“I’m fine; go outside.”
He nods and is gone before my eyes can even track his movements.
“I’m glad you aren’t afraid of me,” Ambrose says, appearing in front of me as if out of thin air.
I blink, annoyed that my vision isn’t as good as I thought it was. And I do everything I can not to shiver at his unexpected presence in front of me. Despite my visceral reaction to him, I’m not full of bravado. I’m truly not afraid of him.
“We need to talk. And we’re not going to stop talking until you answer every question I have.”
He stares back at me with his piercing gold eyes before gesturing for me to follow him into the living room. As he walks, my eyes lock in on his broad back, rippling with every step. I want to run my tongue all over him and…
“You could put a shirt on,” I mumble under my breath.
“Why? I know you like ogling my body.”
“I can’t focus when you’re shirtless.”
He smirks, and his eyes twinkle as he lowers himself onto the couch. “I like seeing your attraction for me. I need that reminder when you’re angry with me.”
I sit on the other end of the couch and whip my tank off, until I’m sitting in my bra and jean shorts. I watch his reaction, and I swear I see his golden eyes swirling as he takes in my body. For a second, I consider taking more clothes off, but his reaction would distract me more than him. And as much bravado as I appear to have, I’m not as comfortable in my bare skin as he is.
“Tell me what happened between you and Nyx.”
“Nyx killed someone I loved. Someone so powerful that I didn’t think they could be killed. And it changed the trajectory of my life forever. I became alpha and, ever since, have had the weight of keeping my pack safe and trying to find a way to break the curse on my back. I never wanted this responsibility,especially at twenty-two, but I knew that I was the only one strong enough to defend against Nyx and eventually kill him.”
His father—he’s talking about his father. I have the urge to move across the couch and hold him as I see the tear drop down his cheek, but I force myself to stay, at least until he’s answered all my questions.
“I should have never let Kael go with him, even to save Freya.”
I frown, my heart torn in two. “You saved that little girl’s life; no one can fault you for what you did.”
“You do.”
I bite my lower lip, “I don’t. Not anymore. Not now that I know the truth.”
“Do you love him?”
I blink, my mouth drying. I wasn’t expecting that question. “Yes, I love Kael, but as my best friend. He’s the only family and friend I have.”
He’s silent for a moment. “Rowena seems to be growing close to you. I hope soon that you don’t think of Kael as your only friend.”
“What happened between you and Rowena?”
He stills to the point of not blinking, not breathing.
I hold my breath as well, preparing for his answer.
“Everyone thought we were mates. They were wrong.”
He says the words so nonchalantly that I know it wasn’t that simple, but I don’t prod. I wait, hoping the silence will drive him to speak more.
“Rowena is the strongest female in the Moonlight pack, so it was natural that everyone thought she was my mate. But we knew even without exploring it that we weren’t mates.”
“Did you date?”
“We did go on a couple of dates to appease the pack. They needed to see us trying after everything they’ve been through.And I was willing to do almost anything to try and save them. But I wasn’t willing to kill Rowena just to prove that she wasn’t my mate.”
He runs his hand through his hair. “But some in the pack didn’t want to let it go. They still don’t.”
