CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER TWELVE

She either thought he was dumb or she believed that he didn’t know her well.

She’d be wrong on both counts. Derren would wager he understood Ally better than most people did, despite only having known her a short time. You could have someone in your life for years but never really know them; others you could come to know in a matter of weeks.

It would be fair to say that Ally wasn’t an easy person to read. She didn’t wear her emotions on her face. But Derren had come to know her so well that, with a single glance, he could tell if she was tired or hungry or pissed or had something on her mind.

Right now, as he leaned against the counter watching her prepare them lunch, he could sense that something was wrong. “What’s eating at you?”

Her almond eyes landed on him for a mere moment. “Nothing.”

“When you lie, you shrug your left shoulder.”

Ally’s shoulders suddenly locked in place. “If you’re going to bug me while I’m cooking, get out of my kitchen.”

Instead, Derren took a sip from his mug. The woman made excellent coffee. “You’ve beenoffsince yesterday.” After the interrogation, she’d turned uncharacteristically quiet and pensive. When he’d questioned her, she had assured him that she was fine. Of course he’d been fully aware that she was lying, but he’d given her the emotional space she needed, trusting that she’d talk when she was ready. But . . . “I gave you time. That time is up, baby.”

“Time to do what?”

“Time to share with me of your own accord.” He moved to her as she was plating their chicken-fried steaks and mashed potatoes. Not prepared to let her go on hurting, he pressed, “What’s bothering you?”

She swallowed. “My kind caused your pack pain again.”

He cupped her chin and turned her face to his. “Hey, that’s not on you. Kerrie didn’t do it because she’s a Seer. She did it because she’s jealous, bitter, and apparently suicidal. It’s all about the individual, remember?”

Ally was conscious of that. But she was also mindful that it had taken a lot of time to make the Mercury wolves see that. She worried that Kerrie’s actions would undo what Ally had done and would make these people she’d come to respect and care for turn away from her. It would hurt a lot more than she was comfortable admitting even to herself.

“No one is going to blame you for this, Ally. Things aren’t going to go back to the way they were at the beginning.” Derren wouldn’t allow it.

She narrowed her eyes. “For the record, I don’t like how easily you read me.” She comforted herself with the knowledge that he simply had a talent for reading people in general; it wasn’t that she had become an open book to the world around her. Hopefully.

His mouth curved. “Trust me on this: no one in the pack will think any differently of you now than they did before they learned about Kerrie’s involvement. Trust me,” he repeated.

“I do.”

Hearing her say that without missing a beat, having someone in his life who had such total faith in him, was both heady and comforting. And Derren had no intention of giving that up, of giving Ally up. His original curiosity in her had later became fascination, but that fascination had shifted and become an addiction. She was an obsession he couldn’t shake off. She dominated his thoughts, consumed his wolf. Derren found himself hurrying to finish his Beta duties to spend more time with her each evening.

Ridiculous as it was, he didn’t like sharing her with others in the pack. The scent, sight, or thought of her made his cock begin to harden. He wanted her constantly, couldn’t get enough of her—if he was able to, he’d be in her twenty-four/seven. He wanted to be in her right now.

Sensing his intense need for her, Ally shook her head with a smile. “Later. First we eat.”

As usual, they sat on the porch to have their meal. “Have Roni and Marcus located Kerrie?” Ally asked Derren. She knew the mated pair had ventured to Kerrie’s pack that morning, where one of Marcus’s sisters was also a member. Apparently, Kerrie hadn’t been seen by her pack for a few months. Her parents claimed she was going to visit friends in another pack but that she hadn’t been specific as to whom she was visiting.

“Marcus has called every one of Kerrie’s friends that were on the list his sister gave him,” he replied. “They all said they haven’t had contact with her in months.”

“They could be lying.”

“Of course they could, but Nick can’t afford to separate our pack to go hunting. So, instead, he’s done something quite cunning.”

“What?” Ally shoved a forkful of chicken in her mouth.

“An hour ago, he put out a reward for either Kerrie’s capture—making it clear he wants her brought in alive—or for any information that leads to her whereabouts.”

Clever. “Do you think it’ll work?”

“I think there are plenty of people who would want to gain favor with Nick, so it’s very possible that someone could come forward.”

Halfway through her lunch, Ally said, “Tell me a little about the Kerrie situation. I know she lied about Marcus’s mate being someone else because she wanted him for herself. But why would she take the rejection and his mating to Roni so badly?”

