“What have I put her through?” This is a dumb question, but I need to buy time. She knows something I don’t and that is not a good thing. I need her talking.
“She is a prisoner in her own house and yet she rises above it every day, smiling and showing kindness to the omegas working in her home. She’s an athlete, a warrior, but she isn’t allowed to train with the rest of us, so she does the best she can in the packhouse gym, alone. You took away the only forms of communication she had for her friends and family back home, but instead of trying to sneak around she asked us to help her get messages to your sister and her brother AND make them sound like everything was fine. When Robin finally gave her a phone, she still lies to them so they won’t worry.”
“How does that make her a good mate?” I cross my arms over my chest. It just sounds like she’s adapting to her surroundings. “And why would she need to lie? She has everything she could ever need. She can buy anything she wants without question. The best cooks and cleaning omegas are at her disposal. She has the best of everything.
“From what I have been told she doesn’t spend time with or talk to anyone. The warriors think you may have threatened her in some way.”
“WHAT?! I would never do that to any woman, even the ones I don’t like.”
“We know that, but not everyone does. She steers clear of any males, one male in particular she avoids like the plague. One she should be the closest with other than you. Bennet thinks you might have hurt her out of jealousy and that’s why she doesn’t talk to him. He’s afraid to go near her. He thinks she’s afraid… of you. They are both hurting from the separation and it shows.”
“That’s the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Bennet knows me better than that. Why wouldn’t he just ask? He’s been blocking me for weeks.”
“You barely spend any time at home and don’t talk to either of them when you are. You are the only one who can squash the rumors.”
“Oh, so there’s rumors now?”
“Alpha,” The word comes out as a quiet breath. Greta looks at me with a ‘seriously’ look. “Warriors are worse gossips than the teenagers. Your Luna talks to no one, unless she has to. She’s not allowed to leave the packhouse without a guard and she believes that she’s an inconvenience so she rarely asks to leave. They think you’ve figured out how to alpha command your luna.” Her tone is going from exasperated to hostile quickly as she takes a menacing step towards me and points. “I saw bruising on her stomach myself the other day, I know others have probably seen them too. Especially if she doesn’t realize they’re there and she wears a cropped shirt. She doesn’t spar anymore and it’s not in a place that can be easily done to herself. You do the math. If no one is laying a hand on her, then she is putting up with your infidelity and I don’t see any bruises on you. I would say her track record for being a good and loyal mate is better than yours right now. She may not even know what is happening, or maybe she does and is afraid to ask for help.”
I can feel the blood drain out of my face, Bennet basically said the same thing last night. But I recover quickly.” She doesn’t have a wolf! That can’t be possible.” I’m close to shouting. It can’t be my fault. She doesn’t have a wolf so it doesn’t work like that right? I can’t feel her and she can’t feel me.
(6
Greta takes her power stance again. “Should I have her test the theory? Tell her she can sleep with any male she wants and see if bruises show up on you or if it causes you pain.”
“NO! Absolutely not!” Now my wolf is crawling to get out of my skin.?(4
“Then go home and stop acting like a chickensh*t. Everything here is ready. Claude and his little packs of rogue scouts can be handled by any of us. We’ll let you know if we need you.” Her voice goes softer, but no less stern. I’m going to say it and I don’t care how mad you get. I know you are afraid of the mate bond, but this bullsh*t is affecting the whole pack. I don’t think she would be unfaithful, but right now you are basically setting yourself up for failure. I’m surprised she’s lasted this long.”
“I second the motion.” Josh throws over his shoulder.
I scrub my hands over my face and through my hair. “I hate you both sometimes.”
“Would it make you feel better to know that she’s hanging with the pups right now and should be having dinner with your mom in the next couple of hours.”
“My mother? Since when does she have dinner with my mom?”
“A few weeks, but you would know that if you spent any significant amount of time at home.” Greta rolls her eyes at me and now I am panicking. There is no telling what my mom has said to her. Weeks?! At least I know why Greta’s being so bold, my mom put her up to it.
“Hey, bossman?”
“I am out of f*cks to give, Josh. What?” I growl, looking over my shoulder.
“Christmas is next week. Have you thought of what you are going to get your mate?”
Apparently, I do have more f*cks to give. I sigh. “No, Robin usually handles all of that for me.”
“Kennedy is obviously not a ‘stuff’ type of person. Think about that. You won’t be able to buy anything that she wants. And she’ll know if Robin chose it.” I hate it when he’s more observant than I am.
“Then what do you suggest?”
“If you’re not ready to be her mate or give her her freedom, then maybe give her gamma back.” His eyes meet mine and it isn’t a suggestion.
He and I are the closest in personality and he was there the night my mother was taken and my father was attacked. We all still have scars, some on the outside, some in. We were just kids and those kinds of traumas bond people. He knows me better than most and as much as I am fighting this mate bond, we both know I can’t give her up either. I just nod, take a deep breath and throw him the keys to the SUV we drove here, then I shift and take off towards Kennedy.
It takes about thirty minutes to get to where she’s sitting, watching the pups play. Obviously, she goes out into the pack, maybe Greta was wrong about her just staying in the packhouse. We hold back just watching for a moment. She’s the magnet to my personal compass. I am drawn to her so strongly as she is, I can’t imagine what it would feel like if she had a wolf. I wouldn’t be able to leave her side. Greta is right, her personality has always been large, even just sitting or standing. But, now she seems to be making herself as small as possible, hugging her knees to her chest as best she can in her puffy coat. She’s smiling at the kids, but it doesn’t reach her eyes, not like the first day I saw her with them. I notice the distance between her and the pups too. They are normally all over her, vying for attention, but now she’s alone just observing.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.