Page 69

Vince

When they drove up to the cabin, Scarlett awaited their arrival under the cover of the porch.

The moment she saw them, she shot to her feet, running into the heavy rain.

Mateo had hardly put the truck into gear before Vince’s door was wrenched open and Scarlett hauled him out of the vehicle.

She squirmed with excitement as he picked her up and nuzzled his nose into her hair.

“I missed you.” He sounded broken, his voice raspy and his body barely strong enough to hold her.

“You’re home now,” she whispered, pulling him into a kiss.

Vince quickly closed the door and then handed her over to Mateo, who gratefully accepted his own kiss.

When Ezra pulled up, Scarlett repeated the process a third time.

Ezra was happy to scoop her into his arms and carry her into the house.

Without bothering to take anything inside, Mateo and Vince followed, welcomed by the smell of garlic bread and tomato sauce.

“Don’t all fight over the shower,” Scarlett said, looking them over as if something might be missing.

“Are you telling us we stink?” Mateo mocked, already on his way to the bathroom.

“I have your clothes in the dryer, so they are nice and warm for you once you’re clean.”

Vince wanted to pull her closer, but felt too dirty to touch her. “That is very thoughtful of you.”

“I pride myself in taking care of you.”

Scarlett rose onto her toes to give Vince a quick kiss before turning to Ezra and scolding him for not taking his dirty boots off.

Ezra was the second to run to the shower, while Vince washed his hands and insisted on helping Scarlett fill the plates.

Without even thinking, he swiped a piece of garlic bread.

The moment Scarlett noticed, she had more ready to go in the oven.

When Vince finally got his turn in the shower, he scrubbed himself until the water rinsed clear.

But no amount of hot water could rinse away the memories of what happened out there.

He brushed his teeth, and even made sure to clean his fingernails before returning to the living room where Scarlett was trying to hold Ezra back from devouring his meal.

“Finally,” Mateo laughed, not waiting for further permission.

Scarlett only ate an eighth of what they stuffed into their bodies, but she seemed content on letting them eat, even giving them some fruit before ushering all three of them into her bedroom.

She demanded they all lay down with Mateo in the midst. She had never shared a bed with all three of them, so Vince waited until Scarlett settled on Mateo’s chest before he climbed in himself and draped the blanket over them.

It didn’t take long for Vince to crash, with his hand on the small of Scarlett’s back and her scent drowning out all of his thoughts.

He only woke up when the sun warmed his face. Although he was excited to get home, he didn’t want to move a muscle. It was the responsible thing to do, but he just didn’t want to . He only opened his eyes when he heard the others shift and yawn.

“Well, a few hours turned into a whole night.” Ezra mumbled, swinging his legs off the side of the bed.

“Is it really that bad?” she asked, sliding off Mateo, who clearly protested the loss. “I mean I have everything packed up and food made for the drive.”

“It’s not that bad,” Mateo chuckled. “I don’t think a few hours more did any harm.”

“Okay.” She tugged at Ezra and kissed his cheek. “All of you have outfits on your beds for today. Everything else other than toiletries is packed away in the living room.” She leaned over to Vince, kissing him as well before climbing over him and walking to the bathroom.

With a groan, Vince let his head fall back into the pillow, the feeling of being undeserving spreading in his chest.

“I feel the same.”

He turned his head to see Mateo climb out the bed too. “You’ve always wanted this.”

“So? She’s far more perfect than I could ever dream of.” Then a smirk spread over his face. “But you know what would make you believe you are worthy?” When he didn’t get an answer, Mateo grinned even brighter and left the room. “Completing the bond and letting her mind convince you.”

Vince knew Mateo was right, but the thought of yet another bond mixing with the already existing one was fucking terrifying.

He already had no peace and having her thoughts constantly mixed with his would be even more intense.

The second he had the thought, he banished it.

There was no instance in which his sweet Scarlett would ever be a burden.

He got up and as he walked into the living room, he could hear the shower running.

He made sure to set the table with the breakfast she had prepared the day before and then got dressed himself.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, in which Scarlett made sure they all had plenty to eat.

She then cleaned the kitchen while the guys packed up the trucks.

It was still raining, so Scarlett threw on her raincoat to run to the trucks and made sure both had plenty of food before she claimed one of the passenger seats.

