Chapter Nineteen

Icould feel myself fading in and out. It was as though I were lost in a maze and unable to find my way out. Then I heard Beckett's voice, and I tried to follow it. Each time he spoke, I moved closer to consciousness. Closer to my mate.

My eyelids seemed to be weighted down, and I groaned as I tried to open them.

"Shh. Just rest," Beckett soothed me. "Have I told you how amazing you are?" He brushed his knuckles across my cheek, leaving a trail of tingles in their wake.

Deep down, I knew it was the mate bond making him say those sweet words, but it didn't stop the butterflies from taking flight in my stomach. I opened my eyes, taking in the gorgeous man leaning over me.

"Not bad yourself." Trying to be sexy, I winked, clicked my tongue, and lifted my finger to shoot a fake finger-gun.

At Beckett's laugh, I realized I probably looked like I was suffering from a seizure.

I glanced past him at Oliver. "Does he just like to hear himself talk?" I asked. "Or is he one of those everyone needs to worship my genius types? I couldn't have planned my attack if he hadn't been such a blowhard."

"Don't worry about him," Beckett said. "Your body needs to rest."

"You should know I'm bad at that." Touching my mate and knowing he was safe caused the dam holding back my emotions to burst.

Unable to help myself, I pressed my palms on either side of his face and pulled his lips to mine. A lust like a raging hurricane tore through me, and I deepened the kiss, eagerly accepting anything he would give me.

"I can't believe you took on another mate," Oliver snarled, his words slightly slurred as he came to.

Beckett's chest vibrated with a vicious growl, and he broke our kiss. "You tried to kill me and take over my pack, but you're questioning my life choices?" Beckett traced the lines of my face as he spoke to the traitor.

"Deny it all you want, but we both know you're a weak alpha," Oliver said.

I felt for him; this jerk was his best friend—or so Beckett had thought—and here he was, betraying, lying, and trying to ruin not just Beckett's life, but his whole pack. But I hated seeing the hurt lurking in my mate's eyes.

I groaned, dropping my head back against the pillow Beckett must have placed beneath me. "And he's right back to it. Talk, talk, talk; that's all this guy does."

The sadness etched on Beckett's face eased, and the corners of his lips curved into a smile at my silliness.

As I focused on Beckett's handsome face, thinking about all the places I wished he'd put those beautiful lips, I caught a flash of movement behind him.

Faster than the speed of thought, white-hot pain sizzled through my body as my wolf took over, the intense need to protect my mate overruling all other thoughts.

Oliver lifted a knife he must have had hidden, preparing to plunge it into Beckett's back. But he was too slow.

I leaped at him, snarling in fury as I bit down on his shoulder. The cold bite of steel sliced into me like a glowing firebrand. A yelp escaped my throat, but it did nothing to distract me. My jaws clamped around his shoulder, and Oliver released the knife with a high-pitched screech of pain.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw another wolf, and even though I'd never seen him in this form, I knew it was Beckett. My mate regarded me for a moment, his nose twitching as he glanced between my prey and me.

Lifting my head, I could feel an instinct to roll over and show him my belly in submission… which was frankly horrifying. If I was already offering myself for belly rubs, what was next? Fetch? An obsession with peanut butter? Sniffing butts?

An image of Beckett's bare, muscular butt in the shower flashed through my mind. Maybe that wasn't the worst thing…

"She's going to die," Oliver hissed.

Beckett leaped toward his beta with a roar of fury, but Oliver managed to shift at the last second and rolled to the side. His wolf snarled and snapped at Beckett, limping slightly thanks to the damage I'd done to his shoulder.

Without warning, Oliver made a move toward me and I braced for impact since the small hotel room didn't provide a lot of space for a game of tag-you're-dead. I shouldn't have bothered, because the beta never made contact with me.

Beckett's body bowled the wolf over, sending him careening into the wall.

The second Oliver rolled to his feet, Beckett lunged forward and slammed a shoulder into him, sending him right back into the wolf-shaped dent in the drywall.

