Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 68913 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 345(@200wpm)___ 276(@250wpm)___ 230(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68913 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 345(@200wpm)___ 276(@250wpm)___ 230(@300wpm)
The Council members muttered among themselves and Rickter kept the sour expression on his face, but they finally let it drop. I was relieved…but pissed off too. My little sister had really brought down a shit show on my head with her latest stunt. And who knew what she would think up next? She was lucky I was still willing to stick up for her or she’d be on her way to get mated to a male old enough to be her father right now!
But as I left the Council meeting, still fuming, Rickter’s ridiculous suggestion gave me an idea. Delilah had been getting into a lot of trouble lately and nothing I did or said seemed to stop her. Even after I had dragged her out of the damn strip club and spanked her lush bottom until it was red as a sunset, she was still defiant—which made me think she wasn’t done getting into hot water yet.
What if I could teach her a lesson, though? What if she thought she really was going to be married off to an older male—maybe from another Pack. Wouldn’t that scare her straight?
I was betting it would. I could even make it seem like her prospective mate had seen her at The Doll House and gotten interested in her from watching her strip. Then she would know she had only herself to blame for the arranged marriage she thought was coming her way.
Of course, eventually I would reveal that it was all a ruse—a “life lesson” as my Dad used to like to say. And I would tell her that if she didn’t straighten up and fly right, I really would marry her off to some balding bastard old enough to be her father. That ought to be enough of a threat to keep her on the straight and narrow…but only if I sold it right.
As I climbed into the Escalade and Kurt started the engine, I was already making some rather elaborate plans…plans to be sure my little sister never, ever misbehaved again.
6
DELILAH
The knock on my door surprised me. I had just gotten out of a long soak in the tub and was thinking about ordering some Thai food for dinner. But I hadn’t called for it yet and I wasn’t allowed to have visitors—so who could it be?
I got my answer when I opened the door and one of my Alpha guards took me by the arm.
“Come with me, please,” he said firmly.
“What? Where?” I demanded.
“You’ll be told when you get there,” he answered.
“Told when I get there? That’s doesn’t work for me!” I tried to put on the brakes but he was much too strong—I was basically getting dragged towards the big black Escalade in my driveway.
“Sorry—Packmaster’s orders.” The guard didn’t sound sorry a bit.
“But…but I’m not dressed to go anywhere!” I pointed out. “Look at me—I don’t even have any shoes on!”
I was wearing an oversized sweatshirt—one of Cole’s that I had stolen a long time ago—a pair of yoga pants, and some fuzzy orange socks to keep my feet warm. I was the very definition of “in for the night” and I certainly didn’t look ready to meet anyone or go anyplace besides my own living room.
“I was told that you would be given clothes to wear when you get to your destination,” the guard said implacably. He was still dragging me towards the Escalade and now I could see Kurt, who I knew was Cole’s second in command in the driver’s seat.
My heart jumped suddenly—could it be that I was being taken to see my big brother? Had Cole had a change of heart and realized that we belonged together?
I stopped fighting the guard who was dragging me towards the car and walked eagerly towards it instead. He looked surprised but quickened his step to keep up with me. He opened the door to the back seat, put me in, and then shut the door and got in the front with Kurt.
As soon as all the doors were closed, the locks on the back doors clicked, locking me in. This seemed like a fairly ominous sign, but I was determined to stay positive.
“Hi, Kurt. So what’s all this about?” I asked looking over the seat.
Kurt cleared his throat and shifted in the driver’s seat. He looked uncomfortable, I thought.
“The Packmaster has asked me to convey the following information,” he began, in a speech that sounded scripted—as though someone else had written it out and he had memorized it. “The Provisional Council has voted and decided that in light of your recent, er, activities, you need a mate.”
“What?” I leaned forward, my hand going to my throat. “I need a what?”
“A mate,” Kurt continued implacably. “They further decided that you need an older male who is strong enough to control you.”