by Vivian Wood
“No, I never did. My feelings for… for her… never ran that deep. Hers did, and that’s one of the reasons we didn’t work out. Not the only reason, though.”
“No, I’d guess not,” Maddie said, restraining herself from asking a thousand questions about his relationship with her predecessor.
“You should have seen how angry my ex was when I took a year off to travel. She practically yelled the Bunker down, telling me I should be focusing on my future role as Alpha instead of screwing around. It’s funny, looking back. She was probably right.”
His ex had been part of the pack? Maddie’s mind spun, going through a thousand possibilities for what had happened, but she didn’t want to sound like a fool. She stuck with the topic at hand instead.
“I, for one, am glad you didn’t listen to her. You probably saw all kinds of amazing things and learned a lot. Take it from someone who’s never been anywhere, getting yourself cultured is a big deal.”
“I went a few of the places on my list. Ireland, Egypt, New Zealand. Kenya, for several months. I roughed it anytime I could, just carried a backpack and slept under the stars. It was really incredible, and I could have kept going forever.”
“Well why didn’t you?” Maddie asked, puzzled. If she’d had the opportunity, she might never have come back at all.
Jasper’s gaze settled on her heavily, and he was silent for almost a full minute.
“I left something very important here, and I couldn’t keep going without it,” he finally said, his tone somber.
“Your pack?” Maddie asked.
“No.”
“Money? You ran out of money? Or… Oh. Did you miss your ex?”
Maddie tried not to sound too whiny as she said the last bit.
“Not even close,” he said with a laugh. Reaching out he pulled her into his arms even as she protested.
“What did you forget?”
“I’ll tell you some other time,” he said, his tone brooking no argument.
Maddie sighed and relaxed into his arms, thinking they were just going to drift off.
“I would go with you, if you asked me,” Jasper said after a long stretch of silence. Maddie startled a little, and looked up at him.
“You don’t even know where I’m going!” she said, confused. Where was this coming from?
“I’d still go, all the same.” Jasper shrugged, settling his head down close to hers.
“What about your pack?” Maddie asked, her brain scrambling to keep up with what he’d said.
“I’d figure something out. If you’d invited me, that is.”
“Oh,” Maddie said, put out. While she was trying to figure out how to respond, Jasper smoothed a hand over her hair and kissed her gently.
“Good night, Madd.”
“Good night?” Maddie parroted, now completely flustered. Jasper closed his eyes and almost immediately relaxed into sleep, leaving Maddie wide-eyed and no little bit freaked out.
Was Jasper offering to give up his life here to follow her around the world? If he was, did that even sound like a good idea? Sure, Jasper was funny and smart and interesting. And he really got Maddie on a deep level, almost too much really. Not to mention that he was a phenomenal lover, and he seemed to care for her, to some small extent. A girl could do worse for a traveling companion, especially when the guy was already her mate.
But he had so much more to do here with the Alabama pack, and at heart Jasper seemed to really need somewhere to call home. Eventually he would tire of traveling, and then he’d tire of Maddie. When he left, she’d be back where she’d started. All alone.
Maddie took the thought of accepting Jasper’s offer and crumpled it into a little ball, then stuffed it deep down inside herself. It wasn’t a good idea, and she couldn’t even consider it. It was better this way, better to avoid getting hurt in the first place.
If only that little part of her didn’t know that she’d already gotten a bit too close. That by now there was no way to avoid the pain altogether. Maddie took that voice and pushed it away, stuffing it down deep to keep the other treacherous thoughts company.
Still, it was a long time before she was restful enough to sleep.
31
Jasper woke late, wincing at the thin stream of sunlight that snuck through the heavy bedroom curtains and fell across the bed. Rolling over to check his cellphone, he found the screen black. Maddie must have turned it off to give him extra time to rest.
Jasper sighed. Not that he didn’t appreciate the sentiment or the extra sleep, but he had a ton of things to do today. He needed to get together with Gwen and discuss morale, and also try to slog through some of the many requests Maddie had made to improve the Bunker. He didn’t want to change too much too fast and give the males the idea that his Beta was running the show completely, although it didn’t feel that far from the truth.
He considered that thought. The resentment he expected, the same feeling he’d experienced with Gwen, simply didn’t arise. He thought of Maddie running around and reorganizing the Bunker, and all he could muster was a smile. Apparently her unique combination of cajoling and flat-out demanding worked on him.
He wasn’t the one that needed to be sold, though. Maddie had merely to look at him the right way to topple all his intentions and get her way. His pack, though… they wouldn’t be so easy. Frankly, Jasper wondered if he ought to talk to the pack, ask them to be gentle with her. She’d put a lot of hours into this project, and it seemed important to her. He’d hate to see her feel rejected just because the males were wary of overbearing females.
He’d have to be sneaky about it, though. Gods forbid Maddie should find out that he’d meddled in her project. There would be hell to pay if she thought he was patronizing her. Maybe he should talk to her first, explain that the males might take more than a little coaxing to warm to her.
