Chapter 26

The next morning, I made up the excuse that Noah had called me into work and left the house. It was the only thing that I could think of to get out of the house without causing too much suspicion. Arthur didn’t even question it. It made me feel just the tiniest bit guilty.

When I arrived at Noah’s house, he came out to meet me, a mixed look of confusion and happy surprise on his face. However, that all changed into concern as I drew closer.

“Almara, what’s wrong?” He asked, taking my hands, worry evident in his voice.

I blinked at him. How did he know something was wrong? I didn’t think I was giving off any vibes about my current mental state.

“Nothing’s wrong.I just figured I would come out here to try and clear the air before tomorrow,” I said, forcing myself to smile. Noah’s eyes narrowed.

“Don’t lie to me, Sweetness. Tell me what happened,” he said firmly,and I knew there would be no escaping this conversation.

I sighed, taking my hands out of his and wrapping them around myself. “There’s just this member of the pack. She doesn’t like me very much. She played a few tricks on me. That’s all.”

A muscle in his jaw twitched and I watched in fascination as his violet eyes darkened with anger. This shade was even more beautiful. “Did you tell the alpha?”

I hugged myself tighter. “I did, but…”

“But?” Noah asked sharply and even though I knew that anger wasn’t directed at me, I still flinched. He took in a breath, reigning in his emotions. He brought his hands to my shoulders, rubbing them in an attempt to comfort me.

“He didn’t believe me,” I whispered and Noah went very still beside me. If his hands weren’t still on me, if I wasn’t looking at him with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have known he was there.

“Get in my car,” Noah said, his voice strained and no more than a whisper. I just stared at him, not understanding the abrupt command.

“Get. In. My. Car.” Noah gritted out and pushed me gently toward the stand alone garage. I hesitated, unsure of what he was going to do.

“Now, Almara!” he shouted and I jumped, my legs taking me into the garage before he could say anything else. I got in the passenger side of a cobalt blue ‘66 Mustang. If the situation hadn’t been so fraught with tension, I would have taken the time to admire the car.

“Where are we going?” I asked as he got behind the wheel and backed down his driveway.

“I’m going to talk some sense into your alpha,” Noah said calmly and honestly, the calm was scarier than earlier. I could see the swirling mass of black above his head. He was anything but calm.

“Noah, please don’t. It’s pack business. Arthur isn’t going to be happy if you just show up and start berating him,” I plead, my anxiety growing as we got closer and closer to the estate. Noah is flying down the roads, barely slowing down for turns.

“I don’t give a fuck if he’s happy or not. He’s your fiance. He should be taking your side,” Noah growled and I winced. This was not going to end well.

Noah’s car roared onto Arthur’s estate, sending gravel flying as he parked the car. He stormed out and up the steps. I ran after him as fast as I could.

“Sir, I’m afraid you can’t go in there,” a man from Arthur’s staff said, barring the way. They hadn’t seen me yet, otherwise I don’t think they would have blocked him.

“I think I can,” Noah said and knocked the man to the side with his elbow. The man hit his head on the wall and crumpled to the floor. I wanted to check on him, but Noah was already moving through the house, heading straight for Arthur’s office.

Noah didn’t even knock. He just threw the door open with enough force that it hit the wall with a loud bang. Arthur looked up from the newspaper he was reading, eyes taking in Noah’s rigid stance and me behind him.

“Mr. Cunningham, what is the meaning of this intrusion?” Arthur asked, not even bothering to stand up. If the insult bothered Noah, he didn’t show it. He was too busy murdering Arthur with his eyes.

“Almara has brought to my attention that one of your wolves has been treating her badly. Yet when she went to you with her concerns, you didn’t believe her. As her fiance, as someone who claims to love her, shouldn’t you be on her side? Unless there’s a reason you believe the other wolf over her.”

Noah didn’t elaborate, but he didn’t need to. The implication that Arthur was sleeping with Dana was clear. I bristled. I hadn’t even thought of that. Arthur had said he’d be loyal to me, but would he really? Robert had said the same thing and look where that had gotten me.

“The matter is none of your business. You are not a part of this pack. Need I remind you that you and Almara are just work colleagues? This does not concern you,” Arthur said, a small growl slipping through.

“That is where you’re wrong, Alpha Arthur. It does concern me. I’m sure you’re well aware of my feelings for Almara. If you can’t take care of her, I will,” Noah warned, pulling me to his side and wrapping an arm around my shoulders. His grip was like iron. Even if I wasn’t dumbstruck, I wouldn’t have been able to pull away.

Arthur stood up, pressing his palms flat against his desk. Claws grew from his fingertips and his eyes were turning to the wolf amber. He was losing control.

“Take your hands off of my fiance.”

Noah smirked at him, trailing his hand from my shoulder to my waist. His fingers splayed out against my stomach. “Do you honestly think that you’ll be able to keep her if you treat her like this?”

“I think I’ve treated her just fine. In fact, I treated her so well yesterday that she was screaming my name,” Arthur said as he came around the desk. Fangs were descending in his mouth. We were minutes away from a disaster.

Noah tensed, but relaxed just as quickly. He chuckled as he nuzzled my ear, sending little bites of electricity straight to my lower extremities. His smile widened as he took in my scent.

“She may be screaming your name now, but it won’t be forever. You are going to lose her. And I’ll be there waiting. But if Almara gets hurt while she’s here with you, just know that nothing will save you from me.”

Noah roughly grabbed my chin and placed a searing kiss on my lips. Arthur roared and shifted into a massive black wolf, but Noah was gone before I could do more than blink. I must have been in shock. I didn’t even see him leave.

I stared at the wolf warily. Was he going to blame me for what Noah had done? It hadn’t been my idea. I couldn’t control the way my body reacted around him either. The only thing that I could be blamed for was talking about pack business.

Arthur stalked toward me and Lily’s fur bristled. She was ready to shift and defend me if necessary. When he reached me, he surprised me by whining and licking the back of my hand. I stroked my fingers through the soft fur on his head.

I think Arthur’s wolf is in control, Lily said, sounding amused. I raised an eyebrow. This usually didn’t happen with adult wolves. Even when I shifted into Lily’s form, I was still in control. But it wasn’t unheard of. If the emotions of the wolf were strong enough, it could take over completely.

I knelt down next to the wolf. I laughed as he licked my cheek. “It’s nice to meet you.”

The wolf whined and curled up next to me. I kept petting him, wondering when the man would come out again and how much trouble I would be in when he did.