Finding the Fire Within

by C. C. Masters

  The twins both looked surprised, but Cody and Caleb looked like they had been expecting this. James had his impassive face on, which meant he had something to hide.

  “I fully intend to pursue Anna as my mate, but I know that I am not the only one here who cares about her.”

  “Are you telling us to back off?” Mason asked with a frown.

  “No.” I told him seriously. “I’m telling you that I know she will end up with more than one mate, and I’m confident that she will choose her mates from the men in this room.”

  Caleb set down his iPad and shifted uncomfortably. “I also would like to pursue Anna as my mate.” He said softly. I gave him a nod and shifted my attention to Mason.

  “We are already all-in.” He said with a gesture that encompassed himself and Jason. Jason agreed with a determined nod.

  I turned to James, who had been watching all of this without uttering a word. He crossed his arms across his chest and gave everyone in the room a glare. “If any of you hurt her, you can expect an epic ass-kicking from me.”

  “You’re in?” I prodded gently.

  He gave me a nod. That was enough for me. I hadn’t exactly expected him to confess his undying love for Anna to us.

  “Cody?” I asked, turning my attention to him.

  Cody gave a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m in.”

  Mason cleared his throat before glancing at me for permission to speak. I gave him a brief nod.

  “Are you sure about that?” Mason asked Cody. “If you agree to date Anna, you are agreeing to stop dating human girls. You know it would break Anna’s heart if you cheated on her.”

  Cody shrugged. “I’ve already stopped seeing other girls.”

  Jason looked at him dubiously.

  “Now that I know Anna, I realize that I’ve never had a real connection with any of the human girls I’ve dated. It was just superficial and left me feeling empty... I think deep down I just kept searching for something more.”

  “You know we’re going to call you out on it if you fuck up.” Jason told him.

  Cody nodded. “I won’t.”

  “At the end of the day, it’s not our decision who Anna dates.” Caleb interrupted. “It’s up to Anna. She could choose all of us or she could choose none of us.”

  “That’s true.” I admitted. “We’re not here to decide who Anna can or can’t date. We are here to have a gentleman’s discussion between us to avoid fighting and be honest with our intentions.”

  “Speaking of intentions,” Caleb added. “I don’t think Anna is ready to get physical with six different men. I want to remind everyone that she’s had a difficult past and we should all be respectful of her and patient with the pace she sets.”

  “I know Anna’s shy.” Jason said hesitantly. “But I got the feeling that there is something more there.”

  There was silence in the room. “I think it’s obvious to all of us that Anna may not have had a great childhood. The fact that she was closest to an elderly neighbor tells us a lot that she hasn’t said.” I told them pointedly.

  “Does anyone know for sure, though?” Cody asked. “Because I want to know if there is someone that I should beat the shit out of.”

  The twins both shook their heads in agreement. I noticed that Caleb was careful not to look at any of us. “Caleb? Anything you want to add?”

  He looked uncomfortable as everyone turned to look at him. “I have some medical records I didn’t share with anyone. Anna hasn’t confided in me, so I feel like I would be betraying her trust by telling everyone her secrets.”

  “What medical records?” James said in a deadly voice.

  Caleb cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Just past stuff.”

  “You’re going to want to share that. Now.” James told him coldly.

  “Um, I don’t know anything for sure. But Anna’s childhood records indicate that she may have suffered from abuse.”

  James started to growl.

  “Nothing for sure.” Caleb quickly assured him. “It’s just that the pattern is suspicious.”

  James didn’t look mollified, I was probably going to have to talk him down from going after her adopted family. I would be lying if I said that I didn’t want to do the same.

  The twins exchanged glances. They looked like they had figured out as much already. Or maybe Anna had confided in them?

  “There’s something else you haven’t told us.” James said bluntly.

  “She moved away from that family to go to college.” Caleb started. “There was a record of her going to the doctor freshman year.” Caleb swallowed nervously. “She was raped.”

  The silence in the room was deafening for a moment until everyone erupted in shouting and cursing. I let myself feel my own anger for a moment before I even tried to settle down the room.

  “Enough!” I shouted. Everyone quieted down, but James started to head for Caleb. I held out my arm to stop him and he gave me a glowering look.

  “I think what everyone is trying to say, Caleb. Is do we know who it was?”

  Caleb shook his head. “No. She never named him or pressed charges.”

  “So it was someone she knew.” Mason said.

  “Probably someone she trusted.” Jason added.

  Cody shook his head sadly. “That does explain a lot.”

  I shared a glance with James. Anna had told us in her initial interview that she had only been with one man before and that he was dead. I had a feeling that James would be following up on this now, just to make sure.

  I nodded. “Thank you, Caleb. I think we can all agree that this never leaves the room, this will never be mentioned again, and if Anna wants to share with us, she will do it when she is comfortable.”

  Caleb settled back in his chair, obviously relieved.

  “I don’t think I have to tell anyone here that we need to take things slow with her?” I waited until I had a nod of agreement from every man present.

  “Should she talk to Robbie?” Caleb asked tentatively. “That’s what the rest of us had to do when we joined the pack.”

