by Afton Locke
***
A few days later, Carrie loaded the stair railings she’d milled into the bed of Ogden Woods’s dusty, white pickup truck at Los Lobos Lumber. The Tao pack had granted Roark approval to bring her here as his mate before they’d arrived. Colorful tents dotted the hilly landscape, temporarily housing some of the Lamar pack members.
He and Ogden interrupted their conversation to help her.
“Stand back,” she said. “I’m stronger than I look.”
She’d already worked up enough sweat to make the plaid flannel shirt she’d borrowed from Roark damp.
“Finished already?” Ogden asked.
“Yes, sir,” she replied.
“Roark, I believe your woman has more talent for woodworking than you do.”
She had no idea her fence mending and other ranch repair skills would come in so handy. Instead of cow manure, she inhaled evergreens and fresh wood. Used to bare, flat land, she’d accidentally walked into a tree once and tripped on the uneven ground too many times to count. Her hands were a lot steadier here, though. They had to be, around the dangerous wood saws.
“I’m not surprised.” Roark shot her a steamy look. “She’s talented at a lot of things.”
“I see you got her to smile, anyway.” Ogden’s blue eyes twinkled. “Try to get her to stop calling me sir.”
Her cheeks flamed as she thought about their lovemaking. Every day, Roark taught her something new in Lara and Ogden’s guest room. In addition to milling wood, she now knew how to fondle his balls to make him come rapidly.
And last night he’d put his mouth between her thighs—tender tongue against tender flesh. Her climax had gripped her so fast, she’d cried out loud enough for the entire town of Los Lobos to hear.
A touch on her arm pulled her out of her thoughts. Feather, one of the Lamar pack refugees, handed her the bandana she must have dropped. The small, dusky-skinned woman looked even more Native American than Roark. Carrie had already gotten used to the fact she didn’t talk. Hadn’t uttered a word since she’d seen a hunter shoot her husband, he’d told her.
Lara, Ogden, his old pack, and even the Taos she’d met already felt like family. She wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her arm. How nice to work with other people instead of carrying the tremendous workload of an entire ranch herself. The town of Los Lobos was cozy, too. Shopping for a dress at the thrift store was more fun than buying deworming medicine for the cattle.
It would be hard to return to her isolated life. Funny thing was, the longer she’d been away from Yellow Barrel Ranch, the less she missed it. No matter. Her trip here was just that. A trip. She didn’t deserve Roark, love, or family. The ranch would sustain her as it always had.
One of the Lamar men hopped into Ogden’s truck to deliver the milled wood to the home construction site. Seconds later, Lara’s red SUV raced down the drive from the log home she shared with Ogden.
Roark rubbed his belly. “Ah, the lunch wagon is here.”
Carrie’s stomach growled, too. Yesterday, Lara fed the crew mile-high roast-beef sandwiches and potato salad. The day before, she’d made five-alarm chili.
“I think I’ve gained ten pounds already,” she said, rubbing hers, too.
“Good,” he replied. “It’s about time you ate right.”
“Smells like barbecue chicken today.” She closed her eyes to inhale the aroma. “I’d better go help her unload it.”
But Roark hooked her arm. “Stay.”
The serious expression in his eyes told her he didn’t mean lunch.
“You know I can’t. I’ll miss you all terribly, but—”
The tension in his body rippled through hers. “But nothing. You belong here, with me.”
“I wish I could, but I can’t accept happiness I don’t deserve.”
“Jared is dead.” He propped his hands on his hips. “His death was an unfortunate accident, but life has to go on. Don’t kill us.”
She rested her head against his chest, inhaling the familiar scent of his leather jacket. Wishing she could make him happy without sacrificing her conscience.
He locked his arm around her. “Drew will announce your punishment tomorrow. Won’t that wipe the slate clean?”
“Maybe. If it doesn’t, I need to go back to Wyoming, for good.”
“Everything all right?” Lara asked.
“Not really,” Roark muttered before hopping onto his motorcycle and taking off with a spray of gravel.
“Hey, what about lunch?” Lara called after him.
But he was already gone. The sight of her mate leaving twisted Carrie’s insides. Watching her leave forever would be a hundred times more painful for him. Why did the right thing to do have to be so dang hard?
“Please stay.” Lara took her hand. “He needs you. We all do.”
Carrie looked at the ground and headed toward her SUV. “I’d better help you unload the food.”
But her appetite—her entire heart—had left with Roark.
Help me make the right decision tomorrow, Daddy, because I don’t have the strength.
He didn’t answer. Her future was in her hands.
***
The next morning, Carrie sat in the conference hall in Los Lobos, South Dakota, with Roark, Lara, and Drew, the Alpha of the Tao pack. Other important members of the pack were there, too, but she didn’t remember everyone’s name. Roark sat beside her, quiet and brooding, but the muscles rippling beneath his skin reminded her of the wolf inside him. Their fate rested in her hands. No…Drew’s.
“So,” Drew began. “We have a punishment to figure out.”
