13: In-Laws

Before I could decide where exactly I was supposed to look without seeing something I couldn't erase from my memory, a short, brown-haired she-wolf approached us without a stitch of clothing on her body. Metal clamps decorated her breasts, and she smiled directly at my mate as though I wasn't standing beside him.

"Alpha Drexel. It's good to see you again."

Again?

My attention immediately shifted towards Alastor.

He'd been here before?

When?

"And it's nice to see you again, Pussy," Alastor replied.

I blinked.

Pussy?

Of course her name was Pussy.

What else would it be in a place like this? Margaret?

"Are you partaking in any of this today?" she asked.

"No. I'm with my Luna."

Finally, something sensible had come out of his mouth.

The woman's eyes travelled over me before returning to him.

"And so? Alpha Roland is with his, but that doesn't stop him from indulging."

She gestured towards the head table.

Naturally, I looked.

Then immediately wished curiosity wasn't one of my personality traits.

A heavily pregnant woman sat in one of the large chairs at the head table, calmly sipping her wine while the chaos around her continued as though this was an ordinary evening. She appeared maybe two years younger than me and didn't look angry, embarrassed or even particularly interested in what was happening around her.

Mostly, she looked bored.

Beside her was a large man who could only have been Alpha Roland, openly enjoying the taste of another woman's pussy while his pregnant mate sat only a few feet away.

Good Goddess.

I'd heard Sharptooth Pack was barbaric, but apparently the rumours had been conservative.

Then again, perhaps I had no room to judge.

I was mated to a man who had humiliated me in front of an entire dining hall simply because another wolf had kissed my cheek.

Maybe Alastor and Roland had more in common than I realized.

As though my thoughts had summoned his attention, Alpha Roland suddenly lifted his head.

His eyes found Alastor immediately.

He dismissed the woman beside him, reached for a handkerchief and wiped his mouth before rising from his chair.

"Alastor! You're early."

"And I'm glad I am because I would've missed the best part of the evening."

The two men laughed.

I stared at them.

What in Selene's name was happening?

These men had hated each other for years. There had been disputes between Drexel Forest and Sharptooth Pack long before Rachel was born, and I'd heard Alastor threaten Roland's life more times than I could remember.

Now they were laughing like two old friends who hadn't seen each other since last winter.

Something had changed.

And whatever it was, I had the unsettling feeling that I was about to find out.

Alastor walked forward and shook Roland's hand.

"Glad you're here," Roland said before gesturing towards the pregnant woman. "You remember my new Luna, Shirley?"

New Luna?

The woman stood, smoothing one hand over her heavily pregnant stomach before smiling at Alastor.

"Hello again, Alpha Alastor."

Again.

There was that word for the second time tonight.

"If I wasn't this heavily pregnant, I'd take a go around town with you," Shirley purred.

Alastor smiled. "That's kind of you."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

Apparently, I had arrived in the middle of several friendships nobody had bothered to tell me existed.

Roland finally turned his attention towards me.

His eyebrows rose.

"My, my."

He left the head table and approached me slowly.

"What a beauty."

Before I could move, he took my hand and pressed his lips against my palm.

I nearly gagged.

The scent of the woman lingering on his breath certainly didn't improve matters.

"Alastor," Roland said, still looking at me, "how do you feel about sharing your Luna?"

The atmosphere around my mate changed immediately.

"I don't like any man touching what is mine."

There was no laughter in his voice anymore.

Roland noticed it too.

"So that's off the table," Alastor finished.

Roland released my hand. "Very well."

At least one of them had enough sense to recognize when a joke was about to become a funeral.

Roland smiled again before returning his attention to Alastor.

"Plus, I think it's best we don't complicate things if we're to become in-laws."

My entire body went still.

For several seconds, I was convinced I'd misheard him.

I looked at Roland.

Then at Alastor.

"In-laws?"

Roland's grin widened. "Yes, Luna."

Something cold settled inside my stomach.

"Didn't your husband tell you?"

I slowly turned towards Alastor.

Roland reached for his wineglass and raised it casually, as though what he was about to say was nothing more important than announcing what was being served for dessert.

"Your daughter is being betrothed to my son, RJ."

The room disappeared.

For several seconds, I couldn't hear the laughter or the music. I couldn't hear the conversations surrounding us, and I didn't care what anyone else in that disgusting hall was doing.

All I heard was one word.

Daughter.

My daughter.

My six-year-old daughter.

The child Alastor had spent all afternoon suddenly showering with affection.

The little girl he'd fed candy even though he knew I wouldn't approve.

The daughter he'd helped dress, carried into Sharptooth territory in his arms and spent the entire evening treating more like his child than he had in years.

And somewhere only a few rooms away, Rachel was probably playing with toys, completely unaware that the adults around her had already started making decisions about the rest of her life.

I slowly turned towards Alastor.

He didn't look surprised.

He didn't look uncomfortable.

He simply raised his glass to his lips, took a slow drink and watched me over the rim.

Then he smiled.

My stomach dropped.

The candy.

The playing.

Helping her with her shoes.

The carriage.

The compliments.

That unnatural calmness I'd been questioning since the moment I returned home.

I had thought he was planning something.

I had been right.

Alastor hadn't brought us to Sharptooth Pack for dinner.

He had brought my daughter here to give her away.