Twenty minutes later, Seth walked with a limp with Hailey on the grounds, which she referred to as the Crenshaw Estate. His damn leg still stung, but it wasn’t enough to keep him trapped inside, immobile on a sofa.
When Hailey had removed her white coat, it revealed a lush set of curves underneath. She had rounded breasts that stretched the fabric of her pink top and her full arse filled out her jeans just right. Those parts of her he’d love to touch, squeeze, caress…
“These are the grounds.” She motioned around them.
The lands sprawled with various shades of forest green and bursts of purple heather that shimmered under the morning sun. Off in the distance, majestic peaks peered above a blanket of silver mist that framed the picturesque landscape, lending a sense of timelessness. The area was quiet nearby, but the sounds of birds and insects from the forest below were lively and constant, occasionally interrupted by a breeze riffling the leaves. The scent of morning dew still hung in the air, and droplets clung to blades of grass at his feet.
The main house stood before them, perched on the highest brae overlooking the meadow and woodlands below. It was a massive stone structure that could house an entire pack. Hailey’s cottage was a similar design that matched the round stone, but on a smaller scale with a quaint appeal. With the distance separating the structures, it was a good walk from the main house.
“Ah, so you were lying when you said you’d be able to shout for help—if you had reason to fear me,” he replied with a grin. “A wolf could hear from that distance. A human—I doubt it.”
She bristled before answering with a raised brow. “Luckily, you haven’t given me a reason to call for backup.”
A light breeze carried her sweet scent to him, one that made his wolf rise and sniff. Something about it made his wolf keenly receptive to her. Or maybe it was something about her in general.
“I have no reason to threaten you in any way. Why turn on the person offering me care and shelter?”
She nodded before glancing down at his clothing. “How do they fit?”
She’d found some clothes she’d thought would fit him from the main house. The loose-fitting black trousers and white button-down shirt clung at odd angles to his skin. He’d tried on the boxer shorts and abandoned that effort. Too confining when he was used to the open feeling while wearing a kilt. He also refused the offer for shoes; he could only adjust to so much at one time. It was a good choice since the cool morning dew on the blades of grass felt refreshing under his feet.
“They fit fine. The way they feel might take some getting used to.”
Her gaze drifted down his torso, lingering in a way that made him stand straighter.
“What do you usually wear?” She tilted her head. “You don’t run around nude, do you?”
“No. I wear a kilt, the same tartan worn by all members of my pac—family.” He’d almost said pack. He had to be careful revealing too much around humans. She was too easy to talk to, tripping him up. She’d already guessed at his dual nature and he hadn’t been prepared for a plausible explanation. So far, she hadn’t betrayed his trust, even when talking on the phone to her brother.
“Were you going to say pack?”
He searched over the rolling braes in the distance. Funny, his wolf wasn’t just calm but—content. It was the first time in days that it hadn’t been prowling inside him, tormented by that terrible blow to its pride.
He ignored the question, despite his wolf’s insistence to keep the conversation going. His wolf was acting out of sorts lately. And what about what had happened in the cottage when he’d held the knife on himself rather than her. Something strange was happening indeed. What it was, he didn’t have a clue.
After a half a minute, she asked, “What happened to your kilt?”
“I took it off before I went swimming.”
“What were you doing out there alone?” she asked.
His muscles clenched before he exhaled, letting the tension dissipate from the back of his neck. “Leaving my home.”
Her eyes widened. “Why?”
He kicked at a rock below. “I had a difference of opinion.”
“With whom?” she prodded.
He’d dwelled on that situation enough. Time to move on. “You ask too many questions.”
She made a clucking sound. “Interesting,” she said. “Symbolic in a way, isn’t it?”
He turned to her. “What is?”
“You left your kilt behind, which is symbolic. It identifies you with a clan. And when you left…”
She left the rest of her thought unfinished, but it didn’t take a genius to figure out what she’d meant. He ran his hand over the bark of an oak tree as they passed it. “In a way,” he admitted. Still, too much of the focus of the conversation was on him, hitting on topics he didn’t want to discuss. Time to redirect it. “What’s your story, Hailey?”
“I told you part of it. About spending most of my life in the U.S. And we’ve only been back here a few years.”
“Who’s we? You, your father, and Liam, I’m guessing.”
“Yes. After my mom died, it’s been the three of us.”
He pictured the other human on the boat with her. He hadn’t taken as much notice of the man because he hadn’t been the one armed. “What were you two doing out on the ocean yesterday? Out for a casual sail?”
She stopped walking and turned to face him. “Not really. We were searching for this island that seems impossible to find.”
“Oh.” He tried not to sound too interested. “How so?”
“Little is known about the island or who owns it. People call it the Isle of Stone. We couldn’t find it on any map. We sailed the area for days looking for it, where visitors claimed it was. But didn’t find any signs of it.”
