Page 21 of Alphas Never Hide (Willow Lake Supernaturals #5)

Chapter Twenty-One

HAYDEN

I couldn’t figure Ryley out. He wasn’t like anyone else I knew.

Only a few people in Willow Lake didn’t automatically defer to me— Van , Gage , Xander , occasionally Buddy , and I supposed Paws should be on that list too. But , even with them, there was a subtle recognition that I was the alpha here, no matter how many times I corrected them. Being an alpha was a position that demanded respect. Sure , I could laugh with them and the others, chat with them, maybe joke around once in a while, but in the end, everyone deferred to me.

So having Ryley stand up to me, confidently, I might add, and tell me what he wanted without being coy or averting his eyes or any of the usual shit… Well , it was confusing. But that was nothing new. He’d been confusing me right from the start.

I didn’t want to wait to kiss him, but when his stomach growled again, almost as loud as my wolf did when he was feeling moody, I figured I’d better get him fed. It wouldn’t hurt me any to grab a bite too, I supposed. Because , fuck, it’d been a long day. Since I worked a physical job, I rarely tired so easily, but the last couple of days—or maybe the last couple of months—were finally catching up with me.

When was the last time I had a decent meal? I couldn’t remember.

Lately , I’d been skipping nights out at the pub to chase down Robbie . But my wolf’s usual desire to hunt my brother was abnormally quiet, even with this new lead. Damn it. I had to figure out what was wrong with my magic. I couldn’t stay benched. Not now.

And if my wolf never responded again?

My heartbeats stuttered at the thought. Was that possible?

If it was, I’d have to figure out a different way to confront Robbie . But one way or the other, he had to be stopped. And I had to be the one to do it. This whole situation was my failure to correct, my responsibility.

“ Hey , you.” Ryley snapped his fingers, jolting me out of my thoughts. “ I don’t know what you are thinking about, but that’s enough.”

“ I didn’t mean to ignore you.”

He shook his head. “ Don’t say shit like that. I’m not high maintenance. I don’t need your attention on me twenty-four seven. But whatever you were thinking wasn’t good, and no one needs that.”

I supposed he might be right.

“ So , tell me about this place,” he said. “ It might help you relax a bit to talk through whatever is bothering you. ”

“ Do you always use the word ‘so’ so much, or are you still trying to make a point?”

“ Fuck off,” he said with a laugh. “ I keep telling you it is an amazing word to start a conversation with. Just roll with it.”

“ Why don’t we get cleaned up and then head down to the pub? It’ll be easier to just show you around.”

I let Ryley take the bathroom first. He seemed eager to change out of the clothing he’d been wearing, and now that he had his backpack, he had options.

As I waited, I looked around the room. It’d changed a lot, at least on the surface. But I could still envision it as it had been when I’d moved out. For a moment, I couldn’t quite take a full breath. My chest was so damn constricted with emotions and guilt and other shit I didn’t want to deal with right now. Why did Ryley want to talk about this place? What would I even say?

The last thing I wanted was to talk about the pack house and why it was no longer a pack house and all the stuff that happened twelve years ago. If I didn’t tell him, though, someone else would, because they always did. It didn’t take long before newbies called me alpha, like the rest of the assholes around here. But I didn’t want Ryley getting filled in by someone else either…

I rather liked how things were between us now. And , okay, I might have been thinking about the possibility of more kisses. Although why, I didn’t know. The idea of hooking up had never influenced me before. Would that change when he found out about my past? Would he look at me the same way other potential lovers had looked at me? I didn’t want that .

As bizarre as it was, I liked how Ryley saw me as a flawed guy. He already knew I lived in a rundown travel trailer behind the garage, so he didn’t have any illusions about me. And yet he still wanted to kiss me.

Was something wrong with him that none of that had scared him away yet?

Did I want to scare him away? When would I have another opportunity to be with someone who saw me, Hayden , as I was right now? Not as I had been before the pack dissolved and not as I could be if I became alpha.

Ryley opened the bathroom door. Warm humid air from his shower followed him out. His wet hair glistened under the light. I was disappointed he wasn’t wearing my shirt anymore, but his clean clothes, wrinkled from having been bundled in his backpack for weeks, molded to his slim body in a way that made me want to explore him. But the best part was how refreshed and happy he looked.

“ Your turn,” Ryley said with a grin. “ Do you need help cleaning any hard-to-reach places? I just put these clothes on, but I could take them off again.”

“ I think I can manage.” I laughed as I stepped around him to get to the bathroom.

I closed the door and glanced at the mirror over the sink to see I was still smiling. He was so damn easy to be around. I liked it. I kept grinning as I stripped off my clothes. Yeah . I definitely wanted to kiss him again. And maybe, probably, absolutely do more. At least for a few nights.

And just like that, my smile faded.

Right .

Ryley would leave soon .

Why did that thought make my chest ache?

I stepped into the tiled shower stall and turned on the water. As the water washed over me, my muscles refused to relax. My heart raced. I didn’t want him to leave.

Wait . He couldn’t be my mate, could he?

Shit , shit, shit.

My heart galloped as I stood frozen under the pounding water. All the signs were there, weren’t they? First , Ryley was drawn to the area. Then my compulsion to be close to him was strange, to say the least. And the icing on top was my unusual desire to kiss him when I hadn’t wanted to kiss anyone for years.

What the ever-loving fuck was I going to do about that?

The last thing anyone needed was to be saddled with a dud of a mate like me. Assuming Ryley even wanted a mate, he wouldn’t want me if he knew more about me. I made bad decisions. I hurt the people who counted on me. I wasn’t fit to be an alpha, and I definitely wasn’t fit to be Ryley’s mate.

Then there was the fact that Ryley didn’t feel comfortable being around supes. He’d been anxious every time he met someone, and I knew that wasn’t because he was shy. Ryley was not a shy guy by nature, but his herd had really fucked him over. So how would that work when I couldn’t leave Willow Lake , and he wouldn’t want to stay? I wasn’t the alpha, but I could never leave, not until a new alpha was here to take care of everyone.

What was it that Ryley had said when I’d first found him in the woods? Son of a fucking, cloven-hoofed dick weasel. Yep , that sounded about right.