“No, because you are trustworthy,” I point out. “And genuine.”
He looks at me, surprised. “Wait, are you saying you agree to working together?”
I nod.
There is a shimmer of hope in his expression. “Do you have a plan, Rosea? You have one, don’t you?”
“Why do you think that?”
“Because even I can tell you are smart,” he points out.
“I told you, I just—“
“—just well educated and prepared.” He shakes his head. “Most lunas and alphas are that way, but you went far beyond that. It’s not just you having been a good student. You must be a kickass strategist.”
Maybe he is right. Planning has always been my strong point. I am not sure if this is me being particularly intelligent or just having learned it out of a necessity to survive. “I do have a plan,” I say, the wheels in my mind turning. Now that I’ve met Forest and we plan on working together, I have so many more options. “But we definitely need to shape out the details. You said you contacted your family before and told them that you are out for an appointment?”
He nods.
“Good, that comes in handy now.”
“So?” he asks me curiously. “What’s the plan?”
I raise my head, looking him straight in the eye. “You ran some errands today, and then, as fate would have it, you ran into your mate.” I pause. “Me!”
eleven
The Plan
*FOREST*
Ineed a moment to process what Rosea is saying. Obviously, we aren’t mates. She had hers before he betrayed her in the worst way possible. I knew something was off, stinking to the sky, when I heard him talk during the alpha gathering.
And my own mate died.
We can’t be fated mates.
“Okay, say I take you home as my fated mate tonight,” I say. “And you play the part. Could you really do that?”
“Easy,” she shrugs. “I had Jordan doing horrendous things to me and still played the part of the luna and his mate.”
Itcouldwork. With her brains, I could maybe get somewhere in my revenge against my parents. This woman must be crazily smart. It’s obvious from the way she talks, the way she assessesany situation and from how she survived in her old pack. There is just one thing… “But my parents will know you can’t be my mate, because…”
“Yes, because they killed yours. But they don’t knowyouknow.”
I stare at her as finally it settles in. A fresh wave of anger hits me. “You are right, and if they doubt me, they’d need to have a reason.”
“They would need to admit they know your mate is dead,” she says. “And how would they know?”
“Right!”
“And if we meet Jordan…” she pauses.
“He told everyone you are his chosen mate,” I tell her before I can stop myself. “Fuck! Sorry, that was insensitive. I—“
“That makes it so much easier.” Instead of looking pained, she looks grim. “How could he claim that both of us aren’t fated mates,then? He’d need to come clean.”
“That could actually work,” I mutter.
