Protecting the Pack

by Tabitha Conall

  “He challenged me,” Mad Dog said.

  Kevin—the same wolf from the other night—shivered next to Jake, holding his arm.

  Alex started to get a bad feeling. If Mad Dog got kicked out, Brett would be so mad.

  “Is that true?” Jake said to Kevin.

  Eyes wide, Kevin said, “No. I was just sitting with some friends and he came and grabbed me.”

  “I saw the way you looked at me,” Mad Dog said.

  Chris fought the urge to shake him. “A look is not a challenge.”

  “Of course it is,” Mad Dog said.

  Chris’ voice dropped. “What did I say last night?”

  “You said no fighting unless we’re challenged. He challenged me.”

  “I said no fighting with Stonewall. He’s in Stonewall.” Chris released Mad Dog, pushing him forward. “You’re out.”

  Shit. Brett wouldn’t be happy at all.

  Mad Dog turned on him. “What? You can’t kick me out.”

  “Of course I can. Pack your things. You have to be out of our territory by dawn.”

  “It’s not that easy,” Mad Dog said. “I demand a trial.”

  “Have you been a Loner your whole life?” Jake said. “Because it is that easy. The Alpha says you’re out, you’re out. Done.”

  And now it was even more important that she manage to get in.

  Mad Dog stalked out of the bar shooting angry glances at Chris. After they’d gotten Kevin back to his table, Chris and Jake returned to sit next to Alex.

  “Where were we?” Jake said.

  Alex licked her lips as she turned toward Chris. “I was thinking. Maybe we could have a trial period or something. Or we could just wait a while longer while you get to know me. Please.”

  “I still don’t understand why you want Roanoke so much more than Stonewall,” Jake said. “I’ve got a good pack.”

  She had to play the Keith card. “I don’t know anyone in your pack. At least in Roanoke, I know Keith.”

  “Who you don’t like,” Chris said.

  “He’s a known evil,” Alex said.

  Jake’s eyebrows rose. “That’s an interesting way to put it.”

  She could feel her face getting hot. She didn’t know what to say. How could she convince them? And why hadn’t Brett prepared her? He’d said it would be easy. So easy, for a female to join a pack. This wasn’t easy at all.

  The silence between them strung out until it was a tight wire ready to snap.

  “I’ve never done a trial period,” Chris said. “I’m not even sure how to do that.”

  “Forget the trial period,” Jake said. “Have her come back here every night for a few weeks, and see how she fits in. At the end, you can decide. And for that matter, she can decide. Maybe she’ll like Stonewall best by then.” His smile looked wolfish.

  “That works for me,” Chris said. “What do you think?”

  She thought Brett wasn’t going to like the plan one bit. But she also didn’t think she was going to get a better offer. “Yeah, that sounds good. I can do that.”

  Chris stuck out his hand, and she shook it. “It’s a deal. You want to start tonight?”

  “Tomorrow night,” she said. “I have some stuff to do tonight.”

  “All right, then. See you tomorrow night.”

  As she left them, Jake said to Chris, “So, where’s the other one?”

  Alex continued walking. What other one? Must be unrelated. Brett had carefully timed everything so they wouldn’t join too close together.

  Alex left the bar and headed for her car. She had almost reached the parking lot when she spotted a wolf coming toward her. It was the guy from the night before, the one who had looked at her like he was going to eat her up. The same way he was looking at her now.

  He veered and stopped in front of her. “Hey. I’m Ben.”

  He was hot. If she weren’t madly in love with Brett, she’d definitely have been interested. But as it was, she needed to let this guy down easy. Really easy, in case he was one of the Roanoke pack members she needed to kiss up to. Although, he didn’t smell like pack.

  “Alex,” she said.

  He smiled and stuck his hand out, his gaze roaming over her face. “Nice to meet you, Alex.”

  She took his hand, intending to shake, but instead he held her hand firmly and stepped forward.

  “You don’t smell like pack,” he said.

  “You, either.”

  He was still holding her hand. “I’m in the process of joining. But you—”

  ”Me, too. I’m joining.” She tried to tug her hand away but he wouldn’t let go.

