Page 7 of Wrong Number, Right Gray Wolf

CLYDE

I hadn’t been that scared since the night I claimed Posy as my daughter, after her parents, my best friends, were bled to death because of some asshole’s challenge. Arriving at the library and seeing her missing was the kind of terror I never wanted to experience again. Ever. If I hadn’t remembered her comment about Micah’s brother, I probably would be still looking around the library trying to pick up her scent, instead of being here, holding her tight.

The library shouldn’t have let her go with him. But, also, she should’ve stayed there and waited for me. All of that was a conversation for another time. Because right now, we were watching a stranger drive away, and I was trying to piece together who he was and how he got involved.

Being home alone wasn’t good. Being home alone with some random guy watching the house after admittedly having tracked her down by unsavory means? That was a whole different level of not good. At least on the surface.

Posy had said she phoned him when she couldn’t find me. She tried Miss Caitlin first, but she wasn’t answering. That still left a whole lot of questions including how she called him? Who was he? Was he someone from school? That didn’t feel right. She’d have mentioned him before.

What I should’ve done was thanked him properly and found out all of the information from his point of view before he left. Instead, I treated him like a threat, which he still might be, and watched him leave.

Posy was pretty good about sensing danger, not that I would rely on a young girl to be responsible for her own safety. The two times she told me there was something not right about an adult, she’d been proven right later on. I wish she hadn’t been. It meant that they were horrible people she’d crossed paths with, but it also told me that she could sense when people were a danger, and there was some comfort in that extra layer of protection

And as the man left, he waved, and she waved, and more importantly, she smiled. That wasn’t Posy fearing him. If anything, it was a sign I should’ve been less forceful with him.

The car began to pull away, and the air shifted. And for the first time, I got a taste of his scent. I froze, inhaling again, making sure I was right about what I was experiencing.

My wolf pushed hard. I was no longer looking through my own eyes. I was looking through his.

Stephen didn’t just smell good. He scented as mine. Stephen was my mate. It was the unmistakable scent that could only belong to my mate. My wolf sensed it in an instant, pounding at me, begging to be set free.

Mine.

Go.

Claim him.

Mark him.

And what was I doing? None of that. I stood here, staring at his car as his taillights disappeared around the corner.

I’d always assumed that raising Posy as a single father was what fate had in store for me, that there was no mate waiting around the bend. I’d remain alone. I’d long since come to terms with it.

Today that all changed. Not only did I have a mate, but he showed up at my home. And because I was sucking at life today, what did I do? I shoved him away and let him know very clearly that I didn’t want him here.

My wolf pounded at me, pleading with me to put Posy down, take my fur, and chase after the car to hunt down my mate. Even if I wanted to do that and was willing to leave Posy alone, a wolf and a car were not the same when it came to speed. It would be useless and getting shot by someone thinking a rando wild animal was where they shouldn’t be was a very real possibility.

Besides, Posy was holding on to me for dear life. I couldn’t leave her now. She was frightened and rightfully so. Because of me, the mistakes I’d made, she was suffering.

Things with Stephen would have to wait.

“Hey, sweetie. Can you tell me why you’re on the porch in your nightgown?”

“Because,” she sniffled. “Stephen said he was coming. And when I saw his car lights, I came out. But then the door closed behind me, and I couldn’t get back inside.”

Our door automatically locked. It was supposed to be a safety feature, but in this case, it was an anti-safety feature. She had a key in her backpack, but that wasn’t going to do her any good when she was out here in her pajamas.

“Good thing I have a key.” Only it was still in the car thanks to the way things went down. “I need to go to get my bag, though. Do you wanna stay here or do you wanna⁠—”

She held on tighter.

“Why don’t you come with me?”

As I climbed off the porch with her still in my arms, the scent of Stephen became stronger, and my wolf grew more insistent. I repeatedly told him no and to stop, promising him we’d get in contact with Stephen asap. Right now, our daughter needed us. Stephen was an adult, safe in a car. Posy was a small child who’d had a scare. She needed me first. And if Stephen couldn’t accept that, he didn’t belong in my life.

Had he scented me and left anyway? Was this his way of telling me he didn’t want a premade family? If so, getting my wolf to come to terms with that was going to suck.

Heck, coming to terms with that was going to suck, full stop.