Page 48 of Untamed

She blinks those golden eyes at me, her face carefully blank. She's crafty, my mate, careful not to give her game away too soon. Now loosened thanks to me, those braids make her look sweet and innocent, but she can't hide her cunning intelligence.

"She did. It was the growl of a true luna she-wolf, Inuit," Bea says with a sort of stunned pride.

"She is the true luna," I tell her, the warning in my voice clear. Inside, I'm fucking giddy. My mate is a powerful female.

"Well, Porscia was asking questions about her suitability. She's still keen on her family climbing the social ladder of the pack. Your mate was right in warning her off."

The leather steering wheel cracks under my left hand. Immediately, I look down at my right hand onQitsuk'sthigh to make sure that I didn't bruise her. Claws are peeking through my fingertips, but I'm not squeezing.

Her golden eyes are fixed outside the window, but her hand drops to mine, linking our fingers. I exhale in relief. I didn't hurt her. How fucking ironic that would have been.

"I should have buried that entire family," Rhet muses in a dark voice.

"They didn't break the rules," I remind him. My words come out a little slurred from my protruding canines.

I hate that this family, the former Betas of the pack, are still around, hangers-on to the pack's power.Porscia can't let go of the glory of the past.

"Why was she allowed to come to see my mate this morning?" I growl at Bea and Gaia.

"She has supporters," Bea answers calmly.

Gaia snorts derisively, her tightly woven curls of pepper-black quivering with indignation. "She's got bootlickers, you mean. Wolves who want a return of Alpha Jax's family line."

"He has no family line," I growl out. "His nephews are notalphas."

"No, but there is still the worry that you'll leave the pack, In," Thjis says calmly.

"And," Bea sighs, "there are questions of where our Little Luna came from. Will she want to leave or take you away with her?"

I take my hand off of my mate's thigh, worried that the long, black claws curling out of my fingertips will pierce her skin. She won't leave me, and I can't leave this pack.

She calms my worries when she curls herself back into me, laying her head on my arm. The bells on her chain chime softly. She's not willingly with me, but she is willingly touching me. Soon she'll want to be with me.

I kiss the top of her head, driving into town. I ignore Bea's question. It's pretty fucking obvious that my mate is a runner. That's why the chain is still on her.

I wrap my arm around her shoulders. We belong together. Driving through town, I glare at all the wolves walking the streets, enjoying these last few weeks of summer. How many of them think the same way Porscia does?

As I pull up to the packhouse, I make sure that I park the truck to bring myQitsukout with me on my side. I want to keep the skin-to-skin contact.

"Inuit!" Asher comes running toward me. "We have visitors arriving in an hour from BlueSnout."

I snarl lowly. BlueSnout. Alpha Jax's nephews are from BlueSnout.

My mate stiffens a little in my arms, her eyes ranging over Asher's form, her nose twitching. Her head tilts, just slightly, to one side as she eyes my friend.

My friend typically isn't stupid enough to stare at a female who isn't his. Not right now, though. No, now Asher has just thrown himself into a whole hell of a lot of stupid.

"She's amazing, In," he says with awe in his voice. "I didn't get to see her up close after her bath."

"Eyes," I croak out through my rage.

Asher, thankfully, drops his gaze from my luna. I struggle to get my jealousy under control. My wolf isn't helping. His dark gaze is fixed on the other male. Mating venom wells a little in my mouth. He's prepared to Claim his luna before another male gets any ideas.

"Let's get prepared for BlueSnout's arrival," Rhet says grimly.

I tug my mate into the packhouse, my feet rushing towards my office. It's pretty new for me to have an office here. Alpha Jax hasn't used it in years. Lyri never moved in, choosing to conduct pack business in the more relaxed atmosphere of the library or kitchen.

It's empty of everything but a battered desk given to me by the school and a couch that Lyri had brought here the first time I fell asleep trying to work. A bookshelf in the corner is almost empty. The two filing cabinets are overflowing with paperwork despite the electronic age. I blame Rhet for that. A lamp sits next to the couch. I've never even tried to turn it on.

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