Silver Mine

by Vivian Arend

  He shifted in the middle of sneeze, the human achoo changing to a wolfish one, and Caroline had to grab a tissue to wipe her eyes.

  He sat on the floor, a simply enormous black wolf with streaks of grey starting to show on his muzzle and ears. As a human who had grown up with half-sibling wolves, the entire family regularly visiting the local packhouse, Caroline had pretty much been around people who popped to wolf form her entire life.

  It still gave her goose bumps to witness.

  “Gathering information. Make yourself comfortable. Let me grab a coffee. If I’m going to be talking at you for the next hour.”

  She scooted out of the room, returning in time to witness the moment Enigma discovered he wasn’t the only beast in the room.

  Evan wasn’t sneezing anymore, which Caroline figured was a good sign. He’d placed his paws up on the desktop and took an experimental sniff of the moving pile of fabric. Enigma was still playing happily in Evan’s shirt.

  The pile stopped moving, and the tiny black head popped out a bit at a time. The little pink nose wiggled furiously. Then the muzzle, and the rest of the creature appeared as he crawled out the neckline of Evan’s shirt.

  Evan sniffed.

  Enigma meowed.

  The kitten pounced, his tiny body landing on top of Evan’s forehead, legs wrapping around the wolf’s muzzle. For a moment Caroline thought Evan was going to toss his head to throw the offending creature into the air, but the big bad Alpha remained absolutely still and allowed the tiny thing to scramble to a more solid perch.

  Directly on top of his head.

  If a wolf could sigh with exasperation? That was the noise Evan made as he cautiously made his way to the couch and crawled onto it without disturbing his passenger. Caroline grabbed the files she needed and sat in the easy chair to the side, going through the information Evan had requested. All the while he was pinned in place by Enigma, who found a spot of sunshine on Evan’s neck, curled up and promptly fell asleep.

  Caroline focused on the task at hand to stop from losing control again. One thing she had to admit, though.

  Living with shifters was never boring.

  Chase eyed the mass of humanity that surrounded his homestead with disgust, concern and more than a little trepidation. He was a leader to these people, but there was only one of him, and dropping into a volatile situation with Shelley in tow? This was more than either of them had signed up for.

  He sorted through and discarded solutions rapidly.

  “Chase?” Shelley nodded toward his cabin. “You obviously didn’t expect this.”

  “Normally it’s me and the birds. Maybe a visitor or two, but that’s it.” Hell. “You’re here too, so let’s see what you think. Give me ideas.”

  “Head back to the highway?”

  “Nope. Retreat is a sign of weakness. They have to know we’re coming by now. I bet at least one of our cabin mates from last night ran ahead in shifted form to let them know.”

  She was probably unaware she stepped closer to him. “You think this gathering is trouble?”

  “It’s not normal, that’s for sure.” Chase tried to spot familiar figures, but at this distance, individuals were mere blobs.

  Her breath passed his ear as she leaned in even closer. “You said they aren’t bad people. What if we assume they’re here for a good reason?”

  He rolled through possibilities and couldn’t think of one that would make the outcasts willingly gather in one place. “Men who crave privacy don’t give it up on a whim. It’s not a carnival or something like that, if that’s what you mean.”

  “No, I’m not suggesting anything that frivolous, but they also wouldn’t come together to do something…bad. If they safeguard their solitude?”

  Bingo. “Probably not. They take their mischief the same way they like their pleasures—alone.”

  Even the word pleasures couldn’t cross his lips without him thinking a whole lot harder about touching her and feeling her body’s response.

  Concentrate. He turned her to face him. “I will protect you.”

  She nodded. “I know you will. But I’m not defenseless.”

  She pulled out a switchblade. Fancy one, looked like an out the front with the instant pop-up. Illegal in Canada, and extremely dangerous.

  “You know how to use it?” He wasn’t trying to be insulting, but there was nothing worse than a knife being pulled during a fight by a person who was afraid to draw blood.

