The council elder’s eyes widened as realization dawned. Ryker looked across the gathered wolves.
“The Omega your Alpha hid for three years…”
He paused.
“…was Julia.”
The reaction was immediate.
“What?”
“Julia?”
“Julia was Alpha Jason’s mate?”
“She was his fated mate?”
“The Omega who worked in the packhouse?”
Jason’s expression tightened with every whisper. Some of the older pack members remembered Julia. Some remembered seeing her quietly working in the background. Others remembered how little attention anyone had paid to her because she had been nothing more than an Omega in their eyes.
And now they were learning that she had been their Alpha’s fated mate all along. Ryker’s aura shifted. Possessive. Protective. Proud.
“She is no longer the Omega this pack ignored.”
His eyes m
