He said it as if he’d allow nothing less. Which was good, because neither would Blair. The pull she felt toward him—one that seemed to promise safety and security—would plague her if she fought it. But Blair wasn’t confident that he’d find it simple to win her parents’ acceptance. He didn’t know them. He didn’t know how obstinate and controlling Noelle could be.
Blair couldn’t help but feel a little anxious that they’d manage to chase Luke away. Which was why she shamelessly lingered outside her Alpha’s office later on to eavesdrop while Luke, her parents, and her Alpha—who was also her uncle—closed themselves inside.
“No,” Noelle bit out. “No, you’re wrong.”
A sigh. “I’m not going to argue this with you,” said Luke.
“She’s twelve-years-old!”
“I’m aware of that. But what I feel toward her right now is purely platonic—you’d sense it if it wasn’t, so don’t try painting me as someone who’d ever mean to abuse her. You’d know it wasn’t true. Just as you know that this situation won’t change simply because you’d like it to.”
There was a thud, like someone had slammed a palm on a hard surface. “You’re not taking her away from us,” Noelle all but hissed. “She belongs here.”
“For the time being she does, yes. But when she’s older—”
“But nothing. Sylvan territory will always be her home. That will not change. Now leave. And do not ever come back.”
“Do you really think you can dictate whether or not I am part of her life?” asked Luke, eerily calm. “Blair is my mate, Noelle. You need to accept that for her sake.”
Blair’s inner female let out a low growl, backing him up on that.
“And you’re positive that she’s your predestined mate?” asked her father, Les, sounding hopeful that just maybe Luke’s answer would be a no.
“I wouldn’t be standing here now having this conversation with you if I wasn’t.” A pause. “Let me be abundantly clear. Protest all you want, complain all you want, yell all you want … but I will not be run off. Nor will I stay away until Blair’s an adult. It would hurt her if I did, and I’m not prepared to do that. I want access to her in the meantime.”
“Of course we’ll facilitate contact between you and Blair, Luke,” the Alpha, Embry, cut in. “She’d be unhappy if we didn’t, and I think we’re all in accordance on one thing: we do not want Blair unhappy. Isn’t that right, sister?”
Seconds of silence ticked by, rubbing Blair’s nerves raw.
“Fine,” Noelle eventually said. “You can visit her now and then.”
Blair bit back a snort. Her mother would consider “now and then” to be once every few years, if that.
A rumbly growl. “Do not think you can limit my contact with her,” said Luke, his voice low and hard. “That isn’t going to happen. I’ll never allow it. I’ll never permit anything that I know would cause her distress, and that would for certain.”
“She’s just a baby,” snapped Noelle.
“I have no nefarious intentions, and you know it,” clipped Luke, affronted. “We’ve been over that already. Nothing you say or do will alter the situation, so why not just make your peace with it? I want us all to get along for Blair’s sake. There’s no reason why we can’t. Do not make this difficult. It doesn’t need to be. And she wouldn’t thank you for it—not in the short-term, and not in the long-run.”
No, Blair definitely wouldn’t. Maybe if Noelle placed any real importance in finding a person’s true mate, she would instead be happy for Blair. But imprinting was more common among bush dogs, since they often stuck to mating their own breed—true mates weren’t always the same kind of shifter. Blair’s parents were one of many imprinted couples in the pack.
“What is it exactly that you want, Luke?” asked Les.
“What any shifter would want in this instance—to play a fundamental part in being sure that my mate is happy and safe,” Luke replied.
The notes of protectiveness in his voice made Blair’s mouth kick up.
Noelle scoffed. “Like she’d be safe with pallas cats. You’re all the same. Insane. Vicious. Cruel—”
“Bush dogs don’t have the greatest reputation either, so you might not want to throw stones,” said Luke. “In any case, Blair will never be anything but completely safe with me. My pride mates will protect her just the same.”
Silence again fell.
There was a long, male, heavy sigh of resignation and then … “If you are going to have frequent contact with her, there are certain things we would ask of you,” said Les. “Mate or not, you are presently a relative stranger to Blair. Take things slowly. Give her time to get to know you. At first, stick to visiting her here, on her own territory. Once she’s comfortable with you, we would not be opposed to you taking her on daytrips—”