by Vivian Arend
Moonshine Pub was his baby. This was something he had worked hard to make a success. In a way, it was very right that here was where he and Amy would make their first stand to prove they were more than Alphas of two packs. He couldn’t fault Takhini for feeling confused, not after the way he had left them directionless.
But that was going to stop. Here and now.
“Come on, let’s dance.” Evan linked his fingers with Amy’s and tugged her toward the dance floor.
A sense of normality continued to grow as people observed Amy settling against him, their questioning expressions fading to smiles as they sensed Evan’s contentment.
Soft fingers touched his face, and he looked at his mate.
Mate. A rush of happiness struck again. He could’ve been doing moonshine shots for the past five hours and not ended up as lightheaded as over one touch of her fingers.
“Heads up,” Amy warned. “There seems to be some kind of discussion group headed our way from the far corner of the room.”
Evan nodded, settling her hands around his neck before grabbing hold of her hips and continuing to sway to the music. “Until they prove otherwise, I’m going to assume the best.”
One of her brows rose. “This isn’t your fight anyway, right?”
She had him over a barrel. He’d promised to let her deal with anyone if it was appropriate, but that promise was about to drive him mad. He drove down his fears. “Fine. You spank them this time, but if they need any extra chastisement, I’m your man.”
“I seem to remember hearing Caroline had to prove her worth when she started dating you. If anything, the expectations on me are much higher.” She whispered the words, barely audible even from where he stood. “Trust me.”
And that was the most powerful thing she could have reminded him of.
“Since when did Takhini become the play toys for Canyon?”
“Damn it, Toby. You got that backwards. Evan’s found a new chew toy, and look, it’s one of the little Canyon freaks.” Lance stood behind Amy, Toby one step back. A small group of young male wolves clustered loosely behind them.
Amy rotated, leaning her back against Evan’s chest. She was short enough the top of her head barely touched his chin, but somehow she seemed to tower over the annoying wolves standing before them.
“Were you talking to me?” she asked.
Lance and Toby glanced at each other before turning back with a smirk. “Not really talking to you. You’re not going to be around for long enough for us to even find out your name. Evan has this bad habit of picking up strays. The last one had fleas. Had to fumigate the entire hotel after she left.”
“I don’t know, Lance. I think this one is worse than the last.” Toby made a show of sniffing. “Think she’s been hanging out too long with all those Canyon losers. She doesn’t know how to handle real wolves.”
Evan found stifling his growl of disapproval damn near impossible. He wanted nothing more than to knock Toby’s and Lance’s heads together, but he had to let her do this alone.
He sensed Amy’s change of body tension, but kept himself out of the fight. Just stood like a wall as she wordlessly went into action.
She jumped upward. Caught hold of Evan’s shoulders over her head at the same moment she kicked out her feet and made contact with Lance’s chest. He flew backwards into the men behind him, knocking them over like a set of bowling pins. Before they had finished bouncing, Amy was back on the floor and moving toward Toby. She leapt forward at high speed, hooking an arm around his neck and using momentum to pivot onto his back.
Toby grabbed for the arm that was cutting off his air supply. Evan clenched his teeth to stop from calling a warning that Lance was back on his feet.
He shouldn’t have worried. Amy maintained her chokehold while using her other hand in Toby’s hair like reins to turn the man to face his buddies. Her timing was so perfect the blow Lance swung struck his friend instead of Amy, the sound of fist meeting face making a sickening crack against the lighthearted music playing in the background.
This wasn’t Evan’s fight, but it was.
He folded his arms and shifted his feet to draw attention to himself. “Not that I want to interfere in your entertainment, but just a heads up. Amy has full authority. If you want to beg for mercy, she’s the one you kneel to.”
Then he did the hardest thing he’d ever done. Evan turned and walked away.
He headed to the bar. Slipped behind the counter and poured himself a double shot of whiskey. The burn of the alcohol going down calmed his human side who hated having control out of his hands.
His wolf side wanted to watch his mate rip the disrespectful bastards apart.
But Amy had insisted, and she was right. This was the proper way. So, whistling lightly, Evan grabbed a cloth and wiped down the countertop.
The pack members seated on the barstools glanced back and forth a couple of times between him and the ongoing fight, their momentary panic fading as Evan’s confidence screamed out.
Evan smiled at one of them. “She’s okay.”
The older wolf smiled back. “She’s your mate, right? Of course she’s okay.”
The sound of wood splintering nearly made him look, but he resisted temptation and focused on the pack member before him. “She is, and she’s not only beautiful and smart, she knows exactly how to take care of herself. And how to take care of me.”
Heads nodded, one of the old-timers gesturing with his chin to the side. “You know it’s okay for you to help,” he whispered. “We don’t mind.”
Evan shook his head. “Waste of time. Some things she needs me to do, but fight her battles isn’t one of them.”
Someone shouted, and the noise faded to nothing but the pulsing beat of the music from the sound system.
“It’s safe to look,” the old-timer told him. The man grinned approvingly. “She’s a feisty one. Reminds me of my mate.”