  James and I exchanged glances. He was hesitant to tell anyone else, but I trusted everyone in this room.

  “There have been some discrepancies.” I started to explain. “The night of the attack we received reports from both Robbie and Quinn that don’t match.”

  I saw frowns all around the room. Caleb had picked up on where I was going with this and his mouth tightened. Cody and the twins looked slightly confused.

  I sighed. “There is the possibility that one of them may have been involved in the attack.”

  “What!” Jason burst out.

  “Why are they still in the pack?” Mason growled. “I could have left Anna alone with either one of them!”

  Cody looked devastated.

  “I promise you that they are both being closely monitored. If either one of them is a traitor, we want to know who they are working for.” There was an air of sadness in the room when I finished speaking. I understood the feeling, both men were people who I had trusted and believed in.

  I decided it would be best to change topics completely to close out the meeting. “In the interest of transparency, I have a date planned with Anna for Saturday night.” I told the room.

  The twins both frowned. “Are we allowed to take her off the premises for dates?” Mason asked.

  “How can you guarantee her safety if it’s just you and her?” Jason added.

  “I’ll be staying on the premises with her and taking advantage of our private beach.” I told him firmly. “As for taking her off the premises, I would ask that you didn’t unless there are more than one of you present and you are in easy reach of more pack members.”

  “Not exactly ideal circumstances for dating.” Cody stated. “But I agree that Anna’s safety comes first. I think we should talk about sharing time with Anna more fairly. Right now, the twins monopolize the majority of her day.”

  The twins both scowled. />
  “Things with Anna are going to be changing. Initially, the twins were tasked with her protection and Anna was given the assignment to help with their duties. Earlier tonight, I tasked Anna with managing the expenses of our household and put her in charge of purchasing.” I told them.

  Caleb nodded thoughtfully, “She’s going to be good at that.”

  “I agree.” I told him. I looked around the room. No one looked like they wanted to disagree, so I continued. “I want to ease Anna into having more responsibilities in the pack and will be adding more onto her as she adjusts.”

  “What about her job?” Jason asked. “That keeps her really busy.”

  I sighed. “Anna is passionate about her work, and as long as she is happy I will continue to support her. But long term, I hope that she will become more and more involved in the pack and choose to work with us instead of at the hospital.”

  Most of the guys nodded in agreement. “I would like to see Anna more involved with what you do, Cody. I think Anna would be a huge help in holding our pack together and inspiring loyalty.”

  Cody nodded. “I can start taking her around with me when I visit the other teams.”

  “Caleb, I believe you have already gotten Anna involved in some of what you do?” Caleb nodded but blushed a little.

  “When it becomes safer for her, I will also start involving Anna in our relationship with council members and other packs.” I informed them.

  James scowled. “Is that a good idea? Anna is too nice to be able to handle the backstabbing and bitchiness that goes along with your job.”

  I laughed. “True. But I think Anna is going to surprise you. She’s learning quickly and becoming more confident in herself every day. We need to nurture that strength inside her.”

  “I’ve noticed.” James said quietly. “But I don’t want to see her become cold and tough because she has to deal with shit all day.”

  “You can’t keep her locked in the house all day, either.” Caleb pointed out. “Anna likes her job because it gives her a sense of purpose and satisfaction when she’s able to help people. We need to be able to provide her with the same things if we want her to be happy.”

  “She’s not going to have to deal with shit all day for as long as I’m around.” Cody said seriously.

  “She has all of us.” Mason added.

  I looked around the room. We might disagree on the little things, but if there was one thing to bring us all together, it was Anna. I could see determination on everyone’s faces. I smiled to myself, we were going to make this work.

  Chapter 19

  Anna

  The week was going by fast. Already it was Thursday night and I was making dinner while the twins worked on some assignments for class. Caleb and the twins had seemed like they backed off the last couple days.

  I wasn’t sure, but I suspected it had something to do with the meeting they had with Austin. Between work and everything else, I hadn’t had the time or energy to confront them about it. I was fine just letting it go for now.

  James and I had been spending every morning training together and he was starting to open up to me more when we were alone. He was much more relaxed when it was just the two of us. There were a couple times when the sexual tension between the two of us got intense, but he always pulled away instead of acting on it.

  Sam had moved in with Trevor and his guys ‘so they could keep an eye on her’. But I sensed there was more than that going on.

  I was going to have to ask Sam what happens if a panther and a wolf try to have a baby together next time I saw her. Mostly because I really wanted to know, but partly because I wanted to tease her.

  “Anna!” I heard a shout coming from the front foyer.

  The twins both looked at me and I shrugged. “Yeah?” I yelled back.

  Quinn came stomping in the kitchen to glare at me. “You whore! I can’t believe you cheated on me!”

  The twins both stood up. “Whoa,” Mason said as he held up a hand to stop Quinn in his tracks.

  Jason narrowed his eyes. “You’re going to want to apologize. Now.”

  “Fine.” Quinn huffed. “Anna, you are not a whore. Despite that you obviously went behind my back to fill your closet with fabulous things. I know you didn’t do that on your own, so spill.”

