Page 66 of Prey for Me

“What’s wrong, Raphi?” he asks, peeking at me as he strokes her belly with reverence.

“Stop calling me that,” I whisper back. “Now you have Grace saying it.”

“Why? Do you hate your nickname?” he asks. Damn it if ‘why’ isn’t his favorite world in the dictionary. Well, if the island had dictionaries, that is.

“No, but it makes me feel like I’m still a kid,” I murmur, and he falls silent after that.

We sit in silence for a long while, listening to waves lap against the shore along with Nakoa’s nameless lullaby. It’s not until he reaches over to wipe my face that I feel my tears falling.

“Don’t cry in front of the pack. Only when we are alone,” he says sternly when I look over. But I can hear how much his voice drips with concern.

I sniffle. Fucking sniffle? I suck in my sob, and hold it in my chest until it burns. When I find my words, they’re all wrong, nothing like I wanted to say.

“Nakoa… Alpha… I-I don’t want to fuck this up,” I choke out, ashamed at the raw terror in my voice. I’m so fucking weak.

“We will win,” he says, the certainty giving me a bit of strength.

“But at what cost?” I ask, and surprise shines bright in his searching eyes. “What if we die, and leave her a widow? What if… What if Grace is injured?”

I can’t bring myself to even form the word die. It feels as if my heart will shatter just thinking about it.

“Then do you want some rope? Because I promise you, she will not let us go alone. You’ll have to tie her down and risk her hating you. Again. And it won’t just be because of Faith,” Nakoa says softly. “She won’t allow us to fight without her.”

“I know,” I say too loudly, nearly shouting. I look around at our scattered pack, getting ready for the early morning strike, and drop my head in shame.

“What if I fail her? What if I fail us?” I finally find the right words to say because that is my worst fear.

I don’t care if I die. I don’t care if I’m maimed. And I know if one of us falls, the others will keep Grace safe. But if I fail her, if she’s hurt… If she dies… If our baby dies, I won’t–

“You won’t fail… Raphel,” Nakoa says sternly, grabbing my chin so I’m forced to look at him.

He’s lifted himself off of Grace, kneeling in front of me. And now I’m glad our pack is gone because he shouldn’t be. “You were born to be withher.Withus.So be the alpha you were meant to be. And believe in yourself. You’ve survived and thrived after much worse. Fucking filthy wolves won’t stop us.”

I gulp, not trusting myself to talk anymore. Nakoa turns back to Grace, splaying his palm on her stomach and rubbing it in slow circles.

“We can’t deny our omega her revenge, but we will make sure she is defended from harm. Be the alpha that Grace needs, but also our baby girl, Raphael. You are my second. If I die in battle, this will be your pack and your mate to lead.”

I nod, feeling more ashamed than I thought I would be for my doubts. He’s right. I’m not just Grace’s alpha, or the baby girl Nakoa seems so sure is a little girl. I am the future pack leader of South Shore, and maybe one day, the entire island. I will neverfail my mate, because in doing so, I’ll rob not only her, but all of us of a brighter future.

CHAPTER THIRTY

GRACE

“BlueFox,”Iwhisperas we finalize preparations to set sail for and set siege on North Shore.

The ship the other packs will ride in on is massive, strong enough to fight against them, and also get us off this island. That thought alone causes tears to spring to my eyes as my pack and I board our small sail boat and set a course. We plan to search for Faith, and of course, they plan to fight alongside their men. But deep down, I want to grab her and get out. I don’t want to see any of them get hurt. I won’t be able to withstand any of them dying.

“Are you ready?” Nakoa asks as he lifts me over the ledge. The mood is sombre as Leo pulls the anchor and Raphael turns the wheel away from the bay.

“As I’ll ever be,” I respond, laying my head against his chest as he threads his rough fingers through my hair.

We cut through the water at a slow yet steady pace. We don’t meet resistance, just as we anticipated, most of the power to North Shore shut down. I still can’t wrap my head around thefact that this is Foxcroft. And I know, as I look up at him, the wind whipping at his shoulder-length dark hair, Raphael can’t accept his family was involved in creating this.

But it gives me hope that maybe fate isn’t set in stone. If it were, wouldn’t that mean we were destined to be monsters? But we chose different, choose better, choose to accept each other, scars and all, and work to heal the past. I squeeze Nakoa’s hand, resting in his arms since we set off. I’m not as nausea as I thought I’d be, but I am clingy.

And for once, I’m so grateful it’s not from my heat.

When it gets dark, the tension in the air is palpable, as well as the taste of our co-mingled pheromones. I settle into a nest of sorts made up of the color tropical pillows the South Shore packs favor, and a sea of warm blankets. The sea sprays us every so often, and I’m thankful, because it ratchets down the heat building between us to be bearable.

---