Total pages in book: 202
Estimated words: 193561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 968(@200wpm)___ 774(@250wpm)___ 645(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 193561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 968(@200wpm)___ 774(@250wpm)___ 645(@300wpm)
I stare in surprise. I have no idea how my luck changed like this. A pack that has a restaurant. Book clubs. Movie nights. A library! This is the pack we should be.
Wyatt is a threat to this. He could hurt Greyson and take this all away. And many of the Silver Hills people deserve so much more than what they have.
The idea of Wyatt threatening the way of life here bothers me a lot. But the idea that my pack could have a life like this? This is beyond my wildest imaginings. I need to try and give this to them. I just don’t know how I’m going to do that. I know Wyatt can’t be given the ability to take over this pack and this territory. He wouldn’t give all this to us so we could flourish, finally. No, he’d ruin it, turn it to charred rubble.
By now, Jimmy has undoubtedly been in touch to tell him I haven’t come back. If anyone is poking around near the perimeter of this village, maybe they’re catching Tyson Savage’s scent here. And mine.
The biggest questions and concerns are… what would Wy have done if I’d murdered Tyson Savage? And what’ll he do once he knows I haven’t?
***
Greyson puts food away while I distractedly cook cheddar cheese omelets and bacon for us.
He’s watching me, studying me. And I feel self-conscious. He wants to ask questions, but he’s giving me some headspace, and I both appreciate and feel guilty about it.
When we sit down at the dining table, he asks, “So, what did you do for your pack? Did you have a role there?”
“I helped out with the family business. Did some paperwork. Returned phone calls and handled the office. Ordered supplies. I also took on a caretaker role for the elderly and some of the young wherever needed.”
“Took the role of an alpha’s mate, by the sounds of it.”
“I guess I kind of did.”
He studies me for a moment before adding, “An alpha’s mate’s role around here? Anything you want it to be.”
“Females aren’t given much freedom there.”
He studies me and I’m sure he’s waiting for me to elaborate.
I don’t.
“This is good,” he says after tasting a bite of omelet.
“I love to cook. But I think baking is my… specialty.”
“Oh yeah?”
“I mean… I think so, anyway. I love that there are two ovens on the wall. That’d come in handy.”
“Maybe I had some foresight, huh?”
I smile and take a bite of food and try to chew daintily even though I’m so hungry my belly hurts.
“How come you served me double the food you’ve got?”
“I don’t have a very big appetite.”
This sounds better than admitting it’s automatic for me to give the alpha the biggest portion. Greed in our pack is a sin. Supplies haven’t been abundant for a very long time. But there’s definitely one greedy individual in the pack, the one running and ruining things.
I made him a three-egg omelet, myself a two-egg one. I made him five slices of bacon, myself two. I made him two pieces of toast, myself one.
In truth, even though my portion is much smaller than his, it’s still a big breakfast for me. Much bigger than I’m accustomed to. Before working in the diner, some days I was lucky to eat this much in an entire day.
He’s not eating slowly. He looks like he’s enjoying it, and he’s nearly finished before I’m even halfway done, so I try to eat faster without making it obvious as he’s sitting across from me, talking about his village, telling me about his sister, his folks. His father was in the last council of seven alphas. Some of the alphas on his council are second or third-generation council alphas. Tyson is fourth or fifth, Greyson believes, but remarks that his sister would know for sure, though this is the first time two Savages have been on the same council. Greyson and his council have been in the position for the past few years, but until recently, the former council was still heavily involved as they transitioned into their roles.
I slow down when I realize he’s not in a hurry for me to finish, just leisurely drinking his coffee while chatting with me. In our pack, the men and women rarely even eat together.
We load the dishwasher together and he sweeps the floor while I wipe down the counters. When I’m done and hanging the towel, he crowds me from behind, one palm landing on the counter on my left, his right hand sliding up my right thigh underneath the shirt.
My initial instinct is to seize up tight and brace. So I do. But once his mouth lands on the bitemark on my neck, his hand sliding past my hip, gliding up my torso, stopping to cup my breast underneath his shirt, not only do I loosen up, my head lolls back and lands on his shoulder. His attention on that spot on my neck feels… incredible.