“Before Roni, Marcus’s relationships were short and simple. But he didn’t lead females on—he always made it clear that he wasn’t looking for anything permanent. Outwardly, Kerrie didn’t seem to take it badly when he ended things. They even remained casual friends. She told him that she’d had a vision of his mate; she gave him a false description, told him that the female needed him and was a lot like his mother—which scared the shit out of Marcus.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know exactly. All he’s told me on the matter is that he doesn’t have contact with her for a damn good reason.” Derren sipped his Coke. “So by telling him that his mate was someone he so obviously wouldn’t want to accept, Kerrie made him opposed to mating with his true mate.”

“Probably hoping that it would make him open to imprinting with another female,” Ally surmised. “Like Kerrie.”

“Yes. And by giving him a false description of his true mate, Kerrie was no doubt doing her best to make it extremely difficult for him to recognize his true mate when he found her.”

“Did Kerrie lie about the fact that she’d had a vision of him with his true mate, or did she truly have a vision and it was Roni she saw with him?”

Derren finished chewing his chicken before answering. “Roni believes it’s the latter. When she and Kerrie first met, the Seer froze at the sight of her and acted weird. She tried coming between Roni and Marcus. She first warned Roni away by saying that Marcus’s mate needed him. Later she told tales to Marcus’s father, who turned up to see him and berated him for choosing Roni over his mate. At that point, Roni and Marcus had already realized they were mates and had claimed each other. Kerrie was too late.”

“Did Kerrie admit she’d been talking out of her ass?”

“No. She insisted she was telling the truth about her vision, and she claimed that Roni had turned Marcus against her.” Done with his lunch, Derren put the plate aside.

“So she hates Roni for that, and she most likely hates Marcus for not choosing her over Roni. She’s angry her plan didn’t work.” Ally took a swig of her drink. “I’d say it seems unlikely that someone would go so far as to wipe out two packs for what two people did, but I’ve seen firsthand that there are people who would see an entire pack killed for vengeance.” Her wolf growled at the memories of that night. “And they say that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”

Derren nodded. “They’re right.” A series of beeps came from inside the lodge. Recalling that he’d left his cell phone on the counter, he picked up his empty plate and rose. “I’ll be right back.”

Hearing rustles in the grass, Ally rolled her eyes at the three wolves lingering nearby—on schedule. Evidently, Derren was right; the pack didn’t intend to treat her any differently than before. Or, at least, these three scavengers didn’t. She flung them the three extra chicken-fried steaks she’d made. Since the three enforcers never failed to make a brief visit at lunchtime, she’d taken to cooking extra food for them every day.

When Derren reappeared, flashes of aggravation and antipathy came from him—the combination was like spikes digging into her skin. Alarmed, she stood upright, and her wolf was equally anxious. “What is it?”

A muscle in Derren’s jaw ticked. “I just received a text from Nick. You have visitors.”

“I have visitors?”

“Matt, Zeke, and Rachelle are here.”

Oh, goody.

A few minutes later, all of Ally’s fears that the Mercury wolves would go back to hating her were completely eradicated. As she and Derren sat at the table in the main lodge opposite her visitors, most of the pack gathered behind Ally both supportively and protectively. The only shifters absent were Zander and Jesse—since they were on perimeter duty—and Kathy, who had taken Willow upstairs, away from the outsiders.

Ally’s wolf growled at the visitors, baring her teeth. She wasn’t at all pleased to see the Collingwood wolves; she remembered their betrayal, how they had withdrawn from her. The animal no longer had any respect for Matt or any regard whatsoever for Zeke. As for Rachelle . . . her wolf wanted to lunge at her and rip out her throat. It was an appealing idea.

Matt’s smile was shaky. “It’s very good to see you, Ally. You’ve been missed.”

There was a snort of disbelief, and Ally thought it might have come from Shaya.

Matt cleared his throat, his smile faltering slightly. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been fine.” Ally sank into her seat as she studied each of them closely and sifted through their emotions. Matt was feeling as nervous as he looked. Although Zeke appeared deceptively calm, he was seeping both tension and . . . longing? Rachelle, on the other hand, gave off waves of hostility and loathing—though she was the picture of pleasantness. What was new there?

Zeke nodded at Ally, wearing a bland smile. “Glad to hear it.”

“You look good, Ally,” complimented Rachelle, sounding very sweet and sincere. It made Ally grind her teeth so hard, her jaw ached.

