Page 6 of Nick
He could still feel the sting of Sarah’s betrayal, a wound time had failed to heal.
“Whatever your decision, you won’t be alone.”Mila’s statement hung in the air, an offering of support.“We’re here for you, no matter what path you take.You’re part of this pack, and we stick together.”
“Part of me wants to help.It’s my nature, I think.I can’t just turn my back on someone in trouble,” he said.
“Your instincts have always been one of your greatest strengths, Nick.”Steele stood.“Trust them.This is your choice to make.”The alpha clasped his hands behind his back, pacing the length of the ornately woven rug.Nick watched the alpha’s deliberate movements, each step radiating certainty and control.
Finally, Steele halted and turned to face him, his gray eyes steady.“Listen, if you decide to go back to Sunburst and help them out,” he began, “I’ll send some of our guys with you.You truly won’t be alone in this.”
Nick’s throat tightened.He nodded stiffly, acknowledging the offer.It was more than he’d expected, and it reminded him of the bond he now shared with the Moonstone Pack—a bond that had taken him years to accept after the betrayal that cut so deep.
“Thank you,” he managed to say, the words scraping past the raw edges of his emotions.“Sunburst was always a small pack—only fifty or so members, even at its peak, and Sarah says it’s shrinking.But…”
Steele nodded.“But you’ll still be outnumbered if you go up against the alpha.”
“Unless more pack members turn against him.”
Steele’s lips tightened.“You can at least scope out the situation.And I’ll send Ryker and Bronx—they know better than anyone how to deal with a rogue alpha, should it truly be necessary.”
His shoulders slumped as relief rushed through Nick.“I appreciate that.”
Mila rose from her seat, her movements fluid as she crossed the room to join them.With a gentle touch on Nick’s arm, she guided him toward the door.
“Sarah wouldn’t have come to you unless she was truly desperate,” Mila said softly as they reached the doorway.“You know that, right?”
He shifted uncomfortably.“Yeah,” he responded curtly.
“Desperation can change a lot for a person.It might mean there’s still something between you two, some unfinished business,” she added.
Nick’s hand paused on the doorknob.There was a truth in her words he didn’t want to confront.But it clawed at him, insistent and undeniable.
“Thanks,” he finally said, turning the knob and stepping out into the evening air.
Doubts swarmed through him as he replayed Mila’s words in his mind with each step away from the house.“Thanks again,” he called over his shoulder, not trusting himself to look back at her without his emotions betraying the turbulent storm within.
“Take care, Nick,” Mila’s voice floated out to him.
He nodded, more to himself than to her, and shoved his hands into the pockets of his worn leather jacket.
Nick’s wolf bristled beneath his skin, pacing restlessly, sharing in his human counterpart’s turmoil.A low growl rumbled in his chest unbidden, the sound barely audible over the whispering leaves.He had been wronged, cast out, and now the same pack that had turned its back on him needed him.
“Damn it,” he muttered, the words slicing through the night.Could he really consider aiding those who had once seen him as expendable?And what about Sarah—was there a shred of their bond that remained after such a deep cut?
Mila’s suggestion that desperation might have changed Sarah, that it hinted at lingering ties, ate at him.It was a dangerous seed of a thought, threatening to sprout roots in the dusty ruins of his trust.He clenched his fists, nails digging crescents into his palms.
Nick paused, realizing his feet had taken him unerringly to the edge of the forest.
Maybe a run was exactly what he needed.
With a steady exhale, he pulled off his clothes and let his inner wolf overtake him, fur and fangs replacing all his human worries.
With one last look up at the stars, he raced forward into the deep night of the forest, hoping the run would clear his mind.
Even if he knew it could never fully clear his heart.
Chapter 4
EARLY THE NEXT MORNING, a sharp knock echoed against the wooden door of Sarah’s room at the Moonstone Lodge.
