Page 76 of Midnight Hunt

Only a year older than me, Mason had always resented my close friendship with the Rivers family, not to mention my hybrid abilities. Our entire lives, he’d tried to cut me down in order to rise up in the pack ranks. When that hadn’t worked, he’d gone after Vi. Even though I’d wanted to pursue her slowly at the time, I hadn’t been able to stomach the thought of him being intimate with her.

So, I’d pursued her as well, and she’d chosen me to help with her heat.

Mason had given up after that, deciding to leave Midnight Pack and branch off on his own. He was now the alpha of Moon Bay Pack, his territory just north of here in the Montreal, Canada area. It was small, but he’d gotten what he had always wanted.

To be number one.

I’d only spoken to him once since he’d left the pack, and recalling that conversation left a bitter taste in my mouth. If he decided to poke at me in a similar manner tonight, I doubted I would be able to keep my cool.

My thoughts were suddenly distracted by the front door opening. I turned just as Nora exited the house, and she smiled when I gave her an appreciative look. She was wearing a white cocktail dress, one with a high neckline and semi-transparent sleeves. As she gracefully moved across the porch, her flowy skirt swishing against her thighs, I glanced over at Kolton to find him practically drooling.

“Save it for the afterparty, man,” I joked, but he didn’t even hear me. When his wife was near enough, he drew her into a possessive hold, sliding one hand beneath her skirt to grip her thigh. She chuckled softly, and he swooped his head down to capture her lips. Unmindful of the growing audience out on the lawn, he kissed her like a starving man, brazenly lifting her leg to grind himself against her.

Used to their public displays of passion, I just shook my head. It was entirely real, but the PDA served as a message as well, one that clearly said Midnight Pack’s alphas were still in love and wholly united. They were a power couple, and to challenge that was to risk your life.

Noticing movement in my peripheral, I turned and saw Vi standing in the doorway. She was dressed in a flowy short cocktail dress as well, but it was a deep purple color, sleeveless, and plunged at the neckline. Her cleavage was on full display, and a swallow got stuck in my throat as I recalled burying my face in that very spot this morning, right after I’d come in my pants.

Feeling my cock start to harden, I brought my eyes back to her face. She looked breathtaking, her bangs perfectly in place and the rest of her dark tresses loosely curled. Her makeup was flawless, highlighting her already gorgeous features. But her eyes—they weren’t on me. They were locked on her brother and Nora, and I watched as the color slowly drained from her face.

Concerned, I stepped toward her, and her gaze immediately flew to mine. Her violet eyes were wide, and the look in them was unmistakable.

She was terrified.

The need to comfort her was instantaneous, and I reached out to take her hand. Before I could, she stepped from the doorway and swept past me with a little laugh. Aforcedone.

“Jeez, you two, get a room already,” she muttered, her high heels clicking across the porch and down the steps. “Guess I’ll go greet theguestssince you’re obviously too busy sucking face.”

I watched her go, frustration a tight knot in my chest, then shoved aside my pride and went after her. It took everything in me not to whirl her around and demand she tell me what was bothering her. Because something definitely was, and it waskillingme. Did she regret coming to my bedroom this morning? Did she regretus?

I needed to know, even if she said yes and tore out my heart.

But now was obviously not the time. Alphas from around the world were approaching us, many of them accompanied by their entourages. Several had mates but not all, and a few had come alone, but most had brought at least a few of their most dominant pack members. Jagger was already conversing with a mated pair from Alaska, and Vi was heading toward one of the alphas that had contacted us about a missing female a few days ago.

After a moment of hesitation, I decided to give her some space, choosing to converse with an alpha not too far away. We’d been doing this political dance for years, and Vi had done enough research on each alpha that we knew just how to speak to them. Many of them had been friends with Anthony and Charlotte Rivers during their rule of Midnight Pack, but we couldn’t forget that none of them had come to our aid last year.

Werewolves tended to stick close to home, and packs didn’t often mingle. Still, they’d failed us in our hour of need, forcing us to accept help from the most unlikely of sources—the royal vampire family. Without them, Kolton might not have found Nora and Luca in time. Midnight Pack could have fallen without our unexpected new allies, and we had every intention of calling on their help again if the werewolf community chose to turn their backs on us once more.

“Is it true that Violet was almost taken?” Alpha Abernathy from Washington state asked me. Word of the abductions had definitely spread, and as I used my heightened hearing to eavesdrop on a few other conversations, it was all anyone was talking about.

“Yes,” I confirmed, keeping an eye on Vi as I spoke. “Twice, actually, but they failed both times.”

The middle-aged male’s eyes widened, and he started questioning me about who “they” were.

“Alpha Rivers will be sharing the details on that soon, but I can at least assure you that no one involved in the kidnappings will be present tonight.”

He seemed relieved to hear that, but as more and more alphas arrived, the crowd’s restlessness increased. They wantedanswers, and it was clear that we were the only ones who had them. At the realization, unease settled in my gut. We had answers, but we still didn’t know where the missing females were being kept. If no one else knew where they were, it meant that we probably wouldn’t find them anytime soon.

My eyes went to Vi again, a fresh wave of protectiveness surging through me. When I found her speaking to a tall male with dark hair, light brown skin, and twinkling hazel eyes, my mind emptied. Rudely excusing myself in the middle of a conversation, I strode toward her before I could check myself.

Whiskey, who’d been rather quiet today, encouraged me onward, growling,Don’t let him take your female again.

I won’t, I assured him. Not this time. Not without a fight.

“I really am sorry,” she was saying to him, her back to me as I approached. “You were right. You were right about everything. I shouldn’t have—”

Stiffening at the sound of my approach, she whirled rather abruptly. The second she saw it was me, the fear in her eyes dissipated. “Jeez, Griff. You scared the hell out of me.”

Her words were lightly spoken, but I knew they were just a front. She’d been terrified that I was a hunter about to snatch her away. Slowing, I watched her carefully, giving her ample time to pull away as I eased into her personal space and slid an arm around her. She immediately melted against me, and I grew weak with relief. Still, I stood tall, firmly pulling her back against my chest as I faced her ex-boyfriend.

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