by Jen L. Grey
As we climbed out, Bree and Nate stepped out of the house.
Bree held two cups in her hands. "Let's get some drinks before everyone else gets here and they get picked over."
"Sounds good to me." Tripp ran into the house without a second glance.
"I already got yours. Nate will take care of Tripp and Kai." Bree handed me her second cup and slid her arm through mine, tugging me toward the fire pit.
It looked like she had something on her mind, but I wasn't quite sure what it was.
"So, that game was intense, right?" Bree sat on one of the four logs that were strategically placed around the fire.
"Yup, it sure was." It felt like she was fishing and I had a feeling it was about her brother.
"My brother couldn't keep his eyes off you." Bree took a sip of her drink and pulled a lighter out of her pants. "He's never been like that before."
Wow, she wasn't very subtle at all. "I didn't notice." I was going to make her work for it, maybe even spell it out.
She picked up a twig off the ground and lit it before tossing it into the fire pit. "Maybe I was imagining things. Sometimes, I wish he’d find his mate. He is always so miserable and ornery now. He wasn’t like that until he got older and Dad began putting so much pressure on him." She shrugged as the fire began to spread.
It surprised me that she wanted us to be mates. “You know that would never work out even if it were true.”
The front door opened, and the guys emerged, saving me from the conversation. Nate had two beers in his hand.
"Hey, you." Kai headed straight to me and took my hand. "What did she get you to drink?"
"Some type of rosé wine." I hadn't even tasted it, so I took a sip. "Damn, that's good.'’
"I figured you'd love it." She grinned. "Don't worry, I have it hidden just for you and me."
A large group of people appeared in the driveway with Max at the center. They were mainly guys with a couple of females, but it was obvious all the guys were football players.
Nate lifted his beer to them. "There's plenty in the kitchen. Make yourselves at home."
Without any hesitation, the group went inside, and my brother headed straight to us.
"How am I not surprised we lost?" A small grin spread across Max's face as he reached us and pulled me into a hug.
"Probably because you're all wusses." Tripp tipped his beer at my brother.
"Most of our team are wusses up against them." Nate held out the second beer to my brother. "That's not an insult."
"I'm just glad we didn't get pummeled." Max tipped his head back and downed the beer all in one go.
"Thirsty?" It took a lot to get shifters drunk, but if he kept downing them like that, he'd be toast within an hour. "You might be better off with some water first."
"Yeah, but don't worry. I'll pace myself." He sat down on one of the logs and stretched.
"Well, I think it was a pretty good game." Kai sat down and patted the open spot next to him.
"If those heirs weren't so freaking strong, it would've been an even closer game." Max arched his eyebrow as I sat next to Kai.
"Yeah, my brother is a force to be reckoned with." Bree sat next to me and bumped into my shoulder. "But your sister can handle him. That's one reason why my dad has taken an interest in her."
Max's forehead lined. "Uh … What kind of interest has he taken in you? Is that why the regional’s son is here with us?" Max glanced back at Kai.
"Oh, no." Kai took a deep breath and stared my brother in his face. "I'm interested in dating your sister. That's why I'm here."
"Dude, you can't just tell her brother like that." Tripp ran a hand down his face and shook his head. "You kind of need to build up to it slowly."
"You're interested in her?" Max's brow furrowed, and he glanced from him to me. "Then why weren't you two sitting next to each other at the game?"
"That's a long story." One I didn't want to get into right now with so many prying ears.
"I'm all ears." Max arched an eyebrow at me.
"One I'd rather not talk about right now." He was purposely not taking the hint, but I wasn't going to get into all those details surrounded by strangers.
Bree leaned over with pride clear on her face. "Dad's talking about giving her a district job somewhere in the west."
Thank God she was rescuing me from that awkward topic.
"You mean even higher than Dad's title?" He huffed and took in a deep breath. "Look, you can tell me these things." His face smoothed out, and he gave me a sincere smile. "I told you I'm happy that you're there, and if you get a district alpha role, that would be amazing."
