To Trust a Wolf

by Kate Steele

  “Hi, baby, you look beautiful. Come here.” He met her at the bottom step and took her in his arms, kissing her with abandon.

  Bryn was dressed for work in a sleek tailored blazer and skirt in a soft delicate pink with a white tank top underneath. It was the first time she’d worn this particular outfit, and studying herself in the mirror, she’d hoped Logan would approve. Obviously he did. She moaned with pleasure under his ardent assault.

  Logan drew back and contemplated his mate. “I don’t know how you do it,” he observed. “You always look so fresh and sweet and innocent, and underneath you’re a wanton, sexy little vixen.”

  “I don’t like to show my true personality,” she joked. “I’d have to fight the men off with a stick.”

  “Good thing,” he glowered. “But you wouldn’t be fighting them off. Not after I got through with them.”

  Bryn’s eyes went wide. “Hey, we’re just joking here, right?” She slid her hands through his hair, soothing and caressing. “I’m with you, Logan. I don’t want anyone else.”

  Her gentle caress calmed him. “Sorry, baby,” he apologized. “I’ve never been in this position before. I see you getting ready to head out the door and I just want to grab you and keep you right by my side.” He steered her toward the kitchen. “Guess I’m feeling a little possessive. Just slap me down if I get too weird,” he muttered.

  “That is so sweet.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed a soft, sweet kiss to his lips. “I won’t slap you.” At his raised eyebrow, she hedged, “Not for that. But I will make love to you tonight.” She bestowed another soft lingering kiss. “Just to show you how much I love you.” Another kiss, and a teasing touch of tongue against his lips. “And to prove that you’re the only man I want.” Another kiss. “The only man I need.”

  Logan drank in her soft kisses, her warm breath against his lips, her words of love. He pulled her tight against him. “Bryn.”

  “Hey, Logan, do you…?” Reece had started through the basement door then paused at the sight of Logan and Bryn locked in each other’s arms, “Sorry,” he apologized with a sheepish look, “I’ll just go back to what I was doing,” he offered and retreated back to the basement.

  “I’ll be down in a few minutes, Reece,” Logan called out after him.

  “What is he doing here?” Bryn asked, a puzzled frown on her face.

  “What with the call for the job in Montana, I forgot to tell you about his visit Sunday while you were still sleeping. Are you eating before you leave, baby?” he inquired.

  “A piece of toast and a glass of milk,” she replied. “Go on.”

  Logan got the bread and placed it in the toaster oven, while Bryn poured a small glass of milk. He explained to her about Reece’s visit and how he had decided to help him.

  “So you see,” he continued as he buttered her toast. “If Reece can dominate Lillian, he’ll be able keep her in line and out of my hair.”

  “Do you think she really cares about him?” she asked, taking a bite of the offered slice. She passed the toast to Logan and he took a bite. Grabbing a banana from the basket on the counter, he peeled it and handed it to her. She eyed it suspiciously. His grin at her leery expression prompted her to take a vicious bite off the end.

  Logan grimaced. “Ooh, hurt me baby!”

  Bryn sputtered with laughter as he took his own bite.

  After chewing and swallowing he replied to her earlier question. “Yeah, I think she does care. Like I told Reece, Lillian never keeps a man around very long. The fact that she’s kept him for five months is telling.”

  Bryn nodded her understanding. “Well, I hope you can help him. He seems like a nice guy. He’s gonna need all the help he can get with her.”

  “Seems like a nice guy, huh?” Logan asked, frowning at her.

  “Don’t start that again,” she ordered. She rinsed out her glass and, circling behind him, pinched one taut cheek.

  “Hey!” he yelped, then squinted at her. “You wanna play, sweetheart?”

  She held up her hand imperiously. “Stop! I have to go to work.” She headed for the front door, catching up her purse and Logan’s keys on the way. In the open doorway she crooked her finger at him. Sliding her free hand over his firm, muscled chest, she leaned forward, kissing him soundly. “We’ll play when I get home,” she promised in a sultry whisper. “Thanks for letting me borrow your car.”

