Nafarius flinched. They'd buried Marcus three days ago and the pack was still in mourning. Roland in particular struggled with the loss of his friend, the male slipping away on his own for hours.
"It wasn't your fault," Nafarius said. He couldn't blame Natasha for her father, not after seeing the insanity that had plagued the old one at the end.
"Maybe not," Natasha said. "But I think we need to clean this up if we're going to move forward."
"So, you've made a decision then?" Nafarius asked, eyes narrowing when Natasha lifted her chin.
"About that," Natasha started, her stomach finally settling with certainty. "I have a proposition for you..."
****
Roland paced their burrow. He could
feel
Natasha, his mate so close he would swear he could smell her. A week had passed since he left her at her father's pack house. No. Not her father's,
her
pack house.
He had waited, along with the others, to see what she would do. He knew that she was okay, even happy. Each day that passed leading him to wonder if she was ever coming back. Roland had only just decided that it was about time to retrieve his wayward mate when word came that she was seen crossing into Nafarius' territory. Nafarius had insisted on meeting with her first, sending Roland to wait - and pace.
"Can I come in?" Natasha asked, her voice soft in the still of the room.
Roland's head snapped up, his eyes locking on his mate. Distracted, he hadn't heard her approach. He drank in the sight of her, quickly reassuring himself that she was healthy and whole. She looked good, her face smooth and more rested than he'd ever seen her.
Natasha shifted her weight from one foot to the other, the skin around her eyes tightening as uncertainty slid down the mate bond.
"You never have to ask," Roland said, realizing that he'd left her standing at the entrance. "This is your home."
Natasha nodded, wondering if he would still feel that way once she told him of her decision.
Circling the small space, Natasha ran her fingers over familiar surfaces, surprised to find how much the place felt like home. They'd spent very little time here, but it seemed they had created a lifetime in just a few days.
"You saw Nafarius?" Roland finally said, watching his mate's face closely.
Natasha nodded, unable to keep from smiling. Nafarius' response to Natasha's proposition had been...entertaining.
"You've made a decision then?" Roland couldn't decipher Natasha's smile and he wasn't sure he wanted to. That look did not bode well.
"More like a proposition," Natasha said. She stopped on the other side of the room from Roland and feasted her eyes on him, his familiar scowl was more dear to her then she ever thought possible.
Roland groaned. "I'm not going to like this, am I?"
Natasha's smiled widened. "I think it's the perfect solution, but then again, it was my idea."
"Out with it, female," Roland snarled, his patience at an end. The past week had done little to improve his mood.
"I can't leave them," Natasha said quietly, all humor gone as she watched Roland's face. "And I don't want to leave you."
"You can't have both," Roland said, fear churning in his gut.
Natasha frowned. "Why not?"
Roland opened his mouth on a reason that didn't form.
"Exactly," Natasha said. "I already have both and there is nothing saying that I have to give one up for the other. Not unless you or Nafarius ask me to."
"Did he?" Roland would have loved to have been a fly on the wall for that conversation.
"No," Natasha said, worrying her bottom lip. "Not exactly."
Roland lifted a brow at her evasion.
Natasha sighed. "Look, Nafarius is my alpha, nothing has changed that. I will never be strong enough to challenge him directly, which also makes holding the pack on my own difficult. So I made him an offer."
"You mentioned that," Roland said.
Natasha's eyes narrowed at the hint of sarcasm but let it slide. "I keep my pack and in exchange for his protection Nafarius gets the rights to hunt in my territory."
Roland blinked. The idea was...not bad.
"It means nothing else has to change," Natasha said. "The only thing is that I wouldn't be here all of the time. I'd have to divide my time between the two packs, but I have a good beta and Nafarius' protection gives me the freedom I need to move back and forth."
Taking a step towards him, Natasha ran her hand lightly down Roland's arm, her touch asking him to understand.
"I want you as my mate," Natasha told him. "Nothing would make me happier than for us to lead my pack together as alphas. But I know you couldn't do that and stand as Nafarius' beta and I won't ask you to chose. Maybe it's selfish of me, but this way I get to keep you as my mate and my pack."
Roland saw the potential problems, including the risk his mate would be torn between two loyalties. But he could feel her hope, her desire to make it work.
"Nafarius agreed to this?" Roland asked. It would certainly solve several of their problems, the most pressing matter being the need for new hunting grounds. But it would also add a layer of responsibility, something Nafarius and Sam might not be willing to accept.
"We're negotiating terms for a trial basis," she said, her chin lifting. Dealing with Nafarius as another alpha was a lot harder than dealing with him as a pack member. His affection for Natasha hadn't garnered her any favors, Nafarius making her work for every point. She suspected it was her first test as alpha, but it wouldn't be her last. "But what is important to me is what you think."
"And if I say no?" Roland couldn't help but ask, part of him needing to know who she would choose.
"Do you need to hear me say that I would pick you? That I would put my own needs above that of my pack?" Natasha asked softly, her heart aching at the thought that she might not be able to give him what he needed. She understood, or thought she did, the depths of past betrayals and what it had done to him. But she wouldn't let his past dictate their future.
Roland searched her face, she stood close enough that he could feel the heat of her, her warmth penetrated a cold he'd lived with most of his life. She had taken all of him, never once flinching from all that he was. She had offered him a place by her side, the role as alpha one most males killed for, and gracefully accepted his answer with a knowing smile.
"No," Roland said, his heart settling. "I don't need to hear you say it. That's not who you are," he acknowledged, finally reaching for her and drawing her into his arms. "That's not the type of female I mated."
Natasha closed her eyes in relief. Resting her head against his chest, she wrapped her arms around her mate, breathing him in for the first time in too long.
"We'll make it work," Roland said, pressing his cheek to the top of her head. "We have a thousand years to get it right."
Author's Note
Thank you for reading Untamed, the second book in the Wolf Lake Trilogy. I hope you enjoyed Untamed and learning more about Roland and Natasha.
Please be sure to rate Untamed and let me know what you think about the book.
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