Page 28 of Bonded and Betrothed

“Fuck, woman,” Zeke whispers, and tendrils of desire move through my body straight to my core at the sound of his voice thick with lust. I tap his arm, pursing my lips as I silently point back to the road, needing him to stay quiet right now. He chuckles, but to my relief, he remains silent, letting me hear Silas this time.

“We should be pulling up to the compound in a few moments. Are we still a go?” Silas asks, apparently wanting to confirm the second part of our earlier conversation.

“10-4,” I say, clipping the radio back to my pants.

“Is what still a go?” Zeke asks curiously, but I notice his playful tone is gone, replaced with an edge of suspicion. I guess the apprehension really does run deep between our two packs.

“He wants me to stay in the car while our teams do the initial patrol,” I grumble, scrubbing a hand over my face in exasperation.

“Well, I agree,” he says simply, taking the last turn up into the makeshift compound.

“You can’t be serious,” I groan, sitting up straight as we approach. I slip my gun from its holster, preparing for anything, as I survey the distance. The darkness presses in on me as we pull off of the main road, no streetlights to guide our way now. The meager amount of illumination the headlights provide really doesn’t amount to much in the middle of the forest.

Trees line the sides of the seemingly abandoned road, and I grimace at the single entrance, wishing we could have had this meeting somewhere else, possibly in the light of day. But this was one of their stipulations, and I can see why as we pull up to the shipping containers laid out before us.

“Yes, I’m serious. You’re my mate, Skylar,” he says, the word catching me off guard. The conversation was so easy between the two of us that I’d almost forgotten about the soul deep connection that linked us together. A thrill runs through my body at the title on his lips, but I pull my face into a mask of impassivity, not letting him see the excitement it brings. I’m not ready to look too closely at the joy bubbling up inside me, when it should really be dread. He circles the car around, positioning us closest to the exit as the rest of the envoy streams in. The location is obviously something he’d already planned ahead of time. With my distraction, I hadn’t realized the crafty asshole has his own plans. “I’ll do everything in my power to protect you, no matter what.”

And with that confession, he slips from the vehicle, the motion so swift I barely have time to react. By the time I reach for the handle, it’s locked, the horn echoing out as he locks all the doors from the outside. I search the interior but nothing, I can’t find any way to let myself out. I climb over to the driver’s side and use the button that should unlock all the doors, but much to my annoyance, nothing happens.

“Asshole,” I yell as loud as I can, pounding on the glass half-heartedly, knowing it won’t make any difference. He’s grinning back at me. Fucking great, now the lunatic is definitely going to think asshole is a term of endearment for him.

“Have some patience, babe. You won’t be locked in there all night, just let us search the area.” With that, he walks over to a group of his betas. I can’t make out his words with how thick the glass is, but the message is clear enough as they grab a few of my own pack members who are more than eager to surround the vehicle to keep me safe.

A few minutes pass by, and I tap my foot on the car floor, hoping all these fuckers know they’re in for a world of trouble. How dare they lock me in a car? I push down the pain that wells up, causing my hands to shake slightly at the thought of my mate out there, making sure the way is clear for me. What would happen if someone attacked him while I’m locked in here, unable to aid him? Selfish asshole.

Each minute passing by feels like an hour as I wait for him to return. After a while I let myself search inward, tugging at the mate bond that connects the two of us, and gasp in surprise at what I feel. His emotions stream down the line to me, his determination coming through clearly, assuring me he’s safe. But not for long, because when I get my hands on him …

As though he senses the turn my thoughts take, he finally makes his way back to the car, dismissing the betas standing guard around the vehicle. My pack looks to me for confirmation, and I have to grit my teeth, holding back the words I truly want to say, and simply nod. This had been the plan, but having others protect me and being locked in the car like some damsel in distress that can’t take care of herself was definitely nowhere in the plans. As an alpha I can’t let this continue, I can’t allow either of our packs to see me as weak. I should be treated as an equal, regardless if he’s my mate or not. I can defend myself just as well as anyone else can, perhaps even more in my human form.

The light flashes on the dash, a beep ringing out from the car as Zeke points his remote at the vehicle. I waste no time pushing the door open and nearly smacking him in the face with it.

“How dare you?” I demand, heat burning my cheeks as the building rage blazes in my veins.

“I told you, I’m going to keep you safe,”

“Listen to me,” I growl, and his attention snaps to me. My anger and fear mix together to create a tornado of fury. “How do you think I felt?” Those words seem to shock him, his mouth shuttering as he eyes me, confusion knitting his brows together. “You’re my mate too. Do you not think I felt that same fear and anxiety with you putting yourself at risk?”

I pitch my voice low so that no one else can hear. But they all seem to have given us a bit of space while setting up in their remaining positions and patrols.

“I didn’t—”

“No, you didn’t think,” I cut him off, needing him to listen to me. There isn’t any time for his excuses, not with our enemies so close. “We do this together, and you don’t leave me behind ever again. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” he says, his voice thick with regret, but I ignore it, unable to process any of this right now.

“We do this together.”

“Everything,” I growl, needing to make it clear that it wasn’t just tonight or this meeting. I’m not even sure what I mean right now, but his eyes light with something that looks a lot like hope.

“Everything,” he agrees, and I leave it at that, still unable to sort through the mix of emotions rushing through me. I take a deep breath and attempt to compose myself, needing to keep my cool for this meeting. I can’t let the sleuth think the smell of fear that must cling to my skin is from them.

He reaches out, as though he’s about to pull me to him, but his arm falls limply to his side. Good, because I’m not sure what I would do if he touched me right now—maybe stab him, maybe slam my lips onto his. Who the hell knows?

“I’m sorry,” he breathes, his hands clenching into fists at his side. I take another deep breath and shake out my shoulders, attempting to ease some of the tension there. I was able to break through to him and show him that all the anxiety and fear he has over my safety, I felt every ounce of that too. Time will only tell if he respects that though, despite how much I want to believe him. Silas turns the corner, and my anger immediately cools, not wanting him to catch any hint of the connection that lies between us. Not here, not now. No, we need to get our heads in the game.

“Everyone is in position, Alpha,” Silas announces, ducking back out to the other side of the line of vehicles.

“Let’s go,” Zeke says, wrapping a hand around my shoulder, giving in to the urge he fought before. I know I should move away. I’m playing a dangerous game right now, but I can’t help but lean into him for the briefest moment, soaking in the comfort before stepping out of his hold. Not only can I not let anyone from either of our packs see the intimate gesture, but I can’t let the Langley sleuth have anything to hold over us. Let them stay oblivious to our weaknesses.

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