Filed To Story: Secret with Betas Daughter: Skylar Story Series
“Oh for f*ck’s sake. It’s not.”
I grumble. “My mom died giving birth.
to me since no one thought to explain the whole ‘having a girl might kill you’ family trait. You hated me for killing your mate. I knew it, the whole pack knew it. You foraged people to ignore me and for training and discipline to be more intense for that very reason. I was not important enough to be spoken to unless it was to criticize. I only attended functions where it was general knowledge that you had two children, and I wasn’t allowed to speak or interact. Should I go on?”
Elena stood up and came to hug me. I was a little frozen at the gesture, her fiery locks swarming me. “Well that is something we will have to work out. And I plan on revisiting this abuse.”
She turns her head, I assume looking at my dad.
“Why does this matter at all? I really don’t want to talk about any of that. We’re supposed to work out this pentagram thing.”
“It does matter since we will all be a part of it. All of the mates will.”
I think my brain short-circuited. “What do you mean ‘all of the mates will?’ And what does that have to do with the Beta?” I don’t know if I have ever called him ‘dad’ or any variation of that out loud. “Because Daniel is my mate.”
She says calmly, not letting go of me.
I can feel the color drain from my face along with the rest of the feeling in my body. Then I hear a bang and loud thumping then two arms are wrapped around me, pressing me up against a hard chest and keeping me up right.
“What the hell did you do to her?” Oliver snarls. It’s the only thing I can clearly hear, every other voice sounds like it’s underwater.
More stomping and then I feel warmth in both of my hands.
“Tiny what happened?”
“Breathe, Smalls. We need you to breathe.”
I hear them too, but still no one else. Elena is my dad’s second chance mate? What the f*ck is the Moon Goddess Playing at? She’s helping me, he hates me. She’s a witch and he’s a werewolf, just like Nikolas and Gentry. Oh! That explains why I keep seeing the four of them together. When did this happen? Will she stay here, in the pack? Will he go with her now that he is free of his Beta duties? Will she want to keep training me now that she is with him? My stomach plummets at the thought. We have been doing so well and I love training with her, I don’t want to lose that because she chooses her mate over me.
My heart actually hurts at the thought of the loss.
“No! You are not spiraling, get out of that head Bitty.”
Oliver picks me up and I can tell we are moving by the flexion in the muscles in his torso.
I don’t know where we are going, but I can smell Cam and Kota with us too. I bury my head in Oliver’s neck. I know he says we aren’t mates, but his scent is the thing keeping me sane right now. I can feel Cam and Kota close too. One is touching my ponytail as it swings and the other brushes my shoe as his arm swings. I’m trying to stay out of my head like Oliver said. I’m thinking about what I did with Jena when she was having full blown panic attacks. Five things I can see. I see Oliver’s shirt below me, behind him I see trees and a path. We’re in the forest. To his right I see Cam’s legs walking a step ahead. Looking down I see Kota’s arm swinging behind me. Four things I can feel. Oliver’s breath on my head. My hand fisted into his shirt. His firm grip on my ribs and legs. The temperature change as we move further down the path. Three things I can smell. Them. I can smell all three of them separate but together. Crisp citrus, sharp cinnamon and warm honey. It’s like my personal dessert. Two things I can hear. All of them breathing, deep controlled breaths. I can hear the crunch of twigs and rustle of the damp earth under their feet. What can I taste? Salt. Was I crying? I don’t even remember.
“Giver her here, and start a fire, she’s shivering.”
“Cam…”
I can only whisper his name. He sits on the ground leaning against one of the large logs with me across his lap. I tuck my head into his neck and breathe in, letting his scent add a wave of calm to my nerves.
“We’ve got you Tiny.”
“What happened? We were talking with mom and my knees almost gave out then we were running out the back door. I didn’t even realize we were running to you until I grabbed your hand. It’s like my wolf took over.”
Kota says over the pile of wood he made inside the rough stone clad circle.
“I felt your fear. This was probably just as bad as the locker room Bitty, what did they tell you?”
I let them get the fire started and just stare for a minute while I gather my thoughts. They sit on either side of Cam but facing towards me. I shift so I am sitting in Cam’s lap, my back to his broad chest. Kota plays with my fingers and Oliver brushes the exposed skin between the hem of my leggings and my sock. Cam has his arms loosely belted around my waist.
“Elena and Gentry think that we can override the pentagram magic. She said all of us have to be a part of it, including mates, and my dad will be there because she is his second chance mate.”
I take a deep breath in and let it out slowly. I can feel tears slowly rolling down my cheeks.
“Oh damn!” Kota squeezes my hand.
“Sh*t, Tiny, I’m sorry.”
Cam’s arms tighten.
“How can we help?” Oliver holds tight to my leg.
“I don’t know. I love working with her and now that she’s his mate, I might lose her.”
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.