All Chapters of Alpha's Caged Mate: Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

Ava only stared at the check in Noah’s hand, not making a move to take it from him.Noah’s brow furrowed, “What’s wrong, A? This is a good thing. We’re moving forward.”She nodded numbly. There were too many emotions buzzing around inside her all at once. Her thoughts were deafening. “No, I’m excited. Really, it just feels too…real, you know? I can’t believe that the contract’s already up!”He rubbed her back, “Time flies, doesn’t it?”Ava swallowed as images from her dream came rising back up to the surface, like a monster lurking in the deep. There was the root of her discomfort; time really had flown by, so much so that she hadn’t even realized that her deal with Xavier had been coming to an end.Now, Ava had no idea what would come next. And what’s more, she had nothing left to hide behind. Her dream had left her with the sinking feeling that she’d come to a crossroad. Would she keep living her dream life with Noah, or would she finally face her problems head-on?The slip of paper

Ava had been confused when Noah’s mother had dropped by their home and begun asking incredibly invasive questions and spouting vague rhetoric with very little context or payoff. She’d been perplexed when all but kicked his mother out of the house instead of allowing her to make a point. But now, hours after he’d gotten into his car and disappeared without a word, Ava was downright pissed. As it was, there were too many unknown variables for her to piece together what the hell was going on between the two of them, much less whatever part Neia Thomas wanted her to play.Ava wanted desperately to believe the best of Noah and that he, in turn, wanted what was best for her. Nothing else made sense to her. She didn’t have to be here because Noah didn’t have to pick her up from the club in the first place. Ava had been upfront with him from the beginning that she didn’t have anything to offer him but herself, so what could his mother see in her that was worth poaching?Who’s to say that wha

The night was dark as pitch out in the country, and the air held a frigid bite that made it known that summer was well and truly over. Ava made short work of her dash off of Noah’s property, navigating the forest adjacent to the main driveway in order to keep the automatic floodlights from going off.She wasn’t hiding from Noah, necessarily. Ava didn’t know exactly how he’d react to finding out that she’d slunk out of the house in the middle of the night without telling him, but she didn’t think he’d react too poorly. Of course, only a day ago, the sliver of doubt she carried wouldn’t have existed at all.But yesterday, she’d been willfully ignorant. Ridiculously comfortable with the idea of living with a near-stranger she knew next to nothing about, just because he treated her well. Ava cared for Noah so much, but it shouldn’t have taken such a rude awakening for her to realize that she’d allowed her life to revolve around him. Just like her life had revolved around Xavier before him

“Layla, you have to be more careful.”Ava pulled her friend aside and leveled her with a stern look. Layla’s warm dark eyes shone back at her, far too unburdened by their current circumstances. But that was Layla – the girl could take anything in stride, and in turn, prison didn’t seem to weigh on her the same way it did Ava.Where life on the inside was a constant scuttle to make it one more day for Ava, Layla walked out of every situation with her head held high and a smile on her achingly pretty face. Even the effects of reduced sunlight and sustenance couldn’t tarnish Layla’s radiance. It was no wonder that Ava had been drawn to her despite her reticence to form attachments. Despite her best intentions, Layla reminded Ava of Sophia, and that admittedly tangential connection was just too tempting for Ava to ignore.“Ava,” Layla sighed, Ava’s name rolling off her lips like a melody. “You worry too much. Audra and the others are bullies.”“Prison bullies,” Ava emphasized.“They’re a

The black Wolf took a cautious step toward his mate, waiting for any sign of reticence on her part. She dropped her head and huffed in response, giving him her blessing to move closer to where she stood, somehow looking so powerful and yet, so vulnerable at the same time.When he took another step toward her, she moved to meet him halfway. The Wolves felt a sense of soul-deep completion as their bond resurfaced and their souls rose up and found one another, touching and intertwining, just as the goddess had intended. An endless ache that had plagued the Wolves for far too long was finally assuaged as they buried their faces in the warm scruff of one another’s necks, nuzzling away the ache of years of separation. The last time they’d been in one another’s presence so completely, their bond hadn’t matured, and they hadn’t yet realized that they were meant for the other. And then, all of a sudden, they were enemies locked on either side of a war that neither one of them could relate to