Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 113406 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 454(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 113406 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 454(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
“My daughter was attacked at your pack’s club last night.” He paused, as if expecting Bracken to respond. He didn’t. “The culprit was a cat shifter,” Shaw went on. “I hear she’s also your mate. From what Claudia told me, the cat was upset that Claudia bought you a drink. My daughter tried to apologize for any offense taken. Instead of accepting the apology, the cat attacked and injured Claudia.” There was no inflection in his voice, no sense of whether the Alpha truly believed Claudia’s version of events. “Adding insult to—no pun intended—injury, you then also barred Claudia from the club.”
Bracken lifted a brow. “Is your daughter in the habit of trying to apologize to people by cornering them in their break room, having her team block the door so no one can pass, and then telling them how their mate would prefer her over them any day?”
Instead of bristling on his daughter’s behalf, Shaw sighed. Impatience flashed across his face, and he shook his head. Yeah, it seemed he had no trouble believing that his daughter would do that.
“No one who tries coming between mates ever comes out of that situation unscathed,” said Bracken. “Either Claudia was goading Madisyn into a fight, or she didn’t think my mate would dare act on her anger. In any case, your daughter quite simply fucked up.”
The male standing on Shaw’s left, whom the Alpha had introduced as his Beta, Joe, subtly shifted position and said, “We don’t have a problem with you or your pack, Slater, but we want justice. I’m asking you to step aside while we deal with the insult that the cat paid to Claudia.”
Anger spiked through Bracken, and his wolf snapped his teeth. Balling his hands into fists, he glared at the fucking idiot who sounded like a knight set on avenging his damn princess—he obviously had a thing for Claudia. “Basically,” began Bracken, voice deepening, “you want me to grant you permission to harm my mate?” He sounded dangerous even to himself.
Joe and the other male flanking Shaw stiffened, while the last two Tundra wolves pushed away from the Range Rover, on high alert. Shaw, however, didn’t move an inch.
“You know a thing or two about the need to seek justice,” said Joe.
Bracken inclined his head. “I do.”
“Then you understand.” Joe lifted his chin. “We can’t and won’t allow what the cat did to go unpunished.”
The bastard had to be smoking fucking crack if he thought he’d ever even have the chance to touch Madisyn. Dismissing him, Bracken cut his gaze back to Shaw. “Maybe you believe the lump of shit your daughter fed you, maybe you don’t. But you have to know that you’ll never get your hands on my mate. Never.”
“Claudia insists that the cat attacked her, unprovoked,” stated Shaw, though he still didn’t display any hint of whether he believed her.
Bracken snickered. “Claudia messed with the wrong person, and she paid for it. If her ego took a beating, that’s not anyone’s fault but hers. Your Beta talks about seeking justice, but justice was done . . . just not in a way she liked. And if you or anyone else dares to harm Madisyn, I’ll take care of it . . . and that won’t be in a way you like.”
Shaw’s jaw tightened. “It is not wise to threaten me.”
That made Nick bristle. “It’s not wise to approach my territory, lay a serious and very false accusation against a member of my pack, and then actually fucking suggest that we just hand her over to you because, hey, your daughter didn’t like that she got the shit smacked out of her.”
Joe opened his mouth to speak, but whatever he saw on Nick’s face made him snap it shut.
“I’m done here,” Bracken announced. “Stay the fuck away from what’s mine, Brookson. And advise your daughter to do the same.”
Shaw took a few steps forward, but they weren’t aggressive or threatening. He sighed, suddenly looking very tired. “When I first saw my daughter bleeding and bruised, my initial instinct was to drive down here and pummel the lot of you. But a member of her team pulled me aside and told me a few things that contradict her story, things that sounded much more believable than her account.
“I love my daughter, but I’m not blind to her nature. I know how stubborn she can be when she gets an idea into her head. I know how badly she wants you for her bodyguard, Slater, and I know she was quite confident that you would eventually give in and accept her offer.”
“I told Claudia right from the start that the position held no interest for me,” said Bracken.
“She was sure you’d change your mind in time. But then you mated, and she understood that you couldn’t act as her personal bodyguard. Still, she was hopeful that you and your mate would join our pack and that you would then still join her team.”