Page 2 of Bound to Exiles (Rejected Wolf Pack #5)

A small wolf with a moonmark on her forehead chuffed, then shifted back to reveal Fern, standing naked and unabashed in the early dawn’s rays. Flint looked away from his sister, and I sensed Heath’s irritation flicker in the bond.

“You’re inviting in this stranger while we’re all exhausted and weak after our pack run… alpha?” Fern added his rank after a belated moment’s hesitation.

Gage raised a hand toward the gathered wolves, palm out. “Not to worry. The pack alphas will rotate guard duty throughout the day to ensure everyone’s safety, but he is not a stranger. Freya knows Zak, and his trustworthiness is not in question.”

His words resonated with authority, once again reminding me how much I loved seeing Gage command the pack.

Heath’s admiration and relief mingled with mine through the bond.

My wolf sensed no deception in Gage’s words — after all, he knew I’d dreamed of Zak, and that the stars had revealed him as another of my mates.

Gage paused, allowing the truth of his words to carry across the pack bond, but what I found more interesting was Zak’s surprise. His fingers tightened on mine even as he leaned toward Gage, as though drawn in by his dominant power.

Raising his voice, Gage added, “Welcome to Frost Fang packlands, Zak. We have much to discuss.”

Now no one could deny the pack alpha himself had invited the mage onto packlands.

With that, Gage and Heath strode forward, and the Frost Fang shifters parted. I pulled Zak along beside me as we walked hand-in-hand behind the two most dominant alphas in the pack. Flint and Rowan fell in behind us like a rear guard.

The pack parted for Gage and Heath’s dominance — and to keep back from the scent of magic coming from Zak. Smelling their fear made my wolf tense with wariness.

“What a surprise.” Fern crossed her arms as we passed. “Of course, the two mages know each other.”

Flint paused as he passed to stare into his sister’s eyes until she averted her gaze. “Don’t forget that Freya is one of the leaders of this pack, and my mate.”

“Apologies… alpha,” Fern bit out.

“Come on,” Heath said in our minds. “We can deal with them after we’ve all talked.”

“Why wait?” Zak’s amusement floated across the Bonded link. “This Bonded link is a keener way to chat while we walk, eh?”

Before anyone else could respond, I asked, “Why were you surprised?”

Though I directed the question at Zak, I projected my thoughts to all five of them, hoping they would do the same. It would go a long way in helping build trust between us.

“You all just seemed so wary when I showed up… I didn’t expect Gage to valiantly defend my honor.” Zak smirked when the pack alpha’s back stiffened as he resolutely led the way.

“Zak, did you ever dream of Freya?” Flint asked.

“Many times. She practically summoned me here. Which is… not a mage ability that I’ve ever encountered. Not even among Bonded witches sharing magic.”

As we walked, I finally recalled more of how he’d appeared in my dreams, sometimes teaching, sometimes playful and flirtatious, always reaching for a connection that felt just out of reach…

and now felt attainable. The dream fragments I could remember had always been so fleeting.

But now he was here, and we could connect in person at last.

The weight of his gaze fell on me, bringing with it a sense of awe and curiosity. “How did you do it?”

Though Heath’s body language remained outwardly passive, he growled inside our minds. “You don’t ask the questions. We do. And it’s Freya’s prerogative to have her questions answered first.”

Zak merely tilted his head, but I sensed him gauging our reactions, as though filing everything away.

My wolf instinctively trusted him, but my human side refused to throw caution to the wind.

Still, I couldn’t seem to release his hand, as though letting go would make him disappear back into the realm of dreams.

But I took Heath’s unsaid warning to heart. Now wasn’t the time to reveal the secrets of my Odinswolf heritage .

After a beat of awkward silence, I asked, “So, what did you learn of me in these dreams?”

I expected him to return to his flirty banter from earlier, but Zak weighed his words for a moment.

“Truly? I sensed your utter fearlessness and independence. You always seemed open-minded and accepting, while also being loyal and devoted to your mates. You protected their identities even in your dreams, so I honestly never suspected all four of them were wolf shifters, or so dominant. I know now you must be a powerful woman indeed to claim four alphas as mates.”

He scrubbed his free hand over his smooth chin, thinking.

“I also discovered the reason you’re having trouble learning magic is because you fear becoming a witch like your aunt, a witch who hurt you and your mates in search of more power. We’re not all like that, Freya.”

Surprise rose from all my mate bonds, as my four alphas processed the fact that this stranger knew so many of my secrets. Zak didn’t let that slow down his words, however.

“You also… showed me compassion. A compassion borne from your own difficult experiences, I would assume.”

It was Rowan’s turn to growl inside our minds, but unlike Heath, he couldn’t hide behind a mask of indifference. With his fists clenched at his sides, his eyes shone gold as he stomped up beside Zak.

“You know nothing about what she’s been through.”

Since the rest of us kept moving, so did Rowan, prowling at Zak’s side like a tiger along the bars of his cage.

I wished I knew what to say to bridge the gap between the two of them, but it was Rowan’s reaction I’d feared the most since having the vision. He hated witches since before he’d become my mate. Now a new mage showed up, and his frosty reception toward Zak didn’t surprise me.

My other mates didn’t intervene, waiting to see how the newcomer would respond.