Seth’s gut clenched. Her news was both a good sign and problematic. On one hand, the fact that they couldn’t find the isle where his pack lived meant the magical veil they’d restored was working as intended, despite the frantic rush to set it in place. The wolves had to work with the tree witches and gargoyles on the isle as each provided a magical component to shield it from human technology. The troubling part was that humans like Hailey were out searching for this island. Then again, if she hadn’t been out looking, however, well, he might have met a far more dismal fate in the sea.
Still, he had to find out more from her. “Why were you searching for this island?”
“I heard about a wolf attack on it.” She raised her chin. “Know anything about that?”
With the intense way she fixed her gaze on him, he’d have trouble coming up with any explanation on the fly. Not that he had one to work with. He hadn’t been at the peace talks when the wolf shifters, gargoyles, and tree witches had discussed an explanation they’d feed to the humans following the wolf attack. Their discussion had been interrupted when humans had arrived, sparking all the chaos that ensued, including the rush to restore the magical veil—and his break with Raina and the pack.
He should have been at the peace talk. He’d been arguing with Raina beforehand to let him continue with Ian. But since he and Raina shared duties as beta, she’d insisted they take turns as pack representative and it had been her turn. That was where she’d met the gargoyle, Lachlan. That tosser.
If Seth had gone, things might have turned out differently. For everyone.
His wolf squirmed in dissent and leaned closer to Hailey.
Before answering her question, he wanted more information. “What did you hear?”
“I was at a pub and overheard people talking about an incident on an island north of Thurso. It was at some kind of concert or strange kind of theatrical show. Odd reports about the band members flying into the air, making people speculate if there were drugs in the water.” She shrugged. “Others said it was high-tech stuff and they must have been on a wire.”
Seth clenched his teeth. What she’d said was true. It was the bloody gargoyles and their blasted rock concerts that had drawn more
humans to the isle.
“A pack of wild wolves jumped into the crowd and attacked people at this show.” She nodded in his direction. “What do you know about that?”
He flinched at the direct question but tried to hide his reaction. The moon had instigated chaos that night, sending some of the younger pack mates on a hunt to quench their bloodlust. That was one of the greatest concerns his pack had when it came to humans investigating the incident. If they suspected wolves had attacked humans, surely they’d try to eradicate that threat and kill every last wolf.
“Nothing,” he lied. “Wolves have no reason to attack humans. Not on the menu.”
He started to walk again, eager to end the line of questioning.
“Okay, I may agree with you there,” she said and fell into step beside him. “There are very few instances of wolves attacking humans so I’m guessing that part of the story got overblown.” She raised her index finger. “But it’s all connected somehow. You. The wolves. The island. It’s too much for it to be a coincidence. You have to be one of the wolves from that island.” Her rate of speech quickened as she worked through the details in her head. “And since you are both—man and wolf—I’m guessing so are the other wolves.”
How she’d gotten so close to the truth so quickly scared him. She was intelligent enough not to fall for some flimsy explanation. Before he had a chance to come up with one, she followed up with another direct hit.
“Are you a werewolf?”
“No,” he spat in reply to the offensive statement. Werewolves lacked the ability to shift at will; they were turned humans, not born shifters. They were like mindless monsters under the full moon. At least his kind had some self-control.
“But it’s the only explanation.”
“I’m not a werewolf.” He clenched his fists.
“Yet, it was a full moon that night on the island—and you’re somehow a wolf as well as a man.” She nodded, assessing him with a steady gaze. “I think you were there.”
Her accusation rankled him. “Sure, the moon affects us,” he burst out, “but not like those overblown stories of men turning into out of control beasts attacking anything in sight. Stories that have made humans fear us so. We can shift at will to either form.” An odd sense of relief filled him at opening up to her, something he’d never thought would happen with a human knowing his secret. “The moon had loomed close and affected the youngest the most. That’s why they acted aggressively. I was not there, but I helped take care of the situation. Do not worry. There will not be another incident like that again.”
Shite, out here in the Highlands, without the protection of the magical veil that distilled the powerful impact the moon had on shifters, he might react the same way, like a werewolf. He wasn’t used to the unfiltered state of the moon. The effect on him might not be good.
She clapped her hands with delight. “I knew it!”
Her eyes sparkled like a full moon mirrored in the sea. Fuck. He was a proper idiot for telling her so much. Something about her got under his skin, something he didn’t recognize. What was it about her that made him spill his secrets? While his wolf wagged its tail in contentment, Seth blinked, second-guessing himself.
“You can’t tell anyone about this.”
A part of him wanted to shut his trap and move on. She’d already figured out so much. He had no business talking to this human female and had to get moving. Now that he was in the Highlands, he could move on. Find another pack. He knew they existed in the U.K., but where, was the problem. Shifters lived in secret. Some blended in as humans in their world while others kept far from it. If he didn’t find one in Scotland, he’d continue his search through the U.K. And then move on through Europe, if necessary. With all the known wolves living there, he was sure to find a pack. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t have much status as a newcomer—but at least he wouldn’t share duties with a female who’d torn his hopes to shreds.
He glanced into Hailey’s eyes and his wolf calmed again. Something about her presence soothed him. Maybe that was what made him want to stay close and talk to her—reveal things he shouldn’t to her.
