by Terry Spear
He noticed then that Elizabeth’s expression was one of surprise. When she’d mentioned her half brother and uncle, he’d assumed Elizabeth was part of a pack, even though he thought she seemed too independent to have grown up in one.
Didn’t her pack members all take care of the little ones? Built-in babysitters who loved their jobs? But maybe all packs weren’t as close-knit as his. He wondered why Elizabeth thought her brother and uncle were behind all her trouble. What kind of pack would kidnap a member of their own family?
He was considering how to broach the subject when Elizabeth said, “I’m sorry for not saying good-bye. I just thought it would be easier.”
He didn’t want her to know how shook up he’d been, and yet he said just what he’d been feeling. “I was ready to punch the wall.”
She chuckled. He smiled.
“Sorry,” she said, “I just have a hard time seeing you taking your anger out on a wall.”
He wanted to set the bowl down on the coffee table and kiss her, hold her close, comfort her.
Something banged outside. He looked in that direction. He thought he’d tied everything down.
“Let me check on that real quick.” He grabbed his jacket and headed outside. The latch on the outdoor shutters had pulled loose in the high winds. He fumbled to close the shutters, noting that the latch was bent. He secured it as best he could. Nothing else he could do about it in this bitter blizzard.
He locked the door and returned to help Elizabeth. He frowned down at her bowl and saw that she’d eaten all her chili and finished her tea. He smiled.
“I told you I could do it.” She paused. “You seem worried.”
“The pack is still tracking the three rogue wolves that have been stalking the livestock. We think they’re lupus garous.”
“So you think they’re with your wolf pack?”
“They might be. But we suspect they aren’t.” He ran his hand over her cheek. “We’ve been keeping track of everyone’s comings and goings in the pack since the second incident of wolf sightings, and everyone seems to be accounted for. They have to be rogue wolves.”
She shook her head. “Has anyone left the pack recently that would want to cause you trouble?” She looked up when he didn’t say anything. “Someone else?”
“Cousins. We had trouble before within our own pack. Our uncle was the sheriff and next in line to lead the pack, but he had murdered some of our pack members and we had to take him down. His four sons left the pack after Uncle Sheridan was killed, and we haven’t heard from them since. We haven’t been able to track down their last whereabouts.”
“Your cousins. I’m sorry. And you’re worried whoever it is might be out there. Somewhere in the storm.”
“Yeah. I found wolf prints—fresh tracks before the blizzard hit. I had hoped I’d find evidence of where they were hiding after they made their strikes before the storm wiped out their tracks.”
“You shouldn’t have been out here by yourself,” she scolded.
He smiled. She narrowed her eyes at him. “I’m serious. You can’t think you could take on four male wolves.”
“I hoped to talk them out of whatever they’ve been planning. There must be some reason why they’ve been prowling the edges of our territory, and I don’t think it’s good.”
Her lips parted in surprise, then she frowned. “You were trying to protect them—if it was them—weren’t you?”
He didn’t say anything for a moment, his gaze steady on hers. Then he finally said, “It might be another pack causing trouble. Someone seeking revenge, perhaps. We’ve had trouble with another pack before. Some red wolf males thought they had some claim to a couple of our red wolf females who originally had come from their pack. Lelandi and Carol.”
“Carol?”
“Yeah… you’re not associated with any red wolf renegades, are you? They were part of the red pack now led by Lelandi’s uncle Hrothgar.”
“I’m not associated with… Lelandi’s pack,” she finally said.
Not with Lelandi’s. She couldn’t be. At least he didn’t think so, because Lelandi didn’t know Elizabeth. “There’s one guy in particular we’re not sure about. We never could tell where his allegiances lay. His name is North.”
Elizabeth stiffened a little. “You told me the ones causing trouble were grays, not reds,” she said.
Studying her, Tom nodded. She had evaded his question. What wasn’t she telling him? She looked weary and he needed to get her into bed. Rest let the body heal faster. Yet he couldn’t give up the notion that she knew something about the red pack, and that made him think of the wolf she’d mentioned the first time she was here. She’d said she needed to meet him on a matter of business, and he had been within driving distance.
“Elizabeth, who were you to meet but he couldn’t see you because of the road conditions?”
Elizabeth heaved a deep breath, as if she were too tired to continue hiding her secrets from him. “North Redding.”
Chapter 18
Tom couldn’t believe that Elizabeth had tried to meet up with North, the rogue wolf who had caused their pack all kinds of trouble in the past.
North was the one who had tried to steal Carol back from Ryan, thinking a red wolf from his pack had more of a claim to her than Ryan, a gray from another pack. That concerned Tom. Would North attempt to claim Elizabeth? Tom didn’t trust him.
“North was supposed to meet with me and hand over proof that my uncle had murdered my parents,” Elizabeth continued.
Tom closed his gaping mouth. “Your uncle murdered your parents?” God, how could she have been dealing with this all alone? The bastard better be dead, Tom thought angrily, but remembered that he couldn’t be. Not from what Elizabeth said earlier—that she thought her uncle might have had something to do with her kidnapping.
