by Sarah Blake
* * * *
“So, what do you feel like doing?” Trish asked him as they dried off in the bedroom.
“I can think of a few things,” Luke replied, looking over every inch of her creamy skin. “The first of them being counting every single freckle on that body of yours.” She gave a little laugh as a flush spread across her neck to her cheeks.
“You’re not serious are you?”
“I would never lie when it comes to your body, Red. The thing’s lethal. In a good way,” he answered with a smile, causing another laugh from her lips.
“Well, you’ll have to wait. I need some time to recover. I’m worn out. How come you have a bag of clothes here?” she asked.
“It’s my place. I was heading this way to check what I needed when I spotted you on the side of the road.”
“This is yours? It’s beautiful, Care Bear.”
“Care Bear?”
“Yeah. Seeing as you keep calling me Red, I thought I’d find a nickname for you. Care Bear’s what I’ll use till I think of something when I get to know you better.”
“I don’t think so, Red,” he said, stalking toward his smiling mate. When he got near her, she shrieked and ran out of the bedroom, laughing and shouting “Care Bear” over her shoulder. “I’ll show you Care Bear,” he said, chasing after her.
Chapter Five
Luke knew their honeymoon couldn’t last forever. When Brax called just two days after they had arrived at the cabin, telling Luke he needed him back, Luke sighed and told him they would be there in a few hours. The last two days had been the best of his life. He and Trish had spent hours talking, laughing and carrying on. They had also spent time wandering the woods around the cabin as their wolves. The red wolf his mate shifted into was the most beautiful he had ever seen. But that didn’t surprise him as the woman was as well. She was so much smaller than himself, he worried he would hurt her. During one of their wanders, she had shifted back to her human form and stood with her hands on her hips. She laid into him about how she wasn’t made of glass and wouldn’t break. He loved her fire when she was angry. Her hard breathing made her breasts jiggle slightly and he had to force himself to look at her face.
“Red,” he called out. She was curled up on the sofa reading a book. When she wandered into the kitchen where he had been on the phone, he once again appreciated how she looked in one of his shirts. Only two buttons were closed and showed so much of her skin he had a hard time remembering what he was going to say. “That was Brax. He needs us back down there ASAP. Looks like the honeymoon’s over for now,” he told her as she walked over and sat on his knee.
“Guess we knew this was going to happen one day.” She seemed to hesitate before continuing. “What’s going to happen when we get back? This place is an hour away from the clinic. And you’ll be needed there too for the next little while.”
He hoped what he was about to say didn’t scare her away. “Well, your place is close to town and the clinic. How about I move in there with you?” Her reaction shocked even him.
She spun on his knee till she was straddling his legs, smiling a dazzling smile. “You mean you want to live with me?” she asked, teasing him.
“Of course I wanna live with you, Red. I want to be with you every second of the day.” He laughed. The next hour was spent exploring the different surfaces of the kitchen. He decided he would ask Brax if he could keep the small table as it was the perfect height for him to take Trish on. While he packed his clothes and other things from his play bag they had used, Trish cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom. She said she would never be able to face whoever moved in there next if they knew what she and Luke had been up to.
On the way to the Alpha house, Trish decided to come with him to see the baby and how Sarah was getting on. When they walked in the door, all the Sentinels and mates were there. Luke and Trish were greeted with hugs and congratulations by all those gathered. Trish, Sarah, Brian, Kirstie and Chloe went to talk in the kitchen while the men headed to the office.
“How’s things?” Luke asked when everyone was settled. “Anything happen while I was away?”
“Nothing much, but your old friend’s been snooping again,” Brax said. Luke knew from the tone of the Alpha’s voice he meant Clint Stevens.
“What’s the little shit done now?” Luke asked.
“He’s been asking more questions. To Liam and Tyler this time. The questions, when all added together, caused a red flag to pop up. First to Danny about the security and Sentinels of the pack. Then Liam about the territory. Things that aren’t common knowledge. Then to Tyler about former attacks by outsiders. I don’t know what the little shit’s up to, but we have to find out. And soon. There’s still a lot of work to do to tighten the boarders of the new pack lands and he knows that area too well for my liking. I don’t know if he’s got the balls to plan anything, but I’ve got a bad feeling. Saying that, I don’t want to interrogate the man if he’s done nothing wrong and just trying to settle into his new home. At the moment, with the baby and that, I could easily miss something. Luke, I want you to head over and see him now. Take Danny and Tyler with you. They can have a look round his house, see if anything’s there.”
Brax’s orders were met with agreement by all.
After another few matters that needed discussing, they all left the office. The others in the house were still in the kitchen with the baby. The sight that greeted him almost stopped his heart. Trish was standing by the island with a sleeping Star wrapped in a pink blanket in her arms. She was looking down at the baby with a smile on her face. Although they had known each other under a week and he wanted years of having her to himself, if she wanted a baby, he would agree. He would do any- and everything in his power to make her happy.
Sarah spoke when the room was full. “What do you guys think of having a barbecue next Sunday? Make it a pack party. An all-day thing so all the pack can come?”
