Sedentary as life was these days, my body hadn’t gotten the memo. It craved extra fats and proteins until I had no choice but to chow down or listen as my gut howled with rage. For a warg used to compensating for the normal caloric requirements of shifting, that was saying something. I basically sat propped up in bed, watching movies and stuffing my face all day. Except for my daily walksies. Abram was firm on that point. Exercise was a must if I wanted to regain full mobility. And ever fit into my pre-Faerie jeans again.
I tilted back my head and huffed at Isaac. “I’m going to be magnanimous and not take that as a dog joke.”
“Good.” He made clicking noises behind his teeth and produced a box of cupcakes. “Come here, girl. Lemon meringue. Your favorite. All the way from the Cantina.”
While the Cantina’s name sounded Mexican, it didn’t know what it wanted to be when it grew up. There were pasta nights, the occasional pizza, and a baker’s case up front served candied bacon and other confections, including the world’s best cupcakes when Mrs. O’Malley was in the mood. I’d noticed she was in the mood a lot more lately. I was betting someone had put a bug in her ear about my accident. Considering I’d helped rescue her husband during Tiberius’s first visit, I expected she was spoiling me in lieu of thanks.
Water pooled in my mouth. “You’re not a very nice man.”
“A nice man would sit on the bed and feed you cupcakes until your eyes frosted over. A good man is trying to get you back in fighting shape. I’m no warg, but your wolf is driving me nuts. She wants out, and that can’t happen until you’re at one hundred percent.”
“You? Good?” Dull pain slashed my sides as I sat upright and swung my legs over the edge of the mattress. “Who told you that lie?”
“Now who’s being mean?” he grumped.
I cackled evilly to offset the grunt as my weight settled onto my feet. Getting out of bed was always hardest. Once I got moving around, it wasn’t half as bad. Stretching was forbidden, so I curbed the urge and took careful steps to join Isaac in the compact kitchen. He was not a fan of coffee, or my addiction thereof, but he had brought me a large cup of joe from the Waffle Iron to go along with the cupcakes.
I snatched it out of his hand, jangling a bracelet on my wrist—what I jokingly called my ankle monitor—and I moaned with happiness. “Where is Tiberius today?”
“Where do you think?” He shook his head. “He’s up at the cabin with Leandra and the kids. Cord sent Moore with him.”
Keeping the lovers apart had proven more trouble than it was worth. Hormonal princes tended to set fires on the back half of the property then flitter off while the pack battled the blaze. In the end, the alphas decided the risk of allowing the couple short, weekly visits was worth the reward of not losing timber to his temper tantrums.
Smart man that Isaac was, he carried the cupcake box—opened—and walked backward, forcing me to follow him. When I snagged the first one and shoved it in my mouth, he cupped my elbow and helped me down the stairs onto the ground. At that point, I was ready for another and crammed it in there too. He laughed and kept guiding me by dangling cupcakes just out of my reach. It was an amazingly effective technique.
Never taking his eyes off me, it was a small miracle Isaac hadn’t tripped. “How are you feeling?”
“Better now that I have this.” I smacked kissy noises against the paper cup filled with sweet, sweet coffee.
“Once you finish making out with Joe, can I direct your attention to the acreage to your right?”
We must have passed this spot a thousand times during my physical therapy. What he expected me to see now that hadn’t been there before was lost on me. Though I had to admit, it was my favorite place. High up the mountain that abutted this stretch of woods was an old bear cave. The wolf had claimed it as hers, and we retreated up there when leading a pack frayed our collective nerves.
“I give up.” I braced a hand on the nearest tree. “What am I missing?”
“Here.” He passed me a folded paper. “Maybe this will help.”
I skimmed the first page, and my heart flip-flopped. “Isaac?”
“It’s all ours,” he confirmed. “Both our names are on the deed.”
“Your mom gave this to us?” I crushed the papers to my chest. “How can we repay her?”
All my savings had gone bye-bye when I purchased my pop-up RV for cash.
