Page 18 of A Wolf's Treasure
“No, they dinna.” Because he may have rushed her out of there and barely escaped with their lives.
But, again, he didn’t know this for sure. So, there was no point in bringing it up. Besides, once those wolves realized their prey—whoever that had been—had escaped, there’d be no need for them to stick around.
Cedric turned his head and gazed out the window. His expression was serene, but Duncan wasn’t fooled. He could practically hear the sharp mind of his alpha whirring like a blender inside his skull. Wandering over to the couch, he made himself comfortable, and waited.
It wasn’t long before Cedric turned around. “We need tae discover who these wolves are, and why they’re here in my territory. With all we have goin’ on with th’ Fae, and with everything ye just told me, I dinna trust tha’ they’re just passin’ through. I dinna ken who they are without more information, but they can no’ just come here without permission and they ken that. Which means they’re up tae no good. Or they’re tryin’ tae cause trouble with this pack, and I dinna ken any wolf who is thatgallustae think they can just waltz on in here without me knowin’.” He paused. “Ye said they saw ye, is tha’ right?”
“Aye, they saw me.”Saw me hauling my arse down the highway.
In spite of his promise to Ryanne, he was beginning to re-examine his reasons for not telling Cedric the whole story. What if they’d followed him back here? And something happened and the pack wasn’t prepared because he’d neglected to mention the bonnie lass he’d rescued?
He sat forward, gripping his water in both hands, one knee bouncing up and down. “Cedric…”
A knock at the door interrupted his confession.
Cedric held up his finger for him to hold that thought and went to answer the door.
Duncan waited where he was, grateful for the interruption. It would give him time to think of a way to bring Ryanne into the picture without it sounding like he’d been purposely omitting her being there. Och. Maybe he should just admit to it. There was no harm done since he was telling him now.
“Prince Nada,” Cedric said from the doorway. “What can I do fer ye?” The forced patience in his voice was almost comical.
“May I come in?”
Duncan smiled at his alpha’s heavy sigh.
“Aye.” He sounded less than thrilled.
The Fae prince strolled in, looking like he belonged in one of those fancy magazines. Impeccably groomed. Long, white hair. Black suit, silver cane, silver-toed boots.
Duncan vaguely wondered if he had an entire closetful of those suits, or just kept this one looking so clean and pressed with his Faerie woo-woo magic.
“Ah, Duncan. Good. Just the wolf I wanted to see.”
A shiver of unease tingled down his spine. “Me?”
The prince smiled. “Yes. You. I heard you had a little excitement last night.”
Cedric, having shut the door and now standing beside him, frowned. “How in th’ hell would ye ken such a thing? Duncan was only just telling me.”
The prince gave him an innocent look. “How is this my fault?”
“I dinna say it was yer fault. I said…Och. Never mind.” Cedric huffed out a frustrated breath and took a seat in his new chair, nearly identical to the last one only it was tan, not blue. With a wave of his hand, he indicated the prince should carry on with what he was saying.
“As I was saying,” Prince Nada continued. “I believe I know who these strange wolves were.”
Duncan sat up, as did Cedric. “Ye do?”
“Yes.” The prince looked around, eyeing the furniture before choosing to take a seat on the other end of the couch from Duncan. Laying his cane aside, he took a deep breath, settling back into the soft cushions.
Duncan focused on his breathing, keeping his heart beating at a normal rhythm so Cedric wouldn’t notice anything amiss.
The prince glanced over to the fireplace, cold and barren of wood, and gave a wistful sigh. “A fire would be very nice on a day like today. It’s going to rain.”
“It always rains here,” Cedric told him.
Duncan watched as the prince stared at him for such a long time his fearless alpha began to squirm.
“Och, fine,” he finally said, getting out of his chair. “I’ll start a fire.”
