Page 24

“Down, Rocky.” Alex pushed forward and put his hand on the man’s chest. “Nico, meet Rocky, Christoph’s partner and part of our team.”

Damn.“Sorry, man. She’s my ma—she’s a friend.”

“She’s my cousin.” Bodhi pushed past Nico. “And we know about Rocky and Zoe. Her dad on the other hand….” He shrugged.

“Way to stick your foot in your mouth, Nico.” She grinned. “I thought you disappeared. What got you out of your hole?”

“Hayden,” he answered. “It’s time.”

Zoe nodded. “So, I guess I’ll leave you guys to it.” She went to her tiptoes and kissed Rocky. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow at the games. Good luck.”

“You’re lucky, asshole,” Rocky muttered, eyeing up Nico. “We also hate cops around here.”

“I’m not on duty here,” Nico stated, narrowing his eyes. “But, even if I was, I’d still give your ass a run for your money. Baby bird.”

Rocky curled his lip. “You got a mouth on you. Someone should shut it.”

Nico growled low. After the last few days, hell two years, he'd had, he was itching for a fight. "As I said, I'm not on duty."

Bodhi coughed. “Guys, come on. We’re supposed to be a team here.”

Nico snorted, not taking his eyes off Rocky. “Sure. A team.”

“Rocky,” Christoph warned. “Settle down.”

The falcon huffed then relaxed back into his chair. “Law don’t go around here.”

Nico glanced at Bodhi then chortled. “Did he quote Tombstone?”

Bodhi covered his laugh with a cough. “Shut up before we have to take you both out on stretchers.”

“As I said back at the college, archery is the first challenge,” Christoph said, once they’d sat down and Zoe stepped away. “Who’s going to take one for the team this round?”

“I am,” Bodhi said. “We need to get Nico into the top four, no matter the cost.”

“Why?” Rocky’s preternatural gaze pinned Nico, silently daring him to do something stupid. “If his actions with Zoe are any indication of what he’s done to this Hayden I keep hearing about, then I’m inclined to say sink or swim, asshole. Convince me.”

Everything inside of Nico wanted to tell the guy to go to hell, but he also knew if he wanted these guys to work with him, he had to be honest. “I fucked up. I broke my mate’s heart. No, that’s a lie. I did more than break her heart. I broke her spirit. I—I can’t remember the night, which is worse. I’ve tried to explain, make it up to her. But it was all excuses and half-hearted attempts. This is my last chance to prove I can be the wolf she’s loved since the moment she met me. I need this.”

“He won’t tell her what happened because he thinks he was at fault, which in a roundabout way, he was,” Bodhi piped up. “However, it’s not how she suspects. Hayden might act like she doesn’t want him, but I know for a fact she’s not the same anymore without him. She’s going through the motions, and our whole family is afraid if they don’t fix this, they’ll lose both Nico and Hayden. I know there’s hope. She wants him. She’s just afraid.”

There was so much more to the story than even Bodhi said, but a promise was a promise. He never said a word about the day she came to his apartment. Never said a word about the pregnancy tests. There were things her family didn’t need to know, and if they were going to move forward together, they needed to start fresh, no more secrets between them.

“Good enough for me,” Christoph said. “Here’s how this is going down tomorrow.”

Morning came too soon for Nico. His alarm blared, and the gladiator costume he was supposed to wear stared back at him.I don’t wear skirts, especially leather ones.Nevertheless, if he wanted to participate in the games, he had to wear it, liking it or not. Pushing the sheet from his body, he sat up then scrubbed his face. Last night had been a battle of wills and constitution.

He didn’t like being the odd man out. The group of guys he was with, including Bodhi, had a friendship. This time around, he was the new guy. He had to find his place—and fast. There were going to be four different disciplines. Four different times to get his ass kicked and be made to look foolish—not that he didn’t already. Four different days to parade around in costumes trying to impress the student body when all he wanted was Hayden to see him. Sitting there on his bed, in a school where he didn’t belong, all he could think about was winning the affection of his mate. The palpable fear rolling through his veins only made the anxious knots in his stomach twist harder.

This whole plan had the potential to destroy him.

Sliding out of bed, he stumbled to the bathroom and took a shower. He’d given everything Christoph said consideration. The man was right. Rocky too. He didn’t belong there. He hadn’t earned his place in their little group. He was the interloper who would use them to get to Hayden. He hated the idea, yet he couldn’t not participate either.Just admit it, the whole idea is a clusterfuck.No, if and's or but's about it. Nonetheless, he wasn't leaving.

When Nico emerged from the shower, he grabbed the required getup and dressed. He had an hour to get his ass to the football field and line up for the parade. If this didn’t impress Hayden and show he’d do anything for her, Nico didn’t know what else to do.

Accept the fact she is being honest and wants someone else. Accept you lost your chance and have to move on.Never. He’d never accept anything less than having Hayden by his side. He’d dug this hole, and he’d get out of it. Bodhi and Alex greeted him in the hallway, dressed in the same fashion as he—except they’d forgone a T-shirt.

"Afraid of someone seeing your chest?" Bodhi quipped. "I thought you were a wolf, not a girl."