He’d been afraid. Afraid that Lukas had pegged him wrong. He was no Alpha. No leader. Just a flawed bastard who couldn’t protect the one person he loved the most.
And here he was, letting history repeat itself. If he studied the reasons for his change of heart intently, Loren Connors was the main culprit. Watching her process her newfound lycan abilities made him realize how important community truly was. As Alpha, he could show her exactly what her life was meant to be.
From a platonic distance, of course—though something in his chest pulsed as if in argument.Mine…
Logic couldn’t quell the possessive impulse. No matter how he tried to reason his way around it, his wolf rebelled at any thought of a future that didn’t include her.
As more than just a packmate.
Whenever he envisioned keeping his distance, his mind would replay their every interaction. Every kiss. Every stolen, guilty bit of pleasure.
Every greedy gasp she’d uttered in response.
“I’ll be honest,” Micha said quietly, drawing his attention. “I don’t know if this will work, but I’ve got your back.”
Bill raised an eyebrow. “If you were smart, you would take off and try to rejoin the fold. Lukka won’t show you any mercy.”
“About that...” Micha squirmed in his seat, and Bill sighed. He knew that look. Today was the day for uncomfortable revelations, it seemed.
“What is it?”
“She made me promise not to tell you. Not until you made up your mind—”
“Sonia?”
Micha nodded.
“Tell me what?”
The young rogue exhaled. “That Lukka is planning on making a play for Eislander territory. Soon.”
Bill was thankful he hadn’t taken over driving, because now he would be the one running them off the road.
“That greedy son of a bitch. He wants to overthrow Loreck Eislander.” Sure, he’d already suspected as much, but to hear it stated so plainly… What the hell was the bastard thinking?
“I had no solid proof,” Micha admitted. “Just a gut feeling. That’s one of the reasons I didn’t want to go back. I got the sense that something bad was going to happen.”
“Something so bad you would rather take your chances with a rogue who has an entire pack on his ass?”
Micha laughed. “Actually, yeah. I can’t explain it. No one said anything, mind you, but there was something about the way we would ignore the boundaries between the Eislanders and us. It felt off.”
“Like provocation,” Bill said grimly. “Luckily for Lukka, I’ve given him all the reason he needs to tighten his borders even more under the guise of vigilance. He did something to Sonia. She told me to run before he came for me.”
“So, what’s yourrealplan?” Micha asked. This time, the question had a more pointed meaning. “Try to warn the Eislanders? Let’s say theydon’tkill you on sight. What then?”
“It’s too risky to count on them alone,” Bill admitted. “And besides… If Lukka has gotten himself into this mess, it’s because he’s gotten too comfortable using pawns to fight his battles for him. If I’m to take him on, I do it my way. Alone. No distractions. No proxies.”
And no mate. That was one detail Lukka would particularly enjoy—it made him far weaker, susceptible to the crushing doubt plaguing him for five damn years.
“No offense, but it sounds like you have a death wish,” Micha pointed out.
“Maybe I do,” Bill admitted. Regardless, in addition to the doubt, for the first time in five years, he felt some cruel, twisted semblance of peace having settled on a course of action.
He was done running.
But Black Mountain wasn’t the only responsibility he’d abandoned. Sooner or later, he’d need to make up with Loren onherterms.
Though, he wouldn’t be surprised if she never forgave him.