Protecting Their Home (To Love And Defend Book 4)

by Daniella Starre

  Right or wrong, he needed her by his side. He couldn’t get through this alone.

  He had just stepped out of the shower when someone knocked on the door. After securing a towel around his low hips, he rushed to the door and allowed Olivia in. He kicked the door shut and hugged her tight against him.

  She kinda laughed and pushed him away, holding up a bag. “Some clothes.” Her eyes widened with dismay. “I forgot toiletries.”

  “I can buy you some,” he offered. “Since it’s for my place.”

  Our place.

  Where did that thought come from? That was moving too fast, but then again, this who situation with the werewolves was moving too fast.

  Grayson took the bag from her and moved it to rest along the wall. Then, he took her face in his hands and stared deeply into her eyes. So dark and beautiful and outlined by a faint golden ring. Mesmerizing.

  “My goal,” he said, “is to keep you and everyone safe.”

  “I know you can,” she said softly, holding onto his wrists.

  He stared down at her. It felt wrong but right to care for her. It bothered him that he might one day grow to love her, but it also excited him and not just his cock. A part of him had died when Patty had, but maybe he could regain pieces of himself. He hated being so depressed all the time. Maybe he could go back to being the fun-loving guy who everyone enjoyed hanging around.

  “I will,” he promised.

  He drew her close and pressed his lips to hers. She hesitated and withdrew.

  “You haven’t been drinking this morning, have you?” she asked, worried.

  Grayson blinked a few times, shocked. “I’m not an alcoholic,” he told her.

  “I just,” she takes a deep breath, “I just want to make sure you’re ready for this.”

  “I have to be,” he growled.

  He kissed her again, with passion and feeling and love of life. With that kiss, he opened up his heart to the possibility of love one day.

  Olivia was once again wearing a dress, and his hand pulled up the hemline, inching toward her pussy when the familiar smell of Edward and the sound of his beta’s footsteps nearing the door had him reluctantly pulling away.

  Edward knocked, and Grayson stepped aside of Olivia.

  “Come in, Edward,” Grayson muttered.

  This beta complied and did a doubletake, eyeing Grayson’s towel and noting the flush on Olivia’s face.

  “Am I interrupting something?” Edward smirked. “Because I don’t care if I am.”

  Grayson blinked in surprise. He had never seen his beta more animated or more furious.

  “While you two have been busy doing whatever it is you’re doing, I’ve been doing some digging,” Edward said firmly. “I have proof that those werewolves are part of a larger group. We may have to try to prevent a war. My suggestion? We need to bump up the wedding to next Saturday, not the one after. We need to try to grab for peace.”

  Chapter 14

  The beta was breathing so heavily that Olivia thought he might hyperventilate. For whatever reason, Olivia had never taken to him as she had Grayson. That was surprising. Olivia got along with most everyone.

  “You have proof?” she asked.

  Edward turned to her and nodded.

  “What is it?” she asked. “How did you learn this?”

  “I saw an altercation between some of them. It was minor. They walked off and—”

  “Walked off? Who did they assault? How many were there? When was this?”

  “Last night. Three of the five.”

  “What time?” she pressed.

  Grayson turned toward her, his eyes narrowing. He didn’t like that she was being suspicious, and she supposed she couldn’t fault him for that. He had probably known Edward for nearly all of his life. He hardly knew her, and here she was, acting as if his beta of all people was suspicious.

  “I didn’t look at my watch,” Edward said slowly. “Around dinnertime. As for who they assaulted, I never said assault. They were harassing a human, talking about her clothing, but they did not approach her or touch her. I kept my distance but stayed within hearing distance. They were talking about how they were going to have to bring the others in and soon.”

  “That could mean the other two,” Olivia said stubbornly.

  “The two you left live?” Edward snapped.

  Olivia stepped back.

  “She was attacked,” Grayson said firmly. “Of course she was going to defend herself.”