  “Oh, yeah? Stonewall or Roanoke?” He leaned even closer. “Your answer might influence my own decision.”

  “You’re really too much.” The words slipped out before she could censor them. Worse, she found herself smiling. What a flirt he was.

  “Too much what?” He brought his other hand up and closed her hand in both of his. “I’m trying to make a good impression. Is it working?”

  She laughed again. She shouldn’t be laughing. “Yeah, it’s working.” Then, almost to remind herself, she said, “But I gotta go.”

  “So soon? Why don’t we go inside and get to know each other better?” He still held onto her hand, his thumb gently rubbing her skin.

  She tingled where their flesh touched, tingled in a way she never had with Brett. She jerked her hand away. “Sorry. I’ve really gotta go.” She stepped around him and headed for her car.

  “Maybe tomorrow night,” he said. “Definitely someday soon.”

  She could feel his gaze on her all the way into the parking lot, and she’d swear he watched her car until she turned out of sight, but when she looked in her rearview, the sidewalk was empty.

  ***

  Ben stood in the shadows watching until Alex turned the corner and he couldn’t see her car anymore. What a woman. He’d lied, though. Even if she’d said she was joining Stonewall and not Roanoke, it wouldn’t change his mind.

  He headed into the bar and found Chris sitting with another big wolf, both of them nursing beers. When he saw Ben, Chris smiled warmly and slapped the seat of a barstool that sat between them.

  “This is Jake,” Chris said, motioning toward the other man. “Alpha of Stonewall pack.”

  “Liam’s brother-in-law.” Ben stuck out his hand and Jake shook it. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Liam said you might want to join Stonewall,” Jake said. “But Chris is saying different.”

  Chapter 4

  And again, Ben had to explain. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that,” he said. “Liam and I talked this afternoon. I just need a more stable pack right now.” As he said it, that feeling crept over him again, like as long as he sat next to Chris, everything would be all right. If anything, it felt stronger now that he recognized it.

  “Is there anything I can do to change your mind?” Jake said.

  “Sorry,” Ben said.

  “You’ve decided,” Chris said.

  “Yeah. While Liam and I were talking today, I made my decision.”

  Chris sat silently for a minute or two. “I just had someone else ask to join my pack. I’m making her undergo a trial period. I should probably do the same with you.”

  Ben swallowed. He’d thought all he had to do was let Chris know he wanted in. Had he done something wrong? “Is that how you usually do things?” He tried to keep his voice level, professional.

  Chris’ face tightened. He looked at his hands. “Not usually. But things are a little unusual at the moment. It’s nothing to do with you.”

  Hopefully he meant that. The thought of Chris doubting him made his stomach twist. Which was kind of ridiculous. He’d only just met the guy. He just needed to play it cool and everything would work out in the end. “Okay. So how does it work?”

  Chris outlined everything—the two weeks, coming to the bar each night, and so on.

  When Chris finished, Jake said, “At the end if you decide you wa
nt to join Stonewall instead, that’s still an option.”

  A look flashed across Chris’ face, something almost feral. Ben blinked and it was gone.

  “Thanks,” Ben said. But he wouldn’t be joining Stonewall. Just two more weeks then he could stop feeling adrift.

  ***

  After Chris had told Ben about the trial period, Ben hung out with Chris and Jake for a while. Chris really liked Ben. He hoped he’d end up joining Roanoke. He’d wanted to let him in immediately, but Jake had convinced him it would look bad to the pack if he made a prized female go through a trial period while letting Ben in as normal.

  Eventually, Ben wandered off to sit with some of the wolves he’d met the night before. Chris and Jake took their beers and claimed a booth far in the back. With the loud music and other ambient noise, if they kept their voices down, they shouldn’t be overheard.

  “I agree with what you said. Ben seems all right,” Jake said. “Alex, not so much.”

  “Which is why I don’t want to just start kicking wolves out of the pack. Some of them are okay. I’m just not sure which ones.” Chris fiddled with his nearly empty beer bottle. “If Alex is one of them, then Keith definitely is.”

  “So you can kick him out.”

