Fatal Temptation: Between Two Alphas

Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty

There’s screaming and cursing as Jace drags the witch away. I’ll deal with that situation later. © 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

For now, I’ve removed at least one threat.

Time to deal with the next one…

I stroke Mia’s head. “What do you think?” I whisper. “Ready to shift back now? We can run together

later, I promise.”

Her head swings up and down once, and then she’s morphing back. My hand stays on her. I can’t stop

touching her. Her skin is soft, so soft.

I want to hold her and kiss her and make love to her.

What we did in my dreams… it wasn’t nearly enough.

“All right,” my father says, and his voice echoes across the circle. “My son is awake! Our Alpha is alive!

Let’s go back to the square and celebrate. It is Cameron’s rule that will determine what happens with…

everything else.”

There are nods and murmurs of acceptance.

Someone drapes a robe over Mia’s shoulders. It’s Dr. Lee. “She isn’t fully recovered,” he says. And the

implication in his tone is clear: neither am I.

Before the crowd can disperse there is a marked hush.

“Hello Mother!” It’s Aaron.

The boy walks toward us, and the entire circle stills.

“Aaron, no!” Mia cries. She’s scared and sad and wounded. She doesn’t want her son to see her like

this.

“It’s okay, Momma.” The little boy smiles at her. “Jacelyn and I are safe. You’re safe now too.”

These are my children. I can hardly wrap my head around it.

The boy grins at me, his little smirk saying, ‘Come on, dad, get up to speed.’

I’m trying, son, I project to him.

He smiles so big, it’s clear he’s thrilled to have heard me.

I notice he has blond hair. Like mine. And green eyes. Also like mine.

I’m stunned.

And that little girl…my heart about doubles in size. She’s the spitting image of Mia.

The little boy puts his hand on mine. Conn rumbles with approval. The boy is strong and confident, an

alpha by birth and blood.

I breathe deep, committing his scent to memory, looking forward to a time when I can get to know him

more. I still cannot believe I have a son.

“Don’t send our pack away yet,” he tells me. “They need to know.”

“Know what,” I ask carefully.

“The truth,” he says simply. “Because if Auntie Morgan didn’t do what she did, then my sister would

die.”

I’m confused but I let him speak. His sister, the little girl, Jacelyn, looks fine.

The boy, Aaron, continues, sounding much older than a child. “It is a cruel fate that kept us from you,

Father. But had it not, then my sister would never have been born. And Merilee is meant to be on this

earth.”

There is a collective gasp from my pack, at my son’s… revelation.

“Yes,” Jacelyn agrees as she comes to stand on my other side. I wrap my arm around her instinctively.

“Everything has happened as it has needed to. So we can save Merilee. And we have to save her,

daddy. Because she will do great things...”

******

JACE

“What the hell, Morgan? All your talk about protecting my niece and nephew, when you’d already

compromised all of our safety!”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” she argues.

I keep my hand on her arm as I march her back toward the packhouses. Michail keeps pace with us.

He wasn’t tasked with the chore. He just has my back, a bit of added muscle should the situation call

for it.

But if this witch were to summon the same magic she did in the circle, I’m pretty sure we’d be burnt to a

crisp before we could even bring our wolves out.

I’m reminded of how easily she’d blasted me back at her house in California. And it occurs to me…

“You held yourself back.”

One shoulder jerks up defensively. “Contrary to what you might think, magic is intended to help, not

hurt others.”

The fire had been to defend herself not to harm my people. She would have escaped, I imagine, if she

hadn’t focused on protecting Mia too.

Hmm.

I take a deep breath. I’m riled up.

We all are.

And seeing what they did to Mia–my own guilt and culpability in bringing her here–I have to admit I’m

more mad at myself than I am this witch.

“Are you all right?” I ask quietly. “I mean, I don’t know all how your magic works. But you didn’t, uh,

overextend yourself, did you?”

Her eyes are big and bright when they swing to mine. That full mouth of hers gives a little twitch. “I’ll

live. I promise you.”

I stop and nod at Michail to go ahead without us. I’ll handle this one. I have a few things to say to her.

You sure? She’s dangerous.

Yeah, in more ways than one. “I’ve got her.”

Michail whistles a doomsday tune.

Morgan chuckles. When we’re alone, she says softly, “I’m sorry, Jace.”

I want to believe her, but … I don’t.

I don’t trust my mate.

Goddess, why is this happening to me?

“Do you see what you did? You put Mia in danger. She was nearly killed because of your selfish

actions.” This witch can’t possibly think what she did was right.

She blushes. “I never meant to hurt her.”

“And the kids? What about them?” I thought I knew this woman. Our trip back to the packlands had let

me see her with my niece and nephew.

She laughed and teased, wiped their noses and snuggled with them.

They love her. Call her Auntie Morgan.

She obviously loves them.

Or so I’d thought.

“I love those kids!” she screams, as if reading my mind.

And in that moment, something occurs to me. “You can’t go back… can you?” When she brought the

kids to my pack, there would have been repercussions.

“No,” she whispers. “Once the kids were within our grasp, the coven voted. They wanted to run more

tests–

“On my niece and nephew.”

She nods and looks away. “I wasn’t going to let that happen.”

“When I showed up, you saw an opportunity and you took it.”

“Yes.”

“That can’t be easy for you.”

She jerks a shoulder again. “It is, what it is…there is a bounty on my head.”

Sonofabitch.

I want to gather her up and kiss away her sadness.

“That’s the price I was going to demand, Jace,” she says softly. “Your pack’s protection.”

So that was her angle. “You know I’d give that to you anyway.”

“I know that …now.” She smiles. “Because I never would’ve broken out of those runes if you hadn’t

unlocked them.”