Page 53 of Healed in the Alpha's Embrace
As we reached the top step, a rogue strand of hair danced across my forehead. Before I could swipe it away, Noah tucked it behind my ear. The touch sent a jolt through me. My breath hitched. Warmth pooled in places that left me flustered, and my mind raced down paths lined with yearning and what-ifs.
His gaze locked with mine, the blue of his eyes darker in the early evening light. “I’ll talk to you soon.” His voice was rough, like he’d been holding it too tightly.
“Okay,” was all I managed.
Turning, I fumbled with the key at the door, my hands shaking. Inside, I leaned back against the closed door, my heart pounding a staccato rhythm.
Heather stepped into the hallway, a smug expression on her face. “I told you so,” she said, her words laced with triumph and affection.
I let out a breathless, giddy laugh. “Yeah, you did.”
13
NOAH
“Got a call from Dad,” I said, stepping into the kitchen, where Mom was slamming pots around, her face tight with anger. “They found George.”
“Finally,” she spat. “About time that man got what’s coming to him.”
I leaned against the door frame, watching her. “Dad wants to go and confront him.”
“Good,” she said, her hands trembling as she tightly gripped the counter. “I just don’t get it, Noah. What does he want from Zoey after all this?”
“Control, probably,” I muttered, my own hands balling into fists. “He can’t stand that she’s out of his reach now.”
“Well, he better learn to live with it,” she snapped, eyes blazing. “Because if he thinks he can waltz back into her life and terrorize her again...”
She didn’t need to finish. There was no way I’d let that happen.
A moment later, my father joined us in the kitchen. Mike and Lance, his two trusted betas, came in from the back porch. Dadlooked at me, his jaw set with a determination I knew all too well.
“I want you there when I talk to him,” Dad said. “It’ll send a clear message.”
“Count me in,” I replied firmly.
“Good.” He turned and nodded at Mike and Lance. “Who’s with Zoey?”
“Graham and Steve,” Mike answered. “They’ll stay on her. Ky’s going to keep an extra vigilant eye on the kid if he comes to the gym later.”
“Let’s go, then,” Dad said.
We pulledup to George’s place, a nondescript house on the outskirts of Boldercrest.
“Stay sharp,” Dad murmured as we got out of the truck. Mike and Lance flanked us, their steps measured and deliberate.
We approached the door as a united front, ready for whatever came next.
I knocked on the door. We could hear him inside, but he took his sweet time to answer. This was his way of disrespecting the alpha and trying to gain control of the situation. Fool. All he was doing was proving himself the idiot he was.
George swung open the door, his lips curled into a smirk. “Well, now, I didn’t think I needed a welcoming committee. Didn’t realize I warranted such attention.”
“Trust me,” I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest, “it wouldn’t take all of us to handle you.”
The smirk slipped from George’s face, replaced with a cold stare. “Is that a challenge, Noah?”
I took a step forward, ready to wipe that smug look off his face once and for all, but my father’s arm barred my path.
“You didn’t ask permission to set foot in this town,” my father’s steely voice said.