Evan turned, leaning both hands on the counter as he hungrily took in the damage from the battle. For the first moment he couldn’t see Amy, not by the broken chairs or near any of the bodies on the floor.
“Looking for me, sailor?”
She stood beside him, a thin ribbon of blood trickling from a cut on her forehead. Scratches and bruises marred her arms, but she showed a whole lot less damage than the pack boys pulling themselves to vertical.
“Do I need to call an ambulance?” Evan pulled her to his side and lifted her onto the counter.
Amy glanced over her shoulder. “I think Toby will be okay. Let me check about the other fellow.” She raised her voice. “Hey, Lance. You want an ambulance, or are you going to shuffle home without a Band-Aid on your boo-boos?”
“Fuck off,” Lance snapped, his lippy words sliding into a sharp scream of pain.
Evan and Amy watched Gem step daintily over the wolf she’d kicked. “If I told you once, I’ve told you a million times. I will not accept that kind of language around here.”
She sniffed then approached the bar. “May I have another glass of white wine, please?”
Off in the background, the youth with the attitudes were helping Toby and Lance from the bar. Evan pulled Gem’s favourite wine from the cooler, pausing to rub his cheek against Amy’s.
Slowly the noise of conversation slipped back to normal.
“What would you like?” Evan asked his mate.
“Some of your moonshine. I hear it’s pretty good.”
He nodded, grabbing the slim blue bottle and gesturing into the bar. “Let’s go sit. I have a feeling there will be a few people coming to chat.”
Evan settled in his usual seat, Amy perched beside him like the queen of the wolves she was. Gem and Shaun joined them, the leadership sitting in state before pack who entered and left, checking out this new thing.
He tipped a little liquid into her glass, then
his own. He raised the teeny tumbler in the air. “Whitehorse forever. To becoming one strong, united pack.”
“Whitehorse forever.” The toast was echoed by their Betas, and taken up by the pack. All around the room, glasses were raised and voices rang out.
Amy leaned against him, the warmth of her body against his so right and perfect. “That’s not the last of it, but thank you for letting me take care of them on my own.”
He looked into her eyes and smiled, glad to have put his fears behind him, although he still didn’t like the idea of her being hurt. “Hey, you just about took my head off when we fought. I had no doubt about your physical prowess. I have even less doubts about your smarts.”
Evan took a shot of his moonshine, cupped his hand around the back of her neck, and slipped her a kiss that was two hundred proof, and none of it from the liquor.
If the kiss went on a little longer then normal, he didn’t give a damn. Tongues tangling, breaths mingling. She bit his lip, and Evan growled, hungry for more.
A cheer went up from one corner of the room, and he pulled back far enough to see glasses raised in their direction.
“People like to see their Alpha content.” Amy caught him by the cheeks and smiled at him, bright satisfaction pouring from her in spite of the bruises and cuts.
“Their Alphas, you mean. Because we’re doing this together, baby.”
Evan tugged Amy into his lap, curling his arm around her waist and enjoying the sensation of being with her.
She nuzzled against his neck, the connection between them strengthening. “That was exciting,” she confessed in a low whisper.
Evan laughed, his amusement rising. “Bloodthirsty little thing.”
She shrugged, her smile twisting into something a touch more evil. “As much fun as it is to torment people via computer, there’s something satisfying about beating the crap out of a person, isn’t there?”
How had he missed seeing this? The perfect way they fit. Evan stared into her eyes, his attention focused on her. “I can hardly wait to see what comes next.”
Amy put the rest of her extra sheets into a box, closed the lid and taped it shut. She glanced around the house, searching for more things she could get rid of before Evan brought his stuff over.
In the past week, her world had changed so immensely. It seemed impossible, and yet she was a shifter. She knew impossible happened all the time.
This was her experiencing true happiness for the first time in her life, and that’s what made it so unusual.
Her phone rang and she answered it cheerfully. “Hey, lover. What’s happening?”
A low rumble sounded in her ear, raising goose bumps all over. “I’ve got everything in the truck, and Shaun tells me I’m allowed to take the rest of the afternoon off.”
“How generous of him.” Amy pulled open another drawer and dumped everything into a box. “I’d take him up on the offer if I were you. He needs the exercise in looking after things, anyway.”
“Ah, he’s got it easy. With the hotel shut down for maintenance and improvements, he gets to sit in state at the pack house. I don’t think he’s suffering too hard.”
Evan was moving in with her. Changes were happening between the Takhini and the Canyon packs. A month ago she never would have dreamed this was where they’d come to, and yet it was real.
“Whenever you get here, I’m ready.” She eyed the pile of boxes stacked against the living room wall. “Sort of. I’ve made room for some of your stuff. We can make decisions about furniture as we go. I know a few people in the pack who could use the stuff we don’t need.”
“Of course you do. I love that about you.”
Another shot of happiness rang through her. “Hurry up and get your ass over here. I miss you,” she confessed.
He hung up, and she went back to her task, nearly delirious at the changes. It didn’t seem right she could be at this point in her life. A mate, a home. A place to belong.
All of it made even better because Evan went out of his way every day to make sure she knew he wanted her, not just the pack.
