Chapter 129

RYKER’S P.O.V

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Damien had been a permanent fixture in my life from the first day that I could remember. He always did things his way regardless of whether I agreed with it or not. We were very different, both on the surface and in every way

that think of. There were times that his actions would piss me off but never to this magnitude. It took a considerable amount of

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effort to not drag him by the hair and beat him to a bloody pulp while we all sat in the private living room.

For the first time in forever, Riley didn’t make an effort to sit next to him. She was always in his space and begging to be noticed by him. It was a wonder I didn’t notice it earlier but today, she did none of that. She sat on one end of the room, Christine on the other and Damien sat completely alone. At least he had the decency to keep his head down because he knew that he had fucked up badly.

“Does anyone want to start talking first?” Camilla asked from her spot beside me. She was seated upright with her hands folded in her lap like a regal ruler. Everyone avoided her gaze.

Damien’s eyes met mine and I simply stared at him blankly until he exhaled deeply. He knew I was pissed, there was no hiding it. it didn’t matter that I was lounging on the couch with my arms around my mate, that was simply a countermeasure to prevent me from hitting him.

“Do we really have to do this?” it was Riley who asked. “There is nothing to talk about. I just want to go back home and get to work. I have so much to do.”

“If that were true then why did you come?” I asked and she narrowed her eyes at me. “If you were swamped with so much work then why did you bother to leave?”

“Because,” she hesitated and I raised a brow. “I heard that you were all in danger and I wanted to help. I got to the camp and they told me that he had run off without an explanation so I came. It isn’t a big deal. Everyone is safe, can I leave now?”

She started to rise but I shot her a hard glare. “Sit the fuck down, now.”

I had never raised my voice to Riley, not even when she was a teenager and she was the brattiest person in the world. I always believed in talking to her gently and after spending years with a father who did nothing but scream and yell, I was determined to be different but if yelling was what I needed to do in order to get to the bottom of this then I was more than happy to oblige.

She sat down but her eyes burned with anger and unshed tears. “This is none of your concern, Ryker. This is my life and my business and I don’t see why you are so interested in it. Are the problems in yours not enough for you? Why do you want to barge into mine?”

“That’s not what he is trying to do,” Camilla spoke softly. “This isn’t just about you anymore, Riley. This is about all of you and it affects us as well. The pack is basically an extension of the palace, we will see you sooner or later and we don’t want this to affect anything.”

“If this is about professionalism then I can be professional,” Riley shot back and Camilla turned to me as if to say this was going nowhere.

“Look, Riley, no one is upset with you,” I cut in because I knew my sister and I knew that was probably her biggest worry.copy right hot novel pub