Defiance (Book 6 of The Claimed Series) SAMPLE

4. Stress

"Fuck."

Lucas moved away and down the beach in the opposite direction from Hadley.

Hadley Kinney—his mate finally had a name, which meant he could keep an eye out on her, even if he couldn't claim her.

Sand flew up from under his feet, and he could hear and sense someone running up behind him. He jerked around, mouth curled in a snarl before seeing it was Christian, his second-in-command.

"Do you need a shift?" His friend's intense caramel and gold-flecked eyes reminded him a lot of Hadley's, and it only made him angrier.

"Hadley Kinney. I need eyes on her immediately," Lucas growled. "Find out where she comes from, how old—everything. Now, Christian."

The Beta nodded, literally shaking from the intensity of Lucas' gaze. "Your mate? Is that her? I'll find out what I can, but I can't guarantee it'll be quick. Kinney you say? I know of some Kinneys at Alpine Pack, but the name is common enough. I'll have Ellie look into it once we get back and—"

"Link her—now!" he snarled. Lucas' eyes flashed golden, like flames igniting, smoke nearly expelling from his ears.

"Y-yeah, got it. Geez, man."

Christian scrambled away in search of Kallen, whom he still hadn't seen since going off in a random direction earlier with a single female. He was sure his superior olfactory receptors would sniff the manwhore out in no time. That or the scent of arousal would surely give him away.

Lucas decided to contact his father.

Dad, you there?

Here, son. What's going on? Did you find her?

Fuck. Did he find her? Yes. Yes, and she was perfect—too good for him, and he'd fucked it up from the start.

Yes, she's here. Hadley Kinney. Christian's going to get Eleanor to work on a background for her, where she comes from, though I know she's Omega. Her brother's name is Taylor, her best friend, Mara. That will help as neither are that common. They drove here, so I don't think they live that far away. The car—not new, probably not a rental. I'd bet they live within a couple hours of here. But there's a...a problem.

He almost heard his father's disapproval in his next words. Why? What happened? What did you do, Luke?

Lucas sighed. He was already irritated with himself, and he didn't need the extra layer of discontent he felt rolling through the bond. She heard me talking to Christian. How I only wanted to find my mate to reject her. We...we had words, she walked away. Didn't even get a chance at rejecting her.

Hmm. Well, that's kind of good.

Lucas startled. How so?

Plausible deniability. He comes snooping once he finds out you rejected your mate—in a sense—and he'll know it's time.

Time? Luke was now heading toward the parking lot, past the sandy dunes across the street where he could shift in private. The whole area had been rented out for the bonfire, and no humans were allowed in the area. Safety precautions. He was safe to shift and tear apart a few animals if he felt the need, so he stripped off his shirt, pushed down his pants, and kicked his shoes off before his whole body vibrated with magic.

The air seemed to shimmer around him, and everything started to become sharper, more focused. The edges hadn't been blurry before, but it was like everything was 3D, including the shrubs way off in the distance. He could see a squirrel or two, a vague rabbit-shaped form that dropped into a dark space—maybe its den. Still, he listened as his father went on about this fuck-up being for his benefit.