Page 16 of The Alpha’s Rejected Arranged Mate (Bluebell Valley Wolves #3)

Derek glanced at the doorway of the sitting room in the Alpha’s house. “Is Elin joining us?”

Finn shook his head as he made sure the camera was working on the computer. Elin had gotten up early—much earlier than usual—and had spent the past few hours baking. The smell of sugar and bread filled the house.

“She said she had business to take care of with the she-wolves of the pack,” Finn answered. “She’s not exactly trained for a war council, anyway.”

Derek nodded, then scowled when Christine entered the room. “What are you doing here?”

“Finn asked me, obviously,” she snapped back. She put her hands on her hips, a gesture that emphasized the curve of her bosom. “I need to know what’s happening so I can be ready for a medical emergency. Do you have a problem with that?”

Derek scowled.

Normally, Finn tried to stay out of their bickering. They were both good friends, and he didn’t want to take sides, especially without knowing what had happened between the two of them. Today, though, he had no patience for it.

“That’s enough,” he said sharply. “We don’t have time for pettiness.”

Both Christine and Derek looked chagrined. Silently, they took their seats as Finn initiated the video call. Hayden answered quickly. Ryder sat next to him, with Mica and Tess also crowded into the frame. Finn internally sighed, but the women fought demons, too. Their insights could prove valuable.

“Alpha Finn,” Hayden greeted with a nod of his head.

“Do we have to?” Finn asked with a sigh.

Hayden smirked. “Get used to it. So. You said you had a plan for how to go after Dukiel?”

Finn nodded. “We’ve completed the protections in town and want to root out the rogues and demons in the surrounding area. The first thing we need to do is take out the beast-demon nests. The warriors of Moon Lake are well-versed in fighting demons already, and with Seth giving me his vocal support, things are settling down. I’m just not sure what to do about the rogues. It will be difficult to find out which ones are loyal to Dukiel and which ones feel like they don’t have a choice.”

“Do you have any sort of place you can keep them imprisoned?” Mica asked.

Finn shook his head. “It’ll take too long to build something from scratch, but there’s a warehouse we might be able to secure. It just feels risky.”

Hayden nodded his understanding. “If you send over some pictures and the building plans for the warehouse, Ryder and I will have the team look over it to make suggestions. In the meantime, you sound like you have a handle on things. Taking out the beast demons is a good first step.”

“Thank you,” Finn said, unexpectedly touched. Hayden had been his leader for so long that it was difficult to see them as equal rank now.

“Be careful,” Ryder advised.

“And tell Elin to call us,” Tess added. “We have some ideas to help her with her role as Luna.”

Finn nodded, not bothering to explain that Elin wouldn’t be Luna for long. They would still break the mating once this was all over. He ended the call, and Christine went to find Elin so they could set up a temporary clinic while Finn and Derek headed to round up and debrief the warriors.

“We will have to move quickly. Once the demons realize we’ve gone on the offensive, they’ll try to push us back to the defensive,” Finn said. He ran a hand through his hair. “I expect Dukiel will keep his distance to learn how we act before he strikes again. He won’t expect me to turn myself over to him, but those seeds of distrust are already planted.”

Derek nodded. “You’ve got Seth’s support now, though. Everyone knows you’re his nephew and all that.”

“You mean they know I’m the son of an archdemon,” Finn muttered.

“No.” Derek grabbed his shoulder, making him stop. “I mean, most of the people around here knew Beth. They’ll see her in you.”

Finn winced at the mention of his mother. He hesitated but finally sighed. “This isn’t what I wanted. I didn’t want to be Alpha and never wanted to be in a position where I was in charge of others.”

Derek quirked one eyebrow. “Coulda fooled me, the way you’ve always taken charge when it came to Christine and me.”

“You’re my friends. It’s different. This? Leading a pack?” Finn gestured at the buildings around them. “I’m not sure this is sustainable.”

“You mean being Alpha?” Derek asked.

Finn scowled but nodded. “What else would I be talking about?”

Derek opened his mouth, a glint in his eye.

“If you’re going to comment on my sex life, don’t,” Finn warned.

Derek closed his mouth again.

“I don’t have time for self-doubt,” Finn continued, starting to walk again. “There’s too much to do; a demon will sniff out any weakness. I just have to get over myself.”

“For what it’s worth, I’ve always thought you had an Alpha’s aura around you,” Derek said, his voice soft and supportive. “You didn’t lead our little friend group just because you’re the oldest. And remember what your records said? You were always mediating disagreements on the playground before the adults even knew what was happening. This is natural to you, Finn. It’s just your lack of self-confidence that’s made you keep to the shadows. You could have led your own team, just like Hayden.”

Finn pictured Hayden. He was always so certain of himself that it was hard not to stand in awed jealousy. “I’m nothing like Hayden.”