Ally ran her gaze over the three of them as she asked, “Why are you here?”

It was Matt who answered. “We hoped that, if nothing else, we could mend bridges.” In other words, Matt was still panicking that Ally’s protector would seek retribution and, as such, he wanted to make nice with her.

Derren arched a brow as he drawled, “Did you now?”

Rachelle’s devious eyes took in the Mercury wolves—you didn’t need to be empathetic to sense that these shifters didn’t consider the three visitors to be in the least bit welcome. “Ally, could we talk alone?”

Derren responded for Ally without missing a beat. “No.”

Zeke’s smile turned bitter as his focus switched to Derren. “Oh, that’s right, you consider yourself her protector.”

“She doesn’t need protecting from us,” stated Rachelle, “we’re her pack.” Her expression very sad, Rachelle sighed heavily—as if the whole thing weighed heavily on her shoulders. Oh, she was a super-good actress. Ally just hoped the Mercury wolves saw the lying skank for what she truly was. “There have been some issues between Ally and me, granted, but that’s all. We’re pack, and that means something to me.”

“It’s not my pack anymore,” said Ally flatly. “I’m not planning to return.”

“I understand why you might feel wary of coming home,” interjected Matt, “but I can swear to you now that things will be different this time round.”

Like she’d ever believe that. Her voice harder, she repeated, “I’m not planning to return.”

“You don’t belong here, Ally,” Zeke stated. “You belong with us, your pack.”

“Like she already told you repeatedly,” began Derren, his voice close to a growl, “she’s not part of your pack anymore.”

Clenching his fists, Zeke narrowed his eyes at Ally. “I don’t know what Derren’s told you, Ally. I don’t know if he’s filled your head with crap about letting you join his pack. But he told Matt that your stay here would be temporary.”

“It will be,” confirmed Ally, “but then I’ll be joining another pack.” Her wolf snapped her teeth at that comment—her frustration was directed at Ally this time. The animal didn’t want to be anywhere but there with Derren.

Rachelle took Ally’s hand in hers, looking appropriately hurt when Ally immediately snatched it back. “Ally, please reconsider leaving the Collingwood Pack. I know you and I didn’t get off to a great start. You despised me on sight. But that’s hardly surprising, given the way your world fell apart when Zeke left you. It had to have been so hard for your wolf too.”

Currently, Ally’s wolf was flexing her claws, wanting to take a swipe at Rachelle. The Beta female looked and sounded so understanding and mature—nothing in her expression gave away thehatred that flowed from her and sliced at Ally’s skin like a steel blade.

“Admittedly, I wasn’t comfortable being around someone who had been in a serious relationship with my mate. My wolf certainly didn’t like it.” Rachelle raised her hands as she added, “I can hold my hands up and be honest here: I wasn’t the nicest person to you in the beginning. Betas have responsibilities to their pack mates, and I wasn’t there for you like a Beta female should have been. It was petty of me to disregard you that way, and I apologize for that.”

“I owe you an apology too,” said Zeke. “I knew you were hurting when I claimed Rachelle, but I didn’t check up on you. As Beta, your well-being was my responsibility, and I neglected it. Maybe if I hadn’t, things would have been different.”

Rachelle nodded. “Zeke and I are partly to blame for everything. I don’t think that things would ever have escalated the way they did if we had just been there for you.” Her eyes actually got all teary. She blinked away the tears and sniffed. “I just feel so bad about it. That petty, mean, inattentive person—that’s not me, and I’m ashamed of how low I stooped.”

God, the woman was good. Zeke and Matt totally bought it. And Ally began to seriously panic that just maybe the rest of the room would buy it too. Rachelle had certainly been able to fool everyone else. Ally honestly wouldn’t blame the Mercury wolves for falling for Rachelle’s act. Her wolf would, though. Too elemental in her way of thinking, her wolf wouldn’t account for all the complications in this situation. If the Mercury Pack believed Rachelle, she’d see it as yet another betrayal.

Rachelle gave Ally a pleading look. “I want to know if we can please put the past behind us. I understand why you did the things you did to me, I do. I can only imagine how it must have felt for you to lose Zeke and watch him claim me. Not that I’m saying it excuses that you attacked me, of course, but—”

Ally had had enough. “Shock me, Rachelle; say something true.” That had the crazy heifer gaping. “We both know why you’re really here,” Ally added calmly. “You’re trying to turn this pack against me too. You’re trying to isolate me again.” She tilted her head. “Not getting bored with this at all?”

