I respect you as our Alpha, but you will not speak badly about my mate,” Arol says, taking control. I know he won’t attack Robert, so I don’t fight against him
“Arol, I apologize for talking badly about Miranda, but she is hurting Cain. She is hurting you. Mates are meant to love unconditionally, and she left without speaking to Cain. She gave us no opportunity to make things right.” Robert starts to move toward me but stops abruptly.
His eyes glaze over, and I realize that he is linking with someone
“Cain, I have to go. Maureen is looking for me and she sounds upset
We will continue this conversation later, but know I will do everything in my power to bring your family home,” he says. I nod and watch him leave the office. After a few minutes sitting alone in his office, I head out of the pack house without stopping to speak to anyone
When I reach the house and step inside, I want to cry. Arol and I are both weak, suffering from our broken bond. I look around this place that has held so much happiness, and it is nothing more than an empty shell. A shell I’ve created by putting my own wants and needs above my family, above my mate. I head upstairs to the room I have shared with Miranda all these years and slide into our bed.
Pulling her pillow into my arms, I press my nose against it, taking in her scent that clings to it
Goddess, I wish I could go back and do things differently. I can’t live without Miranda. Hearing my pup say she hated me nearly gutted me. The thought of never holding Miranda again is worse than death. If we ever find her, I will do whatever I have to gain her forgiveness and trust.
I’ll leave this pack, my title, and Robert behind for her
Reese POV
As soon as training is over, I link my father. As much as I don’t even want to look at him right now, I need answers. “I’m with your mom right now Reese. She is hearing rumors and is upset.” “Rumors about what I’ve done or what you’ve done.”
There is a long silence before he finally speaks again. “Meet me in my office” he says, cutting the link. As I make my way across the field Bryce steps in front of me
“Bryce, I don’t have time to talk right now.” He looks around before he drops his voice to a whisper. “Reese, I’m still here. She left you, and you’re treating me like the enemy. Please, I need you,” he starts to say, but I cut him off.
“Bryce, you and I are the reason she left. It’s our fault and I intend to make things right with her.” I move past him without another word
When I reach my father’s office, I take in a deep breath before I push the door open. I’m glad to see Cain isn’t with him. I want answers and, though I know I will control myself when it comes to my father, I can’t say the same for Cain. “Have a seat, Reese,” he says, pointing to the chair in front of his desk. I recognize his stance of authority as he stares at me
“I’d prefer to stand” I say making no move to follow his order. I can see he doesn’t like my refusal to follow his orders, but he doesn’t force the issue. “Reese, I’m not sure what rumors you’re talking about. I’ve done nothing to warrant rumors being spread throughout the pack about me, however your mother has gotten wind that Rosie rejected you, and she wants answers,” he says
“Tell me how you did it, dad. Tell me how you have cheated on your mate for twenty years and haven’t been caught. How hasn’t she felt the pain of your betrayal?” My father growls in warning. “Reese, you need to tread very carefully right now.
I love your mother. I have made mistakes, but that has never changed. I have given her a good life, and she is happy.”
I throw my head back and laugh. “They do say ignorance is bliss. I guess I’m as f**ked up as you wanting more than the goddess gifted me
The difference is, I’m sorry dad, are you?” “Reese” he starts to say, but I cut him off. “I want to know how you did it. How the two of you kept this from your mates all these years.”
My father’s shoulders sag, and he sits down in his chair. “You have to understand that Cain and I grew up together. We both knew we were attracted to women and each other from a young age. I never touched another woman, but after time, desire won out between us. Your grandfather was a ba**ard, and he would never accept Cain as my chosen mate.
He made me travel to find my fated one. He even threatened to kill Cain if I didn’t.”
“I prayed each time I went to another pack to come back empty-handed, but then I found your mother. She was so beautiful, and I knew I would never love anyone, even Cain, as much as I loved her, but I couldn’t turn off my feelings for him. When we returned, he was devastated, and we didn’t speak for almost six months.”
“The night of our ceremony, my father called me in and sat me down in this office. He was never faithful to my mother, but he would f**k anyone. It didn’t matter how much it hurt my mother until one day she was going to reject him for his philandering ways. He groveled and swore to the goddess he would never touch another woman again. She forgave him, and she never felt the pain of infidelity again.”
My father takes a deep breath and I can see the pain and regret in his eyes. “My father had many friends that weren’t exactly what we would refer to as savory people. One of them told my father there was a way to continue to cheat but keep his mate from feeling it. So on the night of my marking ceremony he sat me down and explained how he had dosed my mother with a tiny dose of wolfsbane every day.”
“It was not enough to do any real damage, but just enough to dull her wolf’s senses. She would feel what would be equivalent to a stomach ache or indigestion, but after time she wouldn’t feel anything at all as long as the wolfsbane was used every day.”
I’m across the office before I can even think and pinning my father to the wall. “You and that ba**ard have been poisoning your mates just so you two could f**k. How could you do thatto mom?” “Reese, I would never hurt your mom and this was a way to ensure that I never did. She is perfectly healthy.
What do you think would have happened if she felt it the first time Cain and I gave into our desire for each other,” he says, like it makes perfect sense
More Kickass Werewolf Reads
Dive into our collection of free werewolf romance novels—where fierce Alphas, daring heroines, and heart-stopping twists await. Every story burns with forbidden desire, loyalty, and destiny. Don’t wait—here’s a world where love bites hard and nothing is stronger than the call of the mate.
Leave a Reply