Page 5 of Rejected Mate Bride
Her voice was firm, unlike the casual tone she had used with him when they were alone or the demure one that she had defaulted to when she was around others. Her arms were crossed in front of her, and he could tell she was seconds away from leaving the room and heading back to her new life in Ironbrand. This new Flora was different. But Camden didn’t have time to wonder about what had changed. His squad was heading to the cars now, and he needed to go with them. Staying any longer would put their mission at risk.
“Flora, wait,” he said. He took a few swift steps toward her and pulled her into a hug. She stiffened slightly and then relaxed into his embrace. Her face was nestled against his chest, and he felt her take a steadying breath. As she did, Camden pulled a syringe from his pocket.
“I’m really sorry about this,” he whispered.
As the needle pierced her arm, she jerked backward. Her eyes were wild with anger and fear, but within a moment, shewas unconscious. Camden caught her and tossed her over his shoulder before heading back to the car. Luckily, everyone was already inside the pack house, and there were no witnesses to his kidnapping.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Jasper whispered harshly as Camden slid Flora into the backseat of the car and climbed in beside her.
“Is everyone back?” Camden asked, ignoring Jasper’s question.
“Yes, but—”
“Then drive.”
Jasper cursed again but obeyed his commander, leading the convoy back to their pack’s territory. Camden placed one hand behind his neck, massaging it nervously as they drove away. He had done many things over the years that he wasn’t proud of, but this might be the biggest mistake of his life. It was completely out of character for him to do something so rash, but the instinct to get Flora out of there—to protect her—had been too strong for him to ignore.
“If you just brought hell raining down on us, Camden, I swear to everything I hold dear that I’ll kill you myself,” Jasper said bitterly.
“No, you won’t,” Camden argued.
Jasper grumbled in the front seat, knowing that his best friend was right. They had been through too much together to ever betray one another, but Camden knew that what he had done put everyone else at risk, too.
“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Jasper said.
“Me too,” Camden agreed.
Chapter 3 - Flora
The sun was high in the sky when Flora woke up. She turned her head, and a beam of sunlight crossed her eyes. She squinted, covering her face as she tried to figure out where she was.
“Easy,” a low voice said. “Don’t move too fast. The dizziness will pass soon.”
Everything came back to her in a rush. She had been at the Ironbrand pack house. Camden had appeared. She had followed him into the study, and he had told her she needed to leave with him. She had thought they were saying goodbye to each other for good, when suddenly…
“Did youkidnapme?” Flora demanded.
Completely aghast at what he had done, she sat up quickly and stared at him. The sudden movement made her vision dip and spin, but she could see Camden sitting on the chair across from the bed she had been placed on, watching her warily.
“Careful,” he admonished.
“What did you give me?”
“Just a light sedative,” he said, more gently this time. “You’ve only been out for an hour or so.”
An hour. She had been missing for an hour. Not that Demetrius or her parents would care where she was, but she had been essential to their plans. If they thought she had run away, she was going to be in big trouble. And not only her. Sofia was in danger, too. Her daughter was still in Ironbrand, under the care of Stella and Ben. Flora’s heart sank and then began to pound wildly. She was too weak to get up and try to escape fromwhatever Camden had planned, but she needed to get back as soon as possible. As much as she hated asking, she needed his help.
“You have to take me back,” she said, closing her eyes as she tried to concentrate on her words.
“I can’t do that, Flora,” Camden replied. “Just sit there for a minute. I’ll go get you some water.”
She couldn’t believe the situation she was in. Her life was too complicated, too unsteady. She wished there was a way for her to escape from the constant fear of reprisal from her adoptive family, but this was the life she had been cursed with. And now Camden was back, messing it up even more.
Her mind spiraled as she watched Camden’s hazy figure retreat. She pressed her hands over her eyes, trying to clear her mind of the dark thoughts that threatened to consume her. Her disappearance from Ironbrand meant that Sofia had been left alone, because being in her adoptive parents’ care was tantamount to abandonment. Flora took a deep breath as she remembered what had happened when her family had found out about her pregnancy. Furious was an understatement. It was her pregnancy that was the cause of their sudden departure from their home in Silverrose. Ben, especially, hadn’t been able to stomach the thought of rumors circulating about his family.
“First, we’re tricked into adopting a humangirl,” he had seethed. “And now you’re pregnant? An unwed teenage mother. What were you thinking?”
“She wasn’t thinking!” Stella had screeched.
