Page 37 of Brutal Alpha's Forced Mate

“But I wasn’t,” I counter. “And no one else was, either.”

He opens his mouth to argue, but Theo cuts in before he can. “She’s right, Alpha. That was impressive.”

Gray’s scowl deepens, but he doesn’t argue. Instead, he turns back to the group. “All right, let’s secure the area and make sure the ward line’s intact. Dismissed.”

As the crowd disperses, I feel the weight of Gray’s gaze on me. I glance at him, expecting another lecture, but his expression is unreadable.

“Good work,” he says finally, his voice gruff.

The compliment catches me off-guard, and for a moment, I don’t know how to respond. My stomach twists, and a quiet, traitorous part of me wonders if maybe this is his wayof breaking the ice, of opening the door to talk about what happened last night. My heartbeat quickens at the thought, and I glance at him, searching for some hint of vulnerability, some sign that it’s been weighing on him the way it’s been eating at me.

But his expression is as calm and collected as ever, like nothing’s changed. Like we didn’t kiss. Like I wasn’t wrapped up in him just minutes ago, feeling more alive than I have in years.

His words from last night come rushing back—we can’t—and the sting of them makes my chest ache. He’s not going to bring it up. Not now. Maybe not ever. And as much as I try to convince myself that it doesn’t matter, that I shouldn’t care, the disappointment settles in, anyway, heavy and unwelcome.

“Thanks,” I say shortly, turning away before he can see the flicker of hurt in my eyes. Because if Gray’s determined to pretend nothing happened between us, then fine. Two can play that game.

***

I spend the rest of the day keeping myself busy, reinforcing some of the weaker ward lines and helping with minor repairs around the packhouse. But my mind keeps circling back to the same thought: Gray is avoiding me.

It’s not obvious to anyone else. To the pack, he’s just doing what alphas do—managing problems, keeping everything running smoothly. But I know better. Every time I enter a room, he’s suddenly got somewhere else to be. Every time I try to catch his eye, he’s already looking away.

It started when we got back from the ward lines. Normally, he’d make some excuse to hang around, always withinearshot, always keeping an eye on me like I might spontaneously combust if left unsupervised. But not today. Today, he said something about needing to check on pack patrols and disappeared before I could even ask if he wanted help.

At first, I brushed it off. I told myself he’s busy, that the alarm this morning probably put him on edge. But as the hours drag on and he manages to dodge me at every turn, it becomes clear: Gray is avoiding me.

And I’m done pretending it doesn’t bother me.

By the time the sun starts dipping below the horizon, I’ve had enough. I find him in the packhouse office, hunched over a stack of papers with a pen in hand. He looks up as I step inside, panic entering those blue eyes when he sees me.

“Jaslyn,” he greets, keeping his voice carefully neutral. “What’s up?”

I close the door behind me, leaning against it with my arms crossed. “You tell me.”

He sighs, setting his pen down. “I’ve been busy.”

“Don’t lie to me.” My tone is sharper than I intend, but I don’t care. “This isn’t you being busy. This is you running.”

“Running? From what?”

“From me,” I snap, stepping closer. “From what happened last night.”

His jaw works as he looks away, and the sight of it only fuels my frustration. “Jaslyn, you were drunk. What happened… it shouldn’t have happened.”

“You’re right. It shouldn’t have. Not because I was drunk, but because you don’t have the guts to deal with it.”

His head snaps back to me, and his eyes narrow. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” I take another step until I’m leaning over his desk. “You keep pretending like you’re the noble one, like you’re doing me some kind of favor by holding back. But the truth is, you’re just scared.”

“I’m not scared,” he growls, standing abruptly. He towers over me, but I’ll be damned if I’ll shrink away. “I’m trying to do the right thing.”

“And what’s that, Gray? Pretending nothing happened? Pretending there’s nothing between us?”

“You were drunk, Jaslyn. I wasn’t about to take advantage of you.”

“So what?” I demand. “If I hadn’t been drunk, would you have kept going?”

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