Sever

ALLY WAGNER Copyright © 2023 by Ally Wagner, MK Publishing All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without written permission of the copyright owner except for the use of quotations in a book review. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. Cover art by Matthew Weatherston Edited by Christina Ramos Layout by Eddy Espina ISBN: 978-1-7367220-1-5 (paperback) Library of Congress Control Number: 2023904237 Skin Series: Skin Shift Sever Dedication To you, the reader, for taking a chance on Skin and falling in love with the characters as I did. Thank you. And to my mom, my biggest fan, thank you for always being so excited on my behalf. Every trip to a bookstore with you is both endearing and a tad embarrassing, but in the best way. If only grandma could see me now. One The repetitive tap tap tap against porcelain did nothing to ease the awkwardness that had settled in the air. Despite the clinking, clanking, and chattering going on around them, the tapping was all Cain could hear. His inner wolf’s hackles rose with irritation. “Would it kill you to at least try?” Cain huffed, pushing away his half-eaten blueberry muffin. Kee stopped drumming her nails against the coffee mug and lifted a mocking brow at him. “It may.” He let out a heavy sigh. “You agreed to this, Kee.” She scoffed and raised the cup to her lips. “I agreed to ease the discomfort of this unwanted bond.” She peered at him over the rim before taking a sip of the lukewarm coffee. He dropped his hands to the table and winced when they slammed down harder than he anticipated. A month since he won the battle for alpha, and he was still trying to adjust to the new power. “You don’t have to remind me of my fuck up every meeting, Kee.” She set down the coffee, pushed her dark blonde hair over her shoulder, and leaned back in the chair. Crossing her arms over her chest, she lifted a brow at him in challenge. “I’m sorry, am I not allowed to be angry at what happened to me?” “I didn’t say that,” he grumbled. “But you’re always mad at me.” She tilted her head at him with mock innocence. “Oh gee, Cain, why do you think that is? What could have possibly brought that on?” His nostrils flared at the reminder of what his pack did to her. Tension rippled through his shoulders. “I’m sorry, Kee. I know I can never apologize enough for what they did to you or make it up to you, but it wasn’t my doing. What matters is that you’re alive. They’re not.” She should have let it go. Should have accepted his apology and moved on, but a part of her would always be a bitter bitch. “But they’re not all dead, are they? You spared the one who gave them the order to kill me.” The Alpha of the Los Angeles wolf pack balled his hands into tight fists at the reminder. “I was giving an unborn pup its best chance at survival.” He said it slowly and in a low tone, as if trying to calm himself down. He didn’t regret his choice to let the former alpha live. Warren’s mate was pregnant, and to give the pup the best chance at making it to birth, Natalie would need both her mate and the pack alpha to coerce her to not shift during a full moon. “Please Kee, it’s been a month. I don’t want to fight about this again.” Had it only been a month since Cain marked her as his mate? That would make it almost three months since her attack. Almost three months with Lucas. A smile curved up her lips at the thought of her man. Boyfriend was too light to call what they had, lover not intimate enough. He was simply hers, and she was his. Cain watched her face soften and felt a pang of jealousy hit him. It wasn’t as visceral as when he first learned of her and Lucas, but his beast still snarled in response. “I take it you and the vampire are doing well.” She blinked out of her thoughts and looked at her ex-boyfriend. She had to applaud his attempt at keeping the contempt from his voice. It was almost believable. “We are. We have a date tonight after this. This is our time to spend together before the pack and I leave for Nana’s for Christmas.” He nodded once and they fell into an uncomfortable silence once again. “Speaking of Christmas, I take it we’re past the point of giving each other presents?” Kee reached across the table and slid her hand into his rough, warm one. Almost instantly the searing heat that had been spreading along the back of her neck cooled. The mating bond seemed to purr in contentment at the contact, appeasing both their pain. “This is the only present I need.” He wrapped his fingers around hers and looked down at their hands. His wolf puffed up at the contact, a happy sigh blowing through his nostrils. “How’s the pack?” She perked up at the mention of her small pack, a smile curving her lips once again. “They’re good. Samson is still settling into his new life, but I think he’ll be okay. Conrad and Lucy are dating, and Mia transferred to the preternatural school here three weeks ago. The school is on winter break right now, so she hasn’t had a whole lot of time to adjust to it, but I think she likes it. There are more wereanimals her age there.” He nodded. “LA has one of the biggest schools. Once we get more kids, they’ll be split into