Isaac chuckled and offered me another cupcake. “My mother is a lot of things, but she’s a businesswoman to the core. This isn’t a gift. I purchased twenty acres total. Three front the pack’s land.”
“You bought land?” The absurdity of it stumped me. His mother lived and breathed real estate. She bought, sold and traded property to suit her whims. Isaac helped with the business, but he had never taken an interest. Until now. “I need you to spell this out for me before I get excited.”
“I bought this from Mom before we parted ways in New Mexico.” He cupped my cheek and used his thumb to get rid of the cake crumbs on my mouth. “Cord and Cam don’t see the pack relocating any time soon. Or they didn’t. With the declaration of war hanging over our heads, that might change.” He leaned over and kissed me gently. “There’s this carpenter I know, a real whiz with a hammer. I figured I could maybe sweet-talk her into helping me design a house and build it here.”
The cupcake slid from my fingers. The depth of my shock must have stunned Isaac. He knew I never wasted food, and never, ever cupcakes.
“You actually mean it,” I realized. “You’re going to stay.”
His lips closed over mine a second time, a gentle promise. “You don’t have to take me at my word. I’ll show you, day by day, week by week, year by year, that I’m not going anywhere.”
Tears blurred my eyes as I leaned against my mate. Mine. This was really happening.
“It’s a beautiful thought,” I told him through my sniffling, “but I want you to be happy too.”
“All I need is—”
“Hear me out.” I pressed a finger to his lips. “I would be thrilled for us to have privacy.” Sex, when we got back around to it, was not something I wanted to share with my neighbors. “How about we compromise? We run power, water and sewage out here, maybe pour us a nice-sized patio and build a roof over the whole thing. That way your RV is protected, we get more outdoor living space, and we’re still mobile in case the travel bug bites you.”
“You spent a lot of summers in that cabin with Meemaw.” He studied me as if unsure what to believe. “I thought you might like to have your own.”
“Meemaw and Pawpaw made that cabin home. The structure doesn’t matter. It never did.” I patted his chest. “I would sleep in the leaves and be happy if that meant I could keep you.”
“You’re sure it’s not too cramped?” he pressed. “I bought the RV when I was single. I could trade up if you want more room.”
More room? He had given us acres to run, to patrol, to mark as our own. What more could a girl want?
“All I want is you.” I kissed him, snaking my hand around to steal a replacement cupcake. “And maybe this.”
The wail of a siren cut through our private moment. Living in the South, I had to admit my knee-jerk reaction was still to seek shelter in an interior room of any handy dwelling. But in this case, it meant we had company.
“We need to get you back inside the RV.” Isaac supported my elbow so I could walk faster. The box in his hand drooped, as though he was tempted to drop it and run with me, but he snapped it shut and tucked it under his arm instead. Good man. No cupcake gets left behind. “I’ll get you settled then meet up with Cammie.”
“I want to go too,” I protested, well aware of how petulant I sounded, but I was so bored.
“We can’t risk anyone outside the pack recognizing you. They’ll wonder how it is you’re here and not in Macon, and when they go digging, it’s Theo they’ll uncover.”
I didn’t protest again. It wouldn’t do me any good, and he was right. The last thing I
wanted was for Theo to get hurt because I was acting like a brat.
Isaac trundled me up the stairs and into bed, pausing to plant a bone-melting kiss on my pouty lips before leaving me with the cupcakes for company.
“What’s going on out there?” I reached out to Zed, who had been my eyes and ears as of late.
“The same trio as before,” he panted, clearly on the run. “They flew in under a white flag.”
“Don’t believe it,” I warned him, gut roiling with too much sugar and nerves.
“The alphas are smarter than to trust any fae at face value. One is fae, and the other is married to one.”
I snorted a laugh that sent a twinge down the length of my spine.
“Looks like the gang’s all here. The pack has shifted, but the alphas have not,” he continued to narrate. “I’m taking up position behind Cord and Cam. Sounds like the sirens want the prince back. No surprise there.” A growl spiced his next words. “The leader is offering her condolences.”
“Nice.”