  “She killed three of them.”

  “Two,” Olivia corrected.

  Edward glowered at Grayson. “You killed the third? We could have brought them back here, interrogated them, found out all of their plans!”

  “We did what we had to do,” Grayson said.

  Olivia winced. She had baited the thug into following her. She had known it would mean his death. Maybe killing the three hadn’t been the smartest of ideas, but she had wanted to keep everyone safe.

  But it might mean that others will come. It could mean war.

  She swallowed hard and did her best to ignore her guilt.

  “What all did you find out?” Grayson asked.

  “They talked about needing moving vans and using them as Trojan horses,” Edward said.

  Olivia opened her mouth, but Grayson held up his hand. She fumed, furious at being silenced.

  “Thank you for telling us this, Edward. Next Saturday works for us. Doesn’t it, Olivia?”

  “And if I already have plans?” she grumbled.

  “Do you?” Grayson asked coolly.

  She winced and hung her head. “No,” she admitted.

  “Great.” Edward clapped his hands. “I’ll leave you two to get back to whatever it was you two were in the middle of when I stopped by. I’ll see if the hall is available for that Saturday instead. I really do think that a sign like this will make them think twice.”

  Olivia stood there with her arms crossed and waited impatiently for the sound of Edward’s car to signal he had left before turning to Grayson.

  “You believe him,” she stated. “Just like that.”

  “Just like that.” Grayson glowered at her.

  “I think it’s crap,” she said bluntly. “He’s pushing too hard, his proof is shitty, and…”

  “And what?”

  “And I don’t trust him.”

  “Why not?” he demanded.

  “I… A hunch,” she said with a shrug. “I just think it’s suspect that—”

  “What’s suspect? You don’t believe him?”

  “Whether or not I believe him about this supposed event with a human that, frankly, doesn’t make any sense, but the wedding? If what he says is true, and we’re actually up against a large pack, a wedding won’t stop them.”

  “Probably not but if there is even a remote chance that it might help to protect my home from invaders, then I’m all in. What happened to wanting to protect Detroit?”

  “I do want to protect the city. Of course I do! Have you told everyone about the assholes?”

  “That doesn’t concern you,” he said, crossing his arms, muscles in his arms flexing. He was getting furious with her.

  She didn’t care. “It does concern me if I’m going to be leading this pack beside you.”

  “You won’t be leading anything. You’ll just be my wife without having my heart.”

  Olivia swallowed hard. “Is that so?” she asked coolly, feigning indifference. “I need to get going. I have to clean my apartment.”

  She grabbed her bag of clothes and marched out the door. Grayson didn’t stop her. That hurt. It shouldn’t, but it did. It had just been sex. She should’ve known better than to get her hopes up. Grayson wasn’t the one for her for so many reasons.

  I’m such a fool.

  Chapter 15

  The moment Olivia left, Grayson felt embarrassed and frustrated. She was right. A wedding wouldn’t help to stop a large pack. This marriage of convenience wouldn’t even help them. P
lus, it was serving as a huge distraction. Olivia was the largest one.

  It wasn’t his wife who was disrupting him anymore but Olivia. The last person to speak up to him like this had been Patty. She had always been willing to tell him when he was doing something that might be a risk.

  Sometimes, though, the risk was worth it. Grayson was a businessman. Risks and gambles were necessary at times.

  But this was a matter of life or death. Maybe he had been too trusting of Edward. His beta hadn’t told Grayson about the problem for an entire week. That was a flag. Honestly, his proof about the larger pack was just what he had overheard. First, he could be lying, but why? More likely, the others had smelled or heard him and knew he was there. They could have purposely misdirected him.

  It was time to have a frank talk with Edward. He’d said he was heading over to the hall, and Grayson started to drive that way. Maybe he could catch up to him. A phone conversation wouldn’t do. Grayson needed to see Edward’s body language. The two had been friends since grade school. He’d be able to tell if Edward was lying.

