing Sam sneaking off late at night—”

My jaw clenched, and I forced myself not to growl. Leave it to Mark to talk about my love life and not realize I wanted to keep it quiet. The rest of the Silver Wolves were clinging to his every word.

“Leave him alone,” Evelyn said. “If he likes being enigmatic, that’s on him. It’s not fair of you guys to pry all of his secrets out of Mark. That’s cheating, if you ask me.”

She was leaning lazily against her mate, Oliver, and looked entirely at ease. But I knew her well enough to know by the way she was looking at me that she was trying to shift the topic away from dangerous waters. I appreciated it. Out of everyone here, Evelyn was arguably my best friend, and she was the only person who knew the full story about what had happened with Stella, and how badly I’d fucked up.

I shot her an appreciative glance. She nodded imperceptibly, giving me a small, reassuring smile.

The conversation moved on, but the damage was done. Stella had crept back into my thoughts, the way she always did. Whenever I thought I was over her, she reappeared again, and a fresh wound of guilt and loss opened up.

I sighed internally, keeping my face a mask. The truth was that I missed her, and I wished I could change what had happened. But I couldn’t, and trying to would just make matters worse, even if I tried to convince myself otherwise.

Even though I knew it was a bad idea, I’d thought about going back to Stella more than once, but I’d stayed away, worried about what might happen if I did. The urge had been there, but I’d always resisted. The truth was that I put the safety of others, including her, before anything else, even if it hurt to do so. I’d made my choice, and I had to live with it now.

But telling myself that didn’t calm the wolf pacing and snarling inside me. He still missed her, still wanted to go back. But we both knew we couldn’t. Which made him even angrier.

What’s done is done, I told myself.It’s best to just move on at this point.

I wished it were as easy as that.

Chapter 3 - Stella

I didn’t meet Akron for another week, though I had a shadow the entire time, either Oscar or another of Farrow’s men. They didn’t follow me into the house, but from the moment I woke up to the moment I fell asleep, someone was outside, watching. And if I left to get groceries or go to work or for whatever reason, I’d see them behind me. They didn’t even bother to hide. I guess Farrow thought I would run. But where would I go, even if I planned to run?

By the third day after Farrow had told me about Akron, it was obviously everyone in the pack knew about the upcoming wedding. I didn’t know if they knew just how much of a say I lacked in the arrangement, but it was clear by the way people looked at me and the whispers behind my back that everyone was aware of what was going to happen.

I kept to myself as much as possible, not sure what else there was for me to do. It wasn’t as though I had any friends to confide in about it.

During the week, I began to wonder why I had stayed here after all. At first, after the incident with Sam, I’d stayed because my parents were still here. They had been understanding enough, though not exactly pleased with me. Yet, they hadn’t cast me out and shunned me like the rest of the town. After they’d died a couple of years ago, I’d stayed because I’d never been anywhere else. I’d been determined to prove to them that I wouldn’t make the same mistake again, that I was loyal to the pack and always had been. I hated the hand I’d been dealt, but I would do my duty if it meant keeping the pack safe and showing them I was loyal.

After a week had passed from my conversation with Farrow, I opened my front door to see Oscar standing outside. His face was expressionless.

“Farrow wanted me to take you to Akron,” he said. “The deal’s all taken care of.”

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