Page 86 of Fractured Mates
“And did your men learn what you hoped?” Kyler asks, nodding to Astor’s bloody form. “We’re not going to get answers from him, and even though he’s dead, it doesn’t sound like this fight is over.”
Especially after hearing about the dragon shifter’s mate out in the hallway, there might be a very miniscule part of me that feels bad about killing Astor, but not enough to regret my actions. Others will talk. Eventually.
Joseph nods with a grimace. “Two of the four I left behind are dead, but I believe my plan still worked. They’ll be able to give Maciah enough to start pulling at threads, see just how deep this truly goes, and hopefully rescue those who haven’t been killed by their captors.”
Maciah reaches a hand to the alpha, gripping his shoulder. “You made a hard choice, and your sacrifices won’t be in vain. We will find every loose end and stop anyone involved. I won’t rest until then.”
“Still,” Amersyn says sternly, “we’re going to need to have a long conversation about how all of this transpired and what could have been done better to lessen the casualties.”
I hold back my grin, a little pleased I wasn’t the only one thinking along those same lines.
Joseph bows his head. “Yes, we probably should.”
Alphas are the leaders of their people, but the protectors have been around long enough to prove their worth, keeping order within all of the supernatural species. They might not technically be in charge, but people don’t often cross them and get away with it.
“Now isn’t that time, though,” Maciah says. “Take care of your people, find who might not be okay with Astor’s death, and bring anyone with information to us. We will find a room here in the pack house to stay in until we have what we need.”
I grin. There’s the Maciah I expected as the protector leader—inviting himself in without asking.
Kyler wraps an arm around me and addresses his boss. “Can we speak privately with you for a moment?”
Joseph takes that as his cue to leave, and once the four of us are left with the dead bodies I’m trying not to notice any longer, Kyler speaks, taking me by surprise.
“I’m officially giving my notice,” my mate says. I stare up at him, slack jawed as he continues, “I appreciate the home you’ve given me these last ten years, but I’ve found a new one. I’d like to move onto the next part of my life.”
Amersyn grins widely and winks at me while Maciah addresses Kyler. “I expected as much once you said she was your mate. Just know that both of you have a place with us anytime, should you wish to return to this life.”
My eyes glance toward the hallway. I can’t see my sister, but that doesn’t mean she’s been far from my thoughts. “As fun as that sounds—sincerely—I have a family to put back together and a pack to get to know.”
“Dawsyn will be lucky to have the two of you on her side when she takes official control next week,” Amersyn says. “You make sure to watch my niece’s back. She might have that dragon mate of hers to burn her enemies, but one can never have too many people on their side. Especially when ruling one of the largest packs in the U.S.”
“She’ll have our loyalty for as long as we’re capable of giving it,” Kyler replies proudly, and suddenly, I realize that maybe I’ve been a little selfish.
We’ve known each other mere days. Mates or not, I haven’t asked him what he wants. Yes, he seemed more than eager to quit his job, but officially moving to East Texas, assuming he has no other family that he’d like to be with… Well, that’s kind of a bitch move.
Maciah and Amersyn leave, and the moment Kyler and I are alone, I grab both of his hands, turning to face him head on. “What do you want?”
His head cocks to the side, and there’s a hint of humor in his voice. “I don’t understand the question.”
“We don’t have to move to Texas,” I say, then begin to ramble. “You don’t even have to move in with me. I never asked what you wanted. We’ve only known each other a short time. I just made these assumptions without asking you and?—”
Kyler grabs my face and kisses me, shutting me the hell up and pulling me out of my panic. My body melts into his as our bond pulses between us, lighting up with nothing other than pure desire.
Finally, he pulls back until he can look into my eyes. “You are what I want, Sophie. Now and for the rest of this life. If I haven’t made that clear, I’m sorry, but I’m saying it now. I want to be where you are. I already told you I love Texas and that I felt at home there whenever I visited for work. There is nothing else in this world that calls to me like you do. We’re going to leave this pack, take your sister with us, give her the life you should have had, and never look back. Does that sound okay to you?”
It sounds like I’m one more romantic tangent from falling in love with this man, but who am I kidding? Time means nothing. I’ve already fallen and gladly so.
“I think I can be okay with all of that,” I reply with a grin, holding tightly to his shirt and keeping him close.
“Good, because I really wasn’t going to give you a choice,” he says, matching my happiness. “Now, let’s go break up the mates and hope Jules doesn’t murder us in our sleep.”
I laugh, but not for long. Jules killed the man who hurt her fated mate, which tells me she’s been through more than I wanted to consider before. While I don’t think she’ll actually try to murder us, I have no doubts that taking her in and trying to remind her that she’s young and should enjoy this time with people her age will be difficult, to say the least.
“We’ll just have to sleep with one eye open for the next few years,” I tell him as we leave the room I hope to never return to.
“You think she’ll last that long being separated from her mate?” he asks quietly before we enter the hallway.
“She’ll have no choice,” I say, hoping River is as good of a man as he’s portrayed, because we’re going to need his help convincing Jules this is for the best.