“Sarah, sweetie, you do realize the pack has nearly one thousand members. It would take longer than one day to have them all over. And do you think it’s such a good idea having so many people here while the baby is still so young?” Conner asked.
“Oh, I didn’t think of that.” She seemed a little sad at the news until Liam spoke up.
“How about we hold it in the square in the town center? Set up marquees and such. Get a few people to bring their barbecues down and then more food can be cooked?” he asked. Sarah smiled at the English Sentinel, walking over and hugging him.
“Liam, you’re a genius.” She turned back to everyone. “What do you guys think then?”
“I think you should take your hands off a male that isn’t your mate, Angel,” Brax said in a tone that had Sarah pulling her hand off Liam’s shoulder as if it had caught on fire. Brax stalked over to the woman and pulled her to his chest. “Seems this little get-together is over, folks. Looks like me and Conner need to teach our mate about keeping her hands off males who she isn’t mated to.”
“Oh shit,” was Sarah’s reply to Brax’s comment.
Trish handed the baby to Conner who took her upstairs to lay her down while everyone left. Luke dropped Trish off at her apartment before going to see Clint and told her he would be back as soon as possible. It hurt his chest to leave her so soon after claiming her, but knew he had a job to do. He thought the barbecue would be a great idea. It would not only help the members of the two packs to get to know each other better, but would also help settle the remaining tension that some of the Water Sun pack still had. It was hard for both dominant and submissive members of a pack to have a change of leadership and this little get together would help things along.
Chapter Six
Luke made his way to Clint’s home, thinking how he would approach the man. From what he was like before the pack was taken over, Luke didn’t think he was smart enough to plan an attack or the like. But Clint did have a hero-worship thing going on for Mark. God knew what he was capable of now that his hero was gone.
When he got out of his SUV at the small one-story house, he caught the slightest smell of the other Sentinel’s scent, hopeful they would have some luck if he didn’t. Knocking on the front door, he heard someone inside moving around quickly, and the sounds of paper being rustled before drawers slammed closed. When the door finally opened, Luke plastered on a smile he hoped would be friendly.
“Hey, man. How you doing?” he asked.
“Luke, what ya doing here?” the small man replied. At once, Luke knew he was up to something. The smell of panic and lies coming off him was strong enough to cause Luke to almost take a step back.
“Just came round to see how things are, how you’re getting on and that since moving up here,” he told Clint, looking over the man’s shoulder into the house. “Can I come in? I’ve got some things I need to talk about.”
Clint seemed reluctant at first, but smartly stepped back and allowed Luke to enter. The house was a total bomb site. Clothes, newspapers, food and beer cans took up every available surface and most of the floor. Luke was led to the kitchen, which was just as bad. Clint cleared two chairs for them and offered Luke a coffee. Luke politely refused, thinking he would catch something if he used a cup.
“So,” he said once they were both settled at the table. “How you doing?” he asked.
“What you mean?” Clint replied, seeming a little on edge.
“I’ve been going round all the members of Water Sun, seeing how they’re settling in. Making sure there’s no problem or anything. I know how hard it can be moving into a new pack.”
“Everything’s fine. Considering Mark was ambushed and murdered for doing nothing wrong. Makes me sick.”
“We both know that’s not true, Clint. Mark was a power-hungry piece of shit and deserved everything he got.”
“Don’t you dare talk about him like that,” Clint shouted, getting to his feet. “You were always jealous of him, weren’t you? Wanted his place, didn’t ya?” But too chickenshit to challenge him. Knew ya’d lose. I don’t know why Mark kept ya around.”
Luke had to laugh at the things Clint was saying. They both knew Luke could have, and was going to, take over the pack. He had only been home and out of the SEALs a few short weeks when he started planning to challenge Mark. He just sat and listened to Clint’s rant, hoping the man would slip up somewhere and let something out about what, if anything, he was up to. Luke didn’t have to wait long.
“Now you’re kissing the ass of this Alpha and his groupies. Makes me fucking sick. Won’t be for long though.”
That was all Luke needed.
“Long for what, Clint?” he asked, standing himself and getting in the face of the bastard. Clint instantly lowered his eyes, showing his submissiveness to Luke. He must have realized his mistake and tried to correct it.
“Nothing. Nothing at all,” he stammered, eyes flying all over the room, unable to meet Luke’s gaze.
Luke lowered his voice, putting all his dominance behind his next sentence. “You forget who I am, Clint. I’ll only ask this once again. What did you mean?”
The fear now coming off the man was strong enough to make Luke smile.
“I didn’t mean anything. Honestly. Look, I didn’t want to say anything yet, but I’m leaving. I can’t stay in this pack when the Alpha did what he did.”
Luke knew the man was lying. He knew it in every bone in his body. He thought about pushing the man for the truth, but decided to leave him for now. He would tell Brax the man was definitely up to something and volunteer himself to find out what was going on.
“See now, that wasn’t hard to tell, was it?” he asked Clint, easing back on his dominance and placing a smile on his face. It would be a hell of a lot harder discovering what he was doing if he thought Luke was watching him.