Oliver let out an angry growl and stood once more. Obviously, he didn't know when enough was enough. And maybe it was due to the mate bond, but I got the distinct impression Beckett was playing with him like a cat amusing himself with a mouse… until he grew bored and ended it with a final, killing blow.

But Beckett didn't deliver a killing blow.

The beta shifted back to human, dragging the back of his hand across his face and leaving a smear of blood across his skin.

"You will never get your pack back!" Oliver sounded very sure of himself.

It reminded me of the same way my assistant's not-quite-potty-trained youngster had petulantly shouted that she no longer needed pullups… but had been equally mistaken.

My wolf must have decided Oliver was no longer a threat, because she retreated and I returned to my human form. I fought the urge to vomit as my stomach twisted itself into knots. Being a wolf was cool, but shifting freaking sucked. Beckett remained in his wolf form, his predatory gaze never leaving his beta.

"His people need him," I retorted. "You couldn't be half the alpha Beckett is."

Oliver slowly circled Beckett, while my mate simply watched his friend-turned-adversary with an air of absolute calm.

"They did fine without him while he was getting his rocks off with you." The tone of Oliver's voice and the way his gaze traveled my naked body made me feel like I needed a scalding shower.

My fingers twitched, longing to yank a sheet from the bed to cover myself. But somehow, I sensed that would be viewed as a sign of weakness, so I lifted my chin.

I snorted, "Doubtful. Because once you've experienced the best, you never forget."

At my disrespect, Oliver forgot who was in the room. He rushed toward me, reaching for my arm… then crumbled to the floor like an overcooked gingerbread man as Beckett pounced on him.

With Beckett's paws in his back, and his sharp teeth an inch from Oliver's throat, I wondered if I should be the one to step in.

"Do you really want to kill him?" I asked Beckett, and his feral gaze shifted to me as drool dripped from his glistening teeth to land on Oliver's face.

For a moment, he reconsidered, and I glanced at the beta, willing him to save his skin by using this opportunity to admit defeat.

Once again, he left me speechless with his inability to read a situation.

"Yes. Because if he doesn't kill me, not only will he never trust me again, but I won't rest until he is dead." Even pinned beneath an angry alpha wolf, Oliver was defiant.

My legs wobbled, and I knew I was close to losing my grip on consciousness again. Shifting had taken too much out of my still fragile body. I realized this time was different from the others when numbness spread through me, and my heart began to slow.

I met Beckett's gaze and whispered, "Protect your people."

He didn't need my permission, and I still didn't understand the rules of pack life, but I wanted him to know I wouldn't judge him for doing what had to be done to protect his pack. I had faith he'd do the right thing.

Without warning, he brought his teeth down to Oliver's throat and the sound of crunching bone filled me as my body shifted.

I stared down at my fur-covered paws, sensing the last of my energy ebbing from my body. My skin rippled, but thanks to the numbness, I felt no pain as my body shifted back to my trembling human form.

Something is wrong. The thought came from far away as another shift overcame me, and this time, I collapsed to the floor in my wolf form. My breathing grew shallow.

If my time had come, at least I went out doing something I could feel good about.

I'd repaid a favor.

I'd protected my pack.

I'd stood by my mate's side as we'd faced an enemy.

I'd done him proud… I hoped.

As inky darkness dragged me into unconsciousness and then far deeper than the level of dreams, I thought I heard Beckett speaking to me in that low, calming voice that filled me with peace and comfort. Don't leave me. Without you, I'll be lost.

The pieces clicked into place. That was the secret. Just as nothing had mattered when my mate was in danger, nothing would matter to a wolf who'd lost the other half of their soul.

By biting me, knowing I wasn't going to live long, Beckett had condemned himself to death.

He'd sacrificed himself so I could achieve my life goals.

But why would he do that when he had years to live and find someone to share his life with?

Because I only want you, my love.