Bride to the Alpha (The Wolf's Pet Book Two) by Aubrey Rose Read Free Book Online Page B

her thin frame, and her long hair hung in loose waves behind her. She must have taken out the braids before shifting to run; her hair was only slightly curled.
    “Well? Has he, human?”
    I blushed, thinking of the way Alekk had touched me in the sleigh.
    “No,” I said. “Not that it matters to you.”
    I held my head high, trying to assume a dignity I didn’t possess. Face it, I was a mess of red frizz with a human body. Leah was right to look down her nose at me. But her eyes softened in concern.
    “Be careful. Whatever he tells you, he’s only saying it for his own reasons.”
    “And what are his reasons?” I asked.
    “I don’t know.”
    “But you know he’s lying to me.” I arched my eyebrows in skepticism.
    “Don’t let yourself be one of his pawns. Don’t fall for him because of what he tells you.”
    I saw a twitch on the side of her lip. A crinkle of a frown that disappeared. And underneath it: jealousy.
    “Did you fall in love with him?” I asked.
    Leah turned away. Her profile was pale against the dark firs behind us.
    “There’s nothing more dangerous than trusting a man,” she said. Her eyes looked off, but she wasn’t seeing the frost on the branches. She wasn’t seeing anything, except maybe something from long, long ago. “Especially the Scarred Prince.”
    Around us, amid the trees, wolves skulked and sniffed. I didn’t want to say anything that could be overheard by them. The sisters might have spies among the soldiers. Hell, Alekk might have spies among the soldiers. Who was I to know who was the good guy and who was the bad guy?
    “How did he get his scars?” I asked instead.
    Leah dropped her eyes away from the trees.
    “Haven’t you heard the stories?” she asked. Her tone was half sneering.
    “I’ve heard legends,” I said. “I’ve heard fairy tales. But I never knew anyone who had known the Scarred Prince.”
    “You still don’t,” Leah said. “I don’t know him. Nobody knows him. Not truly. He doesn’t open up.”
    “But the scars?”
    Leah sighed, biting her lip. She, too, looked nervously around the trees where the wolves were congregating.
    “I’ve been witness for a few of his wounds,” she said. “Early on, right after Trax was killed, there were many wolves who challenged him for alpha status.”
    “Challenged?” That was what Blaise had been talking about before our birthday feast and the ceremony.
    “Have you never seen a wolf challenge his alpha?”
    I shook my head no.
    “It is an impressive fight, always. The only ones who challenged Alekk were the strongest of the security guards. They thought Alekk was too young, too immature to lead. And maybe they were right. But the gods must have disagreed with them, for Alekk always won the fights. At the cost of his skin.”
    “That’s where he got the scars?”
    “Some of them. The ones across his back were claw marks from the first contender. He’d knocked Alekk down and batted him around a bit, playing with him. Giving him a second chance. Alekk took it. Nobody thought he would win that first fight. But his back healed in stripes.”
    “And the contender?”
    “You don’t heal from a bite in your throat,” Leah said blankly. “Alekk played weak until he saw his chance, and then he lunged. He didn’t let go until the contender had stopped moving, and then he limped away to heal.”
    “And there were more contenders against him?” I asked incredulously. I couldn’t imagine how anyone who had seen Alekk kill someone would willingly fight against him.
    “You seem surprised. Were there no challenges in your pack?”
    “Never,” I said, thinking of my blind father. Then I stammered again, not wanting her to know how much I was a part of the pack. “I mean, not that I saw.”
    “I suppose a mere human wouldn’t be allowed to watch those ceremonial occasions,” Leah said, brushing my experience aside.
    “And that’s where he got the big scar?”
    Leah blinked slowly, her eyebrows