“Didn’t know we had one ofthose. . .”
“And you call yourself Alpha?” I rolled my eyes—well, myeye. I hoped Greg would come soon . . . “Aren’t Alphas supposed to be all-knowing?”
Something I said destroyed Liam’s fragile tranquility. “Aboutthat.”
Ifrowned.
“I ate Morgan’sheart.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I heard. Did it taste black andbitter?”
“I’d rather not recall what it tasted like. The point is, if I hadn’t ingested it right after the duel, I wouldn’t have been able to connect our twopacks.”
“Okay. . .”
“But it wasn’t mine for thetaking.”
I cocked my unbandaged eyebrowup.
“Ness,youdefeated Morgan. That heart belonged toyou. Our pack . . . it belongs toyou.”
“What? What are you talkingabout?”
“You deserve to be Alpha, and I’m here to make thathappen.”
I dropped his hand as though the mere contact of his fingers could somehow transfer the link. “Um. No.” I clasped my fingers in my lap. “I most definitely don’t want to beAlpha.”
“Whynot?”
“Because that was never my ambition. I signed up to be your Second to help you. Now that that’s done, I want to go back to college and”—I shrugged—“live. Like, really live. Without having to scheme and run half-marathons and watch over myshoulder.”
He glanced at me through his long lashes. “Are youcertain?”
“I’ve never been more certain ofanything.”
“I owe you. So much. I owe youeverything.”
“You owe me nothing,Liam.”
“I do. Money, forstarters.”
“I don’t need anymoney.”
He raised a quizzicalbrow.
“At least, not right now.” Maybe once I spoke to Isobel and Nelson to return what their crazy son had givenme.
“You tell me as soon as that changes, allright?”
“Iwill.”
“And if you need anything else—and I mean,anything—come to me, and I’ll make ithappen.”
Inodded.
“I mean it,Ness.”
“I know youdo.”
