The Wolf’s Forced Mate

The Wolf’s Forced Mate Rejected Mate Second Chance Romance Beaufort Creek Shifters Book 2 Layla Silver Copyright © 2022 by Layla Silver. All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of the book only. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form, including recording, without prior written permission from the publisher, except for brief quotations in a book review. Contents Chapter 1 - Tanner Chapter 2 - Leah Chapter 3 - Tanner Chapter 4 - Leah Chapter 5 - Tanner Chapter 6 - Leah Chapter 7 - Tanner Chapter 8 - Leah Chapter 9 - Tanner Chapter 10 - Leah Chapter 11 - Tanner Chapter 12 - Leah Chapter 13 - Tanner Chapter 14 - Leah Chapter 15 - Tanner Chapter 16 - Leah Chapter 17 - Tanner About the Author Books by Layla Silver Chapter 1 - Tanner The hollowed-out book sat in all its leather-bound glory next to a computer monitor. Ages of technology sat between the birth of the book and now, a stretch of time as expansive and curious as the days ahead. While the monitor logged the various movements of the Beaufort Creek Pack, the time log in the corner counted the hours until dawn. Steadily, the seconds turned to minutes as the hours passed, creating a visage that reminded me how predictable it was to see time marching toward me. My days numbered high—and now, my responsibilities were much the same. The life of a vagabond called to me, but I knew better than to take off at such a tumultuous time. It would be a slap in the face for my pack if I were to run, even though every muscle in my body screamed for the relief that my family’s schooner provided at the marina. But what kind of wolf would that make me? What kind of friend would I be then to my alpha? I bowed my head. “Is Blake worried?” The man seated at the security desk was twice my size, fuzzy, stern, and temperamental. A burnt tan settled over his body and thick curls of earthy brown hair sprouted wherever possible. His upper arm was the size of my head. It would be easy for him to pop my skull like a watermelon. Which felt like what he wanted to do right this second. “What do you think?” he snapped. “Did he look worried, Tanner?” A shuffle. A sigh. A rapid shift of energy. I shrugged. “Yeah, man.” “Then, that answers the question, doesn’t it?” “Sure does, Jermaine.” I didn’t miss his aggravated puff or the way his shoulder joints popped menacingly as he readjusted his position in front of the monitor. The seat beneath him wheezed, unfit to hold his bulk yet doing so all the same. A dozen or more screens rose above the large desk with much the same view as the first—video footage of the suburban neighborhoods located at the end of the estate’s driveway. It was more active than usual. Or more active than I remembered. My travels had taken me all the way up the coast to Maine right around the time tourist season had died. Being alone in a lighthouse had given me plenty of time to think. And to miss my pack. I couldn’t stay away from them anymore, not with the recent attack on my alpha and his mate. Their lives were in danger. It was sheer luck that I’d been here when it happened. And I didn’t want to think of what would have happened if I hadn’t been here. “Has anyone called Milton?” I asked. “Or seen Neil?” “You have a schooner, don’t you?” I gave him an inquisitive look. “That didn’t answer my question, man.” “I just don’t see why it’s so important to you when you’re just going to head out again.” “Maybe I will with that attitude.” Jermaine snorted and pointed to the third screen. “Well, you’d miss Leah if you did.” Leah. I hadn’t heard that name in hours. And only because Jermaine had brought her up originally. Without hesitation, I shot up from the chair and closed the gap between the desk and me in three easy strides. There she was, blown up on the screen in high definition, her dark brown hair now dyed in a hazy auburn ombre that paled toward the end of the strands. She was just as gorgeous as she had been about four years ago. Average to everyone else. But hardly average to me. Her mocha-brown eyes resembled tired beads. Each auburn brow was plucked to perfection, retaining its original shape in confident strokes over her eyes. A pale rusty sheen coated her skin like I was peering at a desert through a foggy lens. The color was muted, but I knew the richness waiting beneath. If she stayed longer in the sun every so often, then the pigments would truly shine. Curvy hips swayed with every step, sending me reeling back. Now that was new. And far from average. The way her figure hour-glassed made it seem like she had— Jermaine leaned forward. “Who’s that kid with her?” The hair on the back of my neck stood on end. Like she had given birth. Hair coating the rest of my body stood at attention. “Sweet merciful gods, she had a child.” “Your kid?” I gulped. “No, we never—” Jermaine cut me a look of disbelief. I growled. “Not one time, man.” “Yeah, I find that to be absolute bullshit.” “You can say that all you want, but I know what happened between us.” He snorted. “More than heavy petting. That’s for sure.” I slammed my fist on the desk, rattling the monitors. “The kid isn’t mine.” “You know what? Go for a walk,” he barked. “You’re clogging up the security area with that shitty adrenaline sweat you got going on.” “Fine,” I snapped. “See you later.” I had to admit that marching out of