chapter 6
1571 Words
Riley – 3 Days Before the Summit
He hadn’t taken his eyes off her.
That stupid, ugly, wolfless girl.
Lize.
She walked into the dining hall like she wasn’t a walking embarrassment—like she didn’t know everyone was talking about how she was nearly eighteen and still hadn’t shifted. Her hair was a mess. Her clothes were plain. Her posture was average at best. And yet he—Alpha Bentley, the most powerful unmated Alpha in the country—watched her like she was the damn moon itself.
His eyes should be on me.
I’m beautiful. I know I am. Everyone knows it.
Thick, glossy brown hair. Legs for days. Perfect curves. I could walk into any pack gathering and have every unmated wolf staring. I’ve had plenty mated ones staring too.
But not him.
Bentley hadn’t looked at me once. Not even when I leaned forward just enough for him to get a view down the front of my dress. Not when I “accidentally” brushed against his arm in greeting. Not even when I laughed in that light, flirty tone that always got attention.
Nothing.
My wolf snarled in the back of my mind.
“You already have a mate.”
I rolled my eyes internally. Don’t start.
“You’re mated to Jake. Alpha blood. A good wolf.”
“A boring wolf,” I hissed under my breath, pushing my salad around my plate as Bentley and Alpha Calvin talked at the other end of the table. “Jake’s sweet. But sweet won’t get me power.”
My wolf growled again, but I shoved her deeper down. I’d been doing it since the day I realized who the Goddess had paired me with.
I didn’t want Jake. I wanted more.
Bentley was more.
As soon as Jake told me to “leave his sister alone” last month, I knew we were going to have problems. That girl walked around like she didn’t even realize how much of an embarrassment she was to our pack. I was just trying to remind her of her place—beneath me.
I stood slowly, letting my hand rest lightly on Jake’s shoulder. “I’m going to go check on the dessert trays,” I said sweetly.
Jake narrowed his eyes at me. “Stay away from Lize.”
I blinked innocently. “I didn’t say a word about her.”
“You don’t have to. I know how you work, Riley. Just don’t.”
I kissed his cheek because I had to, not because I wanted to. “You’re so protective, babe. It’s adorable.”
I didn’t wait for a reply. I was already moving, hips swaying, toward the front of the room where Bentley stood near a decorative wine cart, quietly speaking with his Gamma. Gage, I think his name was.
I stepped into the edge of Bentley’s space like I belonged there, letting my fingertips glide along the back of a nearby chair.
“Long trip, Alpha?” I asked, voice smooth and warm.
Bentley’s eyes flicked toward me—cold, unreadable. “It was fine.”
“Minnesota’s pretty this time of year,” I said, smiling. “A little chillier than Oregon, but I’m sure you’ll enjoy the heat inside.”
Gage made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a laugh he was trying to strangle.
Bentley ignored it.
“Lakewood is peaceful,” he replied curtly. “I respect that.”
I tilted my head and stepped just a bit closer. “If there’s anything you need while you’re here—anything at all—I’d be happy to help.”
Bentley’s eyes cut to mine. Sharp. Final. “That won’t be necessary.”
I blinked, startled. “Oh… well, if you change your mind—”
“I won’t.”
He turned away.
Just like that.
No apology. No amused smirk. No ‘playing hard to get.’
Just flat-out dismissal.
I stood there for a second, stunned.
“You deserve that,” my wolf spat. “Jake is your mate. You insult the bond.”
“Shut up,” I growled inside my head.
But she didn’t retreat. She raged. Clawed. Yowled like a storm behind a locked door. She hated what I was doing.
Too bad.
Jake would never give me a crown. But Bentley? If I could crack that wall of his, if I could just get in his head the way that pathetic sister of Jake’s had, I’d have everything I wanted.
And I would.
One way or another.
---
Gage – 3 Days Until the Summit
You can learn a hell of a lot about a pack just by watching how they eat dinner.
