Chapter 19 Better Safe
Lyra’s lips still tingled from the kiss as she turned around, putting on her best frown and praying her body did not betray her.
“Hey, Alpha Ryker is waiting for you,” Rex reminded her, and she nodded mutely.
Her legs felt stiff, almost heavy, as if returning to this place meant stepping back into every memory she swore she had left behind.
The Alpha’s Chambers, which belonged entirely to Ryker, was the largest part of the house.
The beta resided in the eastern wing while Dax and the higher-rank warriors occupied the northern and southern wings respectively. But the west belonged to Ryker alone. His wing had its own courtyard, designed for inner council matters, though he preferred hosting any important discussions in the large front yard with the rest of the pack watching.
Inside, the west wing consisted of two spacious living rooms, three bedrooms each with their own baths, his personal kitchen and a private dining area. But being the Alpha he was, Ryker rarely used it. He always ate with his pack, leading by example.
Lyra hadn’t expected the sting of nostalgia to hit her so sharply when she returned, but each day, it did.
Sixteen years. This had been her home for sixteen entire years before she died. She had been only ten when she first met Ryker, and their friendship had been an absolute disaster. They fought about everything, challenged each other constantly, until the hatred slowly, painfully, transformed into something deeper.
Love.
During the mating feast, hosted a year after Ryker’s father revealed the truth they never saw coming. Ryker ended up being her mate. Their love story began there, both chaotic and beautiful.
He had been a rake, everyone knew that. A charming, dangerous playboy feared on the battlefield and adored by every she-wolf with a heartbeat. But he grew older, accepted his place as the future Alpha, and eventually retired from fighting for money.
When his father died, Ryker became Alpha at twenty-two. He stepped into the role. The paper mill and gold mines of the IronFangs MC flourished under him. He protected his people fiercely and for a while, he had even protected Lyra.
Their marriage lasted only three years before everything shattered. People said he had let go of his playboy ways. They lied. Lyra uncovered the truth, the secret visits, the late nights, the scent of other women when they made love. Until finally, she met Sierra.
When she confronted him, he shut her out, grew cold and distant. She started begging, arguing, clinging and becoming everything she never wanted to be. A laughingstock. A pathetic Luna who chased her husband around while the pack whispered behind her back. But she was in love. She wanted her mate back and she wanted her home.
And on the night she planned to leave him for good, the night of their anniversary, she saw him with Sierra and felt her world fall apart.
That same night, she died.
Thinking of it now, every pain was his fault. He had caused it all. Even her death.
Some part of her wanted Ryker to pay for every single moment of it. Maybe, just maybe, the Blood King wasn’t demanding too much.
“Frowning doesn’t suit you, Lyra,” Ryker’s voice called out. “But I guess a lot has changed about you.”
Lyra snapped her head up. He stood in the large living room, arms folded.
“Well, I can’t say the same about you,” she replied sharply. “You’ve always been the same lying, cheating bastard.”
“Name-calling isn’t new.” He shrugged and started toward her.
Lyra stepped back instantly. Her body reacted before her mind did.
Ryker chuckled at her movement. “What are you so afraid of, Lyra? Afraid I’ll kiss you again and you’ll enjoy it?”
“In your dreams,” she hissed. “I don’t want your hands on me for anything. Go back to your little whores.”
“And what if I told you,” he murmured, closing the distance, “that I don’t want any of them? That you’re the only one I want?”
Lyra scoffed. “I’d tell you to shoot a silver bullet through your heart.”
He moved faster than she anticipated. His hand wrapped around her arms, pulling her against his chest. His heat crashed into her, and her body betrayed her instantly.
“If you touch me,” she warned through her teeth, “I swear to the moon goddess, I will claw out your eyes.”
“You’re denying what you want,” Ryker murmured. His voice dipped, turning husky. “I’m a werewolf, Lyra. I can smell your arousal. You’re in heat, and your scent is everywhere. You want me, your body wants me.”
“Shut up,” she breathed, her cheeks burning with humiliation.
“If I slid my hand down right now,” he whispered, lips brushing her ear, “you would be dripping wet.”
Lyra inhaled sharply.
He finally let her go, stepping back. “I won’t force you,” he said. “I’ll wait until you come to me.”
She staggered backward, glaring at him though her heartbeat thundered wildly.
Ryker walked toward the side table and pulled out a thick wad of cash. He held it out to her.
Lyra blinked. “What is this for?”
“I want you to buy a few things you’ll need for a trip.”
“What trip?”
“I told you, this place is no longer safe for you.”
He spoke calmly, but the concern under his tone was undeniable.
“You’re a fresh vampire, at least partly,” Ryker continued. “Which means the bloodsuckers will be drawn to you like animals. Those creatures hate werewolves, and they hate half-breeds even more.”
Lyra swallowed, because he was right. “They think I’m an abomination,” she said softly. “They think I’ll taint their bloodline.”
“Exactly.” Ryker nodded. “And they’re getting closer to the pack by the day. Too close.”
She sighed.
“I’ll be taking you to the Bronx Pack,” Ryker said. “I have an ally there who will keep you safe until I fix this situation. Once it’s handled, you’ll return home.”
Lyra’s eyes widened. “When were you planning to tell me this?”
“I just did.”
“That’s not the point!” she snapped. “You’re not even asking for my opinion. This is about me. My life.”
“I will do anything to keep you safe, Lyra,” he said quietly. “Even if you hate me. Even if you want nothing to do with me.”
She was speechless.
“It is my obligation as your mate,” Ryker continued, voice deepening, “and as your Alpha. I couldn’t forgive myself if anything happened to you again.”
Lyra stood frozen, and the fight melted right out of her chest.
“Pack light,” he finished. “We travel tomorrow morning.”
Then he turned and walked away.
“What?! Tomorrow?”