Page 74 of Claiming Her Alpha
“I’m with Finlay,” Brian agreed as he stood up too.
Slowly, everyone said their goodbyes and retreated to their guest quarters–everyone but Gabriel. He approached them after Ned and Rowan had left, only leaving Avery and Ryker behind.
“May I speak to you?”
With a smile, she gestured to her office. “Of course.”
Ryker stayed behind, helping Avery clear the table.
After closing the door behind her, she pointed to the chairs. “Let’s sit.”
Gabriel followed her suggestion and chose the chair that was facing the door while Kendra took the other. He was one of those people who never seemed to have their back towards an exit, preparing for the worst.
“How may I help you, Beta Gabriel?”
His lips twitched upward as she addressed him with his proper title. “I’m not sure if you and Ryker talked about what I’ve revealed to him earlier.”
“We haven’t.” She tilted her head and studied him. “That surprises you.”
“A little. But soon he might and I would rather be the one to tell you.”
“You want it to come to me the official way.”
“Yes.”
“Well, rest assured Ryker hasn’t told me about your conversation. So, this will be my first time hearing it.”
“I wish for my words to stay in private.”
“Of course.”
“As you know, Ryker came to us as a rogue, a nobody, barely able to fight nor knowing any pack rules. He worked his way up our ranks and slowly but surely became the most respected warrior we had. We made him the man he is today, which is why his departure is so painful to us.”
“As I said before, I’m not going to rip him away, which is why I offered for him to return and make sure your pack has a smooth transition.”
He nodded, regret filling his eyes. “It makes it personal, not just to me but to my alpha.”
He didn’t specify any further, but Kendra sensed that Alpha Vallerian’s ego had been hurt.
“I believe I know where you wanna go with this. I wasn’t planning on using Ryker as a spy. I believe I’ve made it clear that I have no intentions of making us more enemies than our ancestors already have. I want the opposite.” Her tone was a little cooler than she’d anticipated, but it bothered her that he would think so little of her.
“Of course.”
“Let me be honest with you, because you seem like a man who can handle that. Your alpha has done nothing but throw rocks into my way, not just for me, but for Ryker and he hasn’t even told me everything he’s been through in the past year. Alpha Vallerian made our life hell because he couldn’t be the bigger person. Even now, he’s left my territory without a proper apology or explanation. I’ve shown that I have no bad intentions, even though I had every ability to completely destroy him. I’m not saying this to threaten you. I’m simply trying to keep the peace. Yet here I am, my mate a rogue and unable to return to the pack he sacrificed and worked so hard for. I understand that this is very personal for Alpha Vallerian, but he made it personal the day he took Ryker from me. Even with all of this, I hope that he can see past his father’s hate at some point and we can work on mending what our ancestors weren’t able to. I’m not your enemy and I hope you, as your alpha’s beta, can help him figure that out.”
Gabriel had tensed during her speech, but relaxed with the last sentence. “I believe we are on the same page.”
“Good.” Kendra relaxed into her chair and studied Gabriel closer. “You and his pack mean a lot to him and I hope one day we all can sit together, and I can hear all the old, embarrassing stories about him.”
Gabriel visibly struggled to hold back a big smile. “I’m not sure he would enjoy that as much as you.”
She gave him a wink and a cheeky grin as she stood up. “Luckily for us, I’m his luna now.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Ryker watched Gabriel follow Kendra into her office with a heavy feeling. He wasn’t sure what was about to happen, but he hoped it was good. Outside of wanting them to get along for personal reasons, they were highly ranked in rivalling packs. He picked up the dirty dishes and followed Avery into the kitchen.
“You have been her father’s beta too, right?” Ryker asked, trying to get his mind off the two in the office.