Page 27 of Come for Me
Sam’s making a habit out of popping up at the worst time, cockblocking me every chance he can. If he can’t take a hint, I’ll have to teach him a lesson.
“About?”
Sam looks in her direction, and she covers herself.
“Is it about me?” she asks through quickened breaths, darting her gaze between us.
Even though he’s only curious about who will reign queen after waiting so many years, he’ll have to wait until she’s decent.
I growl, stepping in front of her, blocking Sam’s view of her. While I meant what I said about fucking her in front of the pack as a reminder of who owns her, that would be on my terms.
“Get her some clothes and then take her to my room.”
Sam hands her my white T-shirt, keeping his head down.
My shirt is practically a dress on her. At the sight of her in it and her roughed-up hair, I bite my lip. My mate is darling.
I step in the direction of the castle.
“Where are you going?”
I peer over my shoulder and shrug. “To kill the mutt.”
Chapter Eight
Dax
Alpha Jack and his insignificant offspring are standing in my study when my guards open the doors.
Looks like the moonlight isn’t the only thing creeping into my office.
The two dark-blue chairs in front of my desk are empty, with Jack and the mutt behind them. The mutt’s father is tall and proud, like an alpha should be, especially in the presence of royalty. Meanwhile, his son paces the room, his nervous energy and determination reeking up the place.
For the love of Goddess, stop moving.
The mutt is stupid to show his face here. He might not have known before that she’s my mate, but now he knows I’ve decided to claim her. Yet here he is, about to make foot-sized holes in my hardwood flooring if he doesn’t fucking stand still.
My powers play out like a movie in my mind, lending me the foresight that the mutt has brought his daddy to talk her hand out of mine.Pathetic. Daddy won’t save him and would only serve as an audience to witness his inevitable end.
I watched Jack work for my father growing up. He saw firsthand how harsh my father was toward those who would die for him.
Meanwhile, Jack had the pleasure of watching my father use his cruel methods to train me as the future king, which involved humiliation and barbaric conditioning. I respected Jack and how he took my father’s leadership in stride and lived, notletting his pride get in the way of survival. My father could have rubbed Jack’s face in piss like a dog, and he would find the peace to wipe his face, bow before his king, and walk away without letting anyone know he was bothered. Jack never showed weakness.
It’s clear he carries that same respect for me—or if not, he’d never let me think otherwise.
Jack’s offspring, on the other hand, seems to miss that trait. To be fair, Jack watched me turn into the force of nature I am now, one who won’t hesitate to eliminate any threat to the kingdom. The mutt, however, seems to need a lesson on who I am and exactly what I’m capable of.
Jack’s intent flashes before my eyes.
Jack is dwarfed by my bookcases and my desk rimmed with a stoic sense of duty to protect the mutt from the death that awaits him. He’s bound by familial responsibility and love for his son.
Jack isn’t here to manipulate me into using our history together to sway my decision. Jack has integrity.
He survived my father’s tyranny, which meant he knew what a king could do and, in turn, intended to approach me diplomatically. After the mutt’s transgression and the threat to the kingdom he has created, he’s lucky to still be alive. It would bode him well not to aggravate me further.
I’m confused why someone with as much experience as Jack, who has worked under my family line, would be so stupid as to support his son’s actions to contest my claim to my Goddess-given mate and demand an audience with his king.
Even if she weren’t my mate but rather some she-wolf, does he really think he could take her from me? He knows the rules. If the mutt wants her, he’ll have to fight me for her. That’s how the Hunt and our very nature works. The mutt knows he can’tphysically beat me, yet here he is, ready to die for someone made for me.