  Not that he thought his friend was. Maybe the assholes had threatened him. Grayson curled back his upper lip. Killing those two might not have been the smartest move, but it sure had given him a level of satisfaction.

  At a red light, Grayson glanced around and noticed Edward’s car was parked off to the side in front of a large park. That was strange.

  A block down, Grayson parked, and he doubled back, using his nose to track Edward’s scent. Past the park was an apartment complex. Edward had walked over here. Why through the park? What was he hiding?

  Confused and worried now, Grayson walked faster. The smell of his friend grew stronger, and Grayson hesitated outside of the apartment. The voices inside were hushed, but Grayson could still overhear them.

  “Don’t worry. They will pay for killing your men.”

  “We should’ve killed that wench already. She toyed with Craig Walt. He just wanted to tap her ass. Why couldn’t she just put out?”

  “I don’t know, but she’s clearly putting out for Grayson.”

  Grayson ground his teeth. He wanted to bust down the door. Why the hell was Edward talking to one of the assholes?

  “How many are coming?” Edward asked.

  “All twenty.”

  “Are you sure that’s enough, Alan?”

  “Why wouldn’t it be? They’ll be none the wiser. We’ll attack during the wedding ceremony and kill Grayson, Olivia, and anyone else who stands with them and against us. Piece of cake.”

  Grayson slinked away. He had heard enough. Not only was Edward in cahoots with the assholes, but they were planning on murdering as many werewolves as it took. Twenty more. They had less than twenty-five in total, but that still made them dangerous. Every werewolf in the pack should be at the alpha’s wedding, and they knew that.

  Olivia was right.

  Chapter 16

  Olivia went back to her apartment. Instead of cleaning up, she locked the door and called up Alexis to get Edward’s last name. Then, she took to the internet and starting digging around. It took her a little while, but gradually, a story formed.

  Edward Creek had moved to Detroit from a smaller suburb when he had been young. A few years later, when he had been eight and his sister ten, their parents had died. There wasn’t any record of them being adopted or being in an orphanage that Olivia could find.

  She did find an arrest had been made on his sister and a friend named Amber Lockharte for underage drinking. Even more digging unearthed Amber’s phone number.

  The phone rang once, twice, three times.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, is this Amber Lockharte?”

  “Yes,” Amber said slowly. “Who is this?”

  “I’m Olivia Moreno. I’m engaged to Grayson Earle from—”

  “Detroit. I know him. What do you want?”

  “I was hoping you could talk to me about Edward Creek.”

  “Ugh. That asshole. His sister and I were best friends. We made a stupid mistake once, and he hated his sister for it. Never spoke to her again. Lizzie couldn’t handle it, not losing him too. I tried to help her, but Lizzie was proud. She became homeless, wouldn’t come to live with me, and ended up dying. I’m not sure how.”

  “She’s dead? When?”

  “For a couple months now.”

  “Hmm. I wonder if Edward knows.”

  “Oh, he does. He found me, threatened me, was ranting and raving. Eventually, he left, claiming it all was Grayson’s fault, not mine.”

  “He blames Grayson for his sister’s death?” Olivia was so confused her head was swimming.

  “Apparently. I don’t know.”

  “Why didn’t you tell Grayson?”

  Amber exhaled loudly. “I don’t live in Detroit. I haven’t for years. I couldn’t handle watching Lizzie deteriorate. I live in Cali now.”

  “Edward went to California to threaten you?” Olivia couldn’t believe it.

  “Yeah, he’s a little crazy. Look, I’m dealing with a lot of regret and guilt. Maybe if I hadn’t left, Lizzie would still be alive. I should’ve forced her to live with me.”

  “You aren’t to blame,” Olivia said softly.

  “But I should’ve told Grayson, and I didn’t. I just wanted to ignore the issue. Why are you calling? Is he causing problems?”