  “Wench,” Logan growled, “before you leave, I have something for you. I wanted to wait until this evening, but I can’t. I want everyone to know you’re mine.”

  He reached into his pocket and pulled out an engagement ring. White gold gleamed, framing a large diamond that glinted in the sunlight. Bryn stared at the ring with undisguised apprehension as the food in her stomach settled like a lead weight. Her gaze moved to Logan’s face and she died a little inside as she watched the joy and excitement bleed from his eyes.

  “I can’t,” she breathed. “Logan, I love you, but…I just can’t. Everything’s happening so fast. I need time to take it all in, time to catch my breath, to…to, I don’t know,” she stuttered helplessly, “to put it all in perspective.”

  Logan nodded, his face a stony mask, the look in his eyes, stormy. “I understand, Bryn. More than you know. But I want you to think about this. I’m not your ex-husband, or some puny, procrastinating human male who makes a promise one day and withdraws it the next. I’m an alpha,” he declared proudly. “You are my mate. Mine. My choice is not negotiable, nor will it be proven a mistake.”

  Logan turned on his heel and stalked away.

  Openmouthed, Bryn stared at his retreating form. Her emotions were a roiling mass of confusion. On one hand, she felt as though she should run after him and apologize, but on the other hand, she also felt miffed at his high-handed attitude.

  Breaking through her indecision, she closed the door, walked to Logan’s car and settled behind the wheel. Starting the car, she headed down the driveway deciding some serious soul-searching was in order.

  * * * * *

  “Logan asked you to marry him, and you turned him down?”

  Bryn cringed at the incredulous tone in Clare’s voice. “I didn’t turn him down. I told him I needed time to adjust to all the changes that are taking place.”

  Clare nodded sagely. “Yes, I can see that you’d want time for that.” She gave Bryn a piercing look. “I can also see that you’re afraid.”

  Bryn said nothing for a moment as her teeth worried her bottom lip. She hated to admit it, but Clare was right. Logan knew it, too. That was the reason he’d been so vehement that she understand he was nothing like her ex. It hurt him that she held a part of herself back through her lack of trust in him.

  Assailed by guilt and shame, she lashed out. “After what happened the last time I got married, don’t I have a right to be?”

  “Yes, you do,” Clare soothed, “but you have to remember that Logan is not your ex. When it comes to things like honesty and integrity, Logan has those in spades. Unlike someone else we both know and despise.”

  Bryn smiled at Clare’s feeble attempt at humor.

  “Do you love Logan?”

  “Yes, I do. Very much.”

  “Then trust yourself, Bryn. Trust Logan. I think somewhere deep inside you know you can.”

  “I still want some time to let everything sink in. Logan’s going to have to understand that I have things from my past that impact my present. I have to have time to work through them, time to deal with my fears.”

  “Logan’s a fairly intelligent and reasonable man. I’m sure if you explain it to him, he’ll understand.”

  Bryn laughed. “I’m sure he’d be grateful for that shining description of his finer attributes.”

  “Well, it doesn’t do to let them know too often just how wonderful they are. They start to get bigheaded.”

  “Speaking of bigheaded,” Bryn said slyly, “did I tell you that I don’t need my vibrator anymore?”

  Clare sque

aled with delight as they both dissolved into wicked laughter.

  * * * * *

  Bryn approached the house with a stomach full of butterflies. She was determined to make Logan see her point of view as far as the commitment issue was concerned, and yet she had real misgivings about the hurt and anger he had expressed at their parting this morning. What if he was every bit as determined as she? Where would that leave them?

  Tears filled her eyes and she angrily blinked them away. I’m being ridiculous, she thought to herself as she parked the car. We can work this out. Despite her silent pep talk, her legs felt weak as she exited the car and walked to the door.

  She took a deep breath and entered the house closing the door behind her. All was silent, and she wondered if Logan was home before his voice beckoned her from his den.

  “I’m in here, Bryn.”

  She felt her chest tighten, her breath coming short and shallow with the anxiety she could feel building inside. Was it her imagination or did Logan’s voice sound forbidding? Bryn entered the room and found Logan sitting at his desk. He stood as she entered and rounded his desk. His expression was neutral, void of its usual welcome.

