When Robyn gets stranded in the woods one day with none other than her high-school crush, the last thing on her mind is coming face-to-face with who he might be beneath the skin.
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For two years Robyn Hale successfully managed to hide her inexpli...
The first rays of the sun peeped in through the gaps in the curtain. Robyn opened her eyes lazily, seeing her room bathed in orange light and hearing the birds chirping. The projector was still on and the image of the night sky was faint on the ceiling. She stretched and rolled over, colliding into Ray's chest.
His skin was velvety and warm. Without intending to she snuggled into him and breathed him in. The steady rise and fall of his chest lulled her into sleep again.
When Robyn woke next the projector was gone and her bed was empty of Ray. She lied there, staring at the ceiling for a while, already missing him and wishing he had woken her up before leaving. They could have had breakfast together.
Her eyes wandered off to the clock and she saw it was just past nine. As she got up she heard paper crumple under her elbow.
Good morning Shortcake Sorry I had to leave early. I'll miss you, Ray
Robyn noticed he had written his number underneath, asking her to call anytime. She fell back on her pillow, holding the note close to her chest and smiling wide.
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Since last night, Ray felt restless, more than usual. If it wasn't for his mate next to him he would have had a sleepless night. His restlessness grew as he left Robyn's house and headed to the pack house.
His father was in his office, barking orders to Victor and Steve. Nick was looking displeased and agitated, standing quietly by the wall. For a moment, Ray felt disoriented walking into the frenzy.
"Dad, what's going on?" Victor and Steve left, along with a couple more members of the pack. They scurried away faster as they saw Ray enter.
Andrew removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes tiredly. It looked like he definitely had a sleepless night. He wore them again and looked at Ray.
"We're collaborating with the other packs for this war," he announced for the second time that morning.
Ray stood still as if that would allow him to absorb the information better. He stole a glance at Nick, who wasn't looking at him. Nick looked more like he wanted to run away before having to face his pack again.
"What? What happened? Until yesterday you didn't want to..." he fumbled with words, "Nick?" Ray looked at him again, but Nick crossed his arms in response.
"I met the Alpha last night," Andrew supplied.
Ray stared at him at a complete loss for words.
"Alpha Ulric, an exact copy of his father and..." he exhaled, recollecting himself, "he's powerful, Ray. If we don't get help then... Then this time it will be our pack that will face the same fate as they did--I can't allow that," Andrew shook his head vigorously.
"But, Topaz pack too? Isn't Ruby pack enough?" Nick spoke for the first time, he's voice sounding strained.
"No, we need good tactitians. We need all the help we can get--Ulric, he's--there's something about him, Ray," the way Andrew looked at him made Ray feel restless all over again.