His cover worked and Clint smiled back at him. “I know. It’s just I didn’t want people talking and have Brax down here asking about why I’m leaving. I’m not gonna hide it, Luke, but I don’t like the man.”
“Sure, that’s understandable. You don’t have to like anyone if you don’t want to. But don’t go causing trouble, okay? Other people like it here and want a quiet life.”
Luke made his way through the mess to the door. After saying good-bye to the man, he drove off. He only turned round the corner at the end of the street before stopping again. Less than thirty seconds later, Tyler and Danny got into the SUV.
“Little shit’s up to something. He let slip that I won’t be kissing Brax’s ass for much longer. When I pushed him for more info, he backpedalled. Panicked and made up some bullshit story about how he meant he was planning on leaving the pack but didn’t want anyone to know yet. He also made it clear Brax’s sexual preference isn’t to his liking. You guys find anything?”
“Apart from what a dirty bastard the guy is?” Danny laughed. “We found ripped-up maps of a few years ago. They were before we expanded further into the Rockies so that’s why I’m guessing they were in the trash. I’ve got to hand it to you, Luke, I don’t think I could have stepped into that place. The stench from outside was bad enough.”
Laughing with his fellow Sentinels, Luke made his way back to the Alpha house. After explaining what they had found to Brax, Luke explained how he would be able to get hold of some things from his friends in the SEALs. Phone taps and such.
“Do it. I want to find out what he’s up to ASAP. Danny, apart from here and your house, are there security records and patrol info?”
“Nowhere. Everything’s done on computer now. I e-mail the soldiers and Sentinels once a month with their duties and patrol routes for the upcoming month. They all know not to print anything and I’ve never known any of them to do so. The e-mails are encoded as well, and would take someone who knew the codes to unlock them. When I’ve sent all the e mails, I make a copy of routes and duties onto two memory cards. One stays in my safe, the other comes here. I check the safe once a week. I did it yesterday and everything was there.”
“I checked our safe this morning as well. Nothing’s missing,” Conner said.
“Okay, I want a few soldiers patrolling round his neighbourhood. And I want someone tailing him twenty-four-seven. Tell them to keep a distance and keep hidden. Don’t want Clint catching onto anything. Josh, ask around to people living near him. Find out if they’ve noticed anything.”
The Sentinels made their exit from the office shortly afterward. All heading out to do their jobs. On his way back to Trish’s, he called his connections in the Navy seals. After a few minutes chatting, he explained what he needed and was promised the items would be with him the next day. With nothing more to do for now, he began thinking about his mate and what he had planned to do.
* * * *
Trish was one pissed-off werewolf. After calling to tell her manager at the hospital she would be back to work in a few days, the woman had laughed and told her she shredded her letter of resignation. She then went on to explain that Brax had been in touch the night before he brought Sarah and the baby in, explaining that she needed to call all the staff and tell them not to agree to Trish’s request of covering her shifts. When Trish asked why, she was then informed it was all part of Luke’s plan to woo her. Next she called Mick from the garage. He had laughed before explaining there was nothing wrong with the car and he would drop it off later that day.
He’s one dead man, she thought to herself about Luke. She was secretly pleased at the lengths he had gone to, but still pissed he involved half the town. She wouldn’t let him know she was pleased about his efforts though.
When he walked in the door, she picked up the closest thing to her and threw it at his head. “You lying bastard,” she shouted at him as he caught the remote she threw.
“What the fuck!” he shouted back, looking at the remote. “What the hell was that for?”
“For lying. For going behind my back. For breaking my car. Take your pick.” He had the nerve to smile, to actually smile at her.
“Awww, don’t think of it li
ke that, Red,” he told her as he walked over to where she was standing near the sofa. She walked round the other side, needing some space to stay angry at him. If he touched her, she would cave in and forgive him.
“Don’t look at me like that, mister. You’re in big trouble. I can’t believe you did that, Luke. I’m going to feel so embarrassed next time I go to work.” He continued after her as she talked.
She couldn’t help it. When she saw his smile it brought one to her own face. “Come on, Red. You can’t tell me you’re not totally smitten that I went to all that trouble. And look how well it worked out. My ears are still ringing from you screaming my name when I had my tongue in your pussy.”
His dirty words had the effect she guessed he wanted. The breath left her lungs and her pussy moistened. His smirk told her he knew what effect he had. Just when he was about to grab her, she ran. Laughing as she sidestepped him, she headed to the bedroom. She only made three steps when he grabbed her round the waist, spun her around and lifted her over his shoulder. The hard smack on her behind stopped her attempts to get away.
He dumped her on the bed, left the room, and was back before she managed to sit up. He had his black toy bag with him when he returned and she gulped a breath when he ordered her to get up.
“Strip. And do it slowly,” he told her next as he made his way over to the wicker chair in the corner of the room, taking his bag with him.
She felt nervous as she slowly removed her top and pants. She then felt proud at the look on his face when he saw the underwear she had put on after her shower when he’d dropped her off. The green push-up bra with matching French panties was one of her favorite pairs, and she loved the look on Luke’s face as his gaze swept over her body.