To Rachelle’s credit, she quickly recovered from her surprise and continued with her act. “Ally, please be assured that that isn’t my intention. I do not want—and never have wanted—to turn anyone against you.”

Ally scoffed. “Woman, don’t make me hit you with your own broom. Just cut the crap, be a big girl, and give me some honesty.” Show everyone the real Rachelle. “You loathe me.”

Anger flared in Rachelle’s eyes for the briefest moment. “That’s not true.”

“You’re sure about that?”

“I could never loathe someone who’s important to Zeke.”

Ally smiled tauntingly. “Not even when I tell you I taught him that little thing you like?” Rage blasted out of Rachelle, hitting Ally’s head like a hammer. Ho, ho, ho—taunting her was working. And Ally’s wolf fully approved.

“That was immature and uncalled for, Ally. I’m doing my best to mend things here. I’m taking responsibility for my part in how awful things became for you.” Rachelle was still saying all the right things, but she wasn’t sounding so convincing anymore—not when her voice quavered, her face had hardened, and her eyes blazed. “Can we not try and get past all this? Can we not start again? That’s all I want: to fix this, to make it right, and to do better by you this time around.”

“Is it my turn to talk utter bullshit yet?”

Zeke put a calming hand on Rachelle’s arm, so presumably he could sense his mate’s anger growing and bubbling just as Ally did. “We don’t want to argue with you, Ally. We just want—”

“You know, Ally,” interrupted Rachelle, “Mia told me that this would be pointless.”

Oh, Rachelle was playing ball now. Why else would she point outthe betrayal of Mia, a female wolf who had once been a close friend of Ally’s? Zeke and Ally had often gone on double dates with Mia and her mate. Needless to say, when Rachelle joined the pack, the Beta female took Ally’s place on those dates. She had also taken herplace as Mia’s friend, and it had hurt to be so utterly ditched that way.

“She told me there was no way you would apologize, that you’re too envious and bitter,” continued Rachelle. “But I didn’t want to believe that.”

“What a coincidence, I don’t believe it either.”

Ignoring that, Rachelle went on. “I was hoping Mia was wrong. But everyone here can see the truth, Ally. They can see how sour, offensive, hateful, unforgiving, and remorseless you really are.”

“Coming from a demented, poisonous, mind-numbing, substandard intelligence . . . that means absolutely jack shit.” Ally shrugged. “But, hey, if believing all that crap about me makes you feel good about yourself . . . well, all the power to you, I guess.”

Rachelle’s upper lip curled. “You’re jealous.”

“Here we go again.” Ally rolled her eyes. “Get a life, Rachelle. I’m too busy to deal with your insecurities.”

“You’re jealous, just say it!”

“Yes, I want to slide into your skin and become you,” said Ally dryly.

“You can’t stand that I have Zeke! You can’t stand that he wants me, not you!”

Ally could see that Rachelle either truly believed that orwantedto believe it—like it boosted her teensy-weensy ego or something. “Don’t you see you’re so deluded and crazy that it goes totally beyond crazy and enters a completely new dimension of crazy?”

Rachelle pounded her fist on the table.“Admit it. You’re jealous!”

“Go home, Rachelle. I’m sick and tired of riding your crackbrained roller coaster.”

That was when the dumb heifer lunged. Before Ally could do anything more than jump to her feet, Roni’s hand snapped around Rachelle’s throat and dragged the skank to stand in front of her.

Then several things happened at once.

Zeke flew across the table, ready to defend his mate, but had his path blocked by Derren and Marcus.

As Matt stood, Nick dived over the table and planted himself in front of the Alpha before he could move to help either Rachelle or Zeke.

Growling and snarling, the other Mercury males placed Ally and Shaya behind them and formed a protective wall.

“Don’t fucking move,” Roni growled into Rachelle’s face. “You might be a Beta, but I’m more dominant than you are. You can sense it, can’t you?” When Rachelle struggled and clawed at Roni’s hands, the female enforcer just tightened her hold. “Fighting me would be stupid and pointless. Trust me when I say I’ve taken down tougher shifters than you.”

“Let her go,” growled Zeke, pointlessly attempting to get to the females.

Roni spared him a brief, uninterested glance. “Nah, I don’t think I’m going to do that.”

Again Zeke tried to shoulder his way past Derren and Marcus, so Derren shoved him back hard enough to make him almost lose his footing. “Your mate started this,” growled Derren, “and now the other females will finish it.”

