Page 23 of Rejected Pregnant Mate

Samson scoffed. "Obviously not if you're letting this guy get his hands—“

Nayeli grabbed the nearest object—a bag of coffee beans—and threw it at her cousin's head. Samson dodged it easily, and the bag soared past him, hitting the wall. It burst on impact, sending beans scattering across the floor.

Nayeli looked at the mess guiltily, then turned back to Samson. "You don't have to fix everything for me, Sam.”

He scowled at her nickname for him, and then the door opened again. I'd been enjoying the show, especially since Nayeli had taken the upper hand, but any humor I had managed to find in the situation fled when I saw who was entering.

"Fuck me, is this building cursed to attract all the assholes in town?" I huffed, watching as Jayce stopped to look at the three of us. Anger flared at the sight of him and the memory that he had managed to find Nayeli in the forest, alone, the night of the misfired spell.

"What the hell happened here?" He asked, kicking at some of the coffee beans on the floor.

Samson spoke before I could. "Who the fuck are you?"

"Remember when I told you about that Alpha that showed up on the edges of our territory with his pack a few months ago? Well, here he is. Samson, meet Jayce." My jaw worked with how tense I was becoming. "Now, can both of you get the fuck out?"

Jayce held up his hands, "I wanted to make sure there wasn't any bad blood after the other night—"

I took a step towards him, snarling. "You can bet there is bad blood, asshole."

Samson looked between us. "What happened the other night?"

"This guy," I pointed at Jayce, "was lurking around the woods the night Nayeli and I... connected. He tried to take Nayeli."

Jayce barked a laugh. "Like hell I did! I was trying to help her."

"I'm sure you were," I growled, taking another step towards him. "Don't you dare lie to me."

"Whoa, whoa," Samson stepped between us. "Let's calm the fuck down."

I looked at him like he had two heads. Hadn't Samson and I been about to fight? And now he was trying to play the peacemaker? But then Samson moved to stand beside me, and despite how much fury fogged my brain, I remembered that he was my ally. Jayce was a stranger to both of us.

Samson looked between Jayce and me, his expression deadly serious. "So, what exactly happened?"

I let out a heavy breath. "Like I said, this asshole showed up in our territory without permission."

"I was on the edge, not actually in your territory," Jayce clarified. The antagonistic energy was bleeding over to him, and he'd squared his shoulders, looking like he was ready to lunge at any moment.

"Whatever. You're still a stranger, and I don't like strangers. Especially when they're trying to get into my territory."

"I wasn't trying to get in—"

I snarled. "Don't fucking lie to me!"

I was halfway to Jayce, ready to rip his throat out, possession and rage taking over every part of me, when Nayeli stepped between us. I froze as she held her hand up to my chest, her scent cutting through the red clouding my vision.

"Please," she said, her voice a soothing balm, but not enough to completely snuff out the fire driving me to get Jayce away. "Scott, please stop."

Chapter 9 - Nayeli

The air of the coffee shop was suffocatingly thick with Alpha energy, and while I was used to dealing with Samson, having to split my attention between Scott and Samson, both of whom were determined to start a fight, was driving me crazy.

"Please," I said, my hand pressed against Scott's chest, my voice the only thing holding him back. "Scott, please stop."

Scott's body relaxed slightly under my palm, but his eyes still glinted dangerously, and his gaze never left Jayce. "You need to get the hell out of here."

Jayce smirked, "Yeah, you've mentioned that a few times."

Scott growled, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

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