Gamma Atlas doesn't have time for relationships. With his pack still recovering from an attack and a new mission, his attention should be focused entirely on his work-not the alluring, enigmatic mate he met at a club. Mathias is everything Atlas doe...
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"Who mauled your neck?" Were the first words Nolan said to me when I returned to the pack the next morning.
I winced at the directness of his question, lifting a hand to my neck instinctively. The hickeys were still fresh and very obvious, but I hadn't really thought about them. Not until Nolan pointed it out.
My mind traveled back to the previous night I'd spent with Mathias. If the bruises on my neck and other parts of my body were anything to go off of, someone would've thought he was the werewolf instead of me.
"Nothing," I muttered, trying to brush off the question. "It's not a big deal."
"Right..." the irritating alpha responded, clearly not buying it for a second. "As long as it was consensual—"
"Please stop talking."
He laughed at that, the deep, rich sound echoing in the quiet morning air. "What? It's a valid question. You're looking a little... roughed up."
"Seriously, Nolan," I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose. "I don't need your commentary on this."
"Fine," he said, raising his hands in mock surrender, though the amused smirk never left his face. "But you can't just show up like that and expect no one to say anything. It's practically a neon sign saying, 'Ask me what happened.'"
"Well, don't," I shot back, giving him a pointed glare.
"Alright, alright. I'll stop teasing," he said.
"Tell me about the mission," I said, steering the conversation away from my neck before Nolan could say anything else. "You said someone leaked it?"
His playful expression instantly hardened, the shift so abrupt it left no doubt how serious the situation was. "Yeah," he said grimly. "The council is investigating because we don't know how big this operation might be—assuming it's real."
I frowned. "For once, I thought we had solid leads."
"We did," Nolan replied, crossing his arms. "But the other location was empty, too. No suspects, no evidence, nothing. It's like they knew we were coming."
I mulled over his words, unease stirring in my gut. "You think there's a mole?"
Nolan's jaw tightened, and his gaze flickered toward the window. "It's possible. The council seems to think so, anyway. They're supposed to call us tonight with an update."
"Great," I muttered, running a hand through my hair. A leak in our operations was the last thing we needed, especially now. "And the people we've been tracking? No sightings, no trails?"
He shook his head. "Not a single scent or shred of evidence. Whoever they are, they're good at covering their tracks."
I let out a frustrated sigh, my thoughts racing. If someone was tipping off the kidnappers, that meant none of us could be trusted completely. That meant—
