Mate (Bride, #2)

by Ali Hazelwood

“I’m going to step down.” I ask, “From what?” But I already know, so I don’t give him time to answer. “Why?” Regrettably, I already know that, too. That only leaves me with “You can’t.” “See, that’s the thing about being Alpha. I can do whatever the fuck I want.” “Are you— Please tell me you are joking.” “While I’m widely known for my prankster personality and comedic timing, no. I’m not joking. Not about this.” “You…We talked about this.” I sound shrill. “The pack is too important to you. And you are necessary to the pack.” “Things have changed.” “Things—nothing has changed. You love the Northwest more than anything.” “Not more than anything, Serena.”

Im obsessed with him.

We need him, Layla said. Amanda. Brenna. Dozens, countless people. Even Irene. My eyes lock with his, willing him to understand. “You are the heart of this pack, Koen.” He nods. Even as he says, “And you are mine, Serena.”

Call me an ambulance.

My next moment of awareness is in the middle of the night. I’m groggy and confused, in the same safe house where I fell asleep. Except, it’s no longer bustling with activity. It’s just me and two Human guards. My upper arm, where the tracker was, hurts like an open wound. Dried blood clings to my biceps, pools in the inside of my elbow. And that’s when I realize that I may have underestimated Irene.

Oh fuck

“Does it mean that…?” He nods. “We can…?” “If you want to.” “If I—” My laugh is thick. Watery. “If I want to? Do you want to?” He laughs, too. “Let me think about it.” I lean forward and bite him on the jaw, hard. I feel his smile grow between my teeth. “So we can just…stay here? In this cabin? And I’ll find some job? And you’ll do your Alpha stuff? And we’ll…we’ll go for runs together? And be boring?” “That sounds like a dream, actually.” “And I’ll cook? And we’ll see Misery and Lowe? And you’ll build me more chairs and let me decorate the cabin?” “Whatever you want, sweetheart.”

Goodbye

“If you…” She’s flushing a little. Her pretty pink cheeks—such a weird fucking color, and yet so enchanting. “What?” “Um, do you maybe want to bite me, too?” That’s when Koen passes out for a minute. At least, he thinks so. His vision blacks out, and sound recedes. He’s suspended in nothing. Then, when he comes to, she’s still soft underneath him, and clearly in the middle of a little speech.