Page 71 of Rejecting his Mate

Like the Order.

Its sole purpose is to take out anything that could unveil the truth about us. Keeping bloodlines pure means there is less chance of a hybrid accidentally wolfing out and ending up in a viral video on the internet.

In the time we live in, there is always some asshole with a cell phone, ready to upload anything to social media. This is why more and more packs have moved out of cities and into remote locations.

Less chance of being caught.

It’s dangerous for us to mate with humans, less so with other supernatural creatures, but there’s still the risk of an impromptu shift that could tell humans we exist.

There are plenty of wolves who agree with the Order using any means necessary to protect our kind.

I’m not one of them.

As a kid, those hunters used to terrify me. I used to lie awake, ready to protect my brother and my parents ifthey came for us. We might be wolves, but those hunters can’t always tell the difference when they’ve got bloodlust inside them.

It doesn’t surprise me they would hunt and be prepared to kill a little girl just to keep that secret. Halle would have posed a threat that had to be eliminated. The thought alone makes me angry.

Even knowing we were safe, I had bags packed and ready in case those fucking assholes decided they wanted to add my kind to their shit list. Never trusted them to uphold any agreement. Wolves who kill their own won’t care about who they target.

I never let my guard down.

Now, I’ve put myself, my brother, cousin, and friend in the middle of Halle’s problems. I should walk away, protect my family. She’s not my business, but the thought of leaving her to deal with this alone?

I can’t.

Somehow, she and I are tethered together. It is why I was always drawn to the woods where she was. It is why I am risking my life to keep her safe.

I look at the wolves who have been with me for years. Wyatt, my cousin and one of my closest friends. Jackson, who has become blood to me. And, of course, my brother. Sawyer has never let me down, but I have to give them the chance to walk, to leave without judgment.

“You guys want to go?” I ask. I haven’t even picked up my fork yet, but the others are shoveling food into their mouths and stop, glancing up at me.

I feel Halle’s eyes come to me and her shock. Is shesurprised I want to stay or that I’m giving them the option to bow out of this oncoming storm?

It mirrors the shock coming from my brother. “What the fuck, Cade? I’m not leaving.” He sounds insulted that I even suggested it, but I had to give him the chance. What kind of brother would I be if I didn’t?

“If Dalton was telling the truth, the Order is coming for us.”

And it isusbecause while Halle might be wearing someone else’s mark, I can’t stop fighting for her.

Those times when I watched her in the woods, when she had no idea I was there, all I could think about was how sad she always seemed. It ground my gears knowing she was.

Chosen mate matches are tricky. There’s always the risk that the feelings between two wolves won’t grow, won’t develop, and they’ll be stuck in a loveless pairing.

It’s rare, but it does happen.

Most chosen mates are picked because feelings are already there, but it’s clear to anyone that was not the case with Halle and Dalton. It was about what her name could do for him and what his position could do to protect her.

All those times I visited her, I could sense how much she wanted to change her life. I didn’t think I would see that happen.

I understand why her aunt pushed for their match, even if her reasoning was flawed, but it exposed Halle to danger, and that I can’t excuse.

“So let those assholes come,” Sawyer snaps.

“You so eager to die?” Wyatt growls his words out.

“Well, that’s dramatic.” I can sense the anger and tension in my usually jovial brother through the pack bond. “If you want to run, tail tucked between your legs, then by all means. Fuck off.”

Wyatt glares at him, and I feel the strain between them. “Never said I was running.”

---