[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
Maxwell dropped Quinn s hand, stood, and tried to run for the
door, but he was too weak to get more than ten feet before he
collapsed again. Well, at least there was one benefit. The marble tile
was blessedly cool against his overheated body.
Get Ryan out of here before we have a blood bath in Phillip s
foyer, Danny commanded.
Mathew Edwards, Danny s twin, walked right over to Ryan, bent
down, and flipped him over his shoulder. Ryan struggled but there
wasn t much he could do against the massive linebacker. However, it
was Phillip who calmed Ryan with murmured words. The three of
them went off down the hall and the tension in the entranceway
dropped by more than half.
I m sorry. Maxwell felt idiotic. It seemed to be all he could
offer them. He d made a mess of their lives and all he could do was
give them a pathetically weak apology.
The situation is what it is. Getting angry and frustrated isn t
going to help matters. Danny turned and watched as the three men
disappeared. But that does explain why Ryan has been so furious.
You do realize what you ve cost him?
I do now. Maxwell had cost Ryan a potential mating partner. If
Quinn had gone along on the path fate had in store for him, Quinn and
his bear-shifting twin would have mated with Ryan and Phillip. Now
that Quinn was mated to a wolf, there was no guarantee that the four
of them Maxwell, Quinn, Phillip, and Ryan could mate in animal
form. With Quinn s help, Maxwell got back into the wheelchair.
Okay, let s give this a try. If anyone else has an issue with trying
to merge Maxwell into our sloth, I want you to leave now. I don t
52 Anitra Lynn McLeod
want Dylan distracted by anyone.
None of the other guys left. They did, however, keep their
speculative gazes on Maxwell. He had a feeling if he did anything
untoward, they were going to eat him. Swallowing hard, Maxwell
reached up and clasped Quinn s hand.
From behind the row of men came Dylan Peterson. He was big,
bald, and looked very unhappy at having to come within striking
distance of Maxwell. He edged toward him, waiting for Maxwell to
growl at him, but Maxwell didn t feel any urge to do so. In fact, the
closer Dylan came, the better Maxwell felt.
What is Dylan going to do? Quinn asked.
He s what we call the nexus. If your soul and Maxwell s soul are
clamoring to twin, he ll feel it.
Tentatively, Dylan came another step closer.
Well? Tyler asked.
Give him a damn minute to get situated, Danny snarled. When
he realized what he d done, Danny closed his eyes and shook his
head. Oh, shit. I m sorry, Tyler. I m edgy. Just please, give him a
chance to cut through his fear and see what he can feel.
I m not afraid, Dylan said, glaring at Danny.
Again, my apologies. Just please, tell me when you re ready.
Danny s worry was starting to show. This could hurt a member of his
sloth, but it might also destroy his nexus. Without one to twin souls,
their sloth would stagnate and die. From what Maxwell was able to
gather, that s what happened to the original animal-shifting groups.
I feel a tugging, but it s different. Dylan moved closer at such a
slow pace Maxwell had to bite his lips not to growl at him to hurry
up. Being impatient wasn t something Maxwell felt often, but right
now, he felt like his soul was practically screaming to fully connect to
Quinn. That Dylan felt only a mild tugging was not a good sign. Well,
there was one bright spot. If Maxwell really had fucked this up
beyond repair, he wasn t going to live long to regret it. Before he
could feel relief at that thought, he realized Quinn wouldn t live long,
Dangerous Alpha 53
either.
Maxwell tightened his grip on Quinn s hand.
Quinn gave him a squeeze then turned his attention onto Dylan,
who took another step.
It s stronger, but there s something really odd about the energy.
Yeah, he s a wolf, Derek said. Bears and wolves don t mix
well.
I don t know if that s it. Dylan came closer and his frowned
deepened. Do you feel anything from me?
Since Dylan posed the question to Quinn, Maxwell kept his mouth
shut. Quinn shrugged and said, Not really, but I don t know what to
feel for. Does it burn or tickle or what?
Dylan couldn t answer as he didn t know and none of the guys
behind him seemed able to explain what the sensation was like, so
Maxwell cleared his throat and said, I feel more peaceful when
you re closer, Dylan. However, I don t feel like I did the first time I
was twinned.
Quinn s hand tightened against Maxwell s. You ve done this
before? He looked and sound pissed off. Then where s your soul-
bond-twin-love-of-your-life now?
Maxwell looked Quinn right in the eye. He s dead.
Oh. Quinn s ire evaporated instantly. I m sorry.
Maxwell nodded then turned his attention to Dylan. Can you
twin us?
I can try. Dylan didn t sound that enthusiastic.
Wait. Derek stepped forward. Why are we risking our nexus?
Doesn t his group have one? Derek pointed at Maxwell.
There was a long pause of consideration.
Why don t we get him to try? Derek suggested.
Because that might pull Quinn into their group and we d lose
him. Danny s brows lowered in thought.
But it might not, Tyler said.
There are too many buts and maybes and I-don t-fucking-knows
54 Anitra Lynn McLeod
with this. Danny sighed. This is why He cut himself off from
finishing, but Maxwell had a pretty good idea of what Danny had
been about to say. This is why I didn t want to be the leader. Because
sometimes the leader had to make the tough calls that got people hurt.
Maxwell didn t envy Danny in the least. Although, he had gained a
new appreciation for the leader of his pack. Dealing with a bunch of
testosterone laden alpha males had to get wearisome if not downright
dangerous.
Matthew returned and wrapped his arm around Danny s shoulder.
What can I do?
As clear as it was that Danny wanted to lean on his much larger
twin, he didn t. He hugged him and drew strength from him, but
Danny no more expected Matthew to fix the situation than he
expected anyone else to.
Get everyone together. We re going on a road trip.
Woo-hoo! Road trip! Derek punched his fist in the air.
I don t think it s going to be that kind of road trip, Brandon
murmured.
Okay, look, just because this is all tense and different doesn t
mean we have to be a bunch of quivering dipshits. Derek looked
around at his brothers. I get that this is serious, but I also get that
being all uptight is only going to make it worse.
Again, he s warped, but right. Danny hugged Matthew. We
need to contact your pack leader.
That s where you want to go? Maxwell s eyebrows rose. If all
of you go stomping into Lone Pine, there really is going to be blood
bath. Only when there was a football game underway were
competing shifter groups allowed into another group s territory.
Danny shook his head. We re not going to stomp into their
territory. We want to meet them in a neutral area. Somewhere halfway
between our two territories.
And what good will that do? Maxwell already knew there was a
heap of bad feelings over the fact the Twin Pines Grizzlies had bested
Dangerous Alpha 55
the Lone Pine Wolves. Not just once, but twice. And by a massive
margin both times. Maxwell s brethren were proud creatures, and
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
