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18
REID
“What kind of bug?” I ask, gripping the steering wheel as I drive down the forest road that connects the six-pack territories, on my way to the complex to pick up Serena.
“It’s a fucking virus or something, I don’t know. IT has been on it since they found it this morning,” Gray replies, and I can hear the irritation in his voice as it comes through the speakers of my car. “They’re still working on it, but what they have figured out is that it was specifically designed to corrupt certain types of programs. They say it was aimed to take down our border security.”
“And?” I bark, flexing my fingers around the steering wheel, my knuckles turning white.
“And it’s a good thing that we’ve got some smart fuckers on our IT unit, because whatever server the virus was planted on is separate from the one that houses our security system. I gu
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Alpha Reid 19
SERENA Did I really think I’d get away with it? Maybe. Admittedly, I didn’t really think things through, I just saw an opportunity and seized it. Of course it isn’t a far stretch for people to assume it was me, and they’re not wrong. I deserve to be yelled at. I deserve to be punished. Not protected. While Reid’s noble to stand up for me, I don’t deserve an ounce of his kindness, not after what I did last night. I couldn’t sleep afterwards- I snuck back into bed with the girls and spent the whole night agonizing over what I’d done, wondering what consequence my actions would have on these people who have been nothing but nice to me. When Reid said that whatever was on the thumb drive didn’t work, I nearly sobbed in relief. But then I realized that probably means I’ll have to try it again, and I’m not sure if I can. Even if I wasn’t currently the prime suspect, I almost didn’t go through with it the first time… how am I
Alpha Reid 20
REID The sound of screams wakes me from a dead sleep. I should be used to it by now- it’s a nightly occurrence with Serena sleeping in the room next door. I’m not, though, and each night of sitting by and doing nothing to intervene or comfort her is worse than the last. My wolf whines and paces, desperate to get to our mate and console her. If only I could fight her demons for her, find some way to rid her of the nightmares for good. Laying here and doing nothing while she suffers is excruciating, even moreso tonight than usual. Maybe it’s because we just fucked. Probably not the smartest move, given the state of everything, but it’s not like I set out after her with the intention to strip her naked on the lawn and give her the business. I can’t say I have any regrets, though, because that sex was fucking next level. I don’t know if it’s her or the bond or the chemistry between us that was always bound to combust, but just thi
Alpha Reid 21
SERENA As soon as I see Astrid standing in the kitchen, I know I’m screwed. I’ve avoided her for this long, but I suppose it was only a matter of time before I couldn’t anymore. I bet Fallon put her up to this, hoping Astrid could use her psychic powers on me to get the dirt. And since I’m basically grounded to the packhouse right now like a misbehaved teenager, I don’t have a good excuse to get out of this sit-down with her. The two of us head out to the patio and get comfortable on the sectional- well, as comfortable as I can possibly get considering I’m just a ball of anxious energy right now. The morning air has a chilly bite to it, and I wrap my hands around the paper coffee cup to warm them, trying my best not to look super fucking guilty in front of the one person who could blow my cover right now. I’m obviously failing at it because she’s watching me carefully, studying my every move as she sips her latte. “So…
Alpha Reid 22
REID After seeing Brock and Astrid out, I glance through the big picture window in the back of the packhouse to see that Serena’s still out on the patio. She’s curled up on the sectional with her knees pulled into her chest, brow furrowed, worrying her lower lip between her teeth. I’m not sure what she talked about with Astrid, but she’s obviously deep in thought, so I decide to leave her be for now. We need to talk, but it can wait a little longer. I stroll into the kitchen instead, grabbing the rest of the latte that Astrid brought for me and carrying it over to the sink to pour it down. As I go to pop the lid off, though, it catches on one side and I wind up splashing it all of the front of my white button-up shirt. Fucking great. I curse under my breath, pouring rest of the offending beverage down the sink and tossing the cup before I head upstairs to change. On my way to my bedroom, I pass by the door to
Alpha Reid 23
REID“So that’s all of it,” I sigh, leaning forward with my elbows on my knees and scrubbing a hand over my face.After Serena spilled her guts to me on the floor of my office, I asked the guys if we could meet up so I could disclose everything to them. I didn’t want to put her on the spot and make her rehash everything, so Brock offered up his place for us to gather and she stayed behind at my packhouse. Knowing I was dropping a bomb, I wanted to approach my friends with this before taking it to the six-pack council so we could get on the same page- and in the hopes that they’ll stand by me when I do have to break it to the council. As of right now, I’m still not sure how that’s going to go.It’s not just the five of us tonight- all of my friends brought their mates along since they’re also close to this situation, and because we’ve been trying to bring Chase int
Alpha Reid 24
SERENA I’m emotionally drained. Putting everything out there for Reid was a lot, and as cathartic as it was to get it off my chest, it was just as exhausting to rehash it all- I feel like I could sleep for a week straight. Now that everything’s out there in the open, it’s like I can think clearly for the first time in a long time. Clearly enough to realize that I should’ve done this sooner. I should’ve opened up and let myself trust Reid. As silly as it sounds, until that chat with Astrid, it never really occurred to me that I had the option of picking a side. That I had a choice. I had blinders on, conditioned to believe that there was only one way to save them. I’m still terrified that something could go wrong, but I believe Reid when he says he’ll do everything he can to get Olivia and my pack out alive. I hope he does, because if anything happens to my little sister, I’ll never be able to forgive myself. I’m not su
Alpha Reid 25
REID “Fuck,” I sputter as I hit the dirt, Serena’s forearm coming across my throat to hold me down. She leans her face in close to mine, a devilish smirk on her lips. “That’s twice in a row, tough guy,” she teases, waggling her eyebrows. All I can focus on at the moment is the way she’s straddling me, pinning me down with her lithe body resting on top of mine. The heat between her thighs is almost right where I want it- a few inches lower and she’d feel just how much. We’re both panting heavily from the exertion of sparring, but if it were my choice, we’d be doing something else to make us pant like this. I bring my hands to her legs, pressing my thumbs to her inner thighs as I run them all the way up to rest on her hips. “Guess you’re just that good,” I smirk. She leans in closer, her lips brushing mine as her long red hair drapes around our faces like a curtain. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say y
Alpha Reid 26
SERENA For some reason this feels like the calm before the storm. My lie bought us a little bit of time, but the monsters are still coming, and they’ll be here before we know it. Until then, I should try to embrace the good, right? Except every time I feel a little bit of happiness, it’s quickly followed by an overwhelming sense of guilt. Here I am, running free, suddenly living some semblance of a ‘normal’ life with friends and a mate, while my sister and pack suffer at the hands of a lunatic. What kind of person does that make me? It's so hard to sit back and do nothing. Reid says that we can’t show our hand before the big battle- that rather than go in and retrieve my people, we should wait to take out the shadow pack here, then carry out our rescue mission once the threat has been extinguished. He says that’s the best way to preserve the safety of the people I care about, but I can’t help but feel like I’m failing them by
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