Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 108368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Ally yelled, “Stop before one of you gets seriously hurt!” They didn’t. They continued to brawl like two drunken bikers in a bar fight. The only difference was that they were also clawing and biting each other—and they weren’t dressed in leather.
Pausing to snap his nose back into place, Cain grunted. “After today, I don’t ever want to see your ass again, you two-faced fucker. And you’ll stay away from Ally. I’m taking her away from here—”
Panting and sweating, Derren shook his head. “I can’t let you do that.”
Cain stilled. “What did you just say?” It was a menacing dare for Derren to repeat himself. It made her uncles wince.
“I’ll rephrase. I won’t let you do that. Ally stays with me.”
“Do you want me to kill you, is that it?”
“You could give it a shot.”
“Don’t think you can stop me from leaving with—”
“You can go wherever the hell you like, I really couldn’t give a fuck. But Ally stays. She’s mine.” It was a possessive rumble that seemed to surprise Cain with its intensity.
Still, the male scoffed. “Yours?”
“We’re mates, Cain!” shouted Ally, her stomach hurting at the sight of Derren’s busted lip, swollen jaw, clawed chest, and the gash on his brow.
Cain completely froze, falling silent for a moment. “Mates?” The eye that wasn’t swollen shut darted repeatedly from her to Derren. Then Cain tipped his bleeding chin at Ally’s neck. “Show me.”
When she tugged at the collar of her T-shirt to reveal her claiming mark, she said, “There. See? He wasn’t betraying your trust or disrespecting your friendship. This isn’t some casual fling.”
“You’re mates?” He looked at Derren. “You aren’t using her?”
“We’re mates,” confirmed Derren. “That’s as far from casual as you can get.”
“So you didn’t touch her until you realized you were mates?” When Derren didn’t answer, Cain lunged at him again.
“Cain!” growled Ally. As the males wrestled each other to the floor, she threw her hands up in the air. “Goddammit!” She marched into the lodge, reappearing only moments later with a bucket. As she slung the contents over the two males, they both jumped apart and got to their feet.
“You drowned me in ice-fucking-cold water,” said Cain in pure disbelief.
“Yes, I did.” Ally strode over to him and forced herself to speak calmly. “Now listen to me, hear me out. I know you’re just looking out for me. I know you don’t want to see me used or disrespected. I appreciate all that, I do. But . . . you can’t hit him again.”
“Why not? I like it.” He sounded like a child sulking over his toy being taken away.
Smiling a little, Ally replied, “Because I kind of like him in one piece. Not bleeding and bruised.”
“He broke my trust.”
“Probably because on some level he knew I was his mate and the draw was there.” She’d felt the draw from moment one; she simply hadn’t understood the source of it.
It was clear to Derren that her attempts to placate Cain weren’t working well; he looked eager to pounce on Derren once more. “Come at me again if you want. But it won’t change anything. She’s mine and I’m keeping her. I’ll never let anyone take her from me.”
A muscle in Cain’s bruised jaw ticked. “She can do better than you.”
“I won’t dispute that.”
“Hey!” complained Ally, not liking Derren putting himself down in any way. A silence descended as both males stared at each other, their expressions inscrutable.
Cain spoke first, pointing his finger hard at Derren. “If you ever hurt her, I’ll shove a pole so far up your ass you’ll feel it in your throat. You got me?”
Frowning thoughtfully, Derren tilted his head. “Not really, since that’s physically impossible.” As expected, Cain snapped with a roar and charged at him again.
Ally yelled, “Cain, not his nose!”
Half an hour later, Derren was wincing as Ally none too gently placed her hands on his wounded chest. His mate had ordered him into their lodge, and everyone had followed them inside and were now scattered around. After giving both him and Cain towels to dry off with as best they could, she’d ordered them to sit at the table.
Cain was opposite him, in no better shape than Derren. She’d delayed healing both of them, pissed at Cain for not listening to her and pissed at Derren for provoking Cain rather than aiding her in keeping the situation calm. Basically, she blamed Derren for his own injuries.
Even as her healing energy hummed through his bones, reaching each of his wounds as her hands slid over him, he could feel her anger. The last thing he wanted was for her to be upset in any way. Cupping her nape, he pulled her down for a brief kiss that was both possessive and apologetic. Her taste calmed him and his wolf. “Now I feel better.”