Jessica’s Wolves(41)

Silence. Jessica cleared her throat. “What were you really running from?” She was afraid of the answer. Her body held stiff, rigid. She clutched the leather sofa with both fists. In the back of her mind something prodded her, but she wasn’t sure what.

“My pack.”

“Do you even have a boyfriend?” Lindsey asked.

Alyssa shook her head vigorously and chuckled, a devious laugh that was off. “Are you kidding? They’d have killed me if I so much as looked at a male wolf where I come from.”

Kara gasped. “Why?”

“Our pack is … different … apparently, from others.” She looked up, animated now. “Your family is so loving, kind, helpful … happy. In my pack, we don’t … smile. Women are not seen as equal.”

Fear niggled the back of Jessica’s neck. Her ears burned.

“Girls are mated against their will at eighteen to whomever the alpha declares.” She shook, looking even younger than when she’d come into the room. Her eyes were wide. Tears glistening in the corners. “I turned eighteen last week.”

Jessica couldn’t speak. Memories assaulted her from every direction in her brain, her synapses firing so fast she couldn’t keep up. The room spun, and she clutched the couch fiercely to keep from falling on her face.

Kara frowned. “And they were going to force you to mate with some guy against your will?”

Alyssa chuckled low and deep. “Noo… Not some guy. That would have been a blessing. They arranged for me to mate with a sixty-five-year-old wolf who already has three docile wives. He’s the brother of our alpha.”

“Alyssa?” Jessica murmured, barely audible even to her own ears. Her entire past dashed through her mind like snapshots in a photo album. “Alyssa Franklin?”

Every head turned her way, and Jessica slumped backward onto the couch to avoid fainting. Her head spun.

“How…” Alyssa’s voice squeaked out. “Oh. My. God. Jessica? Jessica Murphy?” The girl jumped from her chair and flung herself at Jessica. “It is you, isn’t it?” She hugged Jess so firmly her ribs hurt. And Jess could barely even lift her arms to embrace Alyssa in return.

Alyssa rambled on. “I can’t believe it. Jessica’s a common enough name. I never thought… But … they said you were dead. You … you aren’t dead.”

“Nope.” Jess shook her head in amazement. “But not for lack of effort.”

“Your parents?”

“They are dead. Two men shot them in wolf form when I was ten. The neighbor ran them off before they could get to me.”

“God. That must have been horrible.” Alyssa’s terror-filled gaze alighted on Jessica.

Kara and Lindsey moved in closer. Kara reached for Jess’ arm. “You know each other?”

Alyssa turned toward her but didn’t let go of Jess. “We’re cousins, actually. Jess’ mother was my mother’s sister.” She turned back to Jessica. “All these years… I overheard my parents discussing what your parents did. They took you away. Ran so you wouldn’t be mated to a man you didn’t love.”

Jessica startled. That was the reason they’d left?

“You didn’t know.” Alyssa tucked her upper lip into her mouth and then released it. “God. You were so young. Did you grow up here with the Masters then?”

“No.” Not even close. “I grew up with humans in foster care. Until yesterday, I’ve been fairly ignorant of even the most basic of wolf ways.”

“My parents weren’t as brave as yours. I knew they hated thinking about my fate, but they wanted me to continue the ways of the pack. Not rock the boat. I… I just couldn’t go through with it. So I ran. I ran all day until I came to that diner. And, well, you know the rest.”

Alyssa let go of Jessica and sat back, still gripping her hand but not squeezing the breath out of her. “I wanted to come over here and tell you at least some of that truth so you wouldn’t think I was after your men. They’ve been so nice to me, and even let their family believe we were a couple … or whatever you call it … to protect me. But when I realized you were their mate, I couldn’t get in the way of that, so I came clean.”

“Why did you need to lie? The Masters would never put you in harm’s way.” Jessica gazed into the sky-blue eyes belonging to her fair-skinned cousin.

“I was scared, in the beginning. I would have given my virginity to your mates to keep from letting that old crotchety guy fuck me.” Tears sprung anew. Alyssa choked on a sob. The word fuck came out on a squeak. Her cheeks reddened. The members of the Oklahoma pack didn’t customarily cuss, but Alyssa was certainly passionate about this situation. And rightfully so.