“Clever woman,” Ezra chuckled. “Leaving us to fight over her.”

“If you even think about taking her truck, I will behead you and strap you in the bed with the lycans,” Vince growled, surprising even himself.

“The mute is speaking up for himself, how sweet,” Ezra taunted—but he still sauntered off to the empty truck.

Scarlett had already made herself comfortable, her legs crossed and scrolling through her playlist. “Did you want to choose?”

“I’m open to your favourites.”

They drove after Mateo and Ezra, the rain pitter-pattering against the windshield. Once a song was chosen, Scarlett set her phone aside and rested against the window, watching the beads of water stream down the glass. She seemed to be in her own little world until her phone started ringing.

She didn’t hesitate to answer. “Hi.”

“Where are you?” her brother demanded in a rough tone over the car’s speakers that Vince didn’t care for.

However, his rough demeanour only concerned Scarlett. “Still out and about. Why? What happened?”

“Luna Kaya is dead. She was taken and killed by hunters.”

Her face paled, stormy grey eyes meeting Vince. “S-she’s dead?”

“Yes. Where are you?”

“Black Ridge Mountains. We haven’t been near the Mountain Wolves.”

“Good. Stay away from there too.” Without another word, the line went dead.

Scarlett only stared down at her phone, eyes filling with tears. Struggling to keep his eyes on the road, Vince quickly took her hand and squeezed it for support. “Did you know her well?”

“She and Mom got along well, they visited us a few times.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I thought alphas and luna’s weren’t allowed to be touched?”

“They aren’t supposed to. It keeps the peace.

Mateo knows a few hunters in that area. Would you like him to see if he can find out what happened?

” Scarlett nodded instantly, and Vince hurried to dial Mateo’s number.

“Scarlett’s brother just called to let her know that Luna Kaya of the Mountain wolves was killed by hunters.

Could you reach out to some of your friends and see what happened? ”

“Of course. Did you know her well, Scarlett?”

“My mom did.”

“I’m so sorry. I’ll see what I can find out and call you back.”

“Thank you.”

The news definitely didn’t sit well with Scarlett, and she spent a large part of the drive dabbing away tears. The only support Vince could offer was holding her hand. Encouraging words had never been his strength and even when he tried to imagine what Mateo would say, he drew a blank.

After a while Mateo called back, his voice soft and sweet.

“I’m not sure how much of this is true or just passed through the rumour mill.

From what I could find out, Alpha Brock started to harass neighbouring farms, wanting their land.

The Sommer family tried to reason with him and I’m not sure why but their son, Damien, took Luna Kaya to force Alpha Brock into submitting to their commands.

A fight broke out and Luna Kaya died, along with the entire Sommer family. ”

Scarlett took a deep breath, then released it. “Okay.”

“As I said, I’m not sure if all of it is accurate but I do know that Damien Sommer was a hothead.

Not all hunters follow our codex, which clearly states no harm should come to the moon of a pack.

We know how important they are to you and how much they are needed to keep the peace within a pack through the alpha. ”

Scarlett sniffed and dabbed away more tears. “It’s not your fault.”

“I know, but your family lost a friend and I’m truly sorry for that.”

“That means a lot to me.” Scarlett tried to control the tears through her breathing. “Thank you for doing that for me.”

“Anything for you.”

“Is Ezra being good to you?” she asked, changing the subject.

Ezra grunted disapprovingly. “Mateo’s the one blasting girls’ music and tormenting me.”

“I’m not going to sit in silence for hours on end!” Mateo defended.

The two of them made her laugh, and the soft sound was music to everyone’s ears. “I think Vince feels the same, only he adores me too much to tell me to turn it off.”

“That is not true.”

Scarlett tested the restraints of the seatbelt by leaning over to kiss his cheek. “I know. I’m just teasing you.” Another kiss before she reached for the snack bag. “Are you two eating and hydrating?”

“We are,” Mateo assured right away. “No need to worry about us. We feel very spoiled at the moment.”

“I realised that I missed that very much. It wasn’t the same cooking just for myself. I never knew how much I enjoyed taking care of others—even my pack—until I had no one to take care of. I guess it’s true: you only know how much you love something once you don’t have it anymore.”

“Maybe I should pull over so you can spoil us even more,” Ezra purred rather seductively.

There was a thump, then an “ouch!” from Ezra.