Rapid knocking at the back door dragged her from her task, and she smiled.
“You don’t need to knock. It’s your house too,” she said as she swung the door open.
Laney stood on the back porch, a haunted expression in her eyes. Amy automatically glanced around the yard even as she took in the trembling woman before her. Laney’s hands were clenched, her face gone white, and her entire body shook.
Amy reached for her. “What’s wrong? Come inside—”
“No. I’m so sorry.” Laney jerked her hands free and took a step back. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know what else to do. You have to help me.”
“Of course I’ll help,” Amy assured her. “What happened?”
Laney motioned over her shoulder to a car in the alleyway, the engine still running. “It’s Mike. He’s got Dexter.”
Fury filled Amy’s veins. “Your ex?”
Laney nodded. “Dexter didn’t come home after school, and I thought he might have missed the bus, but then I got a call. Mike grabbed him.”
Amy reached for her phone. “Let me call—”
“It’s no use. He’s right there.” She pointed again, her face a mask of misery. “Mike said he was sick of your interference. I’m sorry, but he’s got Dexter in the backseat, and I didn’t know what else to do.”
Amy pressed her hands to Laney’s upper arms and offered as much calming reassurance she could. “You did the right thing coming here. I’ll take care of you and Dexter.”
Laney shook her head. “No. Nothing is right. I’m so sorry.”
Something blurred at the edge of Amy’s vision a second before a sharp pain bloomed on the side of her head. Darkness rolled in as her legs gave out.
Chapter Twenty
Coming back to consciousness hurt. Amy rolled onto her hands and knees, bracing herself against the nausea that struck. Complete blackness surrounded her, a low hissing noise the only clue she had to her location.
That, and the familiar scent of the Moonshine Inn.
During the year she’d been tracking Evan, she’d done all sorts of interesting research. Sneaking into the hotel and finding its hidden passageways had become one of her favourite pastimes. There was something fun about avoiding security cameras and casual patrols.
That meant even in the dark she wasn’t totally lost. She was, however, in trouble. The room Mike had trapped her in was one of the least accessible in the entire building.
Amy patted her pockets to see if she’d been lucky enough to be left with her cell phone, or anything she could use to alert Evan.
Nothing. They had left her with nothing but the clothes on her back.
She took a long breath to calm herself. Evan would come. In the meantime, she knew how to escape the room, and it didn’t involve the door.
She did try the door first though, just to be sure. Her fingers slipped over the cold metal of the latch. It was firmly locked, the barrier itself hard and impenetrable.
Moving carefully in the absolute darkness, Amy orientated herself. The room held shelving, once filled with supplies, now mostly empty. The shelves made a dandy ladder to the roof. She pushed blindly on the ceiling tiles until one moved, then she stood on the top shelf and reached into the darkness to find a solid surface.
It was a good thing she wasn’t any bigger. She could shift and change her size slightly, but for the moment she preferred to stay in her human form. Amy crawled up and sideways, inching forward toward a second room where she should be able to escape into the hallway.
It didn’t take long before she had both feet on the ground, the light switch turned on. The second room held part of the mechanical system, and she moved quickly to the electrical box.
Damn. Original wiring. For what she planned, she neede
d a room that had been renovated recently.
Amy stood with her ear against the door, waiting silently. When two minutes passed with no footsteps or voices, she edged into the passageway and stepped forward.
In the bowels of the hotel, there were a million doors and pathways. From her earlier explorations, she knew which ones to follow, heading directly to where she should find computer access.
She didn’t bother to turn on the lights in the room this time. Just left the door partially open, the hallway lighting giving her enough illumination as she spotted a control panel. She pocketed the keys hanging beside the box, jerked open the door and brought up the security system.
Damn again.
Someone had turned off the master control. Amy pulled the cover off the wall, going for the wiring, but it was too late. Noise rose behind her, and she barely had time to turn before she was struck, smacking into the concrete floor hard.
“I figured you wouldn’t stay put for very long.” Unfamiliar voice, familiar attitude.
Amy turned, preparing to fight. At least until she spotted Dexter trapped in the stranger’s arms. “Don’t hurt him.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” The stranger patted the boy’s head. Dexter squirmed, swinging his fists in a futile attempt to hit the man who held him around the waist. “Stop squirming, you little beast.”
“I’m glad you’re not my dad. I hate you.”
So this was Mike. “Let Dexter go,” Amy proposed. “You have a beef with me, we can deal with it all by ourselves.”
She put as much suggestion into the words as possible.
Mike laughed, the noise nasty and dark. “You can’t order me around. I’m strong enough, and I got people on my side supporting me. It’s time for a shakeup in Whitehorse, and I plan to be the one standing at the end of it.”
Amy got to her feet and brushed off her hands, not at all surprised to see Toby and Lance in the group.
She glared at Lance. “I should have ripped your throat out.”
“Maybe you should have. Too late. We’ve had enough of you, and of Evan, and it’s time for a change.” Lance stepped closer to sneer down at her. “You shouldn’t have felt so cocky the other day.”