“Huh.” He sounded puzzled. “The alphas didn’t correct her. Must be some fae-etiquette thing happening.”
“Or they don’t want her to know I’m alive so she won’t try to finish the job.”
“Good point.”
Zed fell silent, and I tried not to pester him while he listened. The situation was dangerous, and I didn’t want to distract him when he ought to be focused on protecting the alphas, and himself.
“Cam is slick.” Awe tinged his words. “She deflected just enough she might have thrown the sirens off Tiberius’s scent. Rilla can’t be sure now if he’s here or if he’s already been turned over to the conclave. Looks like the birdbrains are leaving in a huff.”
“I’m surprised they waited so long to put in an appearance, honestly.”
“Cord wondered the same thing. Cam is mentioning a mourning period and how it varies across species. She thinks the pause in hostilities might have been a show of kindness. It’s not like they have anything to lose. They’ve got a lot more magic up their sleeves than we do.” He barked a wolfish laugh. “Hell, we don’t even have sleeves in this form.”
“Thanks for the update.” Bedrest or not, with the pack around I was never left out of the information loop.
“No problem. Uh, I gotta go. I get the distinct impression Cord asked me a question, and I missed it.”
Zed severed our mental connection and got back to work while I shifted on my side and started picking at another cupcake. I was in real danger of slipping into a sugar coma when the exterior door clicked open. Isaac rattled through the kitchen and brought me a cup of milk before sitting at the foot of the bed.
“I assume Zed gave you a play-by-play?” He peeked into the baker’s box, but kept his thoughts to himself. Smart man.
I peered at him over the rim of my mug. “How did you know?”
“Cord was talking to him for five minutes before he realized Zed had zoned out.”
“And you assumed it was my fault?” I fluttered my lashes for effect.
“You two are peas in a pod. Zed never gets in trouble without help from a certain she-wolf.”
I pretended offense, but I couldn’t deny the allegations. Zed was a straight arrow. I was the one whose bright ideas often ended in regret and mud in uncomfortable places.
I passed over the mug and rested my hand on my taut stomach. “Is Enzo coming over later?”
Our resident witch visited every few days to channel healing energies through me. Though Isaac, wary of Enzo’s enthusiasm, had exacted a blood oath from the witch that he wouldn’t experiment on me during our sessions. I wasn’t worried. Enzo had been so enamored with the flora trimmings he and I had taken in Faerie that he paid my crew to construct three simple greenhouses for him. Last I heard, he had set up a cot in there to better coax his babies to root. Give him a few months and a healthy garden, and then we would have to keep an eye on him.
Isaac shackled my ankle with his palm. “Should I be jealous you sound excited by the prospect?”
“Three weeks in bed, Isaac. Three. Weeks. I’m happy when anyone comes to visit. I’m so bored you could drive a nail through me.”
“Carpenter humor. Cute.”
I wrinkled my nose at him.
“Knock, knock,” Cord’s voice rang out. “The door’s open. Mind if we come in?”
“Please do,” I hollered back loud enough to make Isaac wince.
Cord strode through the kitchen, the top of Cam’s head visible over his shoulder. Both alphas joined Isaac on the mattress, causing it to dip and a twinge to flare in my hip.
“How’s the patient today, Nurse Isaac?” Cord noticed his grip on my ankle. “She trying to escape again?”
“That was one time,” I protested.
“Umm-hmm.” Cam replaced Isaac’s grip with hers, and alpha magic poured over me in a drugging wave that left my eyes heavy and erased any hint of discomfort. “Is that necklace getting any looser?”
I gave it a tug. “Nope.”
“I spoke to Thierry about it. She knows Branwen—”
“—of course she does.” Thierry knew all the players and was related to half of them through her short-lived marriage.
Cam gave me a patient sigh. She understood why the pack reacted the way we did to Thierry, but she trusted the marshal and hoped exposing us to our liaison might take the edge off our visceral response to her presence. No luck so far. Right now, that experiment was a failure. I had seen firsthand how her magic worked, and I would never shake hands with her again. Ever.
