Alpha's Protective Pup

20

The Sabretail Pride didn’t work like that, but apparently, The Lonehide Pride felt differently. They attacked Lukas’s father, forcing him to flee. He sought refuge with our clan, and it was thanks to my mother that my father agreed to let him stay.

“I have no idea why they decided to attack now. They must have come a long way for this—chances are there are more of them out there close by, biding their time,” my father said with a snarl. “This is just a message. Again, the question is why and it’s beyond frustrating that I can’t figure it out.”

I swallowed. “Well, that is what we are going to have to figure out the father.”

He nodded. “Yes. Once that friend of yours heals, the two of you are going to head the effort to seek out this group.”

My father explained that the scouts were going to seek them out first, though. We needed to gain some clarity before rushing in without a plan. That would frankly be stupid if we did such a foolish thing.

“It was just a minor injury,” I explained, remembering what Margaret had told me. “He should be ready to go in about two or three days.”

“Good,” he said before nodding toward the entryway. “You can go now, Oscar. Explain what the plan is and what we’re going to set out to do. Also speak with Lukas because he needs to take responsibility for his father’s actions, as cruel as it might seem.”

I wanted to tell my father that it was cruel in a sense. While I did have my issues with Lukas now it truly was not fair that he was to be expected to handle his father’s sins—if you could call it that.

If only my mother were here now. She could’ve convinced my father to see reason—that this was not what he should be doing. Retaliating was necessary, but forcing Lukas to do it for the simple reason it was his father’s former pack made no sense.

I swear she could’ve talked him out of it in a minute if she wanted.

When I was done with my father, I spoke with everyone. They had been able to deduce a few things from the wolves. There were some curious weeds and insects on the carcasses that were native to the county but not often found in the forest the pack called home.

They were going to search the surrounding areas. It would take some time to figure out where these plants and bugs were native to, but they would be able to do it in time.

Once we were finished, my thoughts went to Isla wanting to find her. I assumed she would still be in the infirmary, tending to Lukas. Had I been in his position, I was confident that she would do the same for me.

The two of us did have a connection. I enjoyed the time we spent together, Our conversations, quiet glances, and just everything. I hoped that she felt the same way I did.

In the morning, I would seek her out and perhaps we could have a discussion. If I didn’t say anything, Lukas was going to claim Isla as his. Her heat would be here soon. No one had an exact date of when this would, but it would be soon, that much was for sure.

I settled in for the night and woke up early. When I bumped into Isla, she was coming in the direction of Isla’s room as he expected. She looked as if she had just showered. Our eyes met and she smiled softly.

“Morning Oscar,” she told me with a soft smile.

Then I noticed it. It was partly hidden by the collar of her shirt, but when Isla moved, I saw what looked like a love bite. There was nothing else that could be.

I tensed, digging my claws into the palms of my hands as I tried to calm myself. Isla noticed how strange I was acting and was about to ask until she saw where I was looking.

She let out a squeak and adjusted her collar.

“It seems the choice has been made,” I responded, flatly.

Isla shook her head. “No! No choice. Just--- f**k. Oscar calmed down and gave me a minute to explain. It is what you think but It doesn’t mean any choice has been made. Please let me explain it to you.“

“Not now, Isla. We can talk later,” I said curtly.

Isla swallowed. “Tonight? Please?”

I was furious, but she was looking at me with those eyes and pleading for me to give her a chance to explain. Slowly I nodded before turning around to leave.

“Tonight then,” I told her. “I’ll find you.

It was Lukas—it had to be. I needed to leave otherwise the injury he had gotten last night was not going to be the only one he would end up having.

The shitty part is I still needed to talk to him about what my father said. What truth he revealed to me and what the two of us were going to have to do about it.

CHAPTER 10

ISLA

T

hroughout the day, I was a bundle of nerves, constantly on edge. I kept replaying the conversation over and over again in my head. This was not how I wanted Oscar to find out. In my ideal scenario, he would remain blissfully unaware, but reality shattered that dream.

Wolves with a superior sense of smell filled the den. One of them was bound to pick up on something going on. I just never thought it was going to be Oscar himself. If he caught a whiff of Lukas’s smell on me, I might be able to spin it as something else, but a love bite? That was impossible to explain.

The sheer intensity of anger in his eyes when he saw that bite took me aback me. It was like a punch in the gut. The last thing I wanted to do was upset him like that—and what made it worse was that Oscar had the wrong idea about it.

It was difficult to say what that night with Lukas meant to me, or what I felt about it. Truth be told, it was amazing and just thinking back on it made a tingle run down my spine.

Then I thought about experiencing such a night with Oscar. The pleasure coiling in my body intensified, but I shoved those musings out of my mind. It was the wrong time for that.

Margaret was busy at work when I got to the infirmary. I already knew my duties by now, so I got started without needing much direction from her. I didn’t feel I needed any help from her anymore.

I was a pretty quick learner—especially in a pinch.

“You smell like Lukas. Is that where you spent the night?” Margaret asked in the most nonchalant tone I had ever heard.

I balked. “Excuse me? Don’t your senses decline with age?”

She laughed. “Not always. My nose is as sharp as it ever was.”

“Excellent for me then,” I muttered under my breath.

“So, I’ll take that reaction as a yes.”

I balked again. “All right, I did, but what does it matter?”

Margaret lifted a brow. “What does it matter? Girl, I know you are not that stupid, so don’t act like you are. Two alphas with exceptional standing in the pack are interested in you, and you just slept with one of them.”

“It wasn’t like I decided or anything. I still have no idea what I’m doing.” I shrugged.

While I didn’t talk about it to Margaret, it still felt good to get it out of my system.

“Well, I can see that, but you’ll have to make it known to them. Once you do, expect them to be vying for your attention,” Margaret said, studying me with narrowed eyes. “Just so you know, humans might balk at the idea of taking more than one mate, but wolves don’t.”

I flushed. “What?”

She shrugged. “Something to think about in the coming weeks.”

I focused on what Margaret said to me during my time in the infirmary. Honestly, it was hard to get it out of my mind. Both of them? This was not a question to ask myself now, even if it made me shiver in anticipation.