  Before he could reach her, she stepped back. “We need to talk,” she said, feeling a twinge of foolishness and disquiet at uttering those famous and sometimes final words.

  “Yes, we do,” Logan agreed. He walked to the sofa inviting her to sit. She did and Logan sat on the coffee table in front of her. “Would you like to start?” he asked dispassionately.

  “Yes,” she breathed, and sat for a moment gathering her thoughts, her fingers twining together nervously, “I realize I hurt you this morning and I’m sorry. That wasn’t my intention, but I need to make you see just how…how frightening this is for me.” She bit her lip and willed the tears away, determined to stay in control. “I loved my ex-husband, Logan. I gave him all of me and he threw it away. I never knew pain like that could exist.”

  She looked up, her gaze meeting his. “We haven’t known each other very long, but what I feel for you is so much more. I can’t find words adequate enough to make you understand. I sometimes can’t believe how much a part of me you’ve become.” Her eyes lowered and fixed on her hands, her fingers white with the pressure of her grip. “If something happened…if you changed your mind, I couldn’t…I just couldn’t.”

  Logan reached out, his hand covering the fingers that gripped each other so tightly. He felt the tension in her, sensed the fear tearing at her.

  “Oh, Bryn,” he murmured and pulled her trembling body onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her.

  Logan rested his chin on the top of her head as he rocked her. He hadn’t realized just how deeply her fears ran. He felt his hurt and anger drain away. Bryn wasn’t rejecting him, she was battling her demons. He silently berated himself for putting his own selfish needs over her comfort and security.

  “I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t realize just how hard this is for you. I guess I’m not turning out to be such a great bargain after all,” he joked softly and was surprised when Bryn’s arms hugged him fiercely.

  “Don’t say that,” she ordered, “don’t even think it.”

  Logan grinned at the suddenly spirited spitfire he held in his arms. “Are you saying I might have some redeeming qualities?”

  A twinkle lit her eyes and danced as a small smile curved her lips. “Maybe a few,” she allowed.

  Her eyes grew misty and inviting, her lips parting. Logan bent to her, gently settling his lips over hers. The kiss was long, soft and sweetly sensual. He felt the shiver that coursed through her body as she wiggled in his lap, struggling to get closer. He pulled away, smiling at her moan of frustration.

  “Just one more thing,” he told her as his hand cupped her breast, his fingers teasing the hardened nipple that pressed against her blouse, “then we’ll take care of this. Before you left this morning you asked for time to put things in perspective. I’m willing to give you that time, within reason,” he warned, “but if I’m still waiting to put a ring on your finger twenty years from now, all bets are off.”

  Bryn again hugged him fiercely. “Thank you, Logan, thank you, thank you, thank you.” She punctuated each “thank you” with a kiss. “Now take me upstairs. I want to show you just how grateful I am.”

  “Faker,” he accused, “you just want your own needs seen to.”

  “That’s true,” she confessed with a grin. “It’s the ‘two birds with one stone’ effect.”

  Logan chuckled, rose and carried his mate upstairs where they endangered an entire flock of birds.

  Chapter Eight

  The appointed day for Bryn’s introduction to the pack arrived, and Bryn and Logan were making a slow drive up a long graveled road.

  The road they traveled was in reality a driveway. It led to a beautiful, rustic, wood and natural rock-faced house in a large clearing, surrounded by woods. Along the way, Logan acknowledged the presence of a man stationed at the turnoff.

  “He’s there to keep any humans from accidentally wandering in,” he explained to Bryn when she inquired. “There are others here and there through the woods keeping watch. We wouldn’t want to end up on the front page of one of those gossip rags that pass for newspapers. Not that they’re after us,” he added, seeing her raised eyebrows. “But it doesn’t hurt to be cautious.”

  Logan reached out, covering her hand where it lay in her lap. He squeezed gently. “Nervous?”

  Bryn placed her other hand over his. “A little,” she confessed. “Although not too much, now that I’ve met Jace and Cade and some of the others.” She returned his squeeze. “Thanks to you.”

