Page 41 of Untamed

“They were ganging up on my mate.”

Jesse laughs. “Please. They were only having some fun.”

“Respectfully,” Jonah snaps. “They were being bitches.”

“Well, you should see this,” Laura says, trembling. She brings out her phone, and my heart sinks. A fake sob erupts from her throat. “We were on our way to the lake when we saw Kinsey lure Jesse this way.” She finds the picture and tilts the screen toward him.

Jonah drops his head. “Don’t bullshit me.”

“It’s true!” she shrieks. “She came onto him. I’m telling you, there’s something wrong with her, Jonah. She doesn’t feel the bond. She doesn’t care.”

One of the braver girls says, “Yeah, it’s because she’s not from a mated pair.”

Jonah reaches his hand down, and I place my own in his. He helps me to my feet and then wraps his arm around my shoulders. “If you’d paid any attention in school, you’d know that mated pairs can feel each other’s emotions. I felt what was going through her, and it wasn’t that she wanted to seduce the alpha. Nice try, though.”

Laura drops her hand. She sighs as if lying is no big deal to her. She’s been lying all her life. “We were just trying to get her to shift. Damn, Jonah. Forget it.”

A rumble emanates from my mate’s chest. His angry stare flicks to Jesse, and his friend’s presence grows bigger under his scrutiny, his own growl ripping from his throat. “You four, leave,” he commands. When the four girls don’t go anywhere, he bellows, “Now!” They cower under the weight of his words. Even Laura’s shoulders hunch as she cringes. Apparently, she isn’t big enough to withstand the future alpha’s commands either. They walk away, the Queen Bitch herself peering over her shoulder to administer her final dirty look, but I don’t take the bait. She’s a petty cunt.

Jonah squeezes my hand as Jesse approaches. “You told them about Kinsey not being able to shift?”

Jesse has the decency to look a tad grieved. “I may have let it slip.”

“You wouldn’t let them hurt my mate, would you?” Jonah asks. His body vibrates in anger. I can feel the tension gathering in him from here, but I also catch the steady clip of his words. He’s trying to keep himself in check in front of the future alpha. No one is allowed to go against him. Not even a friend.

“No,” Jesse snaps. “Of course not. Laura said she had a way to get Kinsey to show her true colors so that you would know whether to let her out of the Rejected Mate Academy. I would never hurt your mate.”

I scoff, and the future alpha turns daring green eyes at me, but I don’t cower. I don’t refute him either, though. I’m actively trying to fight against going Feral.

“Again, with all due respect, that sounds like a bunch of bullshit. I’m surprised you would fall for it. I know my mate better than anyone, and I don’t need someone else’s help in deciding what’s best for the two of us.”

“Fair enough,” Jesse offers, raising his arms in true diplomatic fashion. “Let me go get you some trunks, and we’ll forget this happened.”

Jonah rubs his fingers up and down my shoulder. “No, we’ll be leaving.” He turns to me, so much apology in his eyes. “Ready, Kinsey?”

“Jonah, come on. They were only having a bit of fun.”

“I don’t find anything about what happened here fun, funny, or helpful. I saw a bunch of wolves who know better pick on someone who’s done nothing but try today.”

Jesse sneers. “Sometimes it’s too little, too late.”

“And if this is how she was treated, can you see why she didn’t try before?” Jonah snaps.

“Watch yourself,” Jesse warns.

“I plan on it. Which is why we’re leaving.” He turns, and instead of taking the path to the house, we hike through the woods. Footsteps leave in the other direction, and when they’re out of earshot, Jonah says, “I’m shifting. You’ll ride me to where we’re parked.”

It’s as if he’s human one second, then fur sprouts and bones break simultaneously before he drops to all fours and regards me with the specks of green illuminating his eyes. He nuzzles me, nipping playfully at my hand, and then I do what anyone would do in this moment: fulfill my fantasy of riding my mate through the forest.

What? Doesn’t everyone have that fantasy?

18

Once we’re at the car, I climb off, and Jonah shifts to his human form. I’m sure my hair and face are dirty, not only from the ride but from the altercation in the clearing, but Jonah backs me against his truck anyway. “Are you okay?”

Inside, my wolf is still at the ready, waiting for something to happen. I soothe her until she settles down. “Peachy. Why wouldn’t I be?”

His lips thin. “I didn’t want to say anything in front of Jesse, but I felt your fear. It’s why I came running.”

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