“What, Parker?”
“I left him. For over a year.”
“Sure. Right.”
He glares at me for a moment then he sighs, his shoulders sagging. “I did.”
“Why?”
“So he could have you. I wanted him to be okay more than I wanted him for myself.”
I lick my suddenly dry lips. “But you came back. He still chose you.”
Parker shakes his head slowly, a sad smile twisting his mouth. “He just didn’t want me to leave him again. He was going to go through with it.”
“Why are you telling me this right now?”
He sighs again. “Because he’s what I would choose if I won Middle Ground. If I was you, that’s what I’d choose. I’d do whatever I could to get him away from me. That’s the only way everything will be okay. With our packs. With any of us.”
I turn and walk away and down the path with a little less anger than I was filled with before. I hate how right he is and I hate that he told me he left Drew. And I hate even more that it breaks my heart to know he did it.
Chapter Twenty-five
Cross
“We went over the rules for Middle Ground with each of you when you signed up to participate, but we'll go over them again now before we get started, just as a reminder.”
I can not believe she signed up to fight. I can not believe I am sitting here waiting to watch her. I mean, I can believe both of those things, but neither of them make me very happy.
“The rules are simple. No shifting. No weapons of any kind. No accepting outside help,” Alpha Tinsley goes on.
I'd probably want to come watch the fights if Genie wasn't involved. I'd probably make a couple of bets. But my wolf, and me as a direct result, is anxious. And excited. We are a physical people. We like competitions. We like work. We like to fuck. And we love to fight. It's in our nature. I am curious about how the female who was supposed to be my perfect match might move and react. I want to see her win. I can't help it. My wolf is moving like a wrecking ball inside me because he wants to watch her win, too. But if someone hurts her, that wrecking ball will free itself and there's nothing I'll be able to do to stop it.
“For those who have multiple fights tonight, you must win each one before you can be declared a winner. We know some of you have placed bets. We don't oversee those bets, but we do expect them to be carried out and handled fairly.”
Wait. Multiple fights? Did Genie sign up for multiple fights? How many challengers does she have?
“Calm down,” Parker says from beside me. “She's fine.”
“Do you know how many people challenged her?”
He gives me a flat look. “I don't know, Cross. How many females have been showering you with attention since we got here?”
A lot, but that's no reason to challenge Genie. “So what?”
Parker blinks dramatically. “Cross. You're clueless but not stupid. You need a Luna and they all know it. Genie is a threat to any potential Luna you'd take.”
“Oh.” Maybe I am stupid because that didn't occur to me.
He turns his head slightly, still giving me wide, disbelieving eyes. “Just like you will be a threat to her alpha suitors.”
My wolf stops pacing to growl.No suitors.
I ignore him. I can't stop her from entertaining other alphas.
No suitors,he repeats.
“Fine,” I hiss aloud, and he goes back to his restless march.
