Chapter Two
Austin Winters’ head snapped up a moment before the knock sounded on the study door. By the time it opened, he was already on his feet. His mate’s scent hit him hard and he took a step forward even before she entered.
He couldn’t see her, but the gasp of breath and the overwhelming emotions he felt combined to almost make his knees buckle. His Beta and best friend, Colt, grabbed his arm.
The room was silent as the others recognised the mating scent that saturated the room. The man in front of his mate half-turned and said something too low for him to hear.
Austin didn’t like that the man stood between him and his mate. A growl started deep in his throat and there was no way to hold it back. The man looked over his shoulder at him with an expression that surprised Austin.
Instead of fear of the Alpha, his look was one of sympathy. He nodded and stepped to the side. Austin understood immediately. The expression on his mate’s face was one of panic.
Austin took a step towards her, dislodging Colt’s hand, his only thought to comfort his mate. Her eyes widened and she took a step back. Austin paused, confused.
He heard Tyler sigh before he cleared his throat. It was hard, but he took his eyes off his mate and looked at the other Alpha.
“Austin, you’ve met Grayson, and this is Kiley Palmer,” he introduced.
Austin wasn’t sure what was going on. Tyler’s eyes were trying to convey something to him but he wasn’t picking it up. He wanted to cross the room and grab his mate. His fingers literally itched to touch her. She was his mate, his one, and he didn’t know why everyone looked so worried. It was a cause for celebration.
Tyler walked to him and clasped him on the shoulder. “Kiley, this is Austin Winters—a good friend of mine and Alpha of a Pack further south.”
“She is very uneasy with being around any shifter, much less powerful ones.” Tyler murmured quietly to him. “Your being an Alpha is not good.”
Austin frowned and looked back to the woman. She remained frozen just inside the doorway. He breathed in deeply, pulling her scent into him. She was a shifter. More and more shifters were finding mates among humans. He didn’t mind, but some of his friends had told him how hard it was to tell a human mate about their…unique abilities. Kiley—his mate’s name was Kiley—was a shifter, so that wasn’t the problem.
The room was filled with members of both his Pack and Tyler’s. While the meeting had already started, the only thing he cared about was getting to his mate. But if she was uneasy around shifters, being in a roomful of them wouldn’t be comforting.
Tyler must have thought the same thing, because the order from the other Alpha was given only a moment later. “Gentlemen, if you could please give us a minute. Grayson will take you to get a drink and I’m sure we have some snacks made in the kitchen.”
As soon as everyone was on their feet and heading to the door, Kiley glanced back at him. Her intent was clear, and Austin tensed. He would chase her. He met her eyes squarely and tried to convey that to her. If she ran he would follow.
“Kiley…” Tyler called in warning.
Her expression didn’t change. She shifted to the balls of her feet.
“Kiley, I would like to speak with you for a minute. I’ll allow Tyler to stay with you if you’d like,” Austin tried speaking softly.
Confusion and doubt covered her face. She obviously wasn’t sure about trusting him. The room had cleared out, and Austin watched as Gray pushed her gently further into the room before closing the door behind him.
Terror began to set in as soon as she was alone with them, Austin noticed. Trying to put her at ease, Austin sat back in the overstuffed chair he’d occupied earlier and gestured to the couch. “Would you like to have a seat?”
She watched him warily as she walked around the room so she wouldn’t pass in front of him. Tyler, to his relief, stood behind him, giving him the opportunity to address only her.
She sat. Too far away in his opinion, but at least she did face him.
“I’m sure this comes as much as a shock to you as it does me. But I’ve waited my entire life to find my mate,” Austin started to explain. “It’s very nice to meet you, Kiley.”
Kiley was biting her bottom lip. “I’m not your mate!” she blurted.
Austin felt his mouth drop open and it was all he could do to stay seated. When he recovered, his voice came out more harshly than he intended. “You most certainly are.”
She shook her head. “No! No, I can’t be.”
Austin leant forward. “There is no doubt and we both know it. You are my mate.”
