Page 16 of Moon Destiny

“I’m sorry,” I said, hoping he’d hear how much I meant it. He’d met his fated mate young, which normally would have been a stroke of good fortune. But she was a mageborn wolf—a member of the same pack that had seized his territory and driven him into exile. “I shouldn’t have mentioned it.”

He waved it off. “It’s okay. But if you plan on keeping this from Brooke, I don’t think it’ll work. The connection between you two will only grow stronger, until it’s impossible to ignore.”

It already is. But Dylan didn’t need to hear about my sexual frustration. I’d burdened him enough. Unfortunately, I was about to burden him some more.

“I’m not going to keep it from her,” I said.

“Then…what? Do you plan on rejecting her?”

“Yes. Eventually.” And she would reject me, too. She had to, otherwise our bond would stay in place. Severing the tie between fated mates required the consent of both parties. “I know she’ll agree. I just don’t want to spring this on her so soon after she’s turned.”

Dylan nodded as he rubbed his chin. “Yeah. I get that. She hasn’t even gone through her first shift.”

“That’s where I need your help.”

He gave me a deer in the headlights look.

“I’m not asking you to help her through the transition,” I clarified. “Just stay close to her for a day or two, until my wolf settles down. You’re the only one I trust to do it.”

It was partly true. The reality was my wolf probably wouldn’t tolerate any other male getting near her. But Dylan already had a fated mate, even if they were estranged. His inner beast would be completely uninterested in Brooke. Whereas mine even now urged me to rush upstairs and claim her.

Which was why I had to stay away. On the other hand, I couldn’t leave a newly turned wolf unsupervised. No one in the pack would dare harm her, but she might inadvertently step on some toes with her ignorance of our laws and traditions. And dominant or no, she wasn’t fully in control of her beast. She needed someone strong enough to help her rein it in if necessary.

The situation was complicated by the fact that her connection to me allowed her to tap some of my strength. It was obvious in the way she held my gaze with minimal effort. She’d only lowered it when I cranked my power up.

Showdowns like that could not happen in front of the pack. Anyone seeing us square off that way would instantly know we were mates.

I looked Dylan in the eye. “I’m asking as a friend, not telling you as an alpha. If this is too much—”

“It’s not,” he said quickly. Then his lips quirked up. “I think Brooke and I will get along just fine. I like bossy females.”

The tension I hadn’t realized I’d been holding eased a little. “In that case, you’re in luck.”

“I think I’ll take her around town tomorrow. Show her the sights.” His smile grew, probably because the “sights” in Bosford consisted of a tiny ice cream shop and a single stoplight. “Any objection?” he added.

My first instinct was to say no. What if she needed me? But I pushed that idea firmly away. I wanted distance between us. Getting her out of the house was one way to do it.

“No objection,” I said. “It’ll give me a chance to check on things at work. I haven’t been to the office since the attack.” Not that I was worried about my absence affecting the business. My COO was a former Navy SEAL who lived and breathed security. He was also human, which meant he didn’t have to worry about fated mates or the Council of Alphas. But he couldn’t oversee the kind of intel work I needed to find out which rogues had targeted Alex. I had a small team of wolves who handled supernatural investigations. Trails went cold quickly. The sooner I got into the office, the better.

“Sounds good,” Dylan said. He watched me reach for the bottle of scotch. “Feel free to tell me to fuck off, but when was the last time you ate?”

I stilled. “This morning. And you just reminded me I need to send dinner upstairs to Brooke.”

“I’ll take care of it.” He stood. “Just promise you’ll hit up the kitchen sometime tonight.”

“I will. And thank you. I owe you for this.”

He grinned, his dimples appearing. “Don’t worry, I won’t let you forget.”

I sat for a while after he left, my gaze on the forest through the window. The pyre was out now, but the wood still smoked, thick tendrils swirling up to the stars.

I’m sorry, Alex. I failed you.

Grief and regret mixed with the scotch in my gut, souring my stomach. But Dylan was right about no one wanting a hungry alpha werewolf around. I had to eat, even if I didn’t feel like it. And tomorrow, I had to put Brooke Ratner out of my mind. My wolf might have chosen her, but I hadn’t. There was nothing between us and there never would be.

It was as simple as that.

CHAPTER SEVEN

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