Page 93 of The Alpha’s Unclaimed Mate

At the door I stop. “Rachel will come home tomorrow, and her children will come with her. If I hear you’ve been on this street, if I hear you’ve been within a mile of that woman, I’ll pay you another visit.”

He’s barely conscious, but I see the fear in his eyes.

I walk out of the apartment, my blood still boiling.

Jessa’s door is locked when I knock on it.

“It’s me,” I call out, and I hear her unlock the door before pulling it open. Her face is pale, and although her eyes are dry, I can see that the tears are very close to the surface. I gather her in my arms, the wolf desperate to comfort her. “It’s fine. You’re okay.”

At first, she says nothing, and then her hands lift, and I feel her fingers dig into the back of my shirt. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t know he would be here. I didn’t know. I would never have brought the girls—”

“It’s okay.” I lean back to kiss her forehead. “The important thing is I got here in time. Where are the girls?”

She swallows, and I see her quickly wipe her eyes when she doesn’t think I’m looking. “In Mia’s room.”

I close the door behind me, and with one hand, I turn her cheek toward the lamp, thumb hovering clear of the swelling under her eye. The bone’s intact. Skin has split along the cheekbone, and the whole side of her face has gone dark red, purpling already at the edges.

“How bad does it hurt?” My voice comes out rough.

“It’s bearable.” Her chin drops. “I shouldn’t have brought them here. It never once occurred to me that this could be dangerous, Marcus, I swear it didn’t. They were told to stay inside our apartment. I don’t know why they came out.”

I know why. Bella’s hearing is sharp, and so is Mia’s. Both girls heard Jessa in danger, and they probably wanted to help.

“Mom?” Mia’s voice is cautious. “Is Marcus back?”

I look toward the hallway that leads to the bedrooms, and Mia and Bella are there, standing hand in hand. Mia’s eyes flicker gold, then brown, then gold again. I put my arms out. “Come here, both of you.”

They come. Bella hits me first, Mia a half-second behind her, and I gather the pair of them against my chest.

“It’s over.” I drop the alpha into my voice, the pitch that drives past a shifter’s ears into the blood. “You’re safe. Nothing’s coming through that door.”

Bella eases first, her shoulders coming down, her fists unclenching in my shirt. Mia takes longer. Her wolf keeps climbing into her eyes, looking for the man I’ve already put down, so I press my mouth to the top of her head and hold her until the gold drains away for good.

“Let me look at you.” I hold Bella out at arm’s length and go over her, then Mia. There are grazed palms, a scraped elbow, a red weal across Bella’s back where a knee pinned her down. Nothing is broken, and their shifter blood will mend this much before bedtime. “Both of you go into the other room, and Mia, you pack your things. I’m here now. Nobody can hurt you or your mom.”

My daughter nods, relieved, and the two of them hurry back.

“They aren’t hurt.” I catch Jessa’s wrist. “They’ve got scrapes, Jessa. Are you all right?”

“I’m fine.”

The bruise says otherwise. It’s spreading under her skin while I watch, purple crowding out the red.

I called her my mate in front of that man. He might not know what that means, but I do. My wolf had been on the surface, and the fact that it already considers Jessa as ours might be a problem if I can’t convince her to actually be mine.

“Where’s your first aid kit?” I try to keep my voice even, knowing how shaken she is.

“I can do it myself.” She wraps her arms around her stomach.

“Where is it, Jessa?” I ask firmly.

She breathes out through her nose. “It’s in the cupboard over the sink, second shelf.”

I bring it over, and when I apply the antiseptic, she makes a pained sound.

“I’m not angry with you,” I tell her mildly. “But I’m going to be a little harsh, okay?”

I see the way her expression falls. If she was a wolf, her ears would be flat against her head and her tail between her legs.