  Shelley gave him a dirty look. “I can not only use it, I know exactly where on both human and animal anatomy to do the most damage with the least effort. Though I probably can’t hold off more than two people at a time.”

  Which was more than long enough for him to get to her side if needed. “Good. Here’s the plan. We head in. Don’t cling, don’t look down. You belong here.”

  “Right.” She nodded, but a quiver in her voice warned him to dig deeper.

  Chase shook his head. She had to buy in all the way. Had to show that strength he’d seen in her up to now and make it obvious to others. “I mean it. See that cabin? It’s yours. Consider this place yours. You told me you understood about not fitting in and being made to feel an outsider, right?”

  Shelley waited, her gaze darting back to the distant crowd. “Right.”

  “You like how that feels? Being on the outside? Think about. Own it.”

  She might not be able to shift, but she was still a wolf. The growl of disgust and anger that escaped her pleased him with its intensity.

  Surprised her, if her expression was any indication.

  “There. That. The way you feel right now. Take that and turn it around. You have the right to belong. Maybe not everywhere, but here? Oh, darling, you belong here.”

  She caught his arm, strength growing in her response. “You’re saying these people are good people.”

  “Most are. Some aren’t. But they’re my people. Your people.” Chase tugged her to him and pointed down again. “We’re going to walk in there and find out what we need to do. Because it’s our place, and they must have some rational reason to talk to us.”

  And if he was wrong, he’d take out as many of them as possible before he died.

  Shelley’s grin stretched wide. “You know what, Silver? For a man who doesn’t talk much, you sure have a way with words.”

  She grabbed hold of him and slammed their bodies together. Lips meeting in a rush of passion and fear. Fear that gave an edge to the sexual desire haunting them. She was kissing him, then he was kissing her, and hell if stripping down on the side of the hill and going for it right there didn’t sound like the most marvelous idea in the world.

  She slipped her hands under his T-shirt, her fingertips digging into his chest and massaging. Skimming around to his back for an instant, avoiding his cuts, before she dragged forward hard enough to mark him with her nails.

  His control wavered on a thread. He dragged his mouth off hers and panted. “You should save that fire for facing them.”

  “I’ve got more than enough fire for both now and later, thank you.” She caught his head in her hands and took one more kiss.

  One more, it had to be the last one because he was seriously going to lose control and flip her to her knees and—good Lord, she wrecked his mind.

  He caught hold of her wrists, taking control of the kiss, his lips and tongue dancing with hers, their breaths mingling. It was crazy, insane. He manoeuvred them just below the ridge of the hillside so they weren’t in plain view anymore, then tugged her hands until they dropped from his face. He didn’t let go, though. Couldn’t. Somehow this raging heat pouring through him had to be dealt with, and while the thought of what might be a couple dozen pissed-off shifters should have been all the ice he needed, her reaction, the little show of bloodthirsty female?

  He was so fucking hard right now he could barely walk. Screw going into the middle of a battlefield with that kind of a handicap.

  He brought her hands down until he could press th
em against his groin, and she gasped into his mouth. Shelley took over exactly how he hoped she would. She unzipped him, reaching in to pull out his length. Her fingers wrapped around his heated shaft, and she squeezed so exactly right he wasn’t going to last.

  Now that the frantic moment of wondering if she would follow through had passed, he could work on pleasing her. He slid his fingers into her hair. Cupped her neck and held her in place so he could pepper her face with kisses. He worked his way along her jaw to her ear to nuzzle that spot that when he licked, she whimpered, and her stroke on his cock faltered.

  He was happy he’d made her react, but sad she’d stopped. Hell—what to do?

  He tugged her shirt up, followed by one more jerk that yanked her sports bra over her breasts. Hmm, wide-open access that allowed him to play with her tight little nipples to his heart’s content. He would have bent over and licked them, but he was selfish enough to want to have her hands continue the wicked motion she’d resumed on his shaft.