She dropped her head and Austin watched her try to calm herself. After several minutes, she looked up at him. Her eyes were clear and he could see her resolve. He felt proud of her for being able to get her emotions under control. That would be very important as mate to an Alpha.
“You are mistaken,” she said boldly.
“One of us is,” he practically growled. “Even the members of my Pack recognised you when you came in.”
“Pack will form the same opinion as the Alpha. They were just following your lead,” she told him with a sad smile.
“Not my Pack. They can think for themselves,” he argued. “What kind of Alpha would I be if I didn’t let them form their own opinions?”
She sighed.
“You’ll get to know them and find out for yourself I guess. The Pack scented you as their female Alpha.”
“I am sure you are a wonderful Alpha,” she told him. “Unfortunately, at this time I do not wish to join any Pack, even yours.”
Austin snorted. That wasn’t even an issue. “Oh, you’ll be joining my Pack, all right.”
She opened her mouth but he cut her off. “It would be impossible to be the mate of the Alpha and not be a member of the Pack. It has never been done,” he informed her.
“Then it would be impossible to be your mate,” she said quietly.
Austin jumped to his feet. He’d tried to stay calm. Really, he had. But this was his life and he couldn’t allow a scared female to throw away what they should have together. Despite his best intentions, his emotions got the better of him. “You would deny me my mate?” he demanded loudly.
She jerked back.
“Answer me,” he said as he stood to tower over her. His hands shook so badly he had to stuff them in his pockets. His whole life he had waited for his mate—the one person who would complete him. A mate was the most valued and loved person a shifter could have. His heart breaking, he asked one last time, “Do you deny me as your mate?”
Austin held his breath. She had every right to deny him. Whether she was Pack or not, a female could make the decision not to be with their mate. He’d never met anyone who had denied their mate but he’d heard stories.
God, it was just so frustrating. He would be good to her. If she would just give him a chance, he could prove she would be cherished and loved. He just needed her to agree.
“No,” she responded quietly. “I don’t deny you.”
His breath rushed out. Oh, thank God!
“I…just…you can’t be my mate.”
Austin went from relieved to irritated. “I am,” he repeated for what felt like the hundredth time.
“I need to think…I just need time to think,” she told him honestly as she met his gaze.
“Time,” he repeated. “I can give you time.”
Kiley smiled a small smile and her blue eyes sparkled. Austin knew he would never deny her anything.
He tried to convey honesty and caring as he cupped her chin. She gasped but didn’t pull away. “I will do anything for you,” he whispered. “Just ask.” Austin released her and took his seat. “Hopefully you will agree to spend some time getting to know me,” he said as he sat back and relaxed. Yes, that would be best. Give her time in her own territory to feel comfortable with him. “There is quite a bit of Pack stuff going on, but I would like to see you later, if that’s all right. You will be staying here at the house, won’t you?”
Kiley frowned. “I have my own place off Pack land.”
Austin shrugged a shoulder. “But I thought…”
Tyler cleared his throat, drawing Austin’s attention. “I haven’t had a chance to speak with her before this. She doesn’t know anything about the call.”
“I apologise, Alpha,” Austin said formally.
“Thank you, but unnecessary,”
She nodded. “Gray said you had a job for me.”
The wolf inside him started to get agitated, so he took several deep breaths to calm himself while
“You may have heard that we have meetings set up to discuss the issue of going public. I have a few guests coming to speak with Austin and myself about it. It’s been planned for several months.”
“We started getting anonymous calls as soon as the meetings were set.
Kiley glanced over at him, and he sent her a reassuring smile.
She nodded and gave her attention back to
“I can’t not have the meetings. It doesn’t matter if we choose to go public or not, I cannot back down. It would put the entire Pack in danger,”
Kiley nodded. “Makes sense. What do you need from me?”
“Jesse,”
“Oh God!” Kiley exclaimed. “The threats aren’t against her, are they?”
“I’ll do anything for Jesse, you know that.”
“I want you to stay here with her as her guard. You can spend time with her and keep her from getting worried and hopefully out of trouble.”
“Yeah,” Kiley laughed. “No problem there.”
“Wonderful,”