Page 15 of Forsaken By Fate

This is where I’m staying now. I have to look the part. No slouching or stuttering. Don’t embarrass yourself.

My hand falls over the wood of the banister, and I slowly descend the marble stairs, listening for activity along the main floor.

Victor’s voice guides me toward the center of the massive house. “…kind of trap?”

“I don’t know,” Fenris replies curtly, the clank of cutlery and dishes reaching my ears.

I pause along the wall, listening.

“What did they say that makes you think so?” Zane asks.

“I don’t know,” Fenris said again. “It’s just a feeling I have. When I spoke with the Alpha earlier, he claimed he had no idea who Aurora was. Now, they want to come here for some kind of friendly sit down?”

My heart leaps into my throat, and I step into view, my eyes widening. “What’s going on?” I demand, the brothers coming into view.

“Maybe you can tell us,” Fenris replies stiffly. “Any idea why the Oklahoma Apex Alphas want to come for a visit next week?”

My pulse rushes in my ears, and I have a difficult time breathing. My knees buckle slightly, and even before I realize what’s happening, Zane hurries to my side, placing a hand on the small of my back.

“Easy there,” he urges, sitting me down on a chair. “If there’s something you’d like to tell us, Aurora, now’s the time.”

Gulping, I shake my head. “I don’t know why the Alphas want to come,” I answer truthfully. “I have no business with them. They already told you that.”

Zane waves at one of the nearby staff members to fetch me a glass of water, and I smile at him gratefully.

Fenris gives me a skeptical look as Victor takes his seat at the head of the table. “So let them come,” Victor declares. “What’s the harm?”

“The timing is awfully suspect, don’t you think?” Fenris insists as I take a long gulp, my mind racing.

There is no reason for the Alphas to come here. Lachlan rejected me. It has nothing to do with the Alphas.

But I can’t shake the feeling that the two things are closely connected, and I don’t like the way Fenris is looking at me.

“Aurora? Do you have anything to say about this?” the youngest Golden prompts again. His well-honed senses are going crazy around me.

I shake my head and look down at the table. “No. And I wish you’d stop asking me the same thing over and over. I’ve already told you that I have no business with anything in Oklahoma. How many times are you going to keep peppering me with questions?”

My cheeks flush with upset.

Zane sits to my right and sighs. “Fen?—”

“There’s one way to be sure,” Fenris intones, cutting Zane off. He’s not entirely swayed by my protests. “And we’ll put this to rest once and for all.”

Peeking up through my lashes, I wait expectantly, sure they can hear my heart hammering across the long dining room table. The lights overhead buzz lightly, but not nearly to the degree they had when I had first arrived, and none of the Alphas appeared to notice as all eyes fix on Fenris.

“What do you have in mind, Fen?” Victor asks tiredly.

“You’ll have to swear an allegiance to the Texas Apex pack, to us,” Fenris concludes.

My jaw slacks. “W-what?” I sputter, thinking I’ve misheard him. “You wantmeto be part of the Apex pack?”

Victor leans forward, his golden eyes becoming slits as he gauges my reaction. “Is that a problem, Aurora?”

But he’s misunderstood me.

I laugh aloud. “A problem? No! It would be an honor,” I titter disbelievingly. “Are you sure? Me?”

Zane cocks his head curiously. “You don’t think you’re worthy of being an Apex pack member?” he asks, sounding confused.

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