Page 39 of The Alpha's Chosen Outcast

“Heather, just think about it. No matter who you choose, you’ll be the female Alpha of a pack.YOURpack. You can work to change the laws on your own.”

“Yeah, if the Alpha I marry doesn’t try to keep me under his thumb as some kind of brood mare until he has enough kids to say he’s done with me.” I counter.

“Then I suggest you choose wisely.”

I look down at the table again. “Trey says we have a mating bond.”

“He said what?!” Violet sits down.

“But I can’t marry him because he’s not an Alpha, not that he’d want anything besides the mating part. Or at least he hasn’t said so.”

“He’s going out of his way to find you a husband. Trust me, that’s a big deal.”

“If you say so.”

“It is.”

“Fine, okay, but I still have to choose one of these men andmarryhim. I feel like jumping out of my skin just thinking about it.”

“You need a run.”

“Great idea, Violet.” I smile. “Let’s just do a couple laps around the break room and then a relay down the hall a few times. That’ll take the edge off.”

“No. I mean a real run.”

“I can’t do that. Trey already caught me leaving here before, and I was careful. His guys are all over the place, and I have no ideawho they are. If I change on pack territory and they see it, I’m signing my own death warrant.”

“There’s one big difference you’re forgetting.”

I raise my eyebrows at her in question.

“This time, you have me. I know Trey’s guys. I know where they like to hide out. And I have the power to tell them to step back.”

“You do?”

“Yes. Follow my lead, Heather. It’s time for you to learn what it means to have power as a woman and a wolf.”

She heads out of the workroom and toward the front. I hesitate for a moment and then follow her. Am I really doing this? She holds up her hand at the entrance to the store and sends a text with her phone in her other hand.

She twists her head around to me and I see her face scrunch up. She folds her fingers into her palm, holding up the last in a “one second” gesture.

I hear her phone buzz, and her head snaps back to read the incoming text. Her fingers unfold, and she beckons me with a slight wave.

“They’ll leave us alone. No one knows who you are or why they have to watch you, so they’re totally willing to stay away given an order from me.”

I walk forward and link my arm with hers like we’re two girls about to head out on the town.

“Where to then?”

She looks over at me. “Central Park.”

She’s a fucking genius. It’s dark, and not many people are in the park. Those that are would be looking to harm young women like us, but they’d regret trying pretty quickly. We’re quick, though, and we know how to move in the shadows.

We grew up in this city as wolves, and right now, those feelings are rushing through me. It’s like the first time I turned back on the soil I call home.

As we get closer to the park, our pace increases. Soon, we’re running. I can see Belvedere Castle, and we’re about to run through the Shakespeare Garden.

I smell the delight of wet grass and stones. Violet looks back at me and smiles. She says one word, and I know exactly what she means.

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