I'd been afraid he'd be upset like he had been when he first found out I was going to the Academy, but even then, together we worked through it. I shouldn't have been so afraid to tell him about it. We always had each other's backs. Mom was acting strange, but I knew as a family we'd power through. That's always what we did.
"She's met your dad, and I haven't?" Nate frowned and took a big sip of his beer.
This was going to go terribly wrong if we didn't reel it in and fast. "It's part of the process." Kai jumped in to save Bree. "Since he sponsored Mia, she has to meet with him regularly."
"Has to?" Tripp's brows lifted.
"Well, not exactly, more like strongly encouraged." Bree’s shoulders loosened a little. "But Dad is kind of a control freak, so he likes to check in on his investments."
"Wow. Investments?" Tripp shook his head and chuckled. "That sounds kind of intimidating. Better her than me."
"So he thinks of her as money?" Max stood, but his body tensed. "That's not cool at all. Maybe you should go to KSU."
"No, not as money." Bree glanced at Kai. "But they don't offer scholarships to just anyone. The candidates have to be promising. We're always in need of more strong alphas."
"Bloodline is always a guaranteed entrance, but some do run off, so we're looking for new alphas every year." Kai scooted closer to me and wrapped his arm around my waist. "And I'm very thankful that she got in there."
It felt strange having his arm around me, but not in a bad way. I had to get used to it, so I forced my body to relax into his embrace.
"You already sound whipped." Tripp shook his head and glanced at Bree. "Where did we go wrong with him?"
"They're cute." Bree narrowed her eyes at him. "Leave them alone."
"So, are you in line to be the next regional alpha?" Nate sat next to Bree but leaned over so he could see Kai.
"Yeah, that's the plan." Kai shrugged. "It'll happen when it happens."
"You don't seem all that excited." Max shook his head. "I honestly thought I had a chance at getting in with Dad being a pack alpha and with me being involved with our community and football. I'd give anything to have your opportunity."
"It's not what it seems." Kai frowned. "There's a lot of politics at play."
"That's what Bree says too." Nate shook his head. "But it can't be that bad."
It was almost as if he had to say those words to ruin the night. Two brand new Cadillac Escalades pulled right into the yard, making their own parking spots.
"Shit!" Bree jumped to her feet and shook her head.
"What's wrong?" Max stood and turned toward the vehicles.
Despite never seeing what he drove, I knew it was Liam and his friends. The sharp tug inside me alerted me to that very fact.
The front driver door opened, and Liam jumped out. His eyes immediately went to the arm that was around me.
It took a second for me to realize he had been in the vehicle alone.
Three doors to the other Escalade opened with the other heirs getting out of the vehicle.
"What the fuck, Liam?" Simon glared at him. "You just left our asses back there."
Liam ignored them and came marching up to us. His blue eyes were so dark they appeared navy. "Get your hands off of her."
"Shit, this isn't good." Tripp set his beer down and looked at Bree. "Do something?"
"Wait, he isn't here for you?" Nate's brow furrowed as he glanced at his mate.
"No, not this time." Her face was a mask of indifference.
"I said stop touching her." It was like Liam hadn't heard any of the conversation. He was now standing directly over us, staring us down. His sole focus was on making Kai move.
I refused to be looked down upon. I jumped to my feet and met his eyes. "You don't get to tell us what to do?" I was so tired of being talked down to as if I was nothing. At this point, damn all the consequences.
"Mia..." Max's voice was low, a warning.
"You've forgotten how this works." He took a menacing step toward me. "I get to tell everyone what to do … including you."
"Liam." Kai stood and stepped a little in front of me as if he was protecting me. "You're being unreasonable."
"You're about to see unreasonable." Liam reared back and punched Kai right in the face.
"What the hell?" I turned my attention to Kai as blood poured out his nose.
"It's not broken." Kai lifted a hand in the air as his other hand grabbed his nose. "I'm fine."