Carrie’s stomach dropped. The wolf-fang motif used throughout the room didn’t comfort her any, but the smell of fresh wood did. What would the Tao pack do to her? Throw her over a steep bank as they had Roark? Leave her stranded on a mountain with no food, water, or warm clothes? She would gladly accept any of it. Anything to erase the lingering guilt, once and for all.
“Killing a shifter is no small matter.” The Alpha looked out the window for a moment, as if gathering his composure. “But, as in your case, sometimes there are extenuating circumstances.”
Roark had told her he’d murdered his father because he was crazy and dangerous. She had killed in self-defense. The similarity bonded them and may explain why he’d welcomed her into the pack so easily.
“Integrating the Lamar pack has placed a serious strain on our financial resources,” he continued. “Therefore, I’ve decided your punishment—”
The answer finally came to her.
“Wait!” Carrie cried.
Chairs scraped as everyone stared at her. Even Roark shot her an uncomfortable look. Apparently, Alpha wolves shouldn’t be interrupted.
“I’m sorry, sir.” She bowed her head. “I didn’t mean to talk out of turn.”
“Speak your mind,” Drew urged.
“All my life, men have made my decisions for me. First my father and now Roark and you all.” She cleared the hoarseness from her throat. “I’ve already thought of a punishment.”
“What is it, Carrie?” Roark probed her with his dark gaze, begging to let them stay together.
“I want to sell my ranch, move here, and give the money to the pack.”
Drew smiled. “Exactly what I was about to suggest. You must have read my mind.”
Roark blew out a huge breath and squeezed her hand. She’d found a solution allowing her to have both penance and her mate. If only she’d thought of it sooner.
“As for you,” Drew said, eyeing Roark, “your mate seems to have a calming influence on you. Are you going to behave yourself now?”
“Absolutely. I’ll be too busy loving my woman to do much else.”
Carrie blushed. How soon could they have a home of their own? A safe place free from worries?
“Well, we expect you to do some work around here,” the Alpha said.
“Ogden wants Carrie at the mill,” Lara said.
“Sounds fine to me
,” she replied. “I will miss the cows, though.”
Everyone around the table laughed.
“I figured I’d start off by building my woman a home,” Roark added. “If I’m any good at it, maybe I’ll build some others, too.”
“Excellent,” Drew said.
Outside, Roark took Carrie’s hand and led her over the field behind the conference hall. Hills and mountains, dense with evergreens, surrounded the flat spot. Rocks of various sizes littered the ground as if they’d fallen in the last rain. The wild country looked so different from her ranch but was beautiful in its own way.
Roark gazed up at the deep blue sky. “Jared is watching us.”
She looked up, too. “So is Daddy.”
When she stroked the claw necklace hanging from his throat, he unfastened it and put it around her neck.
She clasped it into place. “Why are you giving this to me?”
“Because it’s a piece of me, and we make each other whole.”
So true. Without each other, she’d still be living alone in fear, and he’d be consumed by hatred. Their future would be whatever they made of it, together, and she had a feeling it would be a pretty darn good one.
~A LETTER FROM THE AUTHOR~
Dear reader,
I had such a great time writing my first Black Hills Wolves story, I came back for seconds! Life has not been easy for me this year, but writing is a great escape. This is one of the most emotional stories I’ve ever written. It shows the cruelest misfortunes can bloom into the most beautiful flowers. I hope you treasure Roark and Carrie’s difficult path to love as much as I do.
I love hearing from readers, so please contact me at: [email protected]
Links:
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Alpha in Disguise by Afton Locke
Chapter One
A few miles east of Yellowstone National Park, Lara Wolfe’s four legs pounded the yellow soil as she ran. The man with the gun—his face shaded by a cowboy hat—had been too far away to recognize. Heart pounding in her furry chest, she halted at the crevice between two tall rocks where the Wolf she chased had disappeared.
The sun reflected from a patch of dark, which seemed to dim before her eyes. With a yelp, she rushed toward the prone figure. The scent of blood hit her nostrils. A dark pool of it stained the dusty ground. The hunter’s bullet had hit its mark.
Lara’s body shifted with lightning speed back into human form.
“Momma!” she cried.
The other Wolf panted hard and looked into her eyes. Lara concentrated so she could pick up her mother’s communication.
Do something for me. Promise….
“Anything,” Lara said out loud as she gripped one of the tough paws.
You must go to Los Lobos.
“What? Why? And where is it?”
The Black Hills of South Dakota. Your destiny is there.
Lara shook her head, which trembled so hard from emotion her teeth chattered.
“No, my destiny is here. I’m not going to rest until I’ve killed every one of those bastards.”
Her mother’s amber eyes glittered with a last burst of strength, cutting off further argument.
You need help.
Understanding filtered into Lara’s bones as quickly as her mother’s blood soaked the earth. As the last Dominant female of the Lamar Canyon Pack, she faced an impossible task—saving her pack from extinction. Her pack had ruled Yellowstone for countless generations.
With her knees digging into the sand and Momma’s paw clenched in her hand, she watched the life ebb from the majestic gray Wolf’s body. Lara’s hand fell slack as she gazed up at the sky. The timeless blue witnessed the tragedy below without compassion. Death was all part of the cycle.
