Chapter 46

[Cruz POV]

‘I want her.’

Cruz Sterling had left Lorenzo and Eleanor behind in their tent with a deep-seated feeling of bitter disdain forming in the pit of his gut. It had actually started when he first entered the tent. He’d spotted sweet Eleanor curled up into the side of her alpha and wanted nothing more than to snatch her away for himself.

He knew that, apart from the long-standing hatred Lorenzo held for him, the other alpha was secretly smug. Lorenzo had Eleanor all to himself and was quite prideful for it. Throughout the entirety of their meeting, he’s kept a firm hand on his mate’s waist, as though he were flaunting the fact that she belonged to him.

‘As if I haven’t been spurned enough as it is,’ he thought darkly.

The position of aiding the heir to the throne that the Lycan Luna once discussed with both him and Lorenzo would have been a groundbreaking elevation in his title as an alpha. For a brief, flicker of a moment, he’d foolishly allowed himself to think that he could actually be granted such an honor.

But no. The honor, the title, and the recognition all went to Lorenzo.

And Cruz knew that he had only himself to blame.

‘Those fucking rogues had one job,’ he snarled. ‘And they couldn’t even do that right.’

Every rogue attack he’d initiated had never turned out successful. This time, he’d instructed his wolves to attack Eleanor and force her into submission. The mission wasn’t to kill her but to take her away from Lorenzo.

Now, Cruz knew Lorenzo would ultimately swoop in to try and save his mate. However, the plan was never supposed to end with the alpha still alive. The rogues were supposed to take out Lorenzo and capture Eleanor.

Because of this failed mission, the two of them were still safe and Lorenzo had been given the honorable position as aid to the royal heir. And just to add insult to injury, Eleanor’s request to have her father’s legal case reopened had been fully granted.

As if he didn’t have enough bullshit to deal with...

No matter, Cruz still had a personal agenda that he was determined to pursue. He would have his older brother’s position as the ‘light’ alpha. He’d had enough of dealing solely with the family’s dark industries and believed that he deserved far more.

His plan to help out Eleanor and Lorenzo with the missing children cases was only going to lead the couple so far but, in the end, was going to have glorious repercussions against his brother. And should Eleanor and Lorenzo find themselves getting too close to the truth...

“We’ve managed to silence those who’ve gotten too close before,” he muttered under his breath.

Cruz snarled under his breath as he made his way toward the outskirts of the fairgrounds. He’d had enough of the fake formalities and was ready to make his way back home. While Lorenzo still hadn’t given him a solid answer to his offer, the man needed to re-strategize.

He wasn’t entirely sure if it was possible to scare Eleanor out of wanting to pursue her father’s previous work.

‘She’s too headstrong to back down from this,’ he’d concluded.

Why were his rogues constantly failing to bring down Lorenzo? And was there a way he could persuade the couple to agree to the deal he’d offered?

“Perhaps, what I need to do now is find a way to raise the stakes, and make it almost imperative that they agree to the deal.”

[Eleanor POV]

‘Something’s off with Lorenzo,’ I thought to myself.

The Luna Moon Festival had come to a, somewhat, peaceful close. To say that Lorenzo and I were exhausted was a complete understatement.

He and I were finally headed back to the house and ever since we’d gotten into the car, he’d remained in total silence. There was no doubt in my mind that he was still thinking about what Curz had said before.

But part of me was wondering why he hadn’t openly agreed to the deal when Sterling had first made the offer.

I turned my head to glance at Lorenzo. “Tell me, why not accept Cruz’s deal when he made the offer?” I asked. “Wasn’t this the point of making the announcement so public that it places the Blue Moon pack in the spotlight?”

Lorenzo let out a long breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. “What you need to always remember is that there is far more to Cruz Sterling than meets the eye. The man is horribly vindictive and very possibly a borderline sociopath. The fact that he admits to having his own agenda in all of this worries me.”

He had a point. What was Cruz hoping to personally gain out of all of this?

“I’ve known the man for a long time. He and I have never seen eye to eye on practically anything.”

“But where does that place us on this supposed deal?” I questioned. “Surely whatever info he’s willing to hand over is better than what we’re currently working with now which is scarce to begin with.”

Lorenzo promised that we’d come to a decision soon. Right now, he needed to think about what possible reasons Cruz could have for wanting to hand over any incriminating evidence.

By the time we reached the house, we were swiftly greeted by the staff and warmly welcomed inside. With his hand still curled around my own, Lorenzo started to head off toward the direction of his private rooms. I stopped, causing his steps to falter.

My cheeks started to blush. “Right. Well, um...Now that we’re back...” I tried pulling my hand out of his.

Now that the threat and excitement had passed, I didn’t feel the overwhelming urge to constantly stick by his side anymore. Of course, my wolf let out a distressed whine when I did so.

Lorenzo’s voice came out rugged. “Eleanor.”

“I think it may be best if we were to return to our own room—”

“Don’t go,” he said pleadingly. “Stay with me.”