Page 9 of Betrayed Wolf Mate

That familiar, almost musical voice made me freeze. I turned my head away from the alpha and looked down the hall to where Sam was standing, looking as startled as I felt.

He hadn’t changed much since I’d last seen him. There were a couple of new scars I had never seen before, but he still had that same strong build, that same smooth skin, and the same tattoos swirling down his left arm. His black hair was cut shorter than it had been when I’d known him, but his brown eyes had that same intensity that had made my heart pound wildly whenever I saw him.

My eyes widened, and my mouth dropped open. Sam was here? It seemed impossible, too much of a coincidence that for a moment, I had to wonder if I was hallucinating. But I also knew there was no doubting what I was seeing. I could smell him—that scent of musk and leather was unmistakable. How many times had I smelled that scent when he’d held me in his arms?

It was him, unmistakably him. And this moment was real, despite how absolutely impossible it all seemed.

Evelyn’s eyes grew wide. “Stella?” she asked, looking from me to Sam. “ThatStella?”

That Stella. Something about the way she said it made me prickle self-consciously.

But Sam didn’t answer. He didn’t even seem to hear Evelyn. He walked straight past her and toward me. His scent grew stronger, seeming to overwhelm everything else. My wolf stirred excitedly, pacing internally as the familiar shifter camecloser. Clearly, she didn’t have the same issues I did about how things had ended between us.

“What happened?” His eyes scanned my entire body, looking me up and down and cataloging every injury. I’d gotten a bit scraped up during my escape, running through the woods and not paying attention, but for the most part, I was unharmed. But I could tell by the expression on his face that he wouldn’t be satisfied until my last small scratch had healed.

“I’m fine,” I said. I didn’t want to tell Sam what had happened. He’d abandoned me before when he’d promised he wouldn’t leave my side, leaving me surrounded by unfriendly, untrusting shifters. I’d put my trust in him once before, and it had backfired. I wasn’t going to make the same mistake a second time.

But one look at Evelyn’s concerned face and Sam’s clear disbelief told me that I wasn’t going to get out of this that easily.

“Stella, we can’t help you unless we know what’s going on,” Evelyn said gently. “And it’s obvious something bad has happened. We’re here to help.”

I glanced over at Sam, doubt and suspicion no doubt crossing my features as I did. He noticed and visibly winced, but he didn’t look away.

“What are you doing here, anyway?” I asked him, changing the subject. “I thought you were all gung-ho about joining the military.” That last part might have come out a bit more bitter than I’d intended.

“I did,” Sam replied. “I joined the Silver Wolves, but we retired and settled here.” He paused, as if considering something. “Granted, it’s been more like semi-retired than actually retired.”

I couldn’t hide my surprise. I’d heard about the Silver Wolves. Considering everything they’d done for shifters all over the states, it was impossible not to have heard of them. But I hadn’t realized Sam was a member. The revelation made me pause for a second as the implication sunk in.

“Stella, please tell me what happened,” he said, tearing me from my thoughts.

“I’m in trouble.” The words were out of my mouth before I could think better of it.

Something dark crossed Sam’s expression, and his body stiffened in anger. His eyes flashed, and a growl sounded in his throat.

“What happened?” he asked.

“I don’t—”

His hands went to my shoulders. “Trust me,” he said, his voice low and intense. “I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you. You’re safe. Let us help you.”

“Sam—” Jameson began, but Sam’s head snapped around to Jameson. I couldn’t see his face, but the low growl Sam gave was enough to tell me he was glaring at his alpha. But Jameson kept going, undeterred. “We’re going to do our best to help her, obviously, but don’t push her.”

Sam said nothing, but he didn’t let go of my arm. For whatever reason, I didn’t mind. I hated admitting it after everything, but I liked having him close. It was comforting to have him there.

But I didn’t want to rely on him. I had run because I wanted to be my own person for a change. Relying on Sam or this pack might put me back in the same position as before, and the thought terrified me.

I still remembered waking up the morning when Sam and I were supposed to meet. Something had just seemed off, but I had brushed it away. I went to the tree where we always met, only he wasn’t there. I waited for hours, expecting him to come eventually. He always came. But he didn’t that day, and I went back home.

And Farrow was waiting for me with a smug smile on his face. He told me that Sam had left in the middle of the night and wasn’t coming back. I didn’t believe him at first, assuming that he must have done something to Sam. But eventually, I realized he was telling the truth. Sam had just vanished, leaving me in a pack that now saw me as an outcast.

Farrow gloated about my failed relationship for a week. He never let me forget my mistake or what it had cost me.

I had trusted Sam once. I didn’t know if I could do it again. And I wasn’t sure how to tell the pack what had happened, or if I even wanted to. Because the moment I did, I knew they would get involved. Including Sam.

Jameson seemed to have read my mind, because he said, “If there’s a problem, it could end up impacting the pack. I need to know about external threats. So there’s a chance you would help us by telling at least me what’s happening.”

He was right. If Akron came after me, they needed to know what they were up against. I knew from our brief interaction that the demon wouldn’t stop just because I had run away. I didn’t know how long I had until he caught up with me.

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