ONLY ONE CAN WIN. Volunteering to duel alongside Liam Kolane against the ruthless Creek Alpha could get Ness killed, but the alternative, leaving her hot-headed Alpha to die alone in the dueling ring isn't an option. Not even when he places ridiculous conditions on her, like not spending time alone with August, her intended mate. Ness didn't want a mate, but that was before August stepped back into her life, before he picked up the scattered pieces of her heart. Between their shared history and the magical tether that binds them, Ness finds herself falling dangerously hard for the sexy shifter. But Liam's heart is on the line. A heart that still beats for Ness. Only one man can win her love, the same way only one Alpha can rise from the duel. Let the fight begin...
Chapter 1 1
M
inutes ago,
I volunteered to be my ex's Second in his duel against the ruthless Creek Alpha. In other words, I signed up to referee a fight-to-the-death between the two most powerful werewolves in Colorado.
Both my heart and stomach were a mess of nerves, but not for the same reasons. Where my heart pounded with dread, my stomach clenched from my mate's heightened pulse.
I craned my neck and squinted into the bright midday sun until I located August standing on the deck overlooking the lawn, light-brown skin a shade paler than usual, and the spray of freckles across his nose and cheekbones a shade darker.
I bit my lower lip. He was about to get a lot angrier once he learned the extent of my deal with Liam. Even though I itched to touch my navel that was fluttering with August's fury, I didn't want to draw attention to our bond, so I clenched my fingers into fists and locked them against the frayed hem of my cut-offs.
Liam strode ahead of me onto the sun-soaked lawn of the inn. "Set Alex Morgan free!" he bellowed to the males of my pack holding Everest's murderer.
Blue eyes flashing with confusion, my uncle leaned over the wooden railing of the inn's deck. "Free? He murdered my son, Liam!"
Releasing the enemy Alpha's son was a risky move, but it was the only one that gave us leverage on this godforsaken duel. By cutting Alex loose, Liam and I were buying time to figure out how Cassandra Morgan defeated the Pine Pack Alpha. Even though Liam wasn't convinced she'd cheated, I was. Julian had thrown up after biting her. A throatful of fur and blood shouldn't have upset a werewolf's stomach. My theory was that she'd rubbed a toxic but odorless lotion into her skin, odorless because Julian's Second inspected the Creek Alpha's body before the duel and didn't notice anything amiss.
Cole freed Alex's arm and stepped aside.
"Watt, let Alex go!" Liam repeated, voice clapping the air.
Color darkening his jaw, August all but tossed Alex's arm, making the Creek shifter stumble. The boy steadied himself against the railing, then pushed his blond hair off his bruised face-the Boulders who'd held him captive had done on a number on him-and started down the deck's staircase, a small limp in his gait, probably a result of my pack's roughness. The limp didn't damage his self-assurance, though. His confidence was as potent as the scent of day-old sweat and caked blood that wafted from his body. I backed away as he passed me, then backed away some more when his gaze zipped over me.
The boy might've resembled a Renaissance cherub with his golden curls and arresting violet eyes, but as far as I was concerned, he was the devil.
Liam stepped in front of me. "Eyes off my wolf."
I cringed. Technically, Liam was my Alpha, so I was his wolf, but I sensed that wasn't how he'd meant it. And from the heightened pounding inside my abdomen, I took it August sensed the insinuation too.
I looked over my shoulder, imploring him with my eyes to calm down. After a moment, the pulsing quieted. Not to say it became quiet. Oh no. My navel still ticked like a time bomb, but the sensation stopped overwhelming all my other senses. I returned my attention to Cassandra Morgan, who'd finally cloaked her naked body in a white sheath that made her look more wraith than werewolf.
"Alexander Morgan." Tipping her face down toward her son, Cassandra ran her knuckles over his cheek.
Alex wasn't short-he had a good three or four inches on my five-seven stature-yet the top of his head only reached Cassandra's chin.
Suddenly, the same hand that had caressed him slapped him. Hard.
Alex jerked in surprise. "What was that for?"
"Scarin' your poor old ma. Now"-she turned the full force of her tapered blue eyes on Liam-"state your terms, Kolane."
I sidled up to Liam. What sort of message did cowering behind my Alpha like a frightened pup send? Definitely not the right one. I didn't think I could ever inspire fear in someone, but I hoped to come across as a worthy enemy.
I was so close to Liam that I could feel the steady beat of his heart. Would it still be drumming had I not raised my hand to be his Second? The memory of Cassandra eating Julian Matz's heart to acquire his link to the Pine Pack had my gaze drifting over the field, toward the sheet-shrouded body of the fallen Alpha. Bile surged up my throat at the sight of the ruby stains that had bloomed over the white cotton. I gritted my teeth.
"As discussed, Ness and I will set the date and location for the venue, and we don't need to give you more than a half-day's notice," Liam said.
"I'm not at your beck-and-call."
"Then we don't have a deal."
Cassandra pursed her lips. "I agree to the twelve-hour notice, but we duel before summer's end."
"We duel when my Second and I decide," Liam answered.
"Be sensible, Kolane. We have packs to govern and care for. It's not fair to them to drag it out. Let's get this over with as soon as possible. I'm sure it's in your best interest, too."
Was it in our best interest, or simply in hers?
Liam peered down at me. "Ness?"
Summer would end in a little over a month. Would that be long enough?
Even though I hated giving Cassandra an inch, I nodded.
Liam focused on the Creek Alpha again. "Before summer ends it is. But, Morgan, if your son, or any other Creek for that matter"-Liam's brown gaze surfed over the field dotted with shifters in skin before returning to Cassandra-"if any of them so much as harm my wolves or their families, your son and cousin will be executed without trial and without contest."
Cassandra's cousin, who'd posed as a werewolf-hating hunter for decades in order to gather information on our pack, eyed Liam and me through the wire-rimmed bifocals propped on the bridge of his nose while thumbing his earlobe.
"Alex will behave, just like I said he would." Cassandra wrapped a hand around her son's wrist.
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