Page 12 of Coveted By The Bear (When Worlds Collide #1)

“ N ame.”

“Miles Orson. I told you this already.”

“Clan?” Daniel Devlin, Head Enforcer for the Barvale Clan, did not even look up as he asked his list of questions.

Marcus, his brother, Alpha of the Barvale Clan, sat silently behind the desk. His stony expression revealed nothing of his emotions.

I respected that. He oozed power, confidence, control, and authority, the likes of which I’d rarely seen in a Shifter.

Even my Bear understood the man was in charge. Even though the angry monster rumbled constantly with worry for our mate, he remained submissive in the Alpha’s presence.

That was new.

Oh, my Bear had been okay with working for Tiegs, but he never bowed to him the way he was with Alpha Devlin.

“Former Soldier for the Willow Creek Clan out of Pennsylvania under Alpha Tiegs,” I snarled the man’s name, but averted my gaze and bared my throat to show I meant them no disrespect.

“And these men? They your Clan?”

“Former Clan, sir. Yes. I trained them. Tiegs sent them to hunt me.”

“Why?” Alpha Devlin spoke, and it was the first time he’d addressed me.

“Because I disobeyed his order, Alpha.”

“What order?”

“Marcus, with all due respect, does it matter? This man brought war to our doorstep. You have to banish him from our lands,” Daniel said, and even though he was right, I felt despair seep into my soul at the thought of leaving Barvale. Of leaving her.

“What order?” Alpha Devlin repeated, ignoring his brother.

“Tiegs ordered me to mate a Sow from a neighboring Clan. I refused,” I said, putting it succinctly.

“You refused an arranged mating. What happened to the Sow?”

“I’m not sure, Alpha, and I am still ashamed by my rejection of the proposed mating, but I can’t say I regret it. She was not mine,” I confessed.

“Not yours?” Daniel scoffed.

“You mean the female was not your fated mate? So, you believe in the Fates, then?” Marcus asked.

“I never thought I would be worthy of a mate, Alpha. I’ve done some pretty shitty things in my life. But then I came here, and I met Hope.”

“And you told her about us. “Marcus, it’s against Clan law,” Daniel said, but his objection started to sound half-hearted.

“Miles, this is a problem for us, and I know you know why,” Marcus began, but his attention was on the door.

I turned my head a split second before Hope barged in like a little dark-haired, avenging angel. My mouth dropped open.

“Hope,” I breathed her name as she ran to me.

“Miles!”

“Hope, you can’t be in here,” I said, wishing I could wrap my arms around her, but I’d been cuffed the second the Enforcers arrived.

They were made of some kind of reinforced titanium alloy mixed with a little bit of magic. Just enough to make breaking out of them impossible.

Her honey crisp apple scent filled my senses, and I dropped my forehead to hers, missing it the second she spun around, shielding me with her little body.

Fuck.

This woman was so damn brave. Facing off monsters for me.

For me.

“Hope D’Amato, right?” Marcus asked.

“That’s right. Take these cuffs off him.”

“Miss, I am sorry, but you need to let us finish this interview,” Daniel said, standing.

But even the Enforcer’s serious mien couldn’t sway her. And goddamn it, I fell in love right then. I mean, I already knew she was my mate, but this display of possession and protection, well, it had my heart galloping like a herd of wild horses inside my chest.

No one ever did that for me before. Not one single person I could recall.

“You need to uncuff my mate right now. He saved my life tonight. He is no criminal,” she snapped back at the two huge men.

She was trembling from head to toe, but she didn’t smell scared. She smelled angry.

And that was hot as fuck.

“Do you know what you’re saying? What it means to be his mate?” Daniel asked.

“I know I want him. I care for him. And if he wants me, too, then I am going to have him.”

“Are you sure you want this, Hope? Cause if you don't and you walk away it will kill him,” Daniel said, plainly.

Fuck. He wasn’t wrong. But I hated that his words might persuade her.

“What happens if I say no? Do you let him stay here?” she asked.

“No,” Daniel said. It was the truth.

“He’s already chosen you, Hope. If you don’t want him, he will be unable to control his Bear. A Shifter like that, well, he’s broken. He could destroy the thing that keeps our kind safe.”

“What do you do with Shifters like that?” Hope asked.

I already knew, so I didn’t react when Daniel answered.

“We put them down.”

Hope gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. Then she straightened her spine and looked right at Marcus.

“Uncuff him. Miles is mine, and I want him. He belongs to me, and I belong to him,” she said, finally turning to face me.

“Uncuff him,” Marcus said, and Daniel grumbled, but he obeyed his Alpha’s command.

I didn’t think the Enforcer liked me very much, but that was okay. He didn’t have to.

“Hope,” I began, reaching for her the second my hands were free.

I didn’t want to dare to believe this woman might actually consider accepting my claim. That she might consent to being mine.

“I'm telling the truth. I want this. I want us. I knew it the first night I saw you,” she whispered.

“Alpha, please give me tonight with my mate. That is all I ask. If you decide to banish me after that,” I replied, my Bear seeping into my voice, making it thick and rough.

“Tomorrow you will stand before me and the council. We will hear what you both have to say then, and I will make my decision,” Marcus said.

“Thank you, Alpha.”

I took Hope’s hand, guiding her to the door, and to her car. When I opened my palm, she handed me the keys silently.

We remained quiet the whole way home, and I asked her to wait for me before she opened the passenger door.

“Thank you,” she whispered, and slid her hand into mine as I helped her to stand.

The events of the evening were taking its toll, and she looked tired. But she was alive. She was safe and warm and with me.

That had to count for something.

“Come on. Let me take care of you, and we can talk,” I whispered as I lifted her into my arms.

She wrapped her legs around my waist and held on, a shudder running through her as she clung to me.

Opening the front door was a little awkward in this position, but I managed, and I held her all the way to the bathroom. Then I turned the water on in the shower, and stepped out, intending to give her a moment to herself.

“Here. Take a shower and relax. I’ll wait and we can talk after,” I said, brushing her hair back.

“I have a better idea,” Hope said. “Take a shower with me, Miles.”

My heart pounded, and my cock strained beneath the borrowed coveralls.

“I can’t. If I do that, I won’t be able to keep my hands off you.”

“Good. I don’t want you to keep your hands off me,” she whispered, and then she kissed me.

And I lost my feeble attempt at self-control.