Page 170 of His Forsaken Alpha

Wynter’s gaze flicked to Wilder’s. “That wasn’t fair. He did not choose his parents.”

Wilder gnashed his teeth before meeting Wynter’s gaze. He quickly moved it away with a hint of shame in his eyes. After hitching a breath, his focus moved to Vaughn. “He’s right.I’m sorry.”

“Fuck your apologies,”Vaughn hissed.

“It doesn’t have to be like this!” Wynter pleaded. “Warden’s gone, and all of the secrets are now out. We now get to choose how we move forward. We either face this together and find a path forward—or you ultimately lose your papa and your brother to your bitterness.”

Vaughn scowled. “You’ve spent our entire lives pitting us against one another and now you expect harmony?”

“I’ve done no such thing,” Wynter snapped.

“When you give all of your love to one but not the others, you breed contempt and competition,” Vaughn said. “That isexactlywhat you’ve done to us.”

“You know, I remember you being tied to Papa’s side as a young boy. You spent hours with him, the two of you thick as thieves,” Wilder said. “You keep saying he showed me more love and affection, but from my memory it was quite the opposite.”

Wynter clenched his teeth. “I tried by best to beequalwith my attentions.”

“We all know your best wasn’t good enough,” Vaughn said. “And as far as your threat… either I play my part, or I lose you both…”

“That wasn’ta threat,”Wynter argued. “It’s the truth of our situation.”

Vaughn ignored him. “… I’ve never really had either of you in my life, so losing you wouldn’t be all that rough.” He crossed the room, his long legs eating up the floor—but paused when he was standing directly beside Wynter. After a deep inhale, he said, “And Warden called it. You jumpedrightinto bed with your lover, didn’t you?”

Wynter recoiled.

“His mate,”Wilder corrected, gently pulling Wynter back and slightly behind him. “His true alpha and the man he should’ve been with all along.”

“Already jumping in to defend dear old daddy, are we, Wild?” Vaughn asked. “How easily you toss aside the man who gave youeverythingfor one who’s given you nothing.”

“Cavanaugh gave him life,” Wynter said. “And he would’ve given all had he known Wilder was his son. You can’t blame him for that.”

“No, I blameyou,Papa,” Vaughn said. “No one else is to blame but you—you said so just outside this conference room. You are the one to blame forallof our ills. Had you never gone into heat that fateful summer, none of us would be in this predicament.”

Wilder growled, snatching Vaughn by the collar.

Wynter forced himself between them, dragging Wilder’s hands away from Vaughn. He turned to his youngest son and sighed.“Blame me.If that’s what you need to do right now,blame me.Even if it wasn’t my fault,blame me.I’ll carry that weight as long as I need to—so you don’t have to right now. So put it all on me. Every last bit of it.”

Vaughn fully met his gaze. “That alpha’s dick must really be something to haveyouplaying the martyr, Papa.”

Wilder lunged at Vaughn, who easily slipped away and moved closer to the door.

“You want us to choose to be different? Okay… I choose to be alone, away from the both of you. As soon as we can clear up Warden’s mess, we move on.”

“We work with one another every day,” Wilder said to Vaughn.

“Maybe not for much longer,” Vaughn muttered before exiting the conference room and slamming the door closed.

Wilder growled lowly before drawing in a deep breath. He turned to Wynter. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Wynter said. “I’m more worried about your brother.”

“After what he just said to you?”

Wynter shook his head. “He’s wounded. That’s why he’s lashing out at everyone he loves.”

“Loves?I don’t think Vaughn knows how to love anyone but himself,” Wilder snapped.

“He adores you,” Wynter said.

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