Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 108368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Derren would bet she wouldn’t be so interested if he weren’t a Beta. She knew the effect she had on males; she relished it, used it, and believed it gave her some dominion over men. Derren wasn’t so easily led. Beautiful or not, she held no appeal at all for him. She was sly, manipulative, egocentric, and liked to lead men around on a leash—as if that in itself was a symbol of power. He had no intention of being on anyone’s leash. He again ignored the invitation in her smile but, being civil, tipped his chin at her and her enforcers in greeting.
“Why are you here?” asked Nick abruptly. Trust him to cut right through any small talk.
Miranda chuckled. “I find that I like your directness, Nick. As for why I’ve come . . . I wanted to know if you’ve had any luck in tracking the foxes who fired the grenade on your territory. I’ve had some of my own men attempt to find them—I don’t allow intruders on my territory, least of all to attack my neighbors. But we haven’t been able to track them.”
“Neither have we,” admitted Shaya.
“It seems so strange. I would have thought that if a grouping of foxes had a grudge against you, they would have challenged you by now.”
But this wasn’t about grudges or challengers, it was about cashing in on a bounty, so the situation was very different. Derren didn’t say that aloud, though.
“Have there been any further attacks?”
Shaya shook her head, clearly intending to ignore Miranda’s attempt to fish for information. “None.”
Miranda shrugged. “Perhaps it was a few drifters acting alone.”
“Maybe,” said Shaya.
Miranda sighed. “I’m glad to hear there has been no more trouble.”
As Miranda’s gaze returned to him, Derren followed his wolf’s instinct and protectively shifted a little closer to Ally. And that was when he understood the cause of his tension. It wasn’t that he felt personally threatened by Miranda; it was that he viewed her as a potential danger to Ally. It was a supposition that was nothing more than paranoia, really, and it reminded him of the way Nick acted when outsiders were around Shaya. Clearly his Alpha male was rubbing off on him.
Obviously identifying the move as a protective gesture, Miranda’s azure-blue eyes took in Ally, sizing her up. “And who is this, Derren?”
Well, that made Ally and her wolf bristle. Failing to address her directly was an insult. She spoke before Derren could respond. “I’m Ally.”
Miranda stared at her, waiting for her to elaborate. Ally didn’t. “Friend of yours?” the Alpha female asked Derren.
Surprising Ally, it was Roni who answered. “A very good friend.” The implication that the relationship was sexual was right there in the enforcer’s tone. Oh, that evoked strong emotions from Miranda. Up until then, no real emotion had tainted the air around Miranda. But now, malice and spite slithered over Ally, making her skin feel raw like she’d been scratching at it for days. Miranda’s lust for Derren was dark with greed. It wasn’t so much Derren that she wanted but the opportunity to rule and possess him. Her wolf snarled, ears flattening.
Miranda arched a brow at Ally. “Is that so?”
Ally thought about simply ignoring the question. After all, getting involved in Roni’s “let’s annoy the creepy bitch” game might not be the wisest idea, since conflict between neighbors never ended well; she didn’t want to cause trouble for the Mercury wolves. But what came out of Ally’s mouth was: “Yes, it is.” And Roni couldn’t have looked any happier.
Those words surprised Derren and brought a satisfied growl from his wolf. Ally publicly admitting their relationship was a claim of sorts. Derren wondered, however, if Ally even realized what she’d done. Since the first night he’d taken her, she’d been very careful not to mark him again, which pissed off his wolf. Derren didn’t like it much either—particularly since the drive to brand her over and over was like a fever in his veins.
Feeling the urge to push Ally, to see how far she’d go to reinforce her claim, Derren began to possessively play his fingers through Ally’s hair as Shaya distracted Miranda with a conversation about shoes.
Sensing the silent challenge, his expectation that she would back down, Ally slipped her hand onto his thigh instead. As she’d told Shaya, Ally never backed down. His response was to nip her earlobe. She rubbed her cheek against his jaw, smiling at the low rumble that vibrated in his chest. That rumble snatched Miranda’s attention, and her eyes slammed on them. Malice once again crawled over Ally.
“It’s a relief to hear that everything’s fine.” Miranda looked from Nick to Shaya. “I don’t expect you to confide in me, but I’d just like to reiterate that if you decide you need my backing against an enemy, I am willing to give you my support.”