“I always suspected he had,” Elizabeth said. “He never hid the animosity he had for his brother, my dad, for taking a coyote as a mate. Both were widowed—my dad and my mother. And they found each other. Why was that so wrong?”
He took hold of her hand and caressed it. “Nothing was wrong with it, Elizabeth. Nothing if they loved each other and were free to do so.”
“They were. I haven’t been able to get in touch with North since first arriving in Silver Town, though. Someone else answered his phone the night I was at Darien and Lelandi’s. I was afraid whoever it was might come after me and”—she shifted her gaze to him—“cause trouble for your pack.”
“I can’t believe you were worried about us,” Tom said, unable to curb his incredulity. She ran away to protect his pack? And for what? To put herself in a world of danger!
“I think… I think my uncle might have learned what North had planned. I’m afraid North might be in trouble, if he’s not already dead.”
“All right, let’s go back over what we know. The chances of you dying on the slopes would be minimal. So why, if the men had been hired by your uncle or half brother, would they push you down the slope?”
“To make me easier to manipulate. They’d keep me out of the B and B by sending me to the hospital so they could steal my stuff from the B and B and lure me to the hotel, then take off with me. But you stayed with me, so that plan didn’t work.”
“So when they came to the tavern afterward, it was like they were taunting you. Telling you that they’d come for you anyway?”
“It was a way for the men to get in Darien’s face—show they weren’t afraid of him and would get to me some other way. But I’m sure they were pissed. They didn’t think a gray wolf pack would help a red wolf-coyote.”
“They had that scenario wrong. Everyone in the pack would take them on. Silva was at our table forever, and one of them looked straight at us. At you. Damn it. I remember being so pissed off I wanted to slug him, if only to get his attention off you.”
She smil
ed a little at Tom, then grew serious. “One of the men who grabbed me said that I had been with the wrong company.”
“Wrong company being the Silver pack leader and my brother and me.” Tom squeezed her hand. “I won’t let anyone hurt you. The pack won’t. Lelandi’s Uncle Hrothgar won’t stand for having a killer in his pack, either.”
Tears swam in Elizabeth’s eyes. She reached out to Tom for a hug.
He knew she ached, but he pulled her into his arms and held her close. “You’re not alone,” he whispered against her forehead. “Never again.” He separated a little from her. “We’ll work this all out. I have another couple of questions, though. Why did they steal your luggage and ID?”
“They wanted the deed to my parents’ property, the horse farm where I grew up. Pretty valuable piece of real estate, I guess. I was going to sign the deed over to North in exchange for the evidence that would prove my uncle murdered my parents. I had taken it with me on the slopes because I was supposed to meet North at the lodge later.”
“Damn him. He should have given the evidence to you freely.”
“I don’t care. If it means my uncle pays for his crimes, that’s all that matters.”
“Not to me.” Tom took a deep settling breath. “So they grabbed everything you had at the B and B but didn’t get the deed. I wonder if they knew North wanted it. They could have been monitoring his movements and cell phone conversations. Or he was in on it from the beginning.”
“Sheriff Peter took me to the airport and stayed with me until my flight left.”
“Which meant they couldn’t get to you then, either. But why kidnap you and bring you back here?”
Elizabeth considered that. “I don’t think North was in on it. Otherwise, they would have just let me go through with my deal with him, so they could get me to willingly sign the deed over, but then withhold the evidence from me. The fact that I couldn’t get in touch with North makes me think he went into hiding because he found out that they knew he had evidence against them.”
Tom narrowed his eyes. “So they must also know he was going to exchange the evidence for the deed, and then they meant to use you to draw North out?”
“Yeah, they could kill two birds with one stone that way: destroy North’s evidence and get me to sign over the deed. Except… Canton, the dark-haired one with the gun, took the deed from me. It’s probably buried in the snow out there somewhere.”
“We can order another copy later when you need it.”
Something banged outside the window again. Elizabeth jumped a little, and Tom glanced in that direction.
“It’s just the broken shudder latch. Are you ready for bed?”
Elizabeth cleared her throat. “Can I have some more of your chili first?”
“You really want more?”
She managed a small smile.
He grinned at her, not sure why the notion pleased him so. Everyone loved his venison chili, but he was really glad it seemed to make her feel better, considering what she’d been through.
“Sure.” He kissed her cheek. “I’ll get you some more.”
“I can manage. Get some for yourself. Just a little more for me.”
He returned with two bowls and two mugs of hot tea and joined her on the floor.
“After we eat, I’ll make sure the place is secure again, and then we’ll move into the bedroom. No heat in there. The couch in here turns into a bed, but it’s lumpy and squeaky if anyone moves on it. The mattress in the bedroom is very comfortable. It has tons of wool blankets and a down comforter.”
She cast him one of those you’re-giving-me-a-guy-line looks.
He raised his brows. “Just so you know, no matter where we retire for the night, we’re sleeping together.”
Her lips parted. He expected her to protest, but he wouldn’t buy any objection she might have. If someone broke into the cabin, he would be right beside her to protect her. Other than that, he intended to share his body heat with her.
