Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 137524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 688(@200wpm)___ 550(@250wpm)___ 458(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 688(@200wpm)___ 550(@250wpm)___ 458(@300wpm)
I’d refused to tell them my name, so Snow was born that day. Pulling myself from Koda’s lap, I grab the discarded shirt from the floor and use it to cover myself a little as I exit the room. I hear his chair push back and his heavy footsteps following me down the hallway and into the bedroom where I start to look for clothes to wear.
He stands in the doorway, watching me get dressed, with a confused look on his face.
“We aren’t going anywhere. I like you naked,” he protests as I slide a shirt over my head and pull on socks. I ignore him as I find pants and slide them on next.
“What’s the matter? I can tell you’re sad. Tell me and I’ll fix it. We can go to town now if you really want. Maybe I have something that can keep you warm. It might be a little big but—”
“Koda,” I say, cutting him off. “You can’t think every part of me is perfect.”
“I can,” he growls, taking a step into the bedroom. I match him with a retreating step, making him growl again.
“The Denalis are my brothers because they found me in the woods one night. Covered in snow. It’s how I got the name, actually. I was eleven when they became my family.”
“I’m your family now,” he corrects, possessiveness coating his words. A half smile pulls at my lips. I love that he’s like that with me. But it’s not real. He keeps calling me perfect and it’s not true. Each time he says the word, it cuts a little deeper.
“Before I was Snow Denali, I was Angie Madden.” His eyebrows rise like he’s thinking. “That night I was running from a facility my father ran. That was the night the Denali brothers found me. His name was Dr. Jack Madden.”
I see the color leave his face before a roar of rage sounds though the house, making me jump. “See? Not everything that comes from me can be perfect, because I come from him.”
We stand in utter silence for what feels like an eternity before Koda turns, storming from the room. After a few moments I hear the front door bang open. Following the sounds, I enter the living room to see the door that’s always locked up so tightly is wide open.
I grab my shoes next to the door and my cape and slip them on, stepping outside onto the porch to see if I can see where he went, but I only see his tracks in the fresh snow. A sob hiccups from my chest, and I feel the tears start to slide down my face.
Stepping off the porch, I start walking. It’s clear that he wants me gone. He’s been so protective of me, but he just left the door wide open. It’s not long until I start to hear howls, and I start running towards the sounds, knowing who it is.
When I break through the clearing, I see them coming towards me at a dead run. When I reach them, I drop to the ground, petting each of them. I can tell they are inspecting me but won’t shift until we get back to their cabin.
“Lead me,” I tell them as I follow them through the woods for a good mile before I finally see their cabin. I push inside and sit on the sofa. I wait for them to shift and change, and then all three join me back in the living room. They pull me up from my seat and wrap me in hugs.
“We’ve been so fucking worried, Snow. The phones have been down, and we had to wait for the storm to stop to make it over to the Alpha’s house to find out where you were,” Flint says, a half growl in his voice.
“I’ve been with Koda,” I tell them.
“We know,” Forest says sternly, and I give him another hug.
“He wouldn’t fucking tell us where Koda lived. Said he’d go check it out, but then his mate started freaking out. He kicked us out of his house. Said he’d get back to us, but we’ve been searching anyway,” Flint finishes. I can see the tension in his body.
“I’m fine,” I try to reassure them.
“You’re not fine. You’ve been crying,” Finn says worriedly. My fair skin hides nothing.
“I…” I pause, taking a deep breath. “My mate wants nothing to do with me.” The last part comes out as a sob as Finn pulls me into an embrace, holding me tightly and trying to get me to stop crying. Suddenly, a roar sounds from outside.
Chapter 7
Koda
When I bolt from the house, I don’t think about anything other than the name that Snow said. Jack Madden.
He was such a horrible human being who did terrible things to our kind. When I was there, he was the one leading the facility. I’m pretty sure he owned the place. Everyone answered to him and he seemed to be making all the decisions. When I was there, I got the feeling that if he went down, the place would have fallen apart. I could sense dissent in the people that worked there and knew that all it would take would be one good gust of wind and the whole place would tumble to the ground. The only person who seemed to want to be there was Madden.