  Olivia forced a laugh. “No, no. I just wanted to get to know more about him since he’s Grayson’s beta. I’m sure the two have talked this out already. Don’t you worry.”

  “Are you sure?” Amber asked, sounding skeptical.

  “I’m positive,” Olivia assured her. The last thing she wanted to do was cause more grief for the already wounded werewolf.

  “If you’re sure…”

  “I am. Thank you for talking to me.”

  “You’re welcome, Olivia.”

  “Take care.”

  Olivia hung up and eyed the address she had found a few minutes ago. Edward lived about ten minutes away. Hopefully, he wasn’t home right now.

  The drive over was uneventful, and she managed to pick the lock on the third try. One of her boyfriends in high school had taught her how to do that.

  The door creaked open, and she slipped inside and closed the door. Let’s see. Where to start?

  She sniffed. The smell of recently burnt fire came to her. Why would he burn a fire in the summer?

  Olivia walked over to the fireplace and used a poker to examine the remnants. A few piece of paper had been partially burned, and she seized them, reading as much as she could.

  “…listen to me… attack at the wedding… do your part… promise… my beta…”

  The more Olivia read, the more her heart pounded.

  “… destroyed… once he’s dead…”

  Edward was working with the other pack, helping to implode Grayson’s.

  Olivia tucked the papers into her purse and moved over to Edward’s desk. There was a pad of paper on top with heavy indents. Another one of her boyfriends had forced her to watch all of those forensic-type shows with him, so she knew what to do. She used a pencil to shade over the page.

  It was a plead from Edward to attack earlier, saying he could have the wedding date moved up, stating that the killing of the three wolves meant Grayson and Olivia had to die sooner rather than later.

  Edward’s not a werewolf. He’s a rat.

  Chapter 17

  Grayson was ready to knock down the door and kill the two werewolves inside the room when his phone rang. Damn. He had no choice but to retreat. He couldn’t risk being caught.

  He let the call go to voicemail as he raced back to his car. He checked over his shoulder a thousand times and then drove off before parking five minutes later. In that time, he had no less than ten calls.

  All of them were from Olivia.

  “Where are you?” he demanded. “Are you safe?”

  “Are you?”

  “Yes. Olivia?”

  “I am.
I just left Edward’s. Don’t yell at me. I didn’t trust the guy and for good reason.”

  “Where are you now?”

  “Driving back to my place.”

  “Come to mine.”

  She didn’t say anything.

  “I’m sorry we argued,” he said. “Please. I don’t think your place is safe.”

  “Why aren’t you yelling at me?”

  “For what? For breaking into that double-crossing viper’s house? Nope. No reason to yell at you.”

  “So you know,” she breathed.

  “Enough. Driving to my place?”

  “As soon as I turn around.”

  “Good. We’ll talk there.”

  Fifteen minutes later, the two of them were sitting on Grayson’s living room couch. His front door was uncharacteristically locked. The two had just finished sharing with each other what they had learned.

  Grayson couldn’t be more furious. Edward had told Grayson years ago that his sister had died. He had lied. How was Grayson supposed to know she needed help? Why hadn’t she gone to Patty’s clinic? There were so many questions Grayson had, but he didn’t care if he ever learned the answers. He was so furious he was ready to kill Edward with his bare hands.

  “I think we should lay a trap for them,” Olivia said. “We can go ahead with the wedding.”

  The alpha shook his head. “I don’t want to risk that many lives.”

  Olivia sighed. “True,” she admitted. “Everyone will be there.”

  He nodded ruefully. “What if I were to ask Edward to bring the alpha here for a meeting under the guise of wanting peace?”

  “And kill them?” Olivia asked, her eyebrows lifting with surprised. “That’s kinda terrible.”

  “I know, but what they’re wanting to do is worse.”

  “I’m not denying that, but I think asking for a meeting now might tip Edward off since the time for that has clearly come and gone.”

  “True.”

  She worried her bottom lip.