  When she released him and stepped away, he nearly tripped following after her. Panting hard, aching for completion.

  But following her cues. “We need to stop, right?”

  She shook her head. “I’m not cruel enough to call it quits right now. Just wanted to be sure you were okay with me doing something else. Since this is kind of the wrong place and the wrong time.”

  “What else you thinking of doing?” He caught himself stroking his shaft, his hand a miserable substitute for the pleasure she’d been giving him.

  “Are we safe?” She rolled her eyes as she stepped closer. “Stupid question. This is insane.”

  He laughed. “Animalistic passion seems to have got the best of us. No, you’re right, we probably shouldn’t be doing this on the side of the hill, but damn if you aren’t the most tempting creature.”

  Shelley stalked forward, a gleam of heat in her eyes that nearly buckled his knees. “Probably shouldn’t isn’t a no, correct?”

  If he had more brainpower, he could have answered that tongue twister. As it was, he backed away awkwardly, his erection hard in his hand as she crowded him toward a rocky outcrop. She brought a hand to his shoulder and pushed him until his back was against the rock wall. She replaced his hand with hers, and he groaned in gratitude. A couple more minutes and he would have finished. A few more strokes with her directing his pleasure—he’d be toast in no time.

  Obviously pleased with her organizing, she smiled mischievously. “If it’s not a no, it’s a yes.”

  She dropped to her knees and took him into her mouth, and forget about lasting a couple minutes. He was no longer a marshmallow being slowly roasted over the fire, he was a gas-soaked cloth being tossed in the direct line of a blow torch, and the heat of her mouth and the slick wetness took hold of his balls and dragged him onto a dangerous ledge.

  She moved enthusiastically. Her head bobbed over him three, four times at the most, and he exploded, the suction of her lips triggering his response, dragging his brains out his cock. The intensity of his attraction grew by the minute, but right now, there was nothing left in him to give. Until she looked up at him and winked, and oh hell, if his cock didn’t twitch again.

  Sometime in the last minute, if it had even taken that long, he’d woven his fingers into her hair and clutched her head. Now she smiled as he lifted her and propped her against his body, shamelessly using her weight to hold himself in place.

  “That was about the kinkiest thing I’ve ever done,” Shelley confessed.

  He still couldn’t draw a full breath. “Our timing sucks, but damn, I’m not complaining. You want to do other kinkier things to me down the road, you just go right ahead.”

  He closed his eyes and leaned his head back on the rock. She laughed softly, her body shaking against his. “We should have waited.”

  “I’m leaving you hanging.”

  Shelley stroked his cheek, resting against him. “I’ll survive. And, not that I gave you the blowjob for any reason other than I wanted to, but you and me being a little more connected scent-wise is not a bad thing. I understand how this backcountry situation goes. More now than when we set out.”

  Had it been only yesterday? “You’re a smart woman, Shelley. Smart and desirable. And I promise to return the favour as soon as possible.”

  She kissed his cheek. “I’ll let you deal with straightening up.”

  Good idea. If she put her hands on him again, he might just start all over, and this time she’d be pinned to the rock face with his cock buried inside her.

  Even the thought of it made him harden. He tucked himself away and straightened clothing, Shelley doing the same to his side.

  They returned to where they’d abandoned their packs.

  “Forward, full steam ahead, right?” Shelley asked.

  “Where we belong. To see what’s going on.”

  He offered his hand, and she took it, squeezing their fingers together for a moment before releasing. They turned and headed down the trail.

  Chapter Twelve

  What a weird day. Weird, as in out of the normal. Out of conceivable normal. As in, totally and in no way could she in a million years have imagined this.

  Hiking in the wilderness. An impromptu blowjob on the side of a mountain. A…regal procession into the midst of a mob?

