Page 209 of The Alpha's Second Chance Mate

“Yeah?” Sydney said, smiling sweetly at Freddy, a laptop tucked beneath her arm. “If you know what’s good for you, then you’ll do what we fucking say. Got it?”

She winked at him, and Freddy looked like he wanted to argue, but he slid his gun into his holster and backed away.

“Fine.” Freddy gave them a mock salute. “Don’t wanna step on your toes. The boss’s favorite toys. Don’t chip a nail on that keyboard,” he said, nodding at Sydney’s computer, his lips curling back from his teeth.

“If that’s your way of flirting, Freddy boy, then you’re never gonna get laid,” Sydney said.

He turned and walked down the hall, muttering under his breath. As soon as he was out of earshot, Sydney turned to look at me. The awful and nasty smile morphed into one of concern.

“Are you okay, buddy?” she asked.

Dallas put a hand on my shoulder, gripping me firmly. “Yeah, they didn’t hurt you, did they?”

I shook my head. “Nah. I’m good.” Glancing up and down the hallway, I made sure no one was around to see or hear. “You guys have to be careful. Why are you here?”

From the moment I’d been kidnapped, Dallas had made it clear that he’d only done it to prevent more violence. Sydney was only helping Kyle more out of her desire to keep living than to actually assist him. The two of them had been helping me act the way I needed to make Kyle think I was coming over to his side. They were probably in more danger than anyone else. If that psycho thought for an instant that two of his best people were working against him, he’d kill them on the spot.

“We thought it would be a good time to check on you,” Dallas said, glancing around nervously. “Let’s get you to Kyle before he gets suspicious.”

I followed them down the hall to the next set of stairs. The silence was awkward, so I filled it with questions.

“So, what’s been going on? Outside, I mean.”

When Dallas looked at me, there was a strange shadow in his eyes. “You don’t want to know. I’m doing everything I can to get you out of here, but sometimes that means I’ve gotta do shit that will keep me up at night. If I survive all this, I may never have a good night’s sleep again.”

“He’s right,” Sydney said, keeping her voice low. “It’s the same for me. Your parents and their friends probably think I’m a total cunt—ugh, sorry. Pardon my language. I meant a totalbitch.”

Dallas chuckled. “Yeah, much more kid-friendly.”

Ignoring him, Sydney said, “We’re playing our parts. The roles that are going to keep us alive until we can take Kyle down. As long as we do that, and as long as you play yours, Ashton, we’ll get out of this.”

“Here we are,” Dallas said as we stopped in front of a door. He winked, then lowered his voice to a whisper. “Remember. Play your part.”

He opened the door, and I stepped in. Kyle sat behind a big wooden desk. Beside him was a video monitor showing the room I’d been sparring in. He grinned as I closed the door behind me and pointed at the screen.

“I was watching you.” Kyle shook his head in wonder. “You fight like a man possessed. Far more advanced than your years. Like I told your mother earlier, it’s really amazing.” He leaned back and picked up a glass. I’d seen the same kind in movies before, a weird triangular cup with a stem like a wine glass. I thought it was for martinis. The olive floating in it confirmed it.

“Uh, thanks,” I said awkwardly.

“You must get that fierceness from your mother. That shitheel sperm donor of a father isn’t half the man you and I are.”

This was one of the things that made Kyle unhinged. He’d go on these weird tangents about Cole. Even weirder was when he talked about Mom. He never said anything outright sexual, but it was enough to make me want to puke. Talking about “when your mother and I are sharing a bed” or “Your mom is a lovely woman, and I’ll show her how much she means to me.” Stuff like that. It took all my willpower not to break his nose when he said that stuff.

Just thinking about my mom made my chest ache. I’d never been away from her for this long. I missed her so much, it was kinda embarrassing. Hearing her voice on the phone earlier had nearly brought me to tears like a baby. Had Kyle not been standing right there, I would have cried, but I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me like that. Cole wouldn’t cry in front of this guy, and neither would I.

“That woman,” Kyle went on, “is a work of art. The way she’s playing Cole like a fiddle is masterful. I can’t tell you how worried I am for her. Should Cole discover that she’s ready to join me, things may get hairy.” He leaned forward, looking deeply into my eyes. “I don’t want to alarm you, but your mother is in grave danger. Cole could lose his mind when he realizes he’s losing his mate. He’ll hurt her.”

The idea of Cole hurting Mom almost made me laugh. They had their problems, sure, but I’d seen how much they still loved each other. The fact that Mom had managed to warp Kyle’s mind made me so proud. She was a writer and knew how characters should act and react, so that wasn’t surprising. What was surprising, at least to me, was how well she’d actually pulled it off. Maybe Mom missed her true calling. Instead of writingstories, she should have been acting them out on a stage or something.

Either way, it was getting the job done. We might have a chance. When Kyle started walking around with that goofy grin on his face, Dallas and Sydney noticed it as well, but they were still being extra cautious, worried that Kyle might get suspicious of them acting like anything more than good little soldiers.

Kyle drained his martini, then circled the desk. I had to force myself not to recoil as he placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Can I ask you something, Ash?” He winked at me. “Man to man?”

“Sure,” I said, my palms getting sweaty. “What’s up?”

“Well, I know this is all a foregone conclusion, but with you being her son, I should do this the proper way. How would you feel about me making your mother my mate? Not a girlfriend or wife, but anactualclaimed mate?”

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