by Lia Davis
She blinked. Vance was trying to point the fingers at Ashwood. Bring the humans into the war between shifters. Suddenly everything was starting to make a little more sense, especially the changes in Shield’s policy to go to breach the wards and protections of the shifter territories without solid evidence that the shifters were rogue and a threat to humans.
She cast him a hard stare. Unlike Vance, Hayden had compassion. She sensed it in the same way she could tell Vance was not a good guy. Even though Hayden was a take-charge, pure alpha male on the outside, she’d bet he had a soft side that only his family got to see.
That didn’t mean she could trust him. Did it?
One thing was for sure. She definitely couldn’t trust Vance. The man…shifter was evil. She felt it like a sticky residue over her skin when she was near him.
“What is Vance’s animal?”
Hayden tilted his head. “Leopard. Why?”
She shrugged and sat up on the sofa. “Just curious.”
Suddenly, Hayden held up a hand to silence her then turned his head as if listening to something, or someone. Before she could ask what the hell he heard, he was out the front door. Christa followed, which made him whirl around to her, his wolf in his eyes. “Go back inside.”
She stood her ground and glared at him. “I don’t think so. I’ve been hunting rogues half my life. Besides, whatever you heard could be my niece and nephew.”
A tic formed in his temples as he narrowed his eyes at her. This man was not used to being told no. Well, he’d have to get used to it because she wasn’t used to following orders.
She held his gaze, unblinking, until he leaned in and growled, “You are a stubborn female.”
“And you’re an ass.” She smiled.
He turned from her to face the edge of the trees that hid the den from view. She waited beside him, not knowing how far the twins, or whoever was out there, were from them.
“I’d feel better if I was armed,” she muttered, not really meaning for Hayden to hear her. Of course he did, thanks to his damn wolf hearing.
“I wouldn’t.”
Ass.
A moment later two figures stepped into view. Relief flooded her senses. They were Brenna and Bryce and behind them was a large black wolf. She looked over at Hayden then back at the twins. Bryce looked pissed and appeared a little disheveled. His hair stood on end, his T-shirt was ripped at the bottom, and his bottom lip was swollen.
She stepped forward, only to have Hayden grab her biceps to stop her. Peering up at him, she jerked her arm out of his grasp and continued toward the twins. Hayden moved behind her. She heard his heavy footfalls and a low growl. She smiled.
Brenna was the first to reach her and pull her into a tight hug. “Chris, are you okay? We were scared something had happened when you didn’t answer the text. Why didn’t you answer?”
Christa laughed and hugged her niece back and held out a hand for Bryce, who instantly moved closer to her. “It doesn’t matter now. You’re here, and we’re together.”
She would see to it that they were never separated again.
“Bryce fought with the other wolf,” Brenna whispered, but it was no use.
Hayden heard her, went over to the black wolf, which Christa guessed was Tanner, and knelt down beside him and spoke low. A moment later Tanner moved toward the house.
Christa focused on Bryce. He had a small scratch on his cheek and a red mark on his jaw she bet would be a bruise tomorrow. She lifted her hand to touch his cheek, but he stepped back and took her hand in his. “It’s fine, Chris.”
Hayden stepped up beside him and nodded to the house. “You’re about the same size as Tanner. Go ask him for a change of clothes.”
Bryce simply nodded and walked over to the house.
Christa studied Hayden closely. “They fought, and now they’re expected to get along?”
Hayden’s lips twitched. “You have a lot to learn about Pack.”
“They’re not part of your Pack.”
“It doesn’t matter. They’re minors with no parents or Pack. Ashwood will take them in.”
Christa crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m their guardian. The only family they have.”
Hayden closed the distance between them. “You will have to build the Pack’s trust.”
“What? I’m not going to your den. Neither are the twins.”
He took a deep breath as if trying to regain control. Brenna touched her arm tentatively. Hayden saw and he stared at her hand. Brenna looped her hand around Christa’s arm and moved closer to her. He lifted his gaze and met Christa’s again. Several moments passed before he leaned in so close their lips were inches apart.
Her heart hammered behind her ribcage. A shot of hot fear rushed over her skin. Hayden’s gaze held hers, making her grow more and more uncomfortable with how close they were. She knew nothing about this man or what the hell was going on, yet she wondered what it would be like if he kissed her.
She mentally shook herself and started to take a step back only to stop when she saw the green of his eye darken just before Brenna released her arm and stepped away. She was about to ask Brenna what she sensed, but Hayden cupped the back of her head and claimed her mouth, thrusting his tongue inside. She stiffened at first, then let go of the battle brewing in her mind over this male and gave in to the pleasure of his mouth moving with hers.
She twirled her tongue around his and sucked. He groaned and pressed his hard, hot body against hers. His erection pressed into her belly through his jeans, making her sex throb with need.
When he broke the kiss, she was a breathless, mindless mess. She wanted more of him, as though he’d fed her some kind drug. But she knew that wasn’t possible. She hadn’t eaten or drank anything since the apple he’d given her last night.