  They marched through the crowd at the bottom of the hill, heads pivoting to face them, men stepping out of their way or stopping their work to stare with wide eyes. Some looked her up and down a few times, but they always finished by glancing at Chase with a little trepidation before returning to their tasks.

  “Silver. Finally.” An older man eased out the door of the cabin, two or three others rising from where they’d been sitting in the sunshine. “You got company.”

  Chase spoke quietly. “Delton. You been cooking for everyone?”

  The grizzled-haired man grinned. “Thought of setting up a restaurant, but figured you might take exception.”

  Chase paused at the foot of the stairs. “Am I welcome home?”

  “No troubles, Silver. Not for you.” The man to the left of the door glanced Shelley’s way. “Or for your lady.”

  Shelley remembered Chase’s admonition from the hillside. When he motioned her forward, she lifted her chin and boldly looked the men in the eye as she marched past.

  The cabin was totally unlike the last place they’d stayed. Sun shone through the sparkling clean windows. The hurricane-lantern-style wall sconces were decorated with bits of coloured glass. There was a comfortable sitting room with a couch and easy chairs. One leg of the couch was scratched, but the rest gleamed with a simple, rustic beauty.

  Sturdy logs made up the furniture. More supported the open room and created crossbeams overhead. The fireplace on the sidewall was built of river rock, smooth and even, with a log plank for a mantle that had to be six inches thick.

  Chase laid a hand on her shoulder and directed her farther in. “You been sleeping in my room, Delton?”

  “Cleared out this morning when I got word you were on your way home. Jones did up the bed with clean sheets.”

  Chase chuckled. “The boy’s still around?”

  “Some. He’s been alright.”

  The door to the bedroom was open and Chase pointed her in. “Make yourself at home. You hungry?”

  She took off her pack, still looking around in awe. “Yes, I could eat. Chase, your place is gorgeous.”

  He shut the door to the outside room and drew close, foreheads touching. “Talk quiet. Shifter hearing.”

  She nodded.

  “You okay?”

  Shelley returned his grin and nodded again. That had felt pretty damn good, marching through a sea of strangers and pretending to belong. The men hadn’t reacted like the pack in Whitehorse at all, even though they had to be able to tell what she was. They had noses, as well as shifter hearing.

  Chase stepped back and opened his pack. “You can use the inside bathroom. There’s a composting toilet, and a shower
I’ll set up later. But we need to sit down with the men and find out what’s happening.”

  “I was surprised they didn’t start filling you in right away.”

  He shrugged. “It’s my house and I’ve been gone. It’s only polite to let me get settled for a couple minutes before they jump me with their concerns.”

  Shelley stopped in the middle of pulling clean clothes from her pack. Chase continued to move methodically, emptying his pack, putting things away. He didn’t seem in the least concerned about the mass of company outside.

  It hit her. This was his place. He’d insisted she belonged here, and in a way it was true. She was as much an outcast as any of these men could ever be, but Chase truly belonged.

  He belonged to these men.

  He’d affirmed she belonged pretty much the way Evan had welcomed her into the fold of the Takhini pack.

  “Holy cow, you’re their Alpha.” She breathed the words as quietly as she could, but someone in the other room still must have heard her because there was a snort of laughter, and the murmur of male voices talking about clueless women.

  Chase rubbed his forehead, then twisted to face her. He put his finger to his lips.

  She shook her hands in the air, asking for an answer.

  He shrugged and wiggled his fingers.

  Maybe? Maybe he was the Alpha to the misfits and outcasts?

  She wasn’t sure if she should hit him or hug him. This was probably one of the items on that list of things he should have told her about back before they started the trip.

  She folded her arms in front of her, to make sure he knew she wasn’t happy. He silently crossed the room to stare at her wordlessly. He didn’t look the least bit guilty about deceiving her. Well, not deceiving, but keeping her in the dark.

  He brushed the back of his knuckles over her cheek. Lowered his hand and nicked the tip of her nipple just as softly.

  She jerked at his touch.