‘Maybe it would be best if I let you two talk—’

‘Nice try, mate. You’re coming with me.’

Rage nodded and put the car in park as Justice pulled up next to us.

“I’ll wait in the car until you give us the all-clear,” Elaine said. “This is so far away from official business…”

She was a foreign wolf, the wife of the alpha douche who banished my pack … I’d need to get my father’s invite for her to step foot on this dirt.

I nodded, and Rage stepped out of the car and opened my door.

“Shirt!” I whisper-screamed at Rage.

His eyes widened. “What?”

“You’re shirtless!” I gestured to his incredibly yummy washboard abs, but it was too late, my father stepped out on the porch, and his gaze jumped from me to the half-naked man holding my hand.

His brows drew together, and he clenched his jaw. “Nai?”

Emotions bubbled up in my chest, and a sob caught in my throat. This man might not have been my “bio” father, but he chose to raise me—he was, and always would be, my…

“Dad!” Running, I broke away from Rage and raced up the path. The cold air nipped at my nose and bit my cheeks, but none of that mattered.

My father wasn’t a very emotional man—being the alpha of a large pack will do that—but tears glistened in his eyes as I ran to him. The moment I hugged him, he wrapped his arms around me in a fierce embrace.

“Nai,” he whispered in my hair. Then, he cleared his throat, and his voice dropped, low and threatening. “You smell of blood. What’s wrong?” He pulled back and glanced at Rage. “Who the hell is the half-naked Midnight wolf? And why are you home early?”

I took in a deep breath, praying that I could somehow explain this to him with the spell in place.

“I’m half high mage, which I think you know, and we’re on the run because the alpha king wants to kill me.” Holy crap, I could talk. Maybe being half high mage meant the spell didn’t work on me? “He”—I pointed to Rage—“is Courage Midnight, my fated mate. His mother, the queen, is in the car as well as his brothers and two of my best friends from Harvest Clan. We need safety until my grandfather, Geoff, who is the high mage of spirit, arrives, because we’re going to bring Honor, one of the Midnight brothers, back from the dead.” Having run out of air, I sucked in a ragged breath and then smiled to soften the blow … or blows.

Eyes wide, my father stared at me, his eyebrows so high that I wondered if they’d hit his hairline.

“Fated mate?” His gaze went down to my fingers.

“Really?” I muttered. “Out of all that, you are stuck on fated mate? What about Grandpa Geoff, or bringing Honor back from the dead?”

He shook his head as if none of that made sense—because maybe it didn’t, and then ran his hand through his hair. “Nai, my sweet girl…” He swallowed hard and then brushed an errant lock of hair from my forehead. “I should have told you sooner, but everything I did was to protect you.”

I nodded. “I believe you.”

I was old enough to protect myself now, not so much as a defenseless child.

He looked at the car. “You trust everyone there?”

I nodded. “With my life. Ten times over.”

He dipped his head once. “Then tell all of them to come in, and we can talk.” At this, Rage opened the door to the sleek SUVs, letting our crew out. My dad kept his attention on me, and added, “Lona is making chili.”

My sweet Lon—always in the kitchen, always taking care of us. A grin pulled at my lips with the thought of her cooking. “With honey cornbread?”

He gave me a side-eyed look of have-you-lost-your-mind? “Of course.”

I glanced at Rage and the others climbing out of the cars, and then fear clenched me. Standing on the uneven boards outside our cabin, I forced a swallow. “Dad, you know the king will come looking for us, right?”

Pursing his lips, he nodded. But there was no resignation in his expression—and no fear. Just resolute determination. “And we’ll fight to protect you, daughter. Always.”

Pride for our pack and fierce love for my dad swelled up my chest, and my tears were back. As I mumbled my thanks, Rage escorted his mother up the steps. Thankfully, his dirty shirt was back on.

“Hello, Nathan, it’s been a while.” Elaine bowed her head low in a sign of respect. “I wasn’t sure if my sons and I would be welcome here.”

My father cleared his throat and extended his hand so she could grasp it—as he would to any guest. “Friends of my daughter are always welcome in Crescent Pack.”

She smiled, a tremulous release of the tension in her expression and her shoulders, and my father kissed the top of her hand, acknowledging her position as queen.

One million percent proud of my dad right now.

Rage thrust his hand out next. “It’s nice to meet you, sir.” His voice shook, just a little, and I had to suppress my grin of satisfaction, knowing he was nervous to meet my father. Ha!

My dad shook Rage’s hand once, short and firm. “What was up with the no shirt thing?”

All my puffed-up pride drained away, and I blushed the color of a tomato.

Rage chuckled, taking the question in stride. “We covered Nai and me in the back seat of the car so we could sneak out of the portal.”

My father nodded as if this was all normal conversation. He narrowed his gaze and looked Rage up and down. “Fated mates, huh?”

“Yes, sir.” Rage showed his marks to my dad. “It took me by surprise, too.”

“So, it’s snowing, and we don’t have coats on.” I pointed at the gray sky in Captain Obvious fashion, nervous about the direction their conversation was heading. “Besides, Grandpa Geoff could be here anytime, and I’m starving. Not to mention we don’t have much time left on the resurrect Honor clock. We should get inside.”

My dad took the cue and led everyone inside where I introduced Justice, Noble, Kaja, and Fiona. Dad acknowledged each of them with respect, and I had only enough time for a deep breath before…

“Nai!” Lona’s shaken voice came from the kitchen, and I burst into a run.

While I didn’t have a mother growing up, I did have Lon. We crashed into each other, and her scent enveloped me, lavender and earthy spices, this time from the chili she was cooking.

“Oh, child, how I missed you.” She squeezed the ever-loving life out of me, and I let her. I let her hold me for longer than was “cool” because I didn’t give two craps about that. It was so good to be home even under dire circumstances.

A low rumble of laughter made me look up just a split second before my best friend, Mack, jumped into the hug. “What the hell, Nai? Did you get kicked out of Alpha Academy?”

He enveloped me and his mom in a bear hug, lifting us right off the ground. “And you managed to make friends with Midnight?”

“She’s my fated mate,” Rage declared, scooting over to my side in a testosterone-oozing way.

Mack dropped his arms to his side with a low whistle. Lon and I both pulled away and, still smiling, wiped at our eyes.

“And you are…?” Rage asked, sliding his arm around my waist as he eyed Mack—as if he were competition. I elbowed Rage.