"Oh, really? You won't be when I get done with you." Liam took another step toward Kai when I jumped in front of Kai and pushed Liam in the chest.
"You need to stop." As my fingers lingered on his chest, his breathing seemed to calm down a little.
Micah cleared the distance between his car and Max, yanking my brother by the arm and wrapping his arm around Max's neck. "What did we tell you? If you cause problems, your brother would pay the price."
Were they being serious right now? "I haven't done a damn thing. I've stayed away. Have you already forgotten who showed up here uninvited?"
"We make the rules, not you." Simon's grin was malicious, full of hunger. "Your existence is causing problems. Maybe you should go back to wherever you crawled out from."
"You can go fuck yourself." I was so tired of this. They weren't fucking gods even though everyone acted like they were. They were supposed to be leaders, not bullies.
"Let him go." Evan hurried over to the group and stared Micah down. "He hasn't done anything to deserve that."
"Since when do we care about that?" Micah lifted his chin, challenging him. "You were the one who made the suggestion."
"Well, I've changed my mind." Evan's hands clenched into fists. "He's not involved."
"Damn straight he's involved." Micah squeezed his arm around my brother's neck, making Max's face turn red.
“Is she getting to you too?” Simon bared his teeth and then glared at me.
I was so tired of all of this. They thought they were dictators, but they weren't. Someone had to teach them their place.
Raw power flooded me like never before, and something seemed to snap inside my chest. If I didn't do something, things would get even worse. Liam was focused on Kai, and the rest of the heirs were focused on my brother. Something had to be done. My wolf surged forward. "Let him go." Alpha will laced my words, and it was strong enough to make Micah pause.
The power broke, and Micah's eyes widened as he took me in. "Make me."
Using the slight distraction that I’d caused, Evan punched Micah in the jaw, making his hold on my brother slacken.
I turned to Liam. "Please make this stop." My wolf was going crazy, and I didn't know what was going on. All I knew was that Liam could make it end but only if he wanted to.
Chapter Eighteen
It was like Liam couldn't hear me. He was locked onto Kai, and rage consumed his eyes.
Fine, his wolf was too wrapped up in what he'd seen when they got here. I was on my own.
"Did you just punch one of your own?" Simon stood there and blinked a couple of times like he couldn't believe what he'd just seen.
My brother rushed over to me and grabbed my arm. "We gotta get you out of here."
Bree turned to Nate. "Go get your car."
"Yeah, okay." He set his drink down and rushed past me.
"You hit me." Micah's golden eyes were cold, and he rubbed his jaw for a second. "Over her." He reared back to hit Evan, but the huge guy dodged, and all Micah caught was air.
"Before throwing that next punch, you better get your head on straight." Evan's body was tense, and he was focused on Micah's body waiting for the next threat. "I can kick your ass."
"We need to get him out of here and away from her." Micah's focus landed squarely on me. "She's the reason for all this."
A smart person wouldn't say anything. In fact, they'd try to disappear. It’s a good thing I never claimed to be smart. "Yes, I was brought to Wolf Moon with the intention of making your lives hell. It's so obvious since you think the earth revolves around you four instead of the sun."
"Can you not just be quiet?" Max rolled his eyes. "You're only making this worse."
"It's her alpha." Bree's blue eyes narrowed as she took in my face. "Her wolf won't let her back down."
"Of course it is," Tripp mumbled.
I turned around to find Kai backing up with both hands in the air. "You don't want her."
"She still isn't yours," Liam growled the words and grabbed Kai's throat, lifting him in the air. "You aren't allowed to touch her."
"Liam, he didn't do anything." Bree yanked on her brother's arm, but it didn’t move. Instead, it remained frozen like it was made of stone. "You don't want to hurt him. We grew up with him, for God's sake."
What had to be Nate's car squealed into the yard right next to Liam's SUV. Nate popped his head out the window. "Okay, let's go."
Tripp ran over and opened the back door, waving me over.
That sounded like an excellent idea. I turned to move to the car when something behind me fell down with a thud and a large hand grasped my arm, tugging me backward.