  I rolled my eyes. “That was Reagan.” I told him as I went back to chopping cilantro for some mango salsa. “Apparently she doesn’t approve of me dressing like a hobo any more than you do.”

  The twins didn’t show any sign of backing down or letting Quinn into the kitchen, so I decided to intervene. “Guys, he was just joking. Are you staying for dinner, Quinn?”

  Mason interrupted before Quinn could answer. “I don’t care if it was a joke. You don’t speak to her like that.” He and Jason stared Quinn down.

  Quinn gave an uncomfortable shrug. “I didn’t mean any offense, I’ll be more careful in the future.” He mumbled.

  That seemed to satisfy the twins because after another moment of uncomfortable staring they both gave him a nod and relaxed their stances.

  “We’re having Mexican tonight.” I told Quinn cheerfully, trying to dispel the tension that lingered in the room.

  He gave me a small smile but backed away from the twins and took a seat at the counter. Mason and Jason watched him carefully until he was seated and then apparently decided it was safe to go back to their school work.

  “Sorry, Quinn.” I told him quietly. “I should have warned you before you walked into my closet. How shocked were you?” I asked with a grin.

  “Girl, I dropped the bag I was carrying.” Quinn said seriously.

  “Did you see the red gown? How unbelievable is that?” I asked him with a smile.

  “We need to have an event so that I can dress you in it.” He eyed me critically. “I think I would do your hair in curls, and red lipstick is a must.”

  A smile slowly spread across my face. What would the guys think if I came down the stairs one day dressed like that? “I think we do need to have an event for it.” I told Quinn as I chopped.

  Quinn leaned towards me conspiratorially. “I recognize that smile. You have someone in particular in mind that you want to dress up for?”

  “Maybe.” I answered mysteriously. “I wouldn’t mind seeing any of the guys dressed up in suits.” I told him quietly as I flicked a glance over to the twins. They didn’t look like they were paying attention, but I doubted that they let Quinn off the hook that quickly.

  I threw some steak and chicken in the pan and it started to sizzle. Once the scent of cooking meat reached the rest of the guys in the house they would usually be down in the kitchen pretty quickly. Tonight, Austin and Caleb were the only other ones in the house.

  They made it down just as the twins, Quinn and I had the table set and the food ready. Finally, all of us sat down to eat.

  Quinn took a bite, “Mmmm, Anna. This is delicious.”

  I blushed, “Thanks Quinn.”

  Austin saved me from embarrassment by changing the subject. He turned to the twins, “Fall break is starting soon?”

  They both nodded, and Mason answered, “We have off next Wednesday through Sunday.”

  “I need you to check in with Cody to see where he needs you for winter training.”

  “Already done, boss.” Jason answered with a proud grin.

  Mason grunted. “We have intensive weapons training scheduled for the group that Trevor selected, plus refreshers for everyone else.”

  “And we are going to be taking over the physical training classes for that time to give Cody a break.” Jason told him.

  “Cody scheduled testing week for January 8-12 so we have enough time to get everyone ready.”

  Austin nodded in approval, looking pleased at the twins’ initiative.

  I was curious about all of the training they were doing. I know Austin had told me that he ran the pack similar to the military, but I wasn’t expecting this. But when I thought about it, I didn�
�t really know a lot about what the pack did outside of the house. Now was a good opportunity to ask some questions.

  “So, the pack has PT tests, like the military?” I asked.

  Austin paused and looked at me. “That’s right, Anna. I don’t think we really planned what we were going to do with you.”

  “We can get her up to speed,” Mason volunteered.

  Jason looked up, “She can already pass the run without a problem.”

  Quinn cleared his throat, “So does she have to meet the same standards that we do? Or does she have a different set because she’s female?”

  Everyone turned to look at Austin.

  He sat back and looked at me thoughtfully. “You would just have to meet the minimum, Anna. Most of the guys are competitive and aim for much higher, I wouldn’t expect you to do that. Can you run three miles in 28 minutes?”

  “Yes,” I answered. I was sure that I could do that.

  “Can you do fifty crunches in two minutes?”

  I frowned. “Well, I’ve never really timed myself doing that, but I do yoga a lot. So, probably?”

  “At least five pull-ups?”

  I shook my head no and slumped down in my chair a little. I haven’t tried to do a pull-up since high school gym class. I doubt I could even do one.

  “We will work with her. we already started her on strength training this week.” Mason assured Austin.

  I rolled my sore shoulders at the reminder. The twins had taken James’s request to help me with strength training pretty seriously. I looked at him doubtfully. “I have until January?” I asked.

  Austin nodded. “If you fail the test we will look at what we want to do then, for now just train as if you plan on meeting the same standards as everyone else.”

  “Okay,” I told him, trying to sit up straight and look confident that I could do this. I tried to push away all of my self-doubt. I was strong, I was a wolf, and I had more than enough time to work on this. I might not be able to do it right now, but I would work hard in the time I had.

  I started to feel a little better after the pep talk I gave myself. I was determined to prove myself to the pack. I didn’t want Austin to have to announce lower standards for females because I was too weak to pass. I could do this.