“What do you call yourself?” she asked.
“Before I tell you anything else, swear to keep it to yourself.”
She nodded. “I promise.”
“You were right when you called me a shapeshifter. Specifically, a wolf shifter.”
Hearing him admit a secret he never thought he’d reveal to a human made him question his motives. With the way his damn wolf settled down, he guessed it had something to do with him. Something about this woman soothed his wolf for whatever reason.
She narrowed her eyes. “There are other kinds?”
Exhaling with a low whoosh, he admitted, “Of course.”
She leaned toward him with eyes wide and lips parted. “Like what?”
“I’ve already told you enough of my secrets. It’s not my place to tell others. Now it’s your turn to talk. Tell me more about this project you’re working on.”
“I’m helping my father in his efforts to rewild Scotland.”
“What does that mean exactly? I saw those sheets on your desk.”
“It’s a movement to restore lost wildlife, flora, and fauna, including wolves. Reintroducing the wolves would have a tremendous ecological benefit to the Highlands. For example, they’d aid in the reduction of red deer, which will allow the forests to regenerate naturally. The only problem is, not everyone agrees on how it should be done—or whether it should be done at all.”
Whoever Hailey was, she shattered all his expectations as to what he thought humans were like. And this project of hers—he had to admit, it sounded like humans who were out to do some good for once, instead of inflicting destruction on the environment with their wars, industry, and technology.
He’d learned to be wary of humans. After all, they’d been the ones to hunt wolves, to make them all but disappear in Scotland a few hundred years back. Wolves were believed to be hunted to extinction in the late seventeenth century, but wolf shifters evaded extinction and had gone into deeper hiding to avoid being hunted and killed. That was how his pack had ended up on the Isle of Stone, escaping to an island north of Thurso, which was inhabited by other supernatural creatures.
And now he was off the isle and talking with a human who had an interest in restoring the lost wilderness. The irony didn’t escape him.
“How did you come to be involved in this effort?” he asked.
“My father is one of the main voices for rewilding,” she said. “He’s written many articles and has spoken at many events. I’ve grown up with it in my blood. We work closely with conservation groups in the area. My father bought acres of land here a few years ago that he hopes to rewild, bring back the diverse fauna and flora to the small ecosystem. When I moved back to Scotland after college, I landed a job as an assistant ranger nearby. It helps me learn more about the environment here, which will help my father achieve his vision.”
“Do you share it?”
She nodded. “I do.”
He rubbed his hand over the stubble on his chin as he took it all in. “How do you expect to manage that? What’s done is done.”
“No, it’s not true,” she said.
She reached down and pulled on a green seedling. “One of the things we do is pull non-native plants or weeds to allow the native ones to grow. Something like this rhododendron may look pretty, but it’s a non-native plant that becomes invasive if left unchecked, taking over the area. We’d rather encourage the forests to regenerate, or allow other indigenous plants, like that lavender or thistle, to grow.” She pointed to the moors. “That means keeping the heather in check, too. These may seem like small things, but efforts like these can make a tremendous difference. The more people we educate about this, the more may get involved.” She spread her arms wide. “If we could get even a small percentage of the billions of people in this world to help with environmental efforts, think of the impact we could have.”
“It could be enormous,” he agreed.
Seth swallowed and he wasn’t sure why. He’d never met anyone like Hailey before, someone so idealistic and selfless. To someone like himself, who was full of pride, admittedly too much sometimes, it struck him in an odd yet refreshing way.
A brook caught his attention, shimmering under the midday sun. Water flowed over the rocks, lending a gentle, cascading sound. When he turned to her, he was momentarily stunned. Reddish highlights in her hair reflected under the sunlight and her skin had a radiant glow. His wolf pawed at him, itching to get closer to her and rub himself against her, to mark her. Seth forced it to retreat, but not without a low groan escaping him.
“What’s wrong?” She tipped her head and eyed him with concern.
Her eyes captured him in their blue depths, more brilliant than the sea. They expressed such emotion that he guessed he could follow the context of whatever she spoke about without hearing a word. When she talked about rewilding, she burned with energy, eager to share her ideals. He’d never met anyone with such drive. And not a selfish one for money or status or some other shallow ambition. He couldn’t help but admire it.
“Nothing. I find what you’re telling me rather fascinating. Something I’d never expect from a human.”
“We’re not all alike,” she said with a shrug. “I’m guessing it’s the same with members of your—pack.”
The word sounded odd coming out of her mouth, probably because the concept was odd for a human.
“Aye, we have different personalities.”
“What’s it like on the isle?” she asked.
His home. His former home. He pictured it with a mix of nostalgia and pain, knowing he’d left it behind for good. “It has a wide variety of terrain—forests, meadows, and moors. And then there’s the seashore.”
“And you’re leaving it?”
He scowled. “There’s no future for me there now. It’s time to move on and start over.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Hours rushed by as Seth walked the grounds with Hailey. They ambled down the moors and into the forest, where he inhaled the earthy aroma. He caught scents of animals that had passed through—deer, rabbit, squirrel, and some he didn’t recognize.
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