Sighing, Jasper rolled out of bed and grabbed his uniform. He’d worn the fitted black cargo pants and black cotton button-up a few times since he’d returned, and he’d noticed Maddie’s admiring glances each time. She’d mentioned repeatedly that the pack should be allowed to dress down while they were not working, but that didn’t stop her from scoping out his physique each time he wore the uniform.
Hell, maybe it would give him an advantage when he tried to talk to her this morning. A little cologne wouldn’t be off the mark, either. Women used their looks to get their way all the time; maybe turnabout was fair play.
After brushing his teeth and dashing on a subdued bit of cologne, Japer felt ready to take his mate on. Checking his reflection in the mirror, Jasper ran his fingers through his hair and flashed himself a winning smile. Maddie seemed to like gripping his hair during sex, so he’d skipped his usual buzz cut in favor of letting his blond locks grow out a bit more. He chuckled at his own logic as he headed out the door.
Leaving Alpha’s House, Jasper went into the Bunker entrance that led to the gym area. Maddie had worked there yesterday, directing several pack members as they lugged out old equipment and stripped down all the walls and floors. That had been early in the day, though, and Jasper hadn’t seen it since then. There was probably still a lot of work to be done, but he was curious to see exactly what she had planned.
The room was empty of pack members when he stepped inside, but there was still plenty to look at. The entire floor gleamed with new laminate wood, a nice light oak shade to hide scuffs. Instead of the low mirrors surrounding the entire room, the mirrors had been repurposed to create one entire wall of reflection while the other walls were painted a bright green color. There were new mats laid out in several distinct areas for free weights and calisthenics, and a whole area of new machines. Pairs of treadmills, stair climbers, and other machines were set neatly to one side, each with a new flat screen TV. Looking up, Jasper noticed that Maddie had put in discreet speakers all around the room so that music could be pumped through the whole gym.
Jasper’s phone rang. Fishing it out of his pocket, he saw that it
was Gwen. Closing his eyes briefly, he answered.
“Yes?”
“I don’t know what the hell they do in wherever your little mate is from, but I am sure as fuck not taking orders from her,” Gwen barked, not bothering with pleasantries.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Gwen,” Jasper sighed.
“Oh, really? So this isn’t your work?”
“You’re going to have to tell me what you’re talking about before I can confirm or deny anything.”
“Your fucking mate just told me I have babysitting duty today with the human! As if I don’t have anything more important to do than to sit here and make sure this inconvenient twit doesn’t get lonely!” Gwen seethed. “I am the damned Beta of this pack, Jasper! I have things to do!”
“You’re not the Beta anymore, Gwen.”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re my second in command now, to be technical. Maddie’s the Beta.”
“That is not— Gods, Jasper. I’m looking for some support here, not a bunch of bullshit.”
“And you thought I would stand with you over my mate?”
“Clearly I did.”
“Well, you’re wrong. I don’t know why Maddie has assigned you to deal with the human, but I’m sure she has her reasons.”
“She’s being vindictive. She doesn’t like me, so she’s using her title to put me in my place.”
“And?”
Gwen paused, shocked.
“And— And I expect you to stop her!” she huffed.
“Has it occurred to you, Gwendolyn, that Maddie might have a good reason for asking you to babysit?”
“I can’t imagine what that could possibly be.”
“Maddie asked me for the names of five people that I would trust with her life.”
“The girl’s life?”
“No. Maddie’s life. You were one of them.”
Gwen was silent for a long moment, processing. Jasper waited, then added another bit.
“Maddie is convinced that this girl is in real danger, and I agree with her. She asked for autonomy to deal with the girl’s comfort and security, and I gave it to her. The other four males on my list have all had a turn watching the girl, and Maddie and Langston have done some shifts together too. Today must be your turn.”
“I don’t think this is appropriate,” Gwen said after a long silence.
“I don’t care,” Jasper said, his patience lapsing.
“Jasper—”
“No, Gwen. I’ve given you a lot of leeway because of what happened between us. But in this, in anything involving Maddie—”
“She’s just going to leave you high and dry, you know.”
“Enough, Gwen. Go babysit. And if I find out that you treated the human poorly, there will be hell to pay. Believe that.”
Jasper hung up, slipping the phone back into his pocket. Gwen was going rogue, Maddie was ripping up parts of his Bunker and making huge changes to everything…
What in the hell had he done to get himself in so deep with such intense women?
He sighed, crossing his arms and contemplating the new gym.
A door opened behind him and slammed closed, but Jasper barely noticed. He was too wrapped up in mulling over how to tame his mate and his second in command.
32
“Nice, huh?”
Jasper looked over his shoulder to find Kellan standing behind him, mirroring his admiration of the gym’s remodeling.
“She works fast,” Jasper said, running his eyes over the room a final time before turning to regard the other male. “I thought you were on guard duty for the human?”
“Sadie,” Kellan corrected. Jasper raised a brow, and Kellan flushed.
“Sadie, then,” Jasper said. “I still thought you were on guard duty.”
“Gwen’s watching her this morning so I can go to this thing,” Kellan said, waving a hand toward the mess hall.
“What thing?” Jasper asked, his eyes narrowing.
“Um…” Kellan hesitated.
“I asked you a question,” Jasper snapped.