  “Or question him.” Questioning him could be fun. Especially if Keith resisted. “He’s an ass. I’d have a much easier time questioning him than Alex.”

  “Not surprising.” Jake smirked.

  “Oh? Because you think I can’t rough up a female?”

  “No. Because I saw the way you looked at her.” Jake leaned forward. “If Dana sees you looking at Alex like that, she’ll be pissed.”

  “She already is.”

  Jake laughed. “Caught you, huh?”

  “Caught me being an old lech. Alex is jailbait.”

  “She’s nineteen. That ain’t jailbait. That’s fair game.” Jake sat back, his arm thrown over the top of the booth. “Just sayin’.”

  Jake could talk. He had his mates. And neither of them was under twenty. “So, Keith,” Chris said. “Of course, if I question Keith and he really is part of this group, then it’ll clue them in that I’m onto them.”

  “Maybe calling a meeting would work better.”

  “A meeting for what?”

  “A pack meeting. Get everyone together.”

  “Yeah, but what will the meeting be about? I don’t usually call meetings to say ‘hey, how’s it going’ so if I do now, that’ll look suspicious.”

  A waitress came by and both Jake and Chris ordered another beer. They didn’t speak again until she’d gone.

  “Maybe not a meeting,” Chris said. “Maybe a party. We haven’t had one in a while. And we’ve got all these new members and two new babies. Lots to celebrate.”

  Jake nodded in agreement. “That works. And at a party, everyone will have their guard down, unlike at a special meeting.”

  “Yeah. And we can have it here, so I can include Alex and Ben. Maybe just observing Alex and Keith will show me who’s with them.”

  “You can also have spies. Get some of your most trusted wolves to wander through the crowd, listening in on the new ones. They might hear something.”

  “That’s good.” Chris smiled. “This could work.”

  “Damn right it could.” Jake’s smile quickly turned feral. “Then you can run the bastards out of town.”

  ***

  After getting home from the bar, Alex parked in the driveway of the house Brett had rented for their group. She hoped he wasn’t home. She didn’t see his car, but it could be sitting in the garage. She took her time going inside.

  As soon as the door shut behind her, Brett called from the kitchen. “Who’s there?”

  Damn it. “It’s me.”

  He walked out into the foyer. “What’re you doing back so early?”

  “Let’s go in the kitchen and I’ll tell you.” She dropped her purse on the floor and kicked off her shoes next to it.

  “Why don’t you tell me now? You should be pledging yourself to Chris. What are you doing here?”

  Lately her relationship with Brett had been a lot like dating good cop/bad cop. Or Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. She steeled herself for a session of “bad Brett.” “I think he’s getting wary. He told me he’s had too many wolves join lately. He even brought the Stonewall Alpha over to try to convince me to join Stonewall instead.”

  “You failed?” Brett stepped closer, his arms swinging wide. “You’re a female. How on earth could you screw this up?”

  She worked to keep from taking a step backward. Sometimes she couldn’t believe this was the same sweet man she’d fallen in love with. “I didn’t fail, exactly. He said he wanted me to do a trial period. To go to the bar every night for a couple of weeks so I could get to know wolves from both of the packs, and so he could get to know me. Then I can join at the end of it.”

  “I’ve never heard of such a thing. You must’ve tipped him off somehow.”

  “Me? You’re the one who thinks we need to join all incognito like this. Why not just tell him we’re a group of lone wolves who want to join his pack? Why not join all at once?”

  He took a step toward her. “Don’t you question me. I know what I’m doing.”

  God, he could be a jerk sometimes. Why did she even stay with him? Because half the time he was still the man she’d fallen in love with. “I just don’t get it.”

  “You don’t need to get it. You need to obey.”

  And half the time, he wasn’t. She fell silent. Brett hadn’t been like this when they’d first fallen in love. He’d been so gentle and sweet she couldn’t resist him. Once she’d left her parent’s pack, he’d started to let his temper show. And it didn’t matter that she told him she didn’t like it or that she asked him to go back to how he used to be. He acted how he wanted to act.

  “Is that what you wore?” he said.

