Echoes of Fire (The Mercury Pack #4)(65)

Feeling his mate stiffen, Bracken rubbed her arm as he glared at Kathy. “I’ve told you once before, Madisyn is what I need. Just her. I’ve never wanted anything or anyone as much as I want—”

“The bond,” Kathy finished. “It’s the bond pulling at you, not her.”

“I think you’ve said enough,” Nick rumbled, face hard as stone, but Kathy tried to speak again. He shook his head, stepping forward. “No, you’re done. Now you’ll listen. I agree with Madisyn that your concern for Bracken comes from a good place. But nothing you’ve done or said here today was good. He’s a grown man. He knows what he wants and needs. He knows his own mind. And you had no right to interfere, in any case.”

Shaya sidled up to her mate. “Your problem, Kathy, is that you think being the Alpha’s mother gives you a special pass to take liberties. You think it gives you some authority over the rest of the pack. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had to remind you who’s Alpha female here. You’re a strong woman with strong opinions, I get it. But what you did today—displaying so much arrogance as to think you know best for someone else and have the God-given right to play with people this way—didn’t show strength. It showed weakness.”

Cheeks flushed, lips pressed into a tight line, Kathy marched up the curved staircase.

Nick turned to Bracken. “I know her well. There’s more to what she did than this simply being her opinion about what’s best for you. Something she’s too proud to share. I’m just not sure what it is. In any case, Shaya and I will deal with this. You and Madisyn go enjoy your evening.”

As the Alphas trailed after Kathy, Bracken rubbed a hand over his jaw. “Don’t know about you, baby, but I’m done with socializing for the day.”

“Same here,” said Madisyn.

He rested his forehead on hers. “I’ll understand if you’d rather go back to your place, but I’d still like you to come to my lodge.”

She would rather go back to her place. Would rather be at home where she could lick her wounds. But that would hurt him, and Kathy had already done plenty of that. Madisyn forced a smile, knowing it was weak. “Then, let’s go. I want to see where you live,” she added truthfully.

They grabbed her overnight bag from the trunk of his SUV and headed into the forest. Madisyn rolled back her shoulders, relieved to escape the beating glare of the sun. Now if she could just shake off the desire to burn off Kathy’s eyebrows, she’d be fine.

As they traipsed through the woods, winding their way through tall trees that seemed to go on forever, she glanced around, taking in the lush greenery and pretty wildflowers. Leaves, twigs, and pine needles crunched beneath their feet. Well, her feet. Bracken walked in complete silence.

In the distance, she could hear the kids laughing and shrieking. Here, though, there was only the chatter of squirrels, the chirping of birds, and the creaking of the branches that shuddered in the light breeze. No more scents of food. The air, fresh and cool, smelled of pine, moss, wildflowers, and sun-warmed earth.

Away from watchful eyes, her cat’s agitation began to slip away, though she’d still like to drag out a pawful of Kathy’s hair.

For a while, Madisyn and Bracken walked in silence. One thing neither of them had ever had a problem with was a shared silence. It never felt awkward. Never made Madisyn feel compelled to fill it with senseless chitchat. But right then, the silence was tense with things unsaid.

Bracken linked his fingers with hers and guided her away from a prickly shrub as he said, “I’m sorry you had to deal with that shit.”

“I’m sorry we had to deal with it. It was me she tried to hurt. But it was you who she did hurt.”

“You know Kathy was wrong, don’t you?” he asked, worried by the blank expression on her face. “I didn’t feel anything for Shiloh. I was curious about her. Intrigued. I didn’t care for her. I don’t even know her.”

“I know that,” Madisyn assured him, stepping over crisscrossing tree roots.

“But what Kathy said still struck a nerve, didn’t it?”

Yeah, it had. She was still feeling the sting of Kathy’s bluntly delivered: “He didn’t even want you until he realized you were mates.” And then there was what she’d said to Bracken: “It’s the bond pulling at you, not her.”

Bracken squeezed her hand. “Don’t let Kathy or anyone else make you doubt me or what we have. Don’t.”

It was hard not to, since some of the things that the woman had said were right.

“You saw me and Shiloh in the same setting tonight. Did it look like there was anything between us?”

Well, no. He hadn’t spent time staring at Shiloh, hadn’t tried talking with her, hadn’t joined her group at any point, nor had he actively avoided her as if any contact would be awkward. The margay hadn’t flirted with him. Hadn’t spared him sultry looks or tried to engage him in conversation. But then, Shiloh didn’t really try to engage anyone in conversation. She was more aloof than anyone Madisyn had ever met.

“She spoke all of one sentence to me today. She said that you’ll be good for me, told me not to fuck this up, and then she walked away.”

Madisyn’s brow creased. “I didn’t notice you two talking.” She kicked a pebble and watched it skitter into the shrubbery. And yeah, maybe she’d kicked it harder than necessary.