  Hoping to initiate Bryn slowly to the presence of other werewolves, he’d invited Jace, Cade and their dates to the house for dinner. The next week brought John Maigrey and his mate, and Dillon Bennett and his mate—an older couple who were close friends of Logan’s parents.

  Somewhat nervous at the beginning of both evenings, Bryn had soon settled down and enjoyed the company. Logan’s friends were all very nice people, talkative, friendly, easy to get along with. The fact that they were also werewolves? Well, what the hey, she’d thought, just as with anyone else, you treat me right, I’ll treat you right and we’ll get along just fine. And they did.

  Cars and other vehicles were parked on either side of the wide drive. Logan parked behind the last, and he and Bryn, holding hands, walked the rest of the drive and into the clearing.

  “Wow, Jace really has quite a place here. It’s gorgeous,” Bryn commented as they walked toward the house. The house was two stories with a wraparound porch and second-floor balcony. The natural wood and stone melded and flowed with the wooded surroundings, creating an aura of belonging.

  “He designed the house himself,” Logan revealed. “The fact that he’s an architect didn’t hurt the project any.”

  In the grassy clearing people mingled, talking and helping themselves to soft drinks or beer from several iced tubs. Logan was hailed by more than a few people as he and Bryn neared the house. He returned their greetings and casually introduced Bryn. Many a curious glance was sent their way. Word had gotten around that Bryn was Logan’s chosen, and naturally everyone was more than interested to see who had captured their pack liaison’s heart.

  Logan led Bryn through the crowd and up the porch steps just as Jace, Delancy, Cade and a few others came out of the house. Jace greeted Logan with a slap on the back as he bussed Bryn on the cheek under Logan’s watchful eye.

  “’Bout time you got here. Everybody’s about to bust a gut wondering who Logan’s mate is. It’s all I’ve heard since the first bunch got here,” Jace announced with some exasperation.

  Logan greeted the others then replied to Jace, “Well, why don’t you just settle down and make the announcement. Then you and everybody else can relax and be happy.”

  Jace McKenna was just as handsome in person as he’d claimed to be on the phone that day in Logan’s den. Equal to Logan in height, he carried the same well-built, muscular physique. His hair, cropped stylishly short, was black as a raven’s wing, his blue-green eyes filled with amber flecks.

  “Well, I guess I’ll do that, now that I’ve got permission from the all-powerful pack liaison.” Jace grinned at Logan’s scowl.

  Jace stood silently on the porch facing the crowd, his posture straight and sure, his aura of power and command radiating outward like a wave. The chatter fell silent and all eyes turned to him.

  “How did he do that?” Bryn whispered.

  “That’s what being an alpha is all about, Bryn,” Logan replied proudly.

  Sure of undivided attention, Jace began. “As you know, we’ve gathered here today, as we have before, to promote peace between Twin Pines and Iron Tower. And to make Logan’s job a little easier.” Chuckles followed Jace’s announcement. “We’re also here today to welcome a new addition to our numbers. Logan Sutherland has taken a mate. Greet Bryn Roydan.”

  Logan stepped forward with Bryn and descended the porch steps into the waiting crowd. Not sure exactly what to expect, she was nervous, but Logan’s presence at her side kept her steady. The gathered crowd approached and gave quiet greeting and words of welcome. There was also, to her slight consternation, a lot of surreptitious sniffing. Nothing overt or rude, but somewhat disconcerting just the same. Some of the younger ones went so far as to take her hand and rub their cheeks against it in greeting.

  “Why do they do that?” she asked Logan quietly.

  “You’re the mate of an alpha, Bryn, deserving of subservience from the young ones and respect from the entire pack,” he explained.

  The greetings continued for a few moments more before a disturbance began at the outer edges of the assembled pack. An opening was made, and through it strode Lillian Adair. A very angry Lillian. Her eyes snapped with blue fire.

  “Well, isn’t this just the cozy little scene,” she intoned sarcastically. “Our illustrious pack liaison brings his little human twat among us and you’re all panting to welcome her. Wouldn’t want to miss an opportunity to kiss such influential alpha ass, now would we?”

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