Lola (Completed)

25 Before

Bastian

"Remember, goad him a little about how you have Lola in your bed. Hint, just hint, that Lola hasn't cheated on you for a couple of weeks. It'll get him riled up, thinking that she isn't following his Orders anymore."

"I know, Ry," I murmur.

"I know you know, Bast. Just fucking listen, OK? Go over it until it's fucking second nature, right?" he snaps. Somehow I think he's more nervous about this coming confrontation than I am. Then again, he's the one that gets all the responsibility at the end of the day.

"I make him think that Lola is beginning to be able to break the Orders. I tell him I'm considering Marking Lola, which would reveal her secrets to me," I say before Ryker can.

"Hopefully he goes after Lola to strengthen his Orders. That's when you follow him and issue the Challenge. He'll accept, if only to keep you from Claiming Lola."

"All right, Ryker, I'm here," I look up at the building that houses my father's in-town office.

"Good Luck, Bast."

---

"You can't Mark her," my father scoffs.

"I can. I'm thinking of giving up the title and moving away with Lola." I watch my dad closely.

Sure enough, I see the telltale tic in his left eye. I'm pissing him off.

"You have a responsibility to this pack."

"I do, don't I?" I muse thoughtfully. I see the tic increase. His fingers curl dangerously.

"Lola may leave the pack. I'll retire, soon, and you will gain the title, but I'll only hand over the title if Lola is gone."

I sit back, hoping the fact that nervous sweat is rolling down my back is hidden from my dad. "You're planning on retiring this early?"

"If you send Lola away, I will."

"You want me to send my mate somewhere random as a condition of inheriting?" it's my turn to scoff.

His jaw clenches. "Tell you what, Sebastian. I'll send Lola to Colorado. I plan on retiring there. I can keep an eye on her. You'll know she's safe with me. Then you assume the title and get yourself a Choice Mate."

He'll keep her safe for me? It's time to up the ante.

"Are you fucking my mate?"

Silence. Absolute, pin-drop silence.

"What the fuck, Bastian?" he says in a low voice.

"Have you fucked my mate, dad? I heard some interesting rumors today." Thank you, Cassie.

He looks like he's grinding down his molars. "Don't be ridiculous."

"Am I? I know she's my mate and I'm bias, but she's gorgeous, isn't she?"

"I have never touched Lola," he snarls. "But every other male in this pack has, Bastian. You can not Mark her."

"So," I lean back, "if I let you take Lola away, then you'll hand over the title of alpha to me?"

He growls. "Yes!" Triumph and satisfaction blaze in his eyes for just a moment before they go cold again.

Something deep inside me breaks. I know that Lola wasn't lying to me about what has happened between my father and her, but there was still some small part of me that hoped it wasn't true. I don't want Lola to be a liar, but I also don't want my father, my own father, to be such a twisted fuck. The part of me that is a son, a child, wants his father to be a decent male.