Derek shrugged. “Doesn’t mean you aren’t alpha material. But we both know that me giving you a pep talk won’t actually help you. However, I have one piece of advice. Just tell Elin how you feel about her.”

“I don’t—”

“You do,” Derek said flatly. “And she deserves to know the truth.”

***

Before Finn left with his selected warriors, he stopped by the clinic where Elin was. She was wrapping bandages, a distracted look on her face. He winced to see her so worried. He sat next to her, breathing in her scent. Somehow, it seemed even stronger and sweeter now when he was off to fight demons.

“We’ll be heading out within the hour,” Finn said. “I don’t expect we’ll be back for a few days unless something terrible happens.”

“Then I hope you won’t be back for a few days,” Elin answered cheekily, but her smile didn’t reach her eyes.

“Do you have everything ready?” Finn asked, oddly reluctant to leave her.

Elin glanced around at the supplies they had gathered. “I think so. I’ll do my best to keep the town running and everyone calm until you and the others return.”

“Good.” Finn touched her cheek. His wolf rumbled at the thought of leaving her. It would rather stay here, stay close. However, the best way to protect Elin was to eliminate the threat. He leaned forward, knowing he should keep to firmer boundaries—but if things went wrong on this mission, he didn’t want to leave her with nothing but heartache.

He kissed her, his wolf howling in delight. Funny how it reacted the same time every time, as though they were in a famine and he was standing in the first rainfall in years. His wolf seemed even more eager this time, though. It was as though something had changed. Shifted. What was it?

He drew back slightly, and Derek’s words rang through his mind. Tell her how you feel .

But how did he explain it? How did he tell her his day was better just by hearing her voice? That he craved her presence so much it scared him? That when he was with her, all his determination to never take a mate and never be a father wavered? She made him believe it was possible. Oh, he would never get her pregnant; that was too much of a risk. He’d need to redouble his efforts to find a doctor who would give him a permanent vasectomy to ensure he’d never kill Elin through childbirth.

Adoption, though… There were kids who needed a family. Could he and Elin create a home for kids who didn’t have anything else? It had never been a possibility, but somehow, the idea had taken root in his heart. He wanted so badly to have Elin as his mate and to have a family with her. Even though he knew it was grossly unfair to her.

He couldn’t tell her any of this. Just because he wanted it didn’t mean he could have it.

He shied back from the strength of his own emotions. He broke the kiss and straightened. “We’ll be back when we’re done. Stay safe.”

And with that, he turned and walked away, even though his wolf howled for him to go back to their mate.

***

Two days later, Finn and his team had destroyed four beast-demon nests, taken down two of the animals themselves, and found a rogue camp. One of them was the woman who had been at the orphanage that day. The rogues had a lingering demonic influence on them, but all had thrown themselves at Finn’s feet and begged for the change to swear allegiance to the Moon Lake pack.

Finn couldn’t bring himself to kill them, not when he knew they weren’t possessed. Having prisoners in town represented a safety hazard, though. If they got out, they could cause all sorts of problems.

So, he had the rogues taken to the human village, which had a jail in the police station. They’d be kept there until other arrangements were made.

“That went better than expected,” Derek murmured to Finn as they came roaring in an old van back to the pack. “I say this is cause for celebration, don’t you?”

Finn laughed and clapped him on the back. “You always did like partying.”

The pack was waiting for them. As they exited the van, the loved one of the warriors he’d taken rushed forward to throw their arms around them. Christine let out a relieved breath as she came over to give Finn a once-over.

“I take it nothing was knocked loose?” she asked, then turned to Derek. “All in one piece?”

“Nothing missing,” Derek answered with a smirk.

Christine almost looked like she was going to smile back, but she only turned, going to the warriors who had been injured on the mission. Derek’s smirk faded as he watched her go. Before Finn could cheer him up, Elin came dancing into Finn’s arms.

His wolf burst out in a series of happy yips. A smile blossomed over his face, and he swept her up into his arms. Their mouth crashed together hungrily as though they were starving for each other. And Finn certainly felt as though he had been longing for her for days. He closed his eyes as he swept his tongue over her lip, putting his arms around her waist to pull her nearer.

And that’s when he felt it.

Elin had curves. She always had a slightly rounded belly, and though she carried most of her weight in her hips and thighs, her breasts were sizable. Now, though, as she molded her body against his, he could feel a distinctive difference. Her stomach was more rounded, and her breasts were at least one size larger. Her shoulders, conversely, seemed a bit thinner, and her face seemed to have slimmed.

Finn pulled back. “Are you okay?” he asked, not knowing what else to ask.

He expected confusion. For her to laugh it off and tease him about how quickly he forgot the feel of her body. What he didn’t expect to gaze into her chocolate brown eyes and see them flood with guilt and fear.

His breath caught in his chest. His wolf went still.

No…