Until then, Derren hadn’t interfered—despite his protective instincts going crazy—because it wouldn’t have been good for Ally. When a dominant wolf had their enemy right in front of them, they didn’t ask someone else to defend them. They faced that enemy down or they submitted. Derren had had no intention whatsoever of making Ally seem weak.

“Nick . . .” Matt’s voice was calming. “There doesn’t need to be any violence here.”

Nick bared his teeth at the other Alpha. “Tell that to your wolves.”

Rachelle’s voice was unsteady as she addressed the female collaring her. “This is between Ally and me.”

“Then challenge me,” dared Ally tauntingly, skirting around the wall of protective males. Shaya followed her, ignoring Nick’s disapproving growl.

Instead of reacting to Ally’s dare, Rachelle spoke again to Roni. “Ally’s not even your pack mate.”

Roni raised a brow. “Do I look affected by this?”

“Let her go,”Zeke ordered.

“Ooh, will you stamp your feet if I don’t?” Roni quipped.

When Zeke tried to reach his mate yet again, Derren spoke through his teeth, “Get back.” Since Zeke was obviously a fucking idiot, he took a swing at Derren. Without so much as flinching, Derren caught Zeke’s fist in his hand. “Wrong thing to do.” Derren crushed the Beta’s fist so hard bones cracked—forcing the wolf to understand who was more dominant. Only when Zeke’s body lost some of its tension did Derren release him. “This is for the females to deal with.”

“You expect me to watch them harm my mate?” demanded Zeke, cradling his injured fist with the other hand.

Marcus snorted. “Roni’s not harming her; she’s restraining her. My mate’s version of ‘harming’ goes something like hanging her opponent by their own intestines.”

Shaya sidled up next to Roni, glaring at Rachelle through eyes flashing wolf. “You don’t come into my home and attack my friend. We gave you permission to step onto our territory provided there would be no violence. Yet, you dared to violate that promise—not to mention the rules of hospitality.”

“Ally provoked me,” accused Rachelle.

Shaya smiled. “No, she hit you with reality while you persisted in entertaining us with your bullshit story. You’re good, but we know Ally. We know she’s not the person you described.”

Ally’s entire being warmed at Shaya’s faith and trust. Her wolf too basked in it.

“You think you know her.” Rachelle licked her bottom lip nervously. “She’s just fooling you.”

Shaya gave her a pitiful look. “If you actually believe that, you’re just fooling yourself.”

“You don’t know her!” shouted Rachelle.

“Oh, but we do.”

Seeing how pissed Rachelle was that none of the Mercury wolves were buying her act, Ally smiled at her. “It’s a bummer when no one believes you, isn’t it?”

“Now, this is what’s about to happen, Rachelle. Roni will release you.” Ignoring Roni’s pout, Shaya continued. “Two of my enforcers will escort you to your vehicle. Matt and Zeke will be close behind you with their own escorts. Then you’ll leave here. You’ll never, ever come back. And you’ll never bother Ally again.”

Roni went nose to nose with Rachelle. “If you do, I’ll come for you. Whether Ally’s staying with our pack or not, I’ll come for you. I’m the last person you want tracking you down.”

Fear oozed from Rachelle and slithered over Ally. She couldn’t blame Rachelle for being afraid. She should be, since Roni was absolutely lethal and meant every word. Ally often sparred with the female enforcer, so she knew exactly how tough and brutal she could be. Not to mention vengeful.

Only once Rachelle had nodded as much as Roni’s grip would allow did the female enforcer release her. Instantly, Roni and Marcus escorted a panting, red-faced Rachelle outside.

As Eli and Bracken began to lead Zeke away, Derren glared at the Beta. “Same goes for you. Stay away from Ally.”

“We wanted to make things right,” swore Matt, shaking his head sadly.

“Maybe you did,” allowed Nick, who was acting as Matt’s escort. “But your Beta female didn’t. She’s made things even worse for you.” And Cain would most likely go apeshit.

“Ally, I’m truly sorry for what happened today.” Matt held up his hands when Nick growled. “All right, I’m leaving.”

Derren went to Ally’s side and tucked her hair behind her ear. “You okay, baby?”

Hearing that, Zeke’s head whipped to face them. “Is he the reason why you haven’t been answering my calls?”

Ally replied tonelessly, “I’ve been ignoring them because we have nothing at all to say to each other.”

