Page 25

F aye

I feel horrible. When Xander said he’d killed someone, I’d had a kneejerk reaction, a vision of Xander killing my brother, and I’d forgotten for a minute that this man, my mate, would never just kill someone. He’s not that kind of man.

I don’t make Xander wait. I step forward and into his arms immediately. He lets out a choked half-sob, and his arms tighten around me. He buries his face into the crook of my neck, and I rub my hand over his back, whispering to him.

“I understand. I do. I’m so, so sorry! I wasn’t thinking. I know you’d never do anything horrible. It was about my own trauma, not you, even though that’s not an excuse.”

It’s comforting to me that even this big, even this strong, Xander is still capable of feeling.

He’s crushed about the death of his best friend, like any man, any shifter, any alpha should be.

If death means nothing to us, if we push away that grief and don’t allow ourselves to feel it, do we really value those we’ve lost at all?

Xander killed because he had to. Not because he wanted to.

“It’s okay , Xander,” I say, holding him as his body shakes against mine.

As soon as he started talking, telling me about what happened, I recognized the look on his face, because I’ve felt it before.

The return to something you’d rather not think about.

The way it feels when your brain hijacks you and yanks you back to the past, making you relive things you would rather never think about again.

The way I’ve been haunted by my brother’s murder since the day it happened.

“I’m sorry for not telling you sooner,” Xander says, his voice muffled by my neck.

“You have nothing to feel sorry for. I’m sorry for not trusting you enough to give you a chance to explain.

” I hold him closer, breathing in his scent.

It dawns on me that if he was a terrible murderer, like Kurt, I never would have felt the mating bond with him.

Deep down, I know he’s a good shifter, a good alpha.

“I love you,” I say, taking a deep breath as he pulls away. “And I trust you.”

His face relaxes, and I realize that since I met him, he’s been carrying this in his body, constantly tense from the weight of this secret.

I’m glad it’s finally relieved. He may have done something unintentionally bad, but unlike Kurt, he did it for the right reasons and has dealt with the consequences of his actions.

“But no more secrets,” I say.

His eyes widen. “No more secrets.”

I smile. We kiss, then hold each other for a long minute. I listen as his heartbeat calms and his arms around me relax. Then we part, taking each other's hands.

When we walk back to the hot springs together, the others are just finishing getting their clothes back on. All eyes go to us, and I see relief in all their eyes.

“Well,” Eli says, clapping his hands. “Does anyone else have some secrets they want to share with the class? This is the time to reveal them.”

Xander blushes, and I look around the group, heart skipping in my chest. If anyone else says they’re a murderer, I don’t know what I’ll do. One secret was enough for today.

When Cayson raises his hand, tentatively, my mouth drops open.

“I’m not a very good alpha,” he says, voice quiet. “I’m not a responsible leader. I’ve left my dad to handle the pack in my absence, which is what he would prefer, but that’s no excuse.”

Eli folds his arms in front of his chest, looking serious. “Well, that’s done now isn’t it?”

“What?” Cayson looks confused.

“You have an omega now,” Eli says, crossing the group and putting his arm around me.

“That means it’s time to be a good alpha.

For her sake, for all of our sakes, and for the sake of your people.

You’ll be the head alpha of your pack one day.

You can hardly do the job properly if you’ve never learned to do it. ”

Cayson nods, serious for a rare moment, before saluting Eli.

Eli rolls his eyes, but I can tell by looking at Cayson that he is taking this seriously, in his own way.

But that’s not a surprise to me. I’ve sensed for some time that he wants to be the leader his pack needs, he’s just been scared to stand up against his father.

“Our number one priority is Faye,” Eli says, his gaze shifting between them. “She doesn’t deserve to be startled or frightened by any more information. So, one last time, does anyone have anything to share?”

Heads shake all around.

Eli smiles. “Good. Keeping her happy, healthy, and cared for—that’s what we’re here for. We put her first now in all things. Cayson, that means stepping up. Everyone else, that means before you do anything, you think about Faye, first. Can we all do that?”

Ezra nods once, firmly, and the rest of them all nod together. Cayson gives a thumbs-up. Again, I get a pure shock of joy to my system, and I wonder if everyone else just walks around feeling this happy all the time. Or am I just that lucky?

Once again, I can’t stop thinking about how I arrived at The Selection desperately hoping not to take a single mate, and now, here I am with four of them, and an ultima as the massive cherry on top.

With his arm still around my shoulder, Eli turns.

“Maverick,” he says, “lead us home.”

We all shift into our wolf forms once more, and this time, we’re all relaxed and spent heading back to the castle. We chase little critters around, play, and howl, even though there’s no moon in sight. It feels like we’re truly our own pack, and I don’t mind it one bit.

I’m in the middle of pouncing on Cayson when Eli lets out a warning growl. The sound ruffles my fur, making it stand up along my back. All of us freeze, and the energy in the air changes to one of caution.

What is it? What’s wrong? I ask.

The alphas and ferals stalk closer to me, surrounding me from every angle, while Eli moves forward, still growling low in his throat, an unspoken threat to whatever might dare to harm me.

Move forward carefully, he sends. We’re being watched.