Page 7 of Nick
Her heart leaped into her throat as she scrambled to answer, her bare feet whispering across the cold floorboards.
Pulling the door open, she found herself face-to-face with Nick, his tall, muscular frame filling the doorway, his sandy blond hair down around his face.He was like a jolt of electricity in the quiet morning stillness, and for a moment, Sarah could only stare.
“Hi, Nick,” she finally managed to say, doing her best to keep her tone even.
Not that it mattered.Her erratic pulse thrummed so loudly she was sure Nick would be able to hear it.
“Sarah.”His voice was calm, and Sarah couldn’t tell anything about his pulse.
He’s going to say no, a fearful voice in the back of her mind muttered.
“Come in,” she said, stepping aside to allow him entrance into her small room.He crossed the threshold, the tension in his shoulders and the cautious set of his jaw adding to Sarah’s certainty he was going to refuse to help the Sunburst Pack.
Not that she blamed him.
The room felt suddenly smaller with Nick inside.
“Did you think about what I asked?”Sarah asked, closing the door behind him.A raw edge of hope glinted in her words, tempered by the fear of what his answer might mean for them both.For her pack.
She wrapped her arms around herself.
Nick’s gaze met hers, unwavering, as if measuring her sincerity.
In the close quarters of the room, every breath felt amplified.Nick’s hesitation hung between them, and Sarah could almost see the war playing out in his eyes.
“Vincent Foley,” Nick finally said.“We shouldn’t underestimate him.But I understand what’s at stake.”He paused again, inhaling as if gathering strength.“I’ll help you deal with him.”
Elation surged through Sarah.Nick’s offer was a lifeline, offering a chance at redemption.But she couldn’t let the full force of her emotions show.
“Thank you.”Her words came out in a whisper of relief.
Nick shifted his weight from one foot to the other.He glanced around the furnishings of her room at Moonstone Lodge before focusing back on her with those warm hazel eyes that always seemed to see right through her.
“We’re not enough to face Foley and his enforcers,” he said.“We’ll need backup.I have to bring in some of the Moonstone Pack.”
Sarah’s stomach clenched as she processed his words.The idea of involving anyone else weighed heavily on her, but thinking of facing Vincent Foley alone was tantamount to a death wish.She pushed aside the creeping tendrils of guilt.
“Okay,” she said.“Let’s do it.”
“I need to meet with my alpha.Come with me.”
Sarah felt herself blanch at his words.In her world, alphas were cruel, violent, ugly—and above all, they were to be avoided at all costs.
Apparently Nick didn’t feel that way about his new alpha.
“Now?”she asked.
“Now.He’s waiting for us downstairs.”
“Here?”
Nick flashed his wicked grin—she’d almost forgotten that smile, but it made her heart flip over in her chest.
With a reassuring glance from Nick, Sarah followed him down the stairs to the meeting room situated on the lower level of the lodge.
Inside, the room was bathed in the early light streaming through large windows offering a view of the dense forest surrounding the lodge.
Sarah stepped inside, her gaze scanning the familiar arrangement of chairs and the long table at the center.