The idea was hers in the first place.
“We’re not getting naked?” she asked.
He swore that she almost seemed hopeful that they would.
He smiled. “If you think it’s necessary.”
“No,” she said very quickly.
He fought the urge to laugh. “Just making sure.”
“Thank you,” she said, “for saving… me.”
“You scared a ton of years off my life when I saw you out there, fighting to survive. All along, I figured I’d be up here by myself. I’m damned grateful to see you again, though I wish the circumstances had been a lot different. What about any other family you might have?” he asked, still wondering if she were part of another pack or not. “We’ll need to let them know where you are and that you’re all right.”
She carefully shook her head.
“No other family?”
“No. But I had every intention of having steak tonight—at my home. Colorado,” she said under her breath as if she couldn’t believe her predicament.
“When I get you to Darien’s house, steak will be the first thing on the menu. Guaranteed.”
She smiled a little at that.
He hated that she’d gone through any of this and that he couldn’t take her home with him this very instant. But he would get her there. He had no intention of her leaving him behind again.
She lifted her hands to his arms and took hold, her fingers now warm. “Take me to bed.”
He couldn’t help the wolfish grin that spread across his face, even though he knew it didn’t mean anything other than that she needed to sleep.
Tom carried Elizabeth into the ice-cold bedroom and set her on her feet beside the bed. He pulled the flannel covers aside, then aided her in climbing onto the mattress. Once she was lying down, he covered her with all the blankets—a hodgepodge of colors, wool and warm. “You should be warm again in no time. I’ll bank the fire and be right back.”
Elizabeth closed her eyes, but she didn’t think that she could sleep with worrying about who might be outside.
“Just me,” Tom said a few minutes later, quickly lifting the covers on the other side of the queen-sized bed.
“You don’t have a mate yet, right?” she asked, her eyes still closed.
“Nope. So you don’t have to worry about some she-wolf coming after you for sleeping with her mate.”
Elizabeth couldn’t help the way her mouth curved up a bit.
“That means I’m totally free and available,” he added. He leaned over her and gave her a sweet kiss on the mouth. “If you get cold, just move closer to me. I won’t touch you for fear I’d hurt you. Do whatever is most comfortable for you.”
That was the last she remembered him saying as the hot tea, venison chili, warm covers, and heat radiated by Tom’s body worked miracles.
***
Elizabeth half expected to wake and find that Tom had left the bed early to start a fire and make hot coffee. She hadn’t expected to be lying against his naked chest, listening to his strong heartbeat, her legs straddling his—thankfully, he was wearing boxers—his arms wrapped loosely about her as if they were mates.
She didn’t dare move. She hoped he’d wake, release her, and leave the bed while she pretended to sleep, not wanting him to think she was that needy to have sprawled all over him. But he held her close and didn’t appear to be waking anytime soon.
She listened to his heart beating, smelled his masculine gray-wolf scent, and loved how he felt warm and protective of her. She hadn’t felt that way since before her human mate had had the urge to stray.
She tried to assess the way she felt physically and opened her eyes. And took a soft breath of relief. Her muscles ached slightly, but she felt so much better. Her skin was still scraped a bit, lightly bruised, and her forehead still throbbed some.
Closing her e
yes, she couldn’t believe anyone who was a wolf would help her this much. Not given her history with wolves.
Tom didn’t move. She thought to disengage from him, pretend she was just rolling over on her back and was still asleep.
Something banged outside the cabin. She jumped a little. Tom’s arms tightened around her. Protective or maybe he feared she would leave him. Maybe he dreamed of having a little wolf loving. And she actually wished they could.
The room was cold and she didn’t want to leave the warmth of Tom’s embrace, the comfortable mattress, or the heaped-on blankets and comforter.
Maybe he had stolen the covers in the middle of the night, and she’d planted her whole body against him to ensure she got her fair share of the blankets.
Whatever banged outside—Tom had said it was a broken window latch on the shutter—did it again on the other side of the cabin. She wondered if it had done that all night long and she had slept through it, or if the wind had picked up again and was blowing something around.
Tom groaned and rubbed her arm in a loving way, then kissed her on the forehead. He was awake. Had he been all along and waited for her to stir, not wanting to disturb her? Or maybe the noises outside had startled him from his sleep.
She looked up at him. He studied her, his dark amber eyes roaming over her face from her forehead to her eyes to her chin, assessing her.
She parted her lips to tell him that she hadn’t meant to be crawling all over him in the middle of the night and to apologize. Just as quickly, he kissed her on the mouth, silencing her, making her forget what she had in mind to say.
She gave in to the kiss, the sweet, loving, gentle way that he had with her as if he was afraid she’d break apart. “I’m okay,” she said, and his mouth curved up against hers.
“Yeah,” he said, and deepened the kiss. “Better than okay.”
Their tongues teased and tangled as he stroked her hair, his fingers combing the strands in a caring manner. She could feel his erection hard beneath her belly and knew this had to stop, but she didn’t want it to. Yesterday, she could have been dead, just like the men who had taken her hostage.