Page 15 of The Dragons' Healing Mate

“I honestly don’t know,” she admitted with a grimace. “Part of me thinks he believes I won’t make it as a rogue and will come crawling back, and he would still be able to marry me off.”

“Surely he can’t marry you off if you have a baby?” My brows were up as I glanced between Allison and her son, nervous shock reverberating through me.

Allison grimaced. “My father… He’s a bastard. I have no doubt that, if I went back, something terrible would befall my son.”

I repressed a shudder. “Oh my God, Allison—Which horde are you from?”

Squeezing her arm, I probed gently because I knew this was shaky ground. Dragons were territorial on a good day. If she was running from her old horde, I worried that she was right, that they’d come looking.

Allison shook her head vigorously. “No, if I say?—”

“We can’t protect you unless we knowwhoyou need protecting from.”

She turned to her baby, sleeping peacefully, oblivious to all the drama, and Allison sighed.

“All right.”

Sometimes I had good ideas, sometimes I hadterribleones.

After Allison had told me which horde she had come from, I had gone straight to the Alphas.

Actually, I had gone straight to Bastian.

He was the first one I’d found, sitting in his office. Even though we weren’t close, I thought I could talk to him about this, but he’d immediately gone on the defensive. I glared at him as he sat behind his desk.

“She’s the daughter of an Alpha!” Bastian blurted out in a strangled voice. “Are you kidding me? Keeping her here could haveseriouspolitical ramifications for us! The Birch Creek horde and us have had a good relationship fordecades.”

Simply put, Allison’s father was an ass and had no right to control a horde. Even a small one.

“Are you kiddingme?” I hissed. “Are political connectionsallyou care about? They’re in danger. Allison wasseriouslyconcerned that her own father might hurt her son.”

“I know you just jumped in feet first with them, but we have to consider these things when the health and well-being of anentire hordeis in your hands. Ihaveto ensure everyone under my care is looked after.”

I snorted. I couldn’t help myself. With what I knew from Griffin, what I’d seen with Jenkins, the well-being of the horde had been in trouble for alongtime.

“What do you think I’ve been doing? Treating everyone here, looking after dragons who’ve asked forourhelp. I’m taking far better care of your horde than you have in a damn long time,” I hissed, crossing my arms.

Bastian growled, anger radiating off him as he lowered his head. A moment later, he was up from his seat, walking around the desk toward me. He took my arm and guided me to the door as I tried to yank myself away.

“What the hell? We need to talk about this!” I finally pulled myself free, but I was already at the door, Bastian sneering down at me, angrier than I’d ever seen him.

“Iwill deal with this, as the true Alpha of this horde. I know Byron well enough, andIwill be the one to determine how we go about cleaning upyourmess.”

Gaping at him, I scoffed, rage coursing through my veins. “You’re being ridiculous. I brought this information to you so we could helpthem.”

After getting me on the other side of the door, Bastian began to close himself into his office, and all I could do was stand there, seething.

“You’re new here. You don’t understand our rules, our traditions. You’ve put me in one hell of a situation. Stand aside while I fix it.”

The door closed. If it weren’t for the fact that I knew it wouldn’t do me any good, I would have screamed and pounded on the damn thing until he let me in. It wouldn’t help, but I had a feeling I knew the only thing that would. So, I stomped off down the hall, intent on finding some backup.

Bastian

“Our mate seems happy,” Orsen said, sliding into the chair next to me.

I hadn’t invited him to join me. In fact, I wanted him, and everyone else, for that matter, to leave me the hell alone. Sitting in the corner of my office and glowering at anyone who came near tended to accomplish that. Orsen had a way of shoving through those defenses, however, and he did it with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer.

“Of course she’s happy. She’s got us wrapped around her fucking finger,” I growled, eyeing him hard. “Now, get out.”