Some packs are loud, rowdy, like a tavern full of brothers. Others are tight-lipped, all posture and pecking order. Lakewood was somewhere in the middle—respectful, orderly, but with that underlying hum of tension, like everyone was bracing for something.
Or someone.
I sat beside Bentley near the head of the table, casually spooning potatoes onto my plate while keeping one ear on the conversations around us. He wasn’t eating. He was watching.
Correction: he was watching her.
Alpha Calvin’s daughter.
Lize.
She walked in with the Beta’s son—Rory, if I remembered right—and the shift in Bentley was instant. His posture stiffened, jaw set like stone, and Jax nearly shattered the room with his presence.
I leaned over and whispered, “So… she the one?”
“No.”
“Right,” I said, dragging out the word. “Which is why your wolf is breathing like a bull about to break the gates.”
Bentley didn’t look at me. “She’s not of age.”
“Still doesn’t explain how close you came to ripping that Beta’s throat out with your eyes.”
Bentley finally turned his head toward me, voice low. “She’s mine. Jax knows it. I know it. Just not officially. Not yet.”
I whistled under my breath. “Goddess help us all when she turns eighteen.”
He didn’t reply. Just kept his eyes locked on the girl like she might disappear if he blinked.
“Do you need me to slap you to snap you out of it, or…?”
“Gage.”
“Just checking.”
A tray of roasted venison passed, and I grabbed a slab. Bentley still hadn’t touched his food.
“She’s cute,” I said casually. “Kind of has that tragic ‘I-read-too-much-and-society-rejects-me’ vibe. Like a hot librarian with trauma.”
Bentley shot me a glare so cold I almost dropped my fork. I grinned.
“Calm down, Alpha. I’m not hitting on your girl.”
“She’s not—” He stopped himself. “Not yet.”
“You’ll wait?” I asked, serious now.
“Of course I’ll wait,” he said. “She’s not ready. She doesn’t even know what she is yet.”
I nodded. “I can’t lie… Jax actually seems sane for the first time in months.”
“He’s focused,” Bentley muttered, finally lifting his glass of water. “Which is dangerous.”
Across the table, I caught movement from the corner of my eye.
Riley.
The future Luna. Jake’s mate.
She was watching Bentley with an expression that made me want to gag. I’d seen pups look at chicken with less hunger.
She got up and made her move, sauntering over with a sway so exaggerated I was amazed she didn’t trip on her ego.
“Here we go,” I mumbled, and elbowed Bentley under the table. “Incoming she-wolf on a mission.”
“Not interested,” Bentley replied without blinking.
“Don’t have to tell me. Tell her.”
Riley leaned against the nearby chair, practically oozing into Bentley’s airspace.
“Long trip, Alpha?” she purred, like she thought she was starring in a soap opera.
Bentley offered a nod. A single one. Then returned his gaze to his plate. Still untouched.
“Minnesota’s lovely this time of year,” she added, voice dipped in sugar and desperation. “I hope you’ll find your stay… comfortable.”
Goddess, I couldn’t help it. I actually let out a low snort.
She glared at me before turning back to Bentley, pressing forward with another smile.
“If there’s anything you need, anything at all—”
“That won’t be necessary,” Bentley said firmly.
I felt Jax stir behind the words. They weren’t aggressive. Just final.
Riley blinked, as if stunned by the rejection. “Oh… well. If you change your mind—”
“I won’t.”
Mic. Drop.
Riley backed away slowly, and I watched her lips pinch into a frown before she spun on her heel and returned to Alpha Jake’s side. He didn’t even look up from his plate.
I leaned in, voice dry. “Smooth, Alpha. Subtle like a freight train.”
Bentley didn’t smile, but there was a tightness in his jaw that I recognized. He was on edge. Not from Riley. From Lize.
“You gonna be okay?” I asked.
He nodded once. “Yeah. Just… keep her away from me.”
“Lize?”
“Riley.”
I raised my glass. “Done.”
Bentley finally took a bite of his food. Jax, for once, remained calm.
But I knew better.
This was just the beginning.
- Writer