“Andyou”—Shaya jabbed her finger into Zeke’s chest as she planted herself in front of him—“you’re even worse than your mate. You think it’s not obvious why you came here today? You miss Ally. You want her back in your pack because you want to keep her close to you all the time. You can’t let go of her, even though you’re mated and your feelings for Ally have dulled. When you care for someone, it’s hard to switch it off—I get that. But trying to keep her near when you’re mated to someone else is selfish and cruel.”

Zeke didn’t say anything, but his shoulders sagged slightly.

“Stop calling Ally,” Derren rumbled. “She isn’t yours anymore. Got me?”

The Collingwood Beta didn’t answer, just let Eli and Bracken take him outside. Needing toseethe threats to Ally leave their territory, needing that assurance they were no longer in close proximity to her, Derren followed them and sidled up to Nick. Only once the Collingwood wolves drove over the border did Derren’s wolf settle.

Eli and the enforcers returned to the main lodge. Derren was just about to follow when Nick’s voice stopped him.

“This isn’t just fucking to you. Possessiveness is stamped all over your face whenever you look at Ally. You care about her, don’t you?”

Yeah, Derren did. It was unexpected, since he wasn’t the type to connect with people. But what was more unexpected was that he didn’t regret or fear it. She was prickly, defensive, very cautious, and had a smart mouth—all of which he found kind of cute. Making her more appealing to him, she was strong, dependable, trustworthy, dangerous, brooked no bullshit, and helped others with no strings attached. It was a complex combination that fascinated him. “I’m keeping her.”

Nick didn’t seem surprised. “Does she know this?”

“After what happened at the Collingwood Pack, she’s a little skittish.” She didn’t want to watch her partner find his true mate and leave her again. What Ally didn’t understand was that Derren couldn’t let her go, not for anyone. He’d chosen her. Marked her. She was his now. He’d need to make it clear he was serious without piling too much pressure on her. The problem was that Derren was too possessive of her to be subtle.

“So you want her to stay, be part of the pack?”

Derren arched a brow. “Is that a problem?”

“After what she did for Shaya and Roni, of course not. I owe her. Besides, I like Ally. She makes you live your own life. You’ve been my shadow for too damn long. Just because I saved your life doesn’t mean you owe me yours. Being my Beta and protecting my family is enough.”

“I didn’t protect you at the funeral.” He’d only thought of Ally.

“Because your loyalties are divided now. That’s not a bad thing, Derren. A guy’s female should always come first to him.” Nick folded his arms across his chest. “Cain isn’t going to like you being with Ally, whether he wants to claim her or not.”

“He’ll just have to fucking deal with it.” Derren’s wolf growled his agreement. Cain had an attachment to Ally and cared for her in his way, but that was all Cain was capable of feeling. Derren could give her more than Cain ever could. “The main problem won’t be him, it’ll be convincing Ally to stay. She likes to pack-trot.” She’d obviously never felt truly settled anywhere. He’d have to work on changing that.

Nick snorted. “While you have Shaya on your side, it shouldn’t be as hard as you think. Shaya adores her, and she doesn’t want her to leave. Do you think Ally will be open to imprinting?”

“Maybe.” But maybe not. He wasn’t exactly a prince fucking charming. Wasn’t smooth or easy to be around like Marcus. He doubted there was a person on the planet who could love him as he was. Also, being Beta meant that a lot of his time was taken up by his job, which was something that could make a female feel neglected.

Yeah, the chances of Ally choosing to imprint with him were slim. But those chances were still there. And he’d damn well take them.

“What if Cain gets here and says he’s changed his mind and decides to claim her?” asked Nick.

“I won’t step aside.” There was no going back for either him or Ally. As far as Derren was concerned, Cain had missed his chance. Derren wasn’t noble enough to give him another shot with Ally.

“Not even if she wants you to?”

“Not even then.”

So when she woke up that night, fear in her eyes, Derren was there for her again, making her forget her nightmare and cry out his name. Afterward, he brushed his thumb along her jaw. “I’m keeping you, Ally Marshall.” And she’d just have to accept it, because he wouldn’t let her go. “You’re mine.”

Startled and spooked by that very sincere announcement that almost sounded . . . binding, Ally didn’t speak for a moment. “Yours?”

“All mine. You got under my skin, became my obsession. There’s no going back.”

She swallowed nervously. “What do you want from me?”

“Everything you have to give. And I’ll get it.”