Rather than voice that disappointment, she blanked her expression, shutting him out—which his wolf seriously didn’t like—and turned away. As she headed inside, her heart-shaped ass swayed in a way that seemed unintentionally provocative. “Give me ten minutes.”
The moment Derren stepped inside her small cabin, he knew it was a mistake. It had been bad enough breathing in her enticing scent as they walked. Here, it filled the air and wrapped around him. Fuck, she smelled like wild berries, grapefruit, and sin. The combination was heady.
He was tempted to return outside, but there was always a possibility that someone could sneak in the back door; he needed to cover both entrances. After all, if she truly was being targeted by the Beta female, said female might not appreciate Ally getting away from her.
As he waited, he took in the interior of the cabin. There was none of the quirky, whimsical décor that Seers were known for. In fact, she didn’t seem to have put her own stamp on the place at all. It was plain and basic, like a rental home.
Soon enough, she reappeared with one suitcase and a bag. His wolf wanted to rub up against her, wanted her scent on his fur. This could get annoying real quick. “Why didn’t you foresee how the Beta female would react?” Assuming Ally was telling the truth, of course.
“Seers don’t have visions about their own future, just as healers can’t heal themselves. Our gifts are supposed to help us serve others, not ourselves.”
“But that’s not the way your kind often works.”
“No, it’s not.”
He blinked, startled by her honesty. He’d expected her to bristle, become defensive on behalf of her kind. When he just stared at her, she arched an impatient brow. Abandoning his thoughts, Derren took the suitcase. “You good to go?”
She inhaled deeply. “I’m ready.”
As they strode through the woods, they again passed the occasional shifter. Spotting Ally’s luggage, the wolves snickered, sending her good riddance looks. They obviously thought she’d been banished and that Derren was escorting her off the land. Ally seemed indifferent to it all, but he wasn’t buying it. He decided it was more likely that she was refusing to give them the satisfaction of seeing how much it hurt.
Derren found Eli waiting near their SUV, talking with a still-nervous Matt.
The Alpha turned to Ally with a shaky smile. “It feels wrong to watch you go. Stay, Ally.”
Derren stiffened. “She’s not safe here.” Cain had been right about that. Derren had seen how these wolves were giving her an ice-cold shoulder, and he didn’t like it. It made him remember a time when he too had been isolated, cast aside, and then betrayed by those he should have been able to trust.
Seer or not, guilty or not, she was now under Derren’s protection. He wasn’t happy about it, and he didn’t welcome yet another responsibility. But he’d take it as seriously as he took his Beta duties, because that was who he was.
Movement in his peripheral vision made Derren’s head whip to the side. A tall male was fast approaching, tension in every line of his body. Zeke. When his eyes slid to Ally and then down to her luggage, a series of emotions flickered across his face—predominantly rage.
“What’s going on?” Zeke demanded.
Matt took a step toward his Beta. “Ally’s leaving the pack.”
“What? Why?”
As the Beta and Alpha proceeded to argue, Eli looked at Ally. “Now that you’re packed, we can go.” He took her suitcase and bag and put them in the trunk of the SUV.
When Derren began to lead Ally to the backseat, Zeke made a beeline for her. “Ally, wait.”
Instinctively, Derren obstructed his path. “Don’t even think it.” His wolf curled back his upper lip in a fierce snarl as the animal dropped into a fighting stance, rearing to pounce. His wolf had a black, vicious temper. Right then, he was eager to rake his claws across the Beta’s abdomen, to warn the male away from Ally.
Zeke said through his teeth, “I want to talk to Ally.”
The expectation of obedience in his tone rubbed Derren’s fur the wrong way. “You can do it from here. Though you should probably make it quick.”
“Ally, you don’t have to go.”
“You believe I attacked your mate,” she said. “Surely you’d feel a whole lot better knowing she’s safe from my evil clutches.”
A muscle in Zeke’s jaw ticked. Again he moved toward her, and again Derren blocked his path. “What the fuck is your problem, Derren?” Zeke growled.
Simple: like his wolf, Derren didn’t want Zeke within reach of Ally. “She’s under my protection.”
Fury flared in Zeke’s eyes. “No, she’s under my protection. I’m her Beta.”
Hearing the heavy dose of possessiveness in that statement, it was clear to Derren just how close Zeke had come to imprinting on Ally. Bonding with his mate would naturally have dulled his feelings for any other female, but it was apparent that Zeke still hadn’t quite let go of Ally.
“Not anymore,” Derren firmly stated, a slight taunt in his tone.
“Ally, you don’t need to leave.”
“Zeke?” asked a new voice filled with uncertainty. Then a blonde sidled up to Zeke, taking in the scene with a perplexed expression.
“They want to take Ally,” Zeke told her.
The blonde’s eyes bulged in anger as she glared at Derren. “You can’t do that! She’s ours! Ally, do not get in that SUV!”