Bonded ✔️

Chapter 26: Part One

Lincoln's hand was immediately wrapped around my arm as he stood from his chair. His vice like grip caused me to wince, but he didn't let up. Instead, he lowered his mouth to my ear, "I am not okay with this, and you had no right to make that decision for the both of us."

"The one upside is that now that you've agreed to an alliance, there's nothing holding me pack from kicking his ass. I don't care if you're bound to defend him, I'll be done before you have a chance to intervene," Lincoln's voice sounded menacing and full of anger. He released my arm and walked away, heading toward Jackson. Lincoln had been right because before I could even register what was happening his fist made solid contact with Jackson's jaw. 

Suddenly, a brawl began in the middle of my office. After recovering from Lincoln's punch, Jackson kicked my mate's feet out from underneath him. I watched in shock as they began to exchange blows with one another. I moved to jump between the two but froze when Lincoln's voice rang in my head, "You've taken away my right to defend you against my father. The least you could do is let me remind him that no matter what charade is going on, you are mine."

His comment hit me like a brick wall, and before I could respond the door to my office swung open. Our Beta's rushed in once they saw the scene unfolding before them. Rowan shot me a confused look and worked with Wyatt to pull my deranged mate off of my new ally. He struggled to escape their hold, and Wyatt slammed him against the wall.

"What the hell in wrong with you, man?" Wyatt's forearm was placed firmly against Lincoln's chest, holding him in place. His voice sounded alarmed, and I could understand why. In all the years that I had known Lincoln, I had never seen him get this angry. I'm sure that his closest friend was also taken aback at the display he was putting on. 

I looked over and saw that Jackson was wiping away blood from a cut under his eye, while also managing to hold his brother pack from ambushing Lincoln. Noticing that the other men had my mate under control, he gripped his brother by the arm and the pair walked over to me, "Honestly, I probably deserved it. We'll leave so that you all can talk about this, but regardless of the circumstances I want you to know that I am hopeful that this alliance will be beneficial for the both of us."

"Get away from her, you bastard," Lincoln growled, once again struggling to escape the hold of Wyatt and Rowan. I felt the rage coursing through his body, and guilt made its way through mine. No matter what I did, I was either making him upset or putting my people in danger. There was no way for me to know if I was making the right choice, and I didn't know how to handle that. With a parting glance, Jackson and his brother exited the office. The atmosphere in the room immediately became less tense, but now all I could feel was the disappointment and anger that my mate was feeling.

Wyatt looked between Lincoln and I, wearing a look of frustration on his face, "Would someone care to explain what just happened?"

Rowan walked over to stand by my side, "I'm not trying to chastise you, but did you just do something you're going to regret?"

"It's impossible to know that yet," I snapped in reply, but even over the mind link, my voice didn't sound convinced otherwise. 

Before I had a chance to explain to Wyatt what had transpired, Lincoln's deep voice erupted from his chest, "Jackson's going to pretend to be her knight in shining armor in an attempt to convince my dad that I've turned on Harley, and am now only interesting to taking over her pack. He wants her to look like some scared little girl who ran to him seeking defesnse, and she played right into his hand."

The malice coating his words caused me to flinch. I searched his eyes for an ounce of understanding but found none. Wyatt and Rowan both looked at me, indicating that they wanted me to explain what Lincoln had meant. I looked down at the floor for a moment, before clearing my throat.

"Jackson agreed to an alliance, but one of the conditions was that we present ourselves as a joint unit in every sense of the phrase. It would only be for show, but it would mean that Lincoln and I would have to portray that we are not on good terms. Jackson believes that's the best way to convince Malcolm that Lincoln is really on his side," I attempted to explain. 

I walked forward toward Lincoln, searching for a sign that my understanding mate was trapped inside the angry person standing before me. When I reached forward to touch his face, he jerked back avoiding my touch, "There isn't going to be any pretending about not being on good terms, because that fact is true. Harley, I have been nothing but supportive of the difficult position that you are in but you continue to undermine not only my opinions but my right to my mate."

He locked eyes with me before continuing, "For someone that talks a lot about hating to be disrespected, you sure do a lot of it yourself."

Wyatt pushed himself between the two of us and I felt Rowan step behind me. As he placed a comforting hand on my shoulder, Wyatt poked one of his fingers into Lincoln's chest, "You need to stop before you dig yourself a hole that you can't get out of. Regardless of how angry you are, that is your mate."

He then turned his attention to me, "As for you, I realize that I am in no position to judge your choices for your pack, but you've just put all your eggs in Jackson's basket. Let's hope that his plan is as foolproof as you think it is."

The room became silent, and I nodded in response to Wyatt's statement. This plan was risky, but if it worked it would be better for everyone involved than the alternative. It would all come down to whether or not Malcolm believed that Lincoln only wanted me for my land.

"This shit is stupid," Lincoln huffed and starting walking to the door of my office, "Wyatt, we're leaving."

Rowan cut him off, blocking the exit, "Look, man, I get it. She pissed you off and you don't know how to handle it, but guess what, shit doesn't always go your way. Reality check, Harley isn't perfect, but neither are you. There will come a day when you have to make a difficult decision for your pack, and you'll want her by your side supporting you. Offer her the same courtesy."

Lincoln ran both of his hands over his face and let out a deep breath of frustration. He locked eyes with me, and for a moment I saw his anger flash to sadness. "Get out, I want to talk to my mate."

The two Betas looked at each other for a moment, seeming to be debating whether or not to listen to Lincoln's order to leave. I nodded my head slightly in an attempt to reassure them that everything would be fine, and that was enough to convince Rowan to leave. When he began to walk to the door, Wyatt remained behind. 

For a few second he stared at Lincoln with a hard expression on his face, "Give her a break man, she's doing the best she can. Even I can see that this isn't what she wanted." Turning away, he followed Rowan out of the room and closed the door behind him. 

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Bonded is ranked #29 today, and I seriously am so overwhelmed with excitement! I am so happy to have readers that love this story as much as I do, ilysm.

What do you think of this side of Lincoln? 

For those of you dealing with exams/finals like me, GOOD LUCK! :) 

Much love <3