Rook grabs my wrist and forces my hand away from his mouth, while his other hand comes down to hold my hip. “Sinclair, it’syouwho doesn’t know who Alpha Bowen is. I get that you have some preconceived notions about him. It’s understandable. Cockatrices love gossip almost as much as they love a good rock. But—”
I slice my hand through the air, cutting him off. What is he talking about? Why isn’t he taking this seriously? I step back from him and shake my head.
Wait... How the hell did he get in here in the first place?
My mind races as I try to make sense of what’s going on. I take Rook in,reallylooking at him for the first time since my blindfold was lifted. He’s not in the prison guard’s uniform that I’m used to seeing him in. His shirt is white and crisp, his slacks are ash gray and creased. He doesn’t look like someone who broke into a house to rescue the girl he loves from the big bad monster alpha.
Rook holds his hands out, and I can see thewait, it’s not what you thinkon his lips. My face scrunches up in disgust. “Youworkfor him?” I ask, my eyes screaming betrayal and my voice wobbly with disbelief.
“What? No!” Rook declares, and I’m instantly confused again.
“What the hell is going on then? Are you here to rescue me or hand me over?” I demand, my voice suddenly reaching dolphin-level octaves as I grow a smidge hysterical.
Rook’s eyes turn pleading, and he takes a step toward me. My body reacts instinctively, and I reach out to take his outstretched hands before I realize what I’m doing. I yank my hands out of his and back up a step.
“Explain without touching me. My body apparently can’t be trusted,” I admit.
He gives me a small, dimple-filled smile, and my brain gives a dreamy sigh against my will.
Goddamn dimples.
“Sunrise. I’m absolutely here to rescue you,” he tells me with conviction.
Relief floods me.
“And I’m also here to hand you over,” he adds, and it’s like he just poured ice water all over my relief but then set it on fire just to fuck with me.
I open my mouth to yell at him, but he cuts me off.
“Sinclair, my name is Rook Bowen.”
My mind hits the brakes so hard that a screech and the smell of burning rubber fills my head and nose.I fucked my future mate’s brother?Well, shit. Now Alpha Bowen is going to kill us both.
Rook narrows his turquoise eyes at the expression on my face. “Why do I still feel like you’re not getting it?”
“Oh, I get it. Your psycho brother is going to take us both out. What the hell were you thinking?” I snap.
“What?” Rook replies, and I feel like my mind is going to explode. I’m getting really fucking tired of feeling confused. He shakes his head at me. “No, Sinclair.Iam Alpha Bowen.”
I blink at him.
He...I’m...what?
My mind stutters to a stop. Just puts on the E-brake and leaves me there to idle.
I stare at him. He stares at me. I can’t process it. It’s like my brain-computer crashed. I just see that white unfinished circle that indicates that things are loading, only nothing ever does. I need to be rebooted or something.
“Sinclair?”
I shake my head and run my fingers through my hair—my hair that’s currently blinking from color to color, like even my strands are confused as fuck and don’t know what to do. I realize numbly that my hands are trembling.
I shake my head and drop my hand. “You...youcan’tbe Alpha Bowen. He’s an evil, conniving prick who goes around claiming lounges because he’s a power-hungry douche.”
Rook grimaces. “People say all kinds of shit about me. You’ll have to make up your mind about all of that. But IamAlpha Bowen,” he repeats, his eyes wary even though his tone is firm, like he wants to make sure there’s no doubt in my mind that he’s telling the truth.
Suddenly, the stop sign that my brain’s been stuck at implodes. Everything rushes up as the shocking realization of what he’s telling me comes flooding through me like a dam bursting.
A choked, strangled noise bursts out of my throat that sounds like a mortifying sob-hiccup.
