Chapter 5

ERIN

I couldn't sleep.

Three hours after Marty's dramatic entrance at the brewery, I sat by the window of my tiny apartment, watching the street below. Every shadow could be him. Every sound might be his enforcers coming for me.

My phone—a cheap prepaid Maya had gotten me—buzzed with a text.

You okay up there? - M

Fine. Can't sleep. I typed back.

Want company?

Before I could respond, there was a soft knock at my door. But when I opened it, it wasn't Maya.

Jake stood there, the server from earlier, holding two steaming mugs. "Maya sent me," he said with a sheepish smile. "Said you might need some chamomile tea and a distraction."

I hesitated. I barely knew Jake, had only worked with him for two weeks. But there was something honest in his hazel eyes, something that reminded me of simpler times.

"Sure," I said, stepping aside.

He handed me a mug and settled into the worn armchair across from my spot by the window. "So, that was intense earlier."

I snorted. "That's one way to put it."

"Want to talk about it?"

"Not really."

"Want to talk about literally anything else?"

That made me smile, the first real smile I'd had all night. "Like what?"

"Like how you managed to get Alpha Connor to stand up to Marty Blackstone. That was legendary. The whole brewery's still talking about it."

"Great," I muttered. "Just what I need, more attention."

"Hey, not all attention is bad." Jake sipped his tea. "You stood up to an Alpha who wronged you, in front of everyone. Do you know how many wolves wish they had that courage?"

"It wasn't courage," I admitted. "It was survival."

Jake studied me for a moment. "Can I tell you something?"

I nodded.

"I ran away from my pack too," he said quietly. "Different reasons, but I know what it's like to start over. To become someone new." He paused. "I also know what it's like to keep secrets that feel like they're eating you alive."

My hand instinctively moved to my stomach. "I don't know what you mean."

"Sarah," he said gently, and something about the way he said my fake name made me look at him. "I can smell the changes in your scent. It's subtle, but... my sister just had a pup. I know what pregnancy smells like."

My blood went cold. "Who else knows?"

"Just me, as far as I can tell. And I won't say anything." He set down his mug. "But Erin, if Marty finds out—"

"He won't," I said firmly. "He can't."

"You sure about that? Because the way he looked at you tonight... he's not giving up."

I moved away from the window, pacing the small apartment. "What am I supposed to do? I can't run forever. But I can't go back either. Not after everything."

"Why did he really reject you?" Jake asked. "The bloodline thing is bullshit and everyone knows it."

I stopped pacing. "I don't know. He said it was pressure from the other Alphas, but there was something else. The night before he rejected me, he got a letter. He burned it immediately, but whatever was in it changed everything."

"A threat?"

"Maybe." I sank onto the couch. "But it doesn't matter now."

Jake was quiet for a moment. "You still love him."

It wasn't a question.

"Love isn't enough," I repeated what I'd said earlier.

"No," Jake agreed. "But sometimes it's a start."

Before I could respond, a howl pierced the night. Then another. And another. Pack calls, but not from Silver Ridge wolves.

Jake was on his feet immediately. "Stay here."

But I was already at the window. Below, I could see them—at least a dozen wolves in shifted form, surrounding the brewery. And at their head, a massive black wolf with a white streak across his chest.

Marty.

"He wouldn't," I breathed.

But he would. And he was.

My phone rang. Maya.

"Get to the safe room," she said without preamble. "Now."

"What safe room?"

"Behind the bookshelf in the bedroom. Jake knows. Go!"

Jake was already moving the bookshelf, revealing a hidden door. "Come on."

"This is insane," I said, but I followed him into what looked like a panic room—reinforced walls, supplies, even a small bathroom.

"Maya's had some interesting tenants over the years," Jake explained, locking the door behind us. "This room is completely scent-proof."

Outside, we could hear howling, then shouting, then the unmistakable sounds of a fight.

"They can't just attack," I said. "This is neutral territory. It would mean war."

"Unless they're not attacking," Jake said grimly. "If Marty's formally challenging Connor for the right to you..."

"He can't do that. I'm not pack anymore."

"But you were his mate. Some of the old laws..." Jake trailed off.

The sounds outside grew louder. Glass breaking. Snarls and yelps of pain.

"I have to stop this," I said, moving toward the door.

Jake blocked me. "Are you insane? You go out there, and whoever wins gets to claim you. That's how the old law works."

"People are getting hurt because of me!"

"People are getting hurt because your ex is a possessive asshole," Jake corrected.

A loud crash shook the building. Then, suddenly, silence.

We waited, barely breathing. Finally, after what felt like hours but was probably only minutes, there was a knock on the panic room door.

"It's over," Maya's voice called. "You can come out."

Jake opened the door cautiously. Maya stood there, blood on her shirt but not her own, judging by her steady stance.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Connor won," she said simply. "Marty's retreating. But..."

"But what?"

"He formally invoked the old law. The Challenge of Reclamation." Maya's expression was grim. "It hasn't been used in fifty years, but it's still valid."

"What does that mean?"

"It means," Connor said, appearing behind Maya, also bloodied but standing strong, "that he has thirty days to prove he's worthy of you. And if he succeeds..."

"The neutral territory can't protect me," I finished, my heart sinking.

Connor nodded. "I'm sorry, Erin. I did everything I could, but the old laws supersede my authority."

"So what happens now?"

"Now," Maya said, "we have thirty days to figure out how to beat him at his own game."

I sank into a chair, my hand on my belly. Thirty days. That would put me at almost three months pregnant. Still hideable, but barely.

"There is one way," Connor said slowly. "But you're not going to like it."

"What?"

"You could accept another wolf's claim. Mate with someone else. It would nullify Marty's challenge."

"That's insane," I said immediately.

"It's an option," Connor corrected. "Not a good one, but an option."

Jake shifted beside me, and when I looked at him, there was something in his eyes I hadn't noticed before. Interest? Concern? Something deeper?

"I'll do it," he said quietly. "If you need me to. I'll claim you."

The room went silent. Maya and Connor exchanged glances.

"Jake," I started.

"Just as protection," he added quickly. "A temporary thing. Until the thirty days pass."

I stared at him, this wolf I barely knew who was offering to tie his life to mine to save me from my ex. "Why would you do that?"

"Because nobody should be forced into something they don't want," he said simply. "And because I know what it's like to need a fresh start."

Outside, in the distance, another howl rose. Marty, calling to me. Even now, my wolf wanted to answer.

But the flutter in my belly reminded me why I couldn't.

"I need time to think," I said.

Connor nodded. "You have thirty days. Use them wisely."

As everyone filed out, leaving me alone with my racing thoughts, I wondered how my life had gotten so complicated. Two weeks ago, I was just a rejected wolf trying to disappear. Now I was at the center of a challenge that could start a pack war, carrying a secret that could change everything, with a stranger offering to mate with me for protection.

And somewhere out there, Marty was planning his next move.

The game had begun, and I didn't even know all the rules.

But one thing was certain—I wouldn't let him win. Not this time.

Not when I had so much more to protect than just myself.