  Alex looked down at her clothes—a pair of low-rider jeans, a snug but not-too-tight black t-shirt with a wolf howling at the moon on the front, and her favorite pair of boots. “Yeah.”

  “It’s not sexy enough. No wonder he didn’t let you in. He has to look at you and think sex. He has to wonder how fast he can get you on your back. When you go tomorrow night, I want you in a tight mini-skirt and a tank top that shows off your boobs.”

  At his words, she pictured herself in bed with Chris, all his strength surrounding her. He’d be gentle. Gentle and strong. And he wouldn’t change once she got to know him. She remembered that flash of lust in Chris’ eyes and knew that she didn’t need to dress like a skank to catch his interest.

  She shouldn’t be thinking like this. She was Brett’s. “Not every man finds the ‘ho look attractive,” she said.

  Brett took two more steps so he towered over her. “You’re questioning me again. Just shut up and do what I say.”

  Alex knew when to stop. She’d learned it the hard way, when her mouth had gotten the better of her and he’d smacked her across the face. He’d been really sweet afterward, really sorry, but she hadn’t forgotten the lesson.

  So she kept her mouth shut and nodded.

  “Good girl.” He stroked her hair. His hand trailed around her neck and down her chest to massage one of her breasts. “Let’s go upstairs.”

  For the first time ever, she didn’t feel like sleeping with him. And she wasn’t sure how to say no. Maybe she could tell him she had a headache?

  Brett’s phone rang. He pulled it out with his free hand, still playing with her breast. “Brett.”

  Alex could hear the voice on the other end. It was Mad Dog. His real name was Maddox. She figured he was telling Brett the bad news about getting kicked out of the pack. Just her good luck to be here when he found out. When Brett’s hand fell from her chest and he stepped away, she took the opportunity to grab her purse and shoes and leave.

  Brett would be pissed, but she just couldn’t deal with him right then. She’d sleep in her car if she had to.

  Not too f
ar away from their house was a park that bordered on Stonewall territory. Alex went there sometimes to get away, and it seemed like the perfect place just now. She parked her car and walked into the park until she found some picnic benches. She lay down on one of the tabletops and watched the clouds crawl across the stars.

  Her phone rang. Probably Brett. She ignored the first ring or two then curiosity got the better of her so she pulled it out of her purse to look at the display. Not Brett. Some unknown number. She took the call.

  “Hi, Alex?” a woman’s voice said. “I’m Dana Ryan from Roanoke pack. You probably saw me at the bar with Chris.” When Alex didn’t answer right away, Dana said, “Kissing him. I’m his girlfriend.”

  “Um, sure.” She didn’t remember the woman at all. It also felt wrong to think of Chris with a girlfriend.

  “We’re having a party at the bar tomorrow night to celebrate some recent happy events, and Chris wanted to make sure you’d show up. Seven o’clock?” Her voice sounded clipped and professional. And perhaps a little cold.

  “Yeah, I can be there at seven.”

  “Good. Don’t be late.” The woman hung up.

  Odd. She was going to go to the bar tomorrow night anyway; Chris knew that. Guess he wanted to make sure she got there on time.

  She dropped the phone back in her purse and went back to watching the stars.

  ***

  Chris sat at his usual spot at the bar the next night as his wolves arrived, one after another. Dana had done a fabulous job at getting the word out. Not that their party was any big shindig, but it had taken some planning nonetheless. And she’d managed it in less than twenty-four hours.

  She excelled at that sort of thing. He knew she saw herself as the future Alpha Female of the pack. Because of that, he’d been trying to let her know that what was between them was little more than friends with benefits. She never heard him, though. And it was partly his fault, for letting her take care of things like this party, which made her feel like they were all bonded. But she was just so good at it.

  Chris had originally planned to arrange for the bar to be closed except for his pack. Mike, the bar owner, was a friend and Chris thought he could convince him. But Jake talked Chris into letting some of his pack mingle in the party. So Jake, his mates, and most of his sister and brother-in-laws now wandered through the growing crowd. Add to that Chris’ most trusted wolves and that made quite a number who were watching and listening. Hopefully something would turn up.