ALPHA KENT MICHAELS “What do you mean, he’s not dead? The bomb went off on time and in his office where he was. You said the package would be there on time. How did it not kill him? No one has seen him, so I assumed it worked.” I angrily ask my informant. I scowl at the weakling, shaking in fear before me. I begin pacing in my office, trying to think where we went wrong. "The bomb went off just outside of his office and he wasn’t injured at all. One of his employees was. He rushed her to the hospital where he’s stayed by her side since. From what I have been told, she is his mate, and she is human. She could be your way in, his weakness.” I turn and look at my informant dubiously. How stupid does he think I am? No Alpha in history has ever had a human for a mate. Sure, humans are sometimes fated mates to shifters, but never to the Alpha. Alphas need a strong wolf to continue their bloodline, not taint it with human weaknesses. As I begin my shift to kill my dumbass informant for his

ROSE We exit the hospital and there are 3 big, black SUVs parked in the semi-circle drive, waiting on us. Justin wheels me up to the rear passenger side of the middle SUV and opens the door. He takes my hand as I climb up into the vehicle and I see Melinda placing the last of the bags in the rear cargo area, right next to all my flower arrangements. She gets in next to me and covers me with my new fleece blanket, knowing that I’ll be cold during our drive. Justin rounds the hood and gets into the driver’s seat. “Why are there extra vehicles with us?” I ask when I realize they are pulling out with us, keeping my SUV in the middle. “It’s the other part of the security team. Now that you are no longer a patient, we are all vacating hospital property.” Justin answers in a no-nonsense fashion and I just nod. I really don’t pay any attention to my surroundings after that. I just look at my phone, hoping Tyson texts again, meanwhile thinking about the days I got to spend with him, wishing

TYSON It just about breaks me to leave Rose. I can see it in her eyes that she wants me to stay the night, but she won’t ask, knowing I have to fix the fuck up that the media just reported. Already, I can see my stock prices dropping. I have a well-run company, but if they fall too much, it could cause a lot of trouble. It takes everything I have within me to keep my head facing forward and not turn around. If I do, I won’t be leaving her hospital room tonight. As the door closes, I turn to the two guards on duty tonight. George and Ike. “Keep your Luna safe.” They nod in affirmation as I leave the hospital property, my heart breaking as I go. Zeus is in bits inside my head. He wants me to turn back around but understands that the future of the pack relies on Evans Enterprises money. If we don’t rebound from this fast, it could be catastrophic, losses spanning across all subsidiaries. I’ve worked my ass off to expand the business since I took over from Dad. I don’t want to sell off a

ROSE I wake slowly and realize I am not in pain, and I’m surrounded by a blanket of warmth. I try to snuggle back into my heaven when I feel my blanket move. I open my eyes and I’m staring into the center of a naked chest. I breathe in and catch his scent, it’s Tyson. When did he get here? And why is he here? Why is he shirtless too? I stare at his amazing chest, and I quickly come to the conclusion, I don’t really care why he is shirtless or even why he is here. He’s here. That’s all that matters to me right now. Gawd, I missed him. I inhale deeply and I realize, I haven’t actually seen his chest before. He’s always had a shirt on. His tanned skin is ripped with toned and tight muscles at his pecs and abs. He has a tattoo on his chest that spans across both sides, up over his bulky shoulders and down onto his biceps. They look like thorny vines with roses, but in the dark of my room and under the covers, I can’t be sure. Whatever it is of, its sexy! Sinfully sexy!! I lean forward ju

ROSE When I come out of my room, I am smiling like a crazy drunk person. Tyson wants to date me. He wants an actual relationship! My brain just can’t quite wrap around that, but it makes me seriously happy. I emerge into the kitchen to find Tyson sitting at the island, drinking a mug of coffee with Maddie on the stool next to him. She is fully dressed and ready for breakfast. It looks like she is explaining the plot to the current vampire novel she’s reading. She gets so animated and talks with her hands when she’s excited about something. It’s adorable. I walk up and kiss her cheek. “Good morning, sweet pea. Sleep well?” “Good morning, Mama! You look better today! I was just telling Tyson about my book. It’s really good but I don’t think I convinced him to read it.” “Oh, is that what you were trying to do, little one? Well. It sounds like a very interesting book, unfortunately I don’t get much time to read for pleasure.” Tyson says with a big laugh. “Well, that’s sad,” Maddie say