"You aren't going anywhere." Liam's eyes glowed as he pulled me flush against him.
"Just let her go." Micah's voice was low and dangerous. "She's trying to leave your ass, and good riddance too. Just look at what this has done." He waved his arm around the place. "Hell, we're even turning on each other."
"Are you really surprised by that?" The corner of Simon's mouth tilted upward into a snarl of disgust.
"Let her go, Liam." Bree's eyes pleaded with him.
"I'll take her back to the dorm." Kai frowned, but he took a deep breath in like he was trying to calm himself down. He rubbed at his neck where Liam’s hand had dug into his flesh.
"You aren't taking her anywhere." Liam's words were loud and crystal clear.
"Then let me take her back." Max lifted both hands up like he was carefully approaching a wild animal. "I'm her brother."
"No." His words were a growl.
"Dude, come on." Simon pointed to his vehicle. "You know that's how this is supposed to be."
"I'm not so sure any longer." Liam's eyes landed on me.
There was only one thing I knew to do to calm the situation. "Will you take me home?" I knew it was going to hurt when he rejected me, but he'd at least feel like he was somewhat in control.
"Tell her no, and let's go." Micah barked the orders as he took a step toward their vehicles. "I'll ride back with you so you don't do anything else idiotic tonight."
"You're not riding with me." Liam's eyes didn't seem quite as dark. "She is."
My heart rate increased. I hadn't expected this.
"Liam." Micah's deep voice held a warning.
"You heard him." Evan waved back to his car. "He has to come to grips with this on his own." Evan met Liam's gaze. "Don't do anything stupid. We'll be there, waiting for you."
"You don't have to go with him." Kai held out his hand toward me. "You do have a choice. Remember he's already made his."
It happened so fast. One second, Liam was holding me, and in the next he appeared in front of Kai, rearing back and punching him in the nose again.
This time, Kai crumbled to the ground.
"Liam, stop." Bree smacked at her brother, and even Max appeared, trying to help pull him away from Kai.
<
br /> Pure rage shone in his eyes.
"Aren't you going to do something?" I turned to the three heirs. I couldn't believe that they were standing there and letting this all go down.
"He forgot his place." Simon shrugged his shoulders. "Kai will never take anything of ours."
"But I'm not his, and you guys have made it clear I never would be." None of this made any sense.
"Even if we don't want you, we own you." Micah closed the distance and glared into my eyes. "It doesn't matter that Liam will eventually reject you. You'll always be his. You'll never find happiness. We'll make sure of it."
"So you'd planned this. Messing with me, toying with my emotions. You never planned on letting me have a life outside of what you dictate." Even if I behaved or however they had put it originally, it didn't matter. It was just more of their head games.
"Of course." Simon yanked my arm, pulling me against him.
"Let her go." Liam's attention was back on me. "Now."
"She's got to learn..."
"I said now." Liam came over and pushed Simon in the chest. "Don't touch her."
"Okay, damn." Simon let me go, and his brow furrowed.
"You need to get him to take you back to school." Evan appeared at my side and whispered in my ear. "He's unhinged. We've pushed him too far."
"Pushed him?" That didn't sound good.
"Just go. He'll leave with you." Evan's gray eyes darkened. "We all underestimated the bond."
"I asked him to earlier, and he ignored me." Liam continued to stay fixated on Kai.
"Only because Kai butted in." Evan stared into my eyes as if he was searching for something or challenging me.
I wasn't sure which one it was, but I refused to avert my eyes. I was tired of playing by their rules. "Fine, but when he doesn't listen to me, it's your fault."
"Okay." His words were so low I almost thought I imagined them.
"Liam, let's go home." I chose those words carefully. If the bond did its work, then maybe using the word home would comfort him.
His body stayed tense, but his shoulders lowered ever so slightly.
It was all the encouragement I needed. I glanced at Kai and mouthed 'I'm sorry.' This was not how I wanted nor expected this night to end.