Total pages in book: 46
Estimated words: 43373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 217(@200wpm)___ 173(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 43373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 217(@200wpm)___ 173(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
Rocco knew the man was messing with him, which is why he stayed perfectly still and glared at him.
“Tell me.”
Graham sighed and laid down on the floor, staring up at the ceiling.
He had no idea what he was doing, but he wasn’t budging. “Fine, fine, I happen to like Rose, and it would be nice for someone to see what a doll she is. I mean, she is super cute, with all that blonde hair and those blue eyes, they make a man want to melt right into them.”
Rocco drew back his hand and growled. “Enough.” He didn’t want anyone else seeing how beautiful her blonde hair was, or the fact her eyes were bright blue, even better than the ocean. No one else got to see that kind of stuff. He wanted to lash out, to kill that fucker for even looking at her. The anger was unlike anything he’d ever felt before. It was so acute and terrifying at the same time.
Graham turned his head and sighed. “She wanted the dream, Rocco. For her mate to find her, and in that moment see her for the gift she is, pull her into his arms, and then kiss her. That is what she wanted. Instead, she got you, and what did you go and do? Ah, yes, that’s right, you decided to treat her like crap and reject her.”
He didn’t need to be told what he’d done. Rocco had been there, and he wore that fucking label.
There had been so much going on. Shit was happening, and rejecting Rose, rather than delve into that rabbit hole, he’d reacted and regretted it.
****
Rose enjoyed a glass of lemonade with a blanket wrapped around her body. It was cold outside. Not too cold, but she felt the change heading their way. It wouldn’t be long before they were all freezing their asses off, and the first snowfall coated the land. She loved the snow. It always calmed her.
Also, the garden, that always seemed a little barren after a full summer, would once again look beautiful.
The only problem was, with the first snowfall, those cages were not going to be quite so welcoming.
She had thought about going to Alpha and offering Graham a chance to stay at her home. He’d not gone feral while being in their company, and if he did, Rose knew how to handle him.
Taking a sip of her drink, she saw Rocco advancing toward her. It had been a few days since their date. She had only seen him in passing. The Poison Wolves MC were doing a lot more perimeter checks, and guarding. The beta team were being used around the main town, keeping everyone safe.
“Evening,” Rose said, letting him know she had seen him.
“It’s not safe for you to just sit out on your porch,” Rocco said.
“You guys are doing perimeter checks every chance you get and you’re telling me it’s not safe.”
He opened her small gate and stepped through. Rose couldn’t help but smile at how delicate he was being. She’d been there when her father had installed the gate for her mother. She had always wanted a little picket fence. As a joke, he had built something very small, which meant most people could just step right over it. No one did, though. They always bent down, opened it, and stepped through. Even Rose, after her parents’ passing, always took the time to open it.
Lifting her head, she looked up at an advancing Rocco.
“You know, you didn’t ask if you could come on in,” she said. “You’ve just invited yourself.”
“May I come in?” he asked.
She laughed. “Sure. You want some lemonade? It won’t be long before I’m doing something with pumpkin.”
She had already harvested twenty pumpkins. Several of which had been roasted and mashed, before putting into cans or frozen. She loved pumpkin puree, and used it a lot.
“Yeah, I’ll have a glass of lemonade.”
“How’s Graham?” she asked, wanting to keep the conversation rather than allow it to go quiet.
Quiet with Rocco always felt uncomfortable and reminded her how bad they both were at being each other’s mate.
Her parents were always able to fill the silence. Nothing ever seemed to bother them. They were always in constant control.
“He’s fine.”
Rose pressed her lips together as she was tempted to ask him if he thought bringing him here would be a good idea, but she’d go to Alpha first.
“Thank you,” Rocco said and he took a spot beside her on the bench. She felt the warmth coming off him, so she didn’t offer him her blanket. “It’s going to be a cold winter.”
“That it is.”
“I’ve not seen you around for a bit,” he said.
She smiled at him. “It has been busy. As usual, I’ve been tending to the garden. A few jobs arrived at town that I was needed for, and then I’ve been spending time with Graham. I don’t think he’s going to turn.”