Page 53 of Unclaimed Bonds

I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ask.

It’s okay. We would have told you eventually. You’re family now, Jeremy declares.

The regal man wears dark jeans and a long-sleeved, plaid shirt. His energy is so huge, powerful, very… My eyes widen, and I step back. My mind whirls.

I am in the biggest house in the territory. The two lead guards are family. I take another step back. The twins said sister. I’mtheir sister. No, no, no… He’s the Alpha King. And Shakti… is the Luna Queen.

Anders places a warm hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay. You’re not in trouble,” he whispers in my ear.

I shake my head.I don’t deserve this. What if I’m a bad person? What if I was attacked because I did something wrong? What if… What if whoever did it comes after me and hurts the Alpha King and his family? I can’t stay here!My glasses fog, and tears spill from my eyes.

Anders spins me so I face him. Chris and Elias stand on either side of him.

I can’t put the Alpha King and the Lunar Queen’s family in a position that can hurt them. I remove my glasses and openly cry.

“Jessica, look at me. Do you think I would bring you here if I had any doubt that you would put their lives at risk?”

I sniff.You don’t know me. I don’t know me! What if I did something that caused this whole situation? We don’t know anything!

Anders leans forward to meet me at eye level. “I will never let anything happen to you or the royal family. It’s my job to protect them, and that includes you.”

I rub my nose with the back of my hand and shake my head.I don’t deserve this. I don’t deserve to be here.

“Why do you feel you don’t deserve to be here?” Chris asks, rubbing my back.

I just don’t. It’s a feeling deep in my bones.

“Little One, you didn’t deserve what happened to you,” Elias adds. His hand gently squeezes my other shoulder.

“Everyone deserves a second chance,” says a deep voice from behind me. “We want you to be a part of our family, of our pack. Look around you. Everyone here wants to know you and give you a better life, one you deserve.”

Pressure clenches around my heart, and I look at Anders.

“I will never let anything bad happen to you ever again. You are mine to protect, Jessica. You are here because we want you here. I want you here,” Anders confesses.

Tears threaten again at his sincerity.

“As much as I appreciate your concern for me and my family, it is also my job to protect them, as well as you. Besides, there is one other person who feels this is where you belong. If she had anything to say about it, she would have been the one to convince me otherwise.” The Alpha King points to the back of the room.

Sitting in a chair, holding her cane, is Alpha Agnus. “Well, it’s about damn time I got some attention. I was beginning to think I made the two-hour drive just to be ignored,” she huffs, and everyone chuckles. “Jessica, this is where you belong. I know for a fact you’re not a bad person. What you’ve been through is not because of anything you did. You were just in the wrong place with the wrong people. You need everyone in this room, and whether they realize it or not, they need you.”

The Alpha King laughs. “You better listen to her. She’s a little scary,” he whispers. “Even I’m afraid of her.”

“Now, come give me a hug. Or are you going to just stand there and cry over what-ifs?”

I wipe my face with my sleeve, clean my glasses, and walk over to Alpha Agnus.

“There’s my girl,” she says as I embrace her. “Well, do we get to eat, or will everyone just stand around and watch this poor girl take it all in?”

“You heard her. Let’s eat,” the Alpha King announces to the room.

The room erupts with laughter and talking as everyone gathers around the buffet arranged along one wall.

Shakti wraps her arms around my shoulders from behind. “Thank you for joining our family. I knew you were mine from the moment I met you.” She kisses the top of my head.

The Alpha King speaks with Chris and Anders while they stand in line to fill their plates. When he catches me watching him, he winks and continues his conversation.

I grab Justin’s arm.Can you tell him I’m sorry for making such a fuss? I’m sorry if I embarrassed him. He walks over and repeats what I said to his father.