“You’re my mate. We’ll have to learn to trust one another, or kill each other trying.” He let her go abruptly, making her stumble to catch her balance, and then turned toward the house they were staying in. She stood there, shocked and shaking her head in disbelief. No, no, no. That wasn’t possible. She couldn’t mate a wolf. Especially one she wasn’t sure was the enemy or not.
She peered at Brenna, who had a wide-ass grin on her face. “What?”
“Tanner told us. This is why Bryce wasn’t hurt more than he was. Tanner is a sentry and very powerful.” Brenna peered behind her at the den. “What happened here?”
“I’m not sure.”
Brenna, still smiling, peered back at Christa. “Are you okay?”
Christa sighed. “No. Please tell me this mate thing can be stopped.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t think it can.”
“Fuck.”
Chapter Seven
Enough was enough.
Hayden stormed out of the house he and Tanner stayed in while at Hunter Ridge. Christa and the twins moved to one of the few still standing buildings left in the den. She said she needed space.
Damn female.
He made his way across what used to be the courtyard—the central play area of the den—to the medical center. He found it ironic that it still remained, untouched, while there was nothing the Healer or the medics could have done to stop the spread of the mutant virus that left Travis Hunter with no choice, but to burn down the den.
Once someone was infected, the only option, until recently, had been to kill them. Now Ashwood had a means to create an antidote. With the help of a geneticist from their allies, the Birchwood Pack—a wolf Pack that had signed a peace treaty with Ashwood Falls several years before—they were working on developing a vaccine.
Christa’s scent hit him hard as he approached the building. Desire filled him, making his cock press painfully against the fly of his jean. His wolf paced and clawed at him to move faster so they could claim their mate.
He opened the door and froze. Christa was on the floor in the oddest position. He recognized it as some kind of yoga position from the females back home. It was something they did to center
themselves and relax. Cameron, a senior enforcer, even had some of the other enforcers and sentries doing it several times a week.
However, he’d never been turned on by it before like he was now watching Christa move in slow, practiced motion. He stood in the doorway and watched how her body bent and straightened and twisted in ways he wouldn’t have thought possible.
He was so mesmerized by her grace that he forgot his annoyance.
Christa stood, went over to a small table in the corner of the room, and picked up a hand towel. After a moment she turned to him, hot desire in her eyes. Yeah, she was still denying the fact that they were mates. “Are you going to stand there or say what you came to say?”
Oh hell. They couldn’t keep avoiding each other. That was why he’d sought her out just now. They also couldn’t keep the wall of mistrust up between them. They had to work it out. He wasn’t going to go through Jared’s hell. He’d found his mate and bounded with her, but after discovering she was the enemy’s daughter, he’d broken the bond. With his mate still alive, Jared was unable to search for another. The male was so on edge most the time that Hayden didn’t know how Jared kept it together in public.
He definitely had a control made of steel.
Taking a deep breath, he swallowed his pride to make the first step. “I’ve come in peace.”
She bit her lower lip, which Brenna had told him was one of Christa’s tells. The teen said Christa bit her bottom lip to keep from smiling when she wanted to be firm. It was the only piece of intel he’d been able to get out of Brenna before Christa came looking for her.
She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against the table. “I’m listening.”
He fisted his hands by his sides to keep from reaching out to her and pulling her to his body. “Have dinner with me.”
She raised her brows. “In case you’ve forgotten, we’re in an abandoned den with little food and no restaurants around.”
He counted to ten, trying to rein in his annoyance. Why couldn’t she just accept what he offered? Stubborn, proud female. “Then a picnic. Meet me in the courtyard in twenty minutes.”
He turned on his heels and left before she could argue and he’d be forced to kiss her into submission. The latter would get them nowhere except giving their bodies what they wanted. Sex between them right now would be meaningless.
When Hayden took Christa, he wanted her to know he was playing for keeps and not just releasing his aggression and need on her. To do that, he had to gain her trust and make her see that he was playing on the good side of the war. Which meant he had to be charming and patient.
He entered the house that he temporarily shared with Tanner and went straight to the kitchen. Tanner had gotten up shortly after the sun rose that morning and found the main power supply for the den. Why Travis had left the power on and hadn’t just leveled the whole den, Hayden didn’t know.
Hayden heard Tanner before he saw him come in and lean against the counter. He ignored his brother’s smirk and raised eyebrow and proceed to make a few sandwiches.
“Cameron’s going to stop by later.”
Hayden snapped his gaze to his brother’s. “Why?”
Hayden didn’t have a problem with Cameron. In fact, he highly respected her, and not only because she was his best friend’s mate. She was a strong, level-headed female, even in the heat of a fight. She was the first to charge in, and he could always count on her for backup. Yet, he couldn’t help, but think she was coming to Hunter Ridge to check up on them, for his mother.
Tanner shrugged. “Ana’s coming with her. It seems Blaine wants his sister to get to know everyone in the pack and shadow Cam for a while. Plus, I think they are bringing more food and blankets and stuff.”
Hayden packed up the sandwiches, some fruit, and picked up a bottle of wine from the counter. “Where did this come from?”
“From the basement. This whole den was built into the side of the mountain. Did you know there are escape tunnels under us?”