Zak averted his gaze from Rowan, appeasing him to some degree. But Zak didn’t drop my hand or stop walking. The bond showed no fear or defensiveness — in fact, he felt nearly absent from the bond, like he’d blanked himself out.

“I understand that, Rowan. I… appreciate the reminder. I’m looking fo rward to learning more about Freya.

” Zak squeezed my hand. “And about all of you, as a pack. To you, my presence feels like an intrusion, and for that I am sorry. But I’m not sorry to have met you all, because I feel like I’ve finally found my place.

As strange as it seems — to all of us — I belong with you, at Freya’s side. ”

There was no mistaking the protective tone in his words or demeanor. For a moment, the entire bond felt like nothing but protective instincts, from every direction.

“Freya trusts you,” Gage answered. “For now, that is good enough for me. But if you step out of line with her… all the magic in the world won’t save you from us.”

Gage felt on-edge, ready for a fight. Especially as we walked through town, surrounded by shifters in both forms. I caught the whispered words of those on two legs, murmuring about the dangers of magic.

Fern’s reception now felt less personal to her and more like evidence of a dam cracking, ready to break.

Zak ignored them, more concerned with the threat my mates posed.

“Let me assure you, I will never demand more than Freya wholeheartedly requests.” He squeezed my hand again, and I squeezed back, taking comfort in the touch.

“If I sense her doubt or discomfort along the Bonded link, I will never push beyond her boundaries. This is new to all of you, but I have spent my entire life longing to join a Bonded circle. I won’t abuse the trust you’ve shown me, allowing me to even touch Freya like this. ”

He raised our clasped hands, but his words struck me wrong, pulling a snarl from me.

“They don’t get to decide who I can and cannot touch. I took your hand, not because they allowed it, but because I wanted to.”

Zak eyes flicked from my eyes to my lips. “There’s that fiery independence that captivated me in our dreams. I only wish I knew how our dreams connected like that.”

Flint came up alongside me, unwilling to allow Zak to sidestep the issue. “It is always Freya’s choice. It always has been all along.”

He was right. Even when Gage came up with the original deal, it was up to me to accept or reject the offer, crass as it was.

I’d suspected he’d hoped to turn me away by forcing my hand.

Instead, he’d only ignited my passion. I’d been attracted to the three of them the moment I met them.

The same was true for Rowan — technically even before I met him, as we first met in our dreams. Just as my dreams recently led me to Zak… and him to me, somehow.

Zak dipped his head, acknowledging Flint and averting his gaze. I felt a zing of Flint’s surprise and something like delight across the bond. I fully expected Zak to pounce with the same flirty enthusiasm he’d shown when he’d first met us.

Instead, he kept his eyes on the path ahead as he slowly chose his next words.

“Truly, it is entirely up to you, Freya. Sometimes, not all Bonded become… well, mates with all the other Bonded. For some, it’s about the power sharing, and they might only mate with one or two of their Bonded, while the others form relationships with each other. ”

“I… didn’t know that,” I answered, uncertain of how to respond.

Did this mean he wasn’t interested in being my mate?

“Nothing will happen between us unless you desire it.”

When he raised his eyes to meet mine, the hunger burning there stunned me to silence.

The Bonded link carried a sense of such deep loneliness that I almost stopped on the path to hug him.

But the pack was watching, and we’d walked by them silently.

Though they knew I could speak privately to my mates through the normal mate bond, they wouldn’t know I could do that with Zak, or that he could talk to all of us by the same token.

Gage reached the door to our den, giving me the chance to pause. I faced Zak, studying his expression as I sensed along the link between us, trying to understand what he wanted and expected from our connection. Not only with me, but with my mates as well.

“So, it’s fairly common that not all Bonded mate with each other?”

His shoulders fell, but I felt his determination rise in the bond. “Every Bonded circle is different. All Bonded are free to define their own relationships with the rest.”

There was that ghost of pain again, like being on the outside when he wanted so desperately for me to open the door and let him in. I nodded to Gage, and he literally opened the door.

“Welcome to our den,” he said to Zak .

Despite his words, his reluctance carried through my bonds with him, making me frown as Heath followed him inside.

Zak and I followed next, then Flint.

“You’ll teach her magic, regardless?” Rowan growled.

“Of course,” Zak brightened. “I’m looking forward to it.”

To my surprise, Rowan crowded inside behind us all, shutting the door behind us.

“So,” Zak said out loud, looking around. “Who do I get to bed down with?”

My body instantly responded to his playful baritone voice. I squeezed my legs together, as though that could stop the scent of my arousal from reaching my mates.

Zak just grinned and waggled his eyebrows at Gage. The pack alpha stared down at Zak until the mage coyly dropped his gaze, squeezing my hand as if to reassure me of something, though I couldn’t be sure of what.

“Will you stand watch outside?” Gage asked Rowan.

Surprise rippled across all our bonds when Rowan answered, “No. I want my eyes on the mage while Freya sleeps.”

I frowned at Rowan, worried the two of them might always be at odds. But when I glanced back at Zak, he winked.

When his next words whispered into my mind, they were for me alone.

“Don’t worry, my darling pupil. I’ll do whatever it takes to win over each and every one of them, for you.”