An Alpha's Choice (Talon Pack #2)(45)

He’d fight himself bloody for his future, his Brynn.

And soon, she’d know that.

Soon.





Chapter Twelve


Brynn had acted rashly and without thinking. She knew that. And yet she’d pushed Finn out of her arms, her bed, her life because she’d been afraid of taking a leap and a chance with him. She’d thought she would be able to handle the emptiness, but instead, had panicked. She knew that if she’d just thought for a moment, she’d have been able to breathe. Just because they didn’t have a bond, didn’t mean they couldn’t work it out. Plenty of wolves had done so in the past and had somehow made it through.

Those wolves, however, weren’t in the same position she and Finn were.

In those pairings, neither felt the urge to mate, but over time, developed a bond between them. In her and Finn’s case, it was horribly different.

And, of course, if she kept dwelling on what had happened, that would be the only thing she did for this lifetime. She didn’t know what would come next with Finn, but for now, she needed to take a shower and actually find a way to be the Alpha’s sister and not someone who wanted to be curled into the fetal position and cry until there were no more tears. She was already far too close to the latter for comfort.

While she didn’t want to wash Finn’s scent off completely, it was too much right then to have him on her in the potency it was. Her wolf could barely think with Finn in her pores.

She quickly showered, not lingering since she didn’t want to stop moving enough to think. If she just kept going, kept working on the next part of her life, then she’d be fine. If she paused for too long, then her mind and heart would take over, the helplessness would get the better of her.

As soon as she pulled on a pair of jeans and a tank, someone knocked on her front door. For a moment, an agonizingly precious moment, she thought it was Finn. Then she inhaled and scented Ryder.

Of course, it would be Ryder. The others in her family would have been able to feel her wolf if they were of the hierarchy, but it made sense it would be Ryder who showed up. It wasn’t that she was the closest to him, as she felt as if she were close to each of her siblings and cousins, but he was the only one who knew the truth about her relationship with Finn. Or at least knew what had come before she’d given in to the temptation of a future that would never come.

Enough.

She ran a hand through her wet hair and went to open the door, doing her best to keep her emotions out of her eyes.

From the look on Ryder’s face, it didn’t work.

His gaze traveled to the bite on her shoulder and his eyes widened. He met her gaze once more with an expectant look.

“It didn’t work,” she muttered. She would not cry. She’d done enough of that already.

Ryder stepped closer, his arms outstretched. “Come here, little sister.”

She sank into his arms, wrapping hers around his waist. He closed the door behind them as she rested her cheek on his chest. When his arms hugged her tightly, she almost broke, almost let more tears fall, but she held strong.

She’d been the one to push Finn out of the house so she would have to deal with the consequences. Crying about it wouldn’t help anyone.

Ryder patted her back awkwardly then moved back, his brows furrowed. She held back a snort since it wasn’t the right time to laugh. Her brother did well with the hugs, but sometimes, it was as if he had no idea what to do with the emotions inside of him. Of course, she couldn’t blame him since she was in the same boat. Their father had f*cked them over in more ways than one.

“Do you want something to drink?” she asked, her voice raw. “I need some tea.”

“Add some honey to it, Brynn. Your throat needs it. And I’ll take a cup since you’re making it.”

She shrugged but started heating the water using her teapot. There were faster ways to make tea these days, but nothing tasted as good as her old pot that had gotten her through hell. Ryder got the cups down and the jar of honey while she looked through the tea leaves to pick what she wanted. No bags for her.

“Are you going to tell me what happened?” he asked once he’d sat down at the breakfast bar, leaning on his forearms.

“I already told you.” She pointed to her neck. “It didn’t work.”

“Your way with words knows no bounds,” he said dryly. “Now tell me. What didn’t work exactly?”

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath. “I told Finn about the mating. Told him everything.” Well, not everything. If she hadn’t kicked him out, she’d have told him everything about her—about her past, her fears, her needs. But she’d lost him before she’d truly had him. That wasn’t solely on the moon goddess. Brynn held her faults, as well.

“And?” He cleared his throat. “From the mark on your throat, I take it something happened.”

She didn’t blush, but it was close. “He looked broken and told me why he thought he didn’t feel the bond.” She ignored the pain in her heart. “We decided to try the mating anyway. Figured maybe it would work even if he didn’t feel the pull I did.”

“But it didn’t work.”

She shook her head. Thankfully, she didn’t cry. The teapot whistled, and she started steeping their tea. “It was…it was the best thing I’ve ever felt. And yet the worst thing, since I knew there should have been more.”