Hayden put the bottle in the basket. “Yeah, Travis mentioned it.”
“So…are you starting the mating dance?”
Hayden sighed. “Yes. She’s my mate.”
“What about Shield? She could still go back to them and betray us all.”
Similar thoughts already plagued Hayden. She could easily return to her life with the humans and hunt down shifters. Yet, he sensed her hesitation, her leeriness of both sides. She’d said she wanted out of Shield. Until he’d met the twins and saw how close Christa was to them, he hadn’t understood her motivations.
He still wasn’t a hundred percent sure, but he guessed the twins were no longer safe if she continued working for the rebel group. That made more sense to him, considering Vance was now pulling the strings and slowly infecting the humans with the mutant virus.
Meeting his brother’s stare, Hayden smiled. “I’ll seduce her into believing the truth.”
Tanner grinned. “Good luck. She seems as hardheaded as you. You’ll have to do something you’ve never done. Compromise.”
Then Tanner left the room, laughing.
Bastard.
But he was right. Hayden would have to be the one to give a little first. He’d just do it while in full mating mode. Human or not, Christa wouldn’t be able to resist the pull to mate. That was one thing he was counting on to get her to see the truth about him and his people.
Christa Baker was his, whether she wanted to admit it or not.
****
Christa had tried to avoid Hayden as much as possible until she worked out a plan to leave. She needed to get away from the wolf. There was no way she could mate with him. Besides, every time she was near him, it was impossible to think clearly. The more she was around him, the more she wanted to be with him.
She asked the twins about mating, hoping their mother had told them a little about it, but all they said was it was for life. That once bound to a wolf, she’d be linked until one of them died. That was something Christa didn’t really want to hear.
She couldn’t be bound to a wolf. Raising two was one thing. Besides, Brenna and Bryce were her flesh and blood, the only family she had left.
They were also shifters and needed a den to help them develop into adults.
Shit, this was really messed up.
Despite what Vance had said about Ashwood Falls, Hayden might be Christa’s only hope of finding the twins a safe den. That would mean she’d have to put her pride aside and work with the wolf to discover the truth.
Hayden wasn’t like Vance. The wolf heated her from the inside out, made her want things she had no business desiring. Now she wondered if it was the mating thing. She wasn’t sure if humans could be affected by it. She’d never bothered to ask her sister. Mary was just so happy in love with her husband—no, mate—that Christa had never considered what it all meant.
When she reached the courtyard and looked up, she stifled a gasp at the sight of Hayden. He wore the same clothes he had when he demanded to go on the picnic, but then she’d been too set on avoiding him to pay attention. Now, she noticed.
He wore a white T-shirt that clung to his muscular chest and trim waist perfectly. His dark stone-washed jeans were loose fitting, adding to the sensuality of the wolf within him.
Her skin tightened and warmed the closer she got to him.
Crap, she was done for.
He lifted a brow at the same time one corner of his lips lifted in a half smirk, making him look even sexier. “You’re late.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “No, you’re early.”
He chuckled as she walked past him and tried to ignore his body heat and the low growl that did things to her libido. “Are you up for a little hike?”
“Sure. Where are we going?”
He moved in closer to her, and she felt his warm breath against her neck as he growled, “You’ll see when we get there.”
She fought the urge to jerk away from him. One thing she knew for sure about sh
ifters, especially the predators, was that they loved the hunt. Jerking away from this wolf when he was already in the hunting mood would only make him chase her down harder. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to be chased… yet.
Christa walked in silence for several yards into the forest, and when Hayden didn’t show any indication of slowing down, she started to grow impatient. She was about to ask him again where they were going when he stopped and turned to face her, making her run right into his hard chest. He gripped her elbow, and heat rushed over her cool skin.
She held his gaze for several long moments before he turned her and pointed to a small creek. “Look.”
“Oh,” she breathed. Drinking from the creek was a mother wolf and beside her were three pups wrestling with each other. “They’re adorable.”
Hayden stepped forward, and the mother lifted her head in his direction, scenting the air. Christa grabbed his arm. “What are you doing?”
Instead of stopping, he took her hand in his and tugged her along with him. Her heart was pounding so hard she could feel it everywhere. When they got within a couple of yards of the female wolf, she growled. Christa felt a spark of warm energy pass through her and Hayden’s connected hands as he let his wolf come to the surface. It didn’t hurt, or feel as uncomfortable as the rogue she’d hunted several years ago that shifted when she’d grabbed him.
The rogue’s energy had been dark, almost heavy feeling. It had felt as though some kind of residue was left on her skin. Yet, Hayden’s didn’t. The power, or magick, or whatever it was that made him shift, was warm, light, and inviting.
She tugged on his hand to get his attention. “She’ll attack you to protect her babies.”
He shook his head and continued forward. Suddenly a second, larger gray wolf jumped in their path, and bared its teeth. Christa froze, pulse pounding in her ears.
Hayden knelt down and offered his palm. The wolf sniffed then eyed Christa with a snarl. Hayden moved between them and growled. The wolf took a step back. Hayden tugged on her hand. Christa tugged back. When he peered back at her, she shook her head.