Welcome Home

The drive to Black Water took almost three hours and Layla, having had only two hours sleep, drifted in and out of sleep while Gray sat beside her typing on his laptop. They had barely spoken for most of the trip after he had tried to make conversation but she had made it clear that she wasn’t in the mood for small talk. He glanced surreptitiously at her now, wondering what on earth Blake was up to sending his only daughter as a peace offering to his archenemy. The girl was barely eighteen and looked like a stiff breeze would blow her over and yet, she had a steely resolve and conviction, that made her stronger than she looked.

He knew that Seth would never approve of this, it was an affront to his principles but Gray knew that Blake had done this deliberately to back him into a corner so that Seth could not refuse the offering. He sensed that Blake was up to something but would he really use his own daughter to carry out whatever devious plans he had for Seth. Gray knew that the man was a shit heel but this was low even for Blake.

In the vehicle in front of Gray and Layla, Seth sat alone in the back brooding, as anger darkened his otherwise handsome features. His chin rested in his palm as he stared out the window at the passing scenery and his thoughts ran and stumbled through his head in a chaotic hot mess. His mind wandered back to Silver Lake and the moment he had touched her hand, he shivered slightly and turned back from the window, quickly glancing at his driver to see if he noticed.

His hand drifted to his chest, just above his heart and he felt the slightly raised ridges that had burnt through his skin to form the mark that would be there to identify his mate. The second they touched he had felt the burning sensation race from his fingers and up his arm straight to his heart, singeing his flesh and cauterizing the skin, sealing her mark on him for all eternity. Fuck, he swore under his breath and turned back to the window, she was his mate and her father had gifted her to him as his slave.

It was obvious that Blake had sent her for much more than that, which would have made it easy to just imprison her and interrogate her, but she was his mate and that only complicated the situation. There was no way in hell that he would subject his own mate to that kind of treatment but what the hell was he supposed to do with her now, Seth’s mind was in turmoil and he wished only to get home and lock himself away in his room, away from this madness. He disliked Blake even more now, seeing what a low and conniving snake he was, the man was an absolute ass hat, that much was obvious.

He loosened his tie and leaning back in his seat, closed his eyes and tried to shut down his thoughts but the image of those hazel eyes and full pink lips kept drifting into his mind and pulling him from the peace that he craved. It already felt like this was going to be more trouble than he needed in his life right now but yet, he couldn’t help the way he was drawn to her. Seth massaged the bridge of his nose as a heavy sigh escaped his lips causing his driver to glance up into the rear view mirror with a puzzled look on his face.

He dozed in and out of sleep for the rest of the drive, his hand resting on the mark above his heart, almost as if he was afraid that it might just fade away. When the car stopped, he opened his eyes and sat up, looking outside to see the familiar lawn and gardens that surrounded his house and he breathed a sigh of relief as he climbed out of the car and walked around to the steps leading up to the front door. Just then he heard Gray’s voice from behind him and he turned to face him, his face a mask of anger and impatience.

“Shall I put her in the spare room on your floor?”

Seth glared at the both of them in turn, quickly averting his eyes from the girl, and addressing Gray.

“Put her where ever the hell you want. She’s not my problem”, he growled before turning back and ascending the steps to the front door and disappearing inside.

Gray looked at Layla and grinned, his blue eyes twinkling with amusement.

“He’s a real charmer our Alpha”

Layla gave him a slight smile and looked away, she didn’t want to be friends, that’s not what she was here for and she had to remain focused on her task.

“Come on let’s get you inside and I’ll show you to your room”, Gray said as he carried her bags and headed up the steps.

Layla trailed after him, looking around at the well-kept gardens and trim lawn and thinking how it was nothing like how she had expected. Considering his reputation, she had assumed that he would be living in some Gothic style mansion with gargoyles waiting to greet you at the front door. Inside the foyer she gazed around at the clean, fresh lines of burnished timber and white walls, and the wide staircase that led upstairs. It was very airy and bright and she found herself reluctantly impressed at the interior which was much more impressive and grand than the home she grew up in at Silver Lake.

Gray led her up the stairs to the first floor and down a long hallway to another set of stairs that took them to the second floor, which he explained was reserved solely for the Alpha and was where she would be staying. He showed her to a door third from the end of the hall and indicated with a nod of his head that the room at the end belonged to Seth.

Opening the door to her room, he strode inside and deposited her bag on the bed before turning to leave but then he stopped at the door and turned to face her.

“Glenna will be by in the morning to help you, she’s the housekeeper. Runs this place and keeps a tight ship. If there’s anything you need you can ask her or come see me, she’ll show you where my office is downstairs”

“Thanks”, Layla replied softly.

“Sure no problem, don’t hesitate to ask if you need anything”, Gray quietly closed the door behind him.

Layla sat down on the bed and looked around her room, it was beautifully furnished, the four-poster king-sized bed took up most of the room while a small lounge set consisting of two wing-back chairs and a low chaise sofa occupied the smaller half of the room. Paintings of beautiful landscapes in soft pastel colors adorned the walls while floor-to-ceiling windows filled one side of the room. She stood and walked to the windows, peeking out through the gauzy, transparent curtains at the gardens below before turning back to the bed where she began unpacking her bag.