Tangled

91 Ava Clearing the Air (0)

91 Ava: Clearing the Air (I)

All my thoughts circle into some sort of insane melodrama right out of Selene’s favorite TV show, and I slap my hands against my face, rubbing hard against my cheeks, as though I can push the tears right back into my eyes.

“Sorry,” I say, as Lucas rests a worried hand against my back, stroking me like you would pet a puppy. It’s cute.

He doesn’t seem to know what to do with me, while

I’m just grateful that he’s trying.

Once I’m sure my tears are gone, I smile up at him. “I’m just frazzled.”

“You’ve been through a lot. Did I upset you when I took -the phone call?”

“No!” The word bursts from me in horror. Does he

think I’m that kind of person, who gets upset when he has to do important things instead of watching me sit in a hospital bed? “Not at all.”

He blows out a breath in what I’m sure is massive relief. No one wants a mate that high maintenance. “Are you upset that I have to leave?”

DE

91 Ava: Clearing the Air (1)

I cringe. “It isn’t that.” I just came to some insane levels of assumptions. “Why… do you have to go?”

“Ah.” Now he looks uncomfortable, and takes a seat on my bed, grabbing my hand.

Oh, God. This can’t be good.

“Once we were safe, Kellan–my beta–led a force of my men into the heart of the Blackwood pack.” I must not look devastated enough, because he clarifies, “In

an act of war.”

some sort of input from me, I nod

family and Alpha Renard escaped, but the territory is under our control.”

I nod again.

over your pack,” he says, as if

I tilt my head. “I don’t care what happens to them.” Too bad all the important people

is in the hospital. She’s in critical condition due

Ava: Clearing the Air (1)

of things right now. Like sadness, anxiety, worry, or other emotions that would

of vengeance in my soul that is happy at

a raging psychopath. He’s treating me so carefully as he tells me all these things, and not a single one

between mine. He must think I need comfort,

done. We are working on disavowing every wolf from the Blackwood Pack and integrating them into ours, or letting them go as rogues. I’ll be back every few days. Right now, another alpha is helping me

I assure him. “But before you go, I have to

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Clearing the

something.”

be Clayton; that’s why he called. Maybe

am yet, but they’ll figure it out soon. I have to head this off

his watch. “I only have a few minutes. There’s a flight tonight that I

minutes is all I need. I just need you to promise to listen without getting

tenses, but his face is admirably calm with my words. “Whatever you have to tell me, don’t worry, Ava. I won’t

but I don’t have time to worry about them. “When

mine, and his brows come together in

rogues in Cedarwood who

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the Air

heat without a

and I freeze.

you know about

been under the impression you

that’s why he looked at me with such

looked into you. It took us a long time. to get someone into the pack to get the information, but I heard

and his thumb rubs over the back of my hand, over and over, in

contrition.

had just kept my head out of my ass, I would have brought you back with me that night. You would have been safe. I was so focused on how I felt about your alpha that I didn’t stop to think that I