Free Claimed by Her Alpha by Alex Anders

on her toes and briefly kissed his lips before turning and walking into the brisk morning air. One thing she had come to enjoy about the Bahamas was the way the mornings felt. In North Carolina, the morning was just the beginning of the day. But so close to the ocean, mornings in the Bahamas always felt fresh, like the world actually was beginning anew each time.
    Saki brushed against the dew-covered leaves and felt cold droplets on her arms. Walking down the pathway to the street, she heard the sound of a rooster in the distance. Everything was still so quiet. No cars were out, and it seemed like no one was awake.
    Her mother was probably awake, though. She might not have left her bed yet, but she was awake. Saki‘s only hope was that the twins had left the front door open for her and that no one was in front of the TV yet.
    With her house now directly in front of her, the pressure of the moment loomed. Approaching her porch, she flinched when she heard the creaking noise the wooden boards made. Reaching for the handle, she twisted. It was locked. She tried it again to be sure. It didn’t budge.
    “Shoot!” she spit, not sure what to do.
    Saki turned and faced the houses that stretched out before her, each lit up from the east. Her mind rushed through scenarios. None of them were very realistic. If it was her mother who had locked the door, then she could have easily checked to see if Saki was in bed. If her mother already knew she was gone, she would be listening for her return.
    Saki’s only hope was that it was Maddie who had locked the door. If so, she might still have Marnie as an ally. Saki rounded the house to the twin’s bedroom window. She looked for a way to get Marnie‘s attention but couldn’t figure out a way to do it without also waking Maddie. Resigning herself, she picked up a small pebble and threw it upward toward the glass.
    Saki‘s first shot missed. She had aimed for the left side of the left window, the side that Marnie slept on. She was sure that they would both hear. But maybe she would get lucky.
    Saki took aim and threw again. It connected with a bang loud enough to surprise her, though it probably wasn’t as loud as she thought it was. It just sounded loud as the noise reverberated through the peaceful morning air.
    Saki reached down to grab another pebble when she saw a familiar face pop up in the window. Masked in darkness, she couldn’t tell which twin it was. But it didn’t matter. She needed someone to unlock the door. She pointed toward the front.
    Circling the house again, she stood on the porch waiting. The door opened, and Marnie was waiting for her. A sense of relief washed through her body.
    “Were you with him? With Lane?”
    Saki didn’t like her asking questions but knew that she had to give her something as payment for letting her in.
    “Yeah.”
    “All night?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Did you two do it?”
    “It’s none of your business,” Saki said, suddenly very uncomfortable. Remembering that she still needed Marnie, she quickly changed her mind. “Yeah. And now we have to take a boat trip. I’m going to be gone all day. You have to cover with mum.”
    “Okay,” Marnie said reluctantly. “But what do I tell her?”
    “Just tell her that I was here all night, and I left early to go to the beach with some friends. You don’t have to tell her anything other than that. And it’s the truth right? I am going to the beach, right?”
    “Yeah. You’re going somewhere else after that, but you’re going to the beach.”
    “And that’s all she needs to know, okay? You’ll cover for me?”
    “Is this wolf stuff?” She said, whispering when she got to the word “wolf.”
    “Yeah. It’s important wolf stuff,” Saki acknowledged.
    Marnie followed Saki into her bedroom. Saki felt her sister watching her as she dumped out her textbooks and filled her backpack with a change of clothes. She pulled out a swimsuit. Finding a shirt and a pair of shorts, she gathered