“She’s the female spy we are going to plant in the rogue pack,” Curtis informed Kyle.
“No way,” he said with a determination that I’d never heard from him before. He stood in front of her and faced us. “Not going to happen.”
“I need a moment alone with Kyle and Crystal,” I told the rest of the group. Blake gave me a questioning look, and I gave him a nod.
I need to talk to them alone, I told him through the mind-link. Curtis followed behind Blake. Scarlett seemed hesitant to leave her brother but Cade pulled her gently by the arm. Once they left, I turned to face Kyle and Crystal. For the first time since I’d met Kyle, he looked at me with anger.
“I had no idea she was from your pack,” I assured him and his anger disappeared. He turned to face Crystal. He took a step closer to her, but she took a step backward.
“Why did you leave?” he asked softly, searching her face for the answer.
Instead of answering his question, her gaze dropped to the floor.
“Your family thought you were dead. They’ve been grieving for you for the last year,” he told her.
Crystal pressed her lips together before she lifted her gaze to meet Kyle’s. I felt like an intruder, watching their interaction, but I needed know what was going on. Before I knew Kyle was her mate, I would have sent her out; but now that I knew the truth, there was no way I would jeopardize her life.
“I wanted a new life and I knew no one would let me go,” Crystal answered firmly.
“Weren’t you happy?” he asked, trying to understand what would drive her to leave her pack and family without telling them.
“I have my reasons,” was the only answer he got.
He looked at her like he didn’t know who she was, and my heart went out to him.
“Let me talk to her,” I said to him as I took a step closer to them.
Kyle glanced back to me, surprised to see me. He’d been so caught up he hadn’t noticed me. He looked at me with such a somber look that it made me more determined to get to the root of the problem. He gave me a nod and looked back to Crystal. She watched as he turned and walked away.
When Kyle was out of hearing distance, I turned to face Crystal.
“Why haven’t you told him you’re mates?” I said. Her alarmed eyes shot to mine. She hadn’t expected me to figure it out. For a moment it looked like she wanted to lie about it before she let out a sigh.
“I have my reasons,” she said. I wasn’t sure I was going to get any more answers than Kyle had gotten.
“Why would you keep it from him?”
“Like I said, I have my reasons.”
I studied her for a moment. I couldn’t make her tell me the truth, but there was no way I was going to send her into danger now that I knew she was Kyle’s mate. If anything happened to her, I wouldn’t forgive myself, and I doubted that Kyle would either.
“I can’t send you out,” I stated firmly, back in my alpha role.
“But—“
“No,” I commanded. “We’ll find another way.”
There was no other way, but it didn’t matter. We would have to figure out something else. There was no other choice.
“People will die if I don’t do this. Kyle might die,” she argued with desperation in her voice.
“If you care about him so much, why won’t you tell him you’re mates?”
“It’s because I care about him that I can’t,” she said cryptically.
"Look, I don't know you but I know Kyle. He’s a good guy and he deserves to know the truth," I told her, but she shook her head.
"Please don't tell him," she pleaded softly with me, and my heart went out to her.
