He came back!

I was out the front door before anyone else inside could react, but I could hear the rest of my pack behind me as I leapt out onto the front porch as Brad’s SUV came barreling down the driveway toward the house.

“Son of a bitch!” I growled, feeling my fangs extend. I licked them, letting a little blood spill from my tongue into my mouth. It helped to prepare me for whatever was about to happen.

My pack spilled outside as Brad pulled up and screeched to a halt, kicking up dust everywhere.

“What’s going on!?” Chuck growled.

“Is it Charles?!” Juan asked.

“Brad,” I replied as the bastard got out and faced me. I could see by the look on his face that he hadn’t come to talk.

“We’ve got your back, Terry,” Preston whispered behind me. Flexing the muscles in my arms, I stepped forward. I heard the door open behind me. Then, Scotty’s voice rang out through the night.

“What are you doing here, Brad?!” He shouted. Brad didn’t take his eyes off me as he spoke.

“Go back inside, little brother,” he replied angrily. “This is between me and your fated mate.”

He said it with such anger that I knew he still didn’t believe in our love. But that didn’t surprise me at all. Brad didn’t seem to me like the kind of guy who even believed in love. All he wanted was an omega for the night and that was it. Anything beyond that and he wasn’t interested.

“This is between us!” Scotty cried out. “Dad already said I could be with him! What are you doing here?!”

“Dad was being nice,” Brad scoffed. “He doesn’t believe in this shit anymore than I do. But he knows a problem when he sees one. And if I get rid of this son of a bitch right here,” Brad pointed straight at me. “Then the problem will be solved.”

“What are you gonna do, Brad?” I snarled. “Try to kill me in front of your brother? With my entire pack standing right behind me?”

“Oh, you wouldn’t be that kind of pussy would you?” He taunted me. “Let your pack fight for you?”

He was goading me. Trying to own me, telling me that a real alpha would never back down from a challenge or hide behind the rest of his back to insure victory. And it was working.

I wasn’t going to back down or ask my pack to fight for me, but at the same time, I wasn’t about to kill Scotty’s brother in front of him. Regardless of whether or not Brad was a total fucking prick or not, which he was, I didn’t want to do that to Scotty. Charles had already lost a son; he didn’t need to lose another. I wasn’t as cold as them.

“Where are you going with this, Brad?” I asked him. “You think one of us dying will fix this situation?”

“I really don’t give a fuck,” Brad laughed. “I just don’t like you. Scotty will get over it after you’re gone. There’s plenty of alphas out there. Better alphas who have more than a room in a farmhouse to their name.”

“I don’t care about that!” Scotty shouted back.

“I said shut up!” Brad bellowed. “This isn’t about you anymore. This is between me and your fated mate.”

Brad wasn’t playing around, and I knew we were moments away from action. I hated the little son of a bitch, but I didn’t want to kill him, especially not in front of Scotty.

There has to be another way!

But then, Brad shifted and leapt towards me, and I knew there wasn’t.

I had no choice. I shifted and threw myself into the air to meet his attack.

“No!” Scotty shouted from behind me. We collided midair, and his sickly scent spilled into my nose like a disgusting slime. I felt his claws tear into my side and lashed out with my own, connecting with his shoulder.

I hit the ground and felt blood spill out of me.

“No, Brad, stop it!”

Brad slammed into the driveway a few feet away from me. Quickly, I dived on top of him, my jaws open and aimed for his throat.

But before my teeth found their mark, Brad wriggled out of the way. My jaws clamped shut on nothing but air. I heard the rest of my pack shift behind me, but I spun around quickly and glared in their direction. My message was clear: do not interfere.

They backed off, and I heard Brad dash towards my exposed back. I whipped around in time to fend off his attack. I slammed my left paw into his cheek, deflecting his attack and sending him sprawling to the side.

He skidded to a halt and flipped himself back onto his feet. My side was killing me and I could see my blood dripping from his teeth as he snarled at me.

Such anger…

I prepared myself for his next attack. Every muscle in my body was taught, and when he dashed towards me, I was ready.

I feinted to one side, drawing his blow in that direction, then twisted to the opposite side. His claw whiffed past my head, scraping nothing but air and causing him to stumble which left him open for my attack.

I dashed in with all my speed and closed my jaws around his neck. Blood spilled into my mouth and I knew I had him. All I had to do was close down with all my strength and his life would be over.

But that’s not what happened.

It wasn’t what I wanted.

Instead, I held tight and pushed him to the ground, putting my weight on top of him. It was an act of total dominance, letting him know I’d won and he was mine. If I wanted, I could severe his jugular or snap his neck. But I didn’t.

I heard Scotty’s footsteps behind me. He raced forward to see what was happening, but stopped short when he realized what I was doing. No one moved. No one spoke.

Brad’s breath was quick and heavy beneath me. He’d lost and he knew it. A man like him probably thought I was toying with him—waiting for the right moment to deliver the killing blow. It was something I’d expect from him. Making his victim suffer a little before he ended it all. But that wasn’t me.

Slowly, I released him and took a step back. The pain in my side flared as I looked down at him, and to let him know the reality of the situation, I shifted back to human form. Brad’s eyes turned to me and I saw a brief flicker of rage and thought for a moment he might attack me again. But after a moment he returned to human form.

“It’s over, Brad,” I told him. “I could have killed you, but I didn’t. I spared you. But now, this means you will leave us alone for good. Understand?”

Slowly, Brad nodded.

“And if you don’t,” I continued. “I will kill you.”