“As I was saying…” She waited to make sure she wouldn’t be interrupted again. “Branwen was married to the chieftain of a selkie pod, Dónal O’Leary. He’s passed on, but Branwen still prefers sticking to the coasts and warmer waters.”
Unsure where this was headed, I leaned back. “What about the half-blood army encampment?”
“Thierry says it’s more of a commune for half-blood fae relocated from Faerie. When the king took his throne, one of his first acts as sovereign was to barter with the conclave for use of the remaining tether. Since it anchors on his property instead of neutral ground, it was his to control.”
I sank back against the pillows. “What did he want in exchange?”
“Permission to relocate nonviolent half-bloods he purchased from slavers. Apparently, Thierry was the conduit. He located the half-bloods, and she evaluated them. Her recommendation went to the magistrates, who chose which ones presented the least risk to our realm. Those were given sanctuary with Branwen. Most were so abused or broken at that point, they weren’t fit to integrate into society.”
“You’re saying when Rook told me he had an army, what he meant was he had a collective of pissed-off ex-slaves who are eager to stick it to their former masters?”
That type of simmering hatred would make up for any lack of experience.
“They call themselves the Bloodless.”
“Not that this isn’t fascinating,” Isaac interrupted. “But why are you telling us?”
“The conclave is sending an envoy to examine the rift, the park, our procedures, all of it. They’ve requested full access and accommodations on-site. That means Stone’s Throw is about to be crawling with fae, several who are familiar enough with our pack history to identify Dell on sight.”
That was not good news. “So I need to make myself scarce.”
“How will we sneak her out without drawing attention?” Isaac had paranoia down to an art form.
“I’ve ordered the delivery of six RVs,” Cord explained. “One will suffer engine trouble on arrival and be towed into town. Once the repairs are made, we’ll decide we don’t need it after all, and that RV will cut a path back to the rental agency.”
Moore ran an auto body repair shop on the fringes of Butler. Zed’s junkyard backed up to the main building. There was enough room to fit the RV in the new add-on. I doubted we could hope for water hookups or sewage, but we could count on power. For one night, th
at was good enough.
Isaac appeared less enthused about leaving the protective safety of pack land. “Where exactly do you see us going?”
“The inspection is supposed to last a week. That’s how long they requested we accommodate them.”
“It’s dangerous for Dell to be outside the pack’s protection in her condition,” Isaac argued.
His cousin was hearing none of it. “It’s more dangerous if she stays.”
Too bad Villanow was off the itinerary. Meemaw had been so close, and yet I hadn’t gotten to see her, the real her. The sound of her voice softened by the lullabies from my childhood and her chicken noodle soup had been the two things I’d longed for most the past few weeks.
“We could head down to the coast,” I suggested, all sweetness and innocence. “Warm waters… White sand beaches…”
“No,” Isaac snapped. “You’re not going on a hunt in your condition.”
The alphas exchanged a weighted glance before Cord said, “Actually, we were hoping you two wouldn’t mind checking a few of Branwen’s known haunts.”
“Dell can barely walk one loop at the track, and you want to send her out on an assignment?”
“We’re not asking her to intervene. She’s got a keen nose and a good head on her shoulders. She’s an excellent tracker who’s bored out of her mind. Why not put her to use?” Cord attempted to soften his rebuke. “She’s a wolf, Isaac. Wolves don’t do well in confinement. She needs to stretch her legs, and this will kill two birds with one stone.”
“Does anyone care what I think?” I raised my hand like a kid in a classroom.
Isaac mashed his lips into a bloodless line to keep from commenting.
“Well?” Cam prompted. “What does the invalid think?”
“That she doesn’t want to be called an invalid, and that she’s ready to see more than these four walls all day, every day.”
“Dell—” Isaac grated from between clenched teeth.
“Ninety percent of the time I’ll be co-piloting from right next to you, safe inside the RV. The other ten percent I’ll be sticking my head into abandoned buildings for a sniff to confirm zero occupation before we jet to the next location.”
Wolf at the Door (Lorimar Pack) (Gemini Book 5) Page 16