“Your mate has set up an event for the pack. I just assumed you knew,” Kellan said, his unease evident.
“This is the first I’ve heard of it,” Jasper said, his tone clipped. “What exactly is she doing?”
“I just know she said we should think about what we wanted for civilian items. Clothes and whatnot,” Kellan clarified.
Jasper grimaced. Clearly he’d waited too long, and now his chances of smoothing Maddie’s entrance were slim. She’d jumped right in, and he couldn’t unring the bell at this point.
“Sir?” Kellan asked, drawing Jasper’s attention again.
Jasper shook his head at Kellan’s worried expression.
“It’s nothing. I just don’t want her to get in over her head, that’s all,” Jasper explained.
“Having spent some time with your mate the last few days, I would say she’s pretty capable of taking care of herself,” Kellan said, his tone serious and sincere.
“The last few days? I thought the gym remodel was just yesterday.”
“Well, yeah. But Miss Maddie’s been all over the place. She’s been seeing Sadie a lot, and also just walking around and talking to the pack. I’ve been keeping an eye on her. Don’t want another incident like the first day, you know.”
“She’s— she’s been running around by herself?” Jasper asked, exasperated.
“Well, she’s kept Langston with her, but he’s not much defense against a bigger male,” Kellan explained. “He means well, though, and he seems to like helping Miss Maddie. I think he’d probably die before he let anyone hurt her.”
Jasper sighed.
“I wish that made me feel better, Kellan.”
He’d had good reason for asking Maddie to keep Kellan or Kopelli close. The two men were unquestionably loyal, and big enough to take out nearly any threat to his mate. Langston was young and eager, but lacking in size and the certain raw edge that Jasper would have chosen in Maddie’s guardian.
Essentially, she’d followed the law but not the letter of his demands.
Jasper realized that his hands had curled into fists, and every muscle in his body was tense. He made himself relax, not wanting to go into Maddie’s event swinging. She needed his support in whatever she had planned, and he could scold her later in private.
“Alright. Well, let’s go see what she’s gotten herself into now,” Jasper said, trying to contain his frustration. Kellan nodded, and they headed to the mess hall doors.
“One more thing,” Jasper said, pausing at the doors.
“Sir?”
“If you hear anyone speaking against Maddie’s plan, remove them from the event. With force, if needed. I don’t want this to get out of hand.”
“Of course, Alpha.”
Jasper nodded and pushed the door open, stopping short in the doorway. Kellan bumped into him, forcing Jasper to take a step inside, open-mouthed.
Aside from Gwen, every single pack member was present. They were milling around the room, checking out the transformed mess hall. All the tables and chairs had been removed, making way for a series of booths which held piles of goods. The largest area had a dozen rolling racks, each holding neatly organized rows of pants, shirts, shorts, and jackets. There were dozens of pairs of shoeboxes stacked along the wall of the booth, delineated by size. There was even a makeshift changing room created from curtains, and Jasper could tell someone was currently inside trying on clothes. There were folding tables set up with packs of socks, underwear, workout gear… it went on and on.
Another booth had piles of things you’d find at the pharmacy, such as deodorant, cologne, hair products, combs, scissors and trimmers, aspirin and vitamins… it went on and on.
The next section had stacks of laptops, mp3 players, and gaming consoles. To the right was an area with an assortment of snack foods and sodas, then an area with workout equipment.
Males were lined up at
all the booths, but by far the busiest one was simply a table with three chairs and a laptop in front of each. Above the table hung a collage of photos of Shifter females, all pretty and smiling.
“What the hell is that?” Jasper asked, taken aback. Spotting Langston walking by, Jasper grabbed him by the arm.
“What’s that booth?” he asked, pointing to the photos.
“Maddie’s set up a Shifter dating site online. Single females can sign up, and we can check out their profiles and chat with them.”
Jasper’s jaw dropped, disbelieving.
“Sir?” Langston said, disengaging his sleeve from Jasper’s grip.
“Go,” Jasper said, overwhelmed. “You too, Kellan.”
The males nodded and made off for the clothing area.
Jasper stayed still for a few minutes, watching as the pack members chatted with each other and wandered from one booth to another. Several males left with armfuls of items, but most stayed to socialize. He heard a feminine laugh, and spotted Maddie emerging from the racks of clothing. She wore a thin red tank top and a short black cotton skirt with black flats, her hair piled atop her head.
She grinned up at Kopelli, trying to force him to take a bundle of clothing. He had a skeptical expression, but Maddie leaned in and whispered something that made him crack a smile. She laughed again, completely unaware of the fact that every male within a hundred feet had turned to look at her. Every male present was aware of her beauty and her scantily clad body, and Jasper could practically smell their lust accumulating.
It was only then that Jasper was moved to act, starting toward his mate.
Maddie spotted him and turned that mega-watt smile on him like a spotlight.
“Surprise!” she said, gesturing to the booths. Her smile was hesitant, and he could tell that she sought his approval.
Jasper stepped up to Maddie, reaching out to grip her hips and pull her close. He could feel her tense, feel her heart rate increase and her breathing falter. She was uncertain of him, of his reaction. He didn’t know how to put his thoughts into words, so he did what he knew how to do.