Even though it wasn’t safe, Lara let herself shift back to her black wolf form. Anger and frustration bristled under the red streak of fur on her neck, making it burn. Opening her jaws, she howled at the indifferent sky.
She howled until her voice cracked and gave out.
***
Ogden Woods looked over the supply list of milled lumber Drew Tao handed him.
You’ve got to be out of your tree.
If Drew hadn’t been the Alpha of the Tao pack, he might have spoken his thoughts aloud. Usually, the contractors for the town’s building projects coordinated supply orders with him, but Drew insisted on dealing with him personally for his pet projects.
“When do you need it?” he asked instead. Suspecting he wouldn’t like the answer, he winced.
“Yesterday, of course, but next week will have to do.”
Next week! Yesterday might be more realistic.
The wooden sign for Los Lobos Lumber flapped in a restless wind. With luck, a big storm would blow through and wipe out the whole mill. Well, not really. Lumber was his life, but he didn’t want to do it day and night to keep up with the town’s endless orders.
“What about the bed and breakfast renovation?” He counted the projects off on his thick, callused fingers. “Then there’s Gee’s Bar.”
Drew dismissed them all with a toss of his dark head. “The conference hall is more important. Tell the others they’ll have to wait.”
Ogden took a deep breath and looked at the ground near the Alpha’s feet. “Yes, sir.”
“You look tired. Isn’t it time to hire some help?”
“No need.” Ogden forced a cheerful smile, not wanting his Alpha to pay too much attention to him. “I’ve got it covered.”
Thankfully, the Alpha listened to him and didn’t press the issue. After Drew drove off, Ogden trudged to the large table saw and turned it on. Pulling a log from the pile sapped what little strength he had left. The hour was past dinnertime, and he’d skipped lunch to get a small order off his plate. Not to mention he’d barely squeezed in four hours of sleep the night before.
He frowned as a red SUV he didn’t recognize barreled down the washed out road way too fast. Damn newcomers. They were ruining the town. He appreciated making a living but couldn’t keep up with the new demand for milled lumber.
What if one of those outsiders was his mate? He liked his life and didn’t need some woman to screw up everything he’d worked so hard for.
He hefted the log onto the table with a tired groan. Maybe I do need some help. If he kept working with dangerous saws on no food and sleep, he’d eventually cut off an important body part.
Grimacing and biting his tongue in concentration, he guided the log into the relentless blade. A waterfall of sawdust sparkled in the sun, filling his nose with the reassuring scent of wood.
Ah, much better.
With his luck, he’d have to hire some Dominant male who’d give him orders. Pretty soon the other guy would run the place. His stomach growled, competing with the noise from the saw. Enough was enough. A man had to eat.
He turned off the saw and got into his white pickup truck. Grabbing a quick sandwich from Gee’s Bar ought to give him enough energy for the long day and night ahead.
***
By the time Lara reached Los Lobos, her butt ached from hours of driving and her stomach growled louder than a wild animal. When a tall, Native American man stood in the middle of the road, blocking her path, she sighed with frustration.
“What’s your name and your business here, Wolf?” he asked after she’d stopped and rolled down her window.
Who are you, border patrol? She kept her thoughts to herself since pissing the guy off didn’t seem like a good idea. He must be the Enforcer around here.
“Lara Wolfe. My mother sent me,” she said.
He raised an eyebrow. Yeah, she didn’t think he’d be satisfied with a simple answer.
“I’m from the Lamar Canyon Pack in Yellowstone. My mother was the last Alpha female. She was shot by a hunter recently.”
His gaze softened a bit yet looked warier than ever. “Why did she send you here?”
“She didn’t say.” She shrugged, making her stomach growl. “Does it matter? I’m starving.”
“How long do you plan to stay?”
Based on the crappy roads and even crappier reception, not long.
“Probably a day or two at the most.” She tapped her nails on the steering wheel. “Long enough to get some food and rest, at least.”
He nodded. “If you’re looking for sanctuary, you’ll have to take that up with Drew Tao. In the meantime, I’ll inform him you’re here.”
Drew must be the Alpha. So much for blending into the woodwork.
“Gee’s Bar has food,” he said, pointing down the road. “You can inquire about lodging there.”
“Thanks. Do I need to pay a toll?”
Her attempt at humor didn’t faze his stony expression one bit. He finally uncrossed his arms and stepped to the side, letting her pass. She pulled into the dirt parking lot at the little dive called Gee’s Bar and parked beside a white truck browned with dirt. It had so much lumber and crap in the back it was inches from dragging the ground.
So this is Los Lobos…. So far, it didn’t impress her.
“Momma, what kind of hick town did you send me to?”
She cleared her throat, which was still sore from the endless howling between those two rocks. The bright side of the trip was getting away from the sad reminders. Her emotions were still too raw to seek vengeance. The time away from Yellowstone could help her regain her inner strength and balance.
But why here?
During the long drive, she kept asking herself why her mother had sent her to such a forgotten hole. The roads leading to town were practically impassable. The rough ruts nearly knocked the guitar beside her to pieces. Not to mention her teeth.