Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 45658 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 183(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45658 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 183(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
In order to apologize to his mate, he had to find his mate, so for the past two months, he had made half a dozen trips to other packs in an effort to track down Ricky. His initial attempt was at Ricky’s home pack of Purple Sky where the enraged pack Alpha had punched his jaw, told him Ricky was gone forever, and then, before Morgan regained his bearings, shifted into wolf form and attacked. Although it was the hardest battle of his life, Morgan could have killed Berger if that had been his goal. But death and bloodshed weren’t what he wanted and a violent wolf wasn’t a useful source of information, so once he flipped the other Alpha onto his back, his throat exposed and vulnerable, Morgan had turned tail and sprinted away from Purple Sky, taking with him a black eye, two cracked ribs, and a torn thigh.
While he healed from the vicious fight, he did his best to learn about Ricky, in the hope that knowledge would help him find his Omega. Locating him would have been easier if Morgan could have told anyone what he was doing, but Golden Valley’s sole experience with a male Omega had ended in the worst way possible and Morgan didn’t want the only thing they heard about his mate to be information that could paint him in a bad light. Even Lillian, who knew how poorly he had treated Ricky, said no mate would run and hide from the person fated for him, and because the Omega chose to leave without a word in the middle of the night, he couldn’t possibly be Morgan’s mate. Instead, she insisted he was yet another male Omega intending to cause trouble for Golden Valley.
But Morgan had ignored Ricky all evening and then gone for a run while he slept, which wasn’t all that different from running away from his mate, so perhaps Ricky was making a point and trying to teach him a lesson. Whatever the case, if his mate wanted him to put in work and grovel, that was what he would do. He had dreamt of having a mate for too long to let his pride get in the way of his future.
Both of Ricky’s parents’ families had been in Purple Sky for generations, but, over the years, some of their kin had mated with folks from other packs. Morgan discovered a cousin in White Plains and another in Orange Sunset, so he traveled to both pack lands, hoping, but failing, to find his mate. After extinguishing all the leads related to Ricky, Morgan reevaluated his approach.
As he reflected on every moment he had spent with his mate, he couldn’t help but think about Brian Berger. The passion with which the other Alpha had fought Morgan when he came looking for Ricky showed the intensity of his feelings. If he was willing to risk death to avoid talking about Ricky, surely Berger had knowledge of where he had gone. And if he knew Ricky’s location, he may have assisted him in moving. With that in mind, Morgan tried a different approach—instead of focusing on packs connected to Ricky, he considered packs where Berger had family.
The most obvious choice was the Red River pack where Berger had been raised. Unfortunately, getting to Red River wasn’t as quick or as easy as his trips to nearby packs. Admitting to himself that going away overnight without anyone noticing wasn’t realistic, Morgan asked Lillian for help. It was a testament to their friendship that she covered for him, despite disagreeing with every part of his efforts.
Refusing to acknowledge the possibility that Lillian was right when she said that, if the Omega wanted to be found, he wouldn’t be doing such a fine job of hiding, Morgan set off to Red River. He napped on the side of the road when his eyelids became too heavy to keep open, but anxiety over his mate and his pack made his sleep fitful and short. When he finally arrived at Red River, Morgan was long past tired. Out of leads and depleted of energy, he pleaded with the Red River Alpha for help.
He was certain fate was finally on his side when the man gave him useful information: his mate was in Blue Mountain. Morgan knew Lillian wouldn’t be able to hide his absence if he extended his trip, but even though he had spent only a short time with his mate, Morgan yearned for him, and he couldn’t stand to be apart an extra minute. Besides, he justified to himself as he drove directly from Red River to Blue Mountain, as soon as his pack met Ricky, keeping the secret wouldn’t matter because they’d see that despite being a male Omega, he was a normal shifter and not a monster.