by Milly Taiden
But all Aric could think of was how Jordan needed to get better so they could finally mate. After these scares against her, he wasn’t taking any chances. He knew once they mated, she’d become stronger. Though her body may not accept the change to their kind, she would be more than just a weak human.
He spent the next two days rotating between time spent in Ellie’s room and the rest in Jordan’s. If she wasn’t taking care of Jordan’s home, his mother was there with him.
“She’s holding steady, son.” She patted his shoulder.
Returning from Jordan’s room, she joined him next to Ellie’s bed. She’d shifted into her human shape the day before, which made her injuries take longer to heal. But they hadn’t been able to talk her into shifting. In her unconscious human state, they couldn’t reach her. Caleb had shown up. Aric had seen the pain in his friend’s eyes. Then he’d seen the fury. He’d stayed for long hours before he’d been called away due to issues in his pack.
Aric was about to say something, but stopped. Ellie’s eyes fluttered open. They moved closer to the bed.
She cleared her throat. “Jordan?”
“She’s in a coma.”
Her lip trembled. Pain and fear seeped from her pores. “I’m sorry.” Tears dripped down the corners of her eyes. “I couldn’t protect her.”
“Stop it, little pup. You had your hands full.” He pushed her blonde hair back away from her face. Gone were the bruises and cuts. All she had left were internal injuries, which took longer to heal.
His mother grasped her hand on the other side of the bed. “How do you feel?”
“Some pain inside, but otherwise okay.”
Aric sighed in relief. He scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck. “Did you recognize any of the men who attacked you?”
She shook her head and winced. “No. I’ve never seen them before.”
William showed up at that moment, followed by a young nurse. “I see you’re finally awake.”
“How long did it take me to heal?” Ellie glanced around the bed. She pressed a button on the remote by her hand and lifted to a sitting position.
“Three days. You would have healed sooner if not for the fact you shifted and that slows down the progress.”
Ellie rubbed a shaky hand over her side and winced.
“Do you feel a lot of pain still?” William asked. “Might be best for you to shift for a few hours now that you can hold it.”
She nodded.
Aric headed for the door. “While you rest, I’m going to check on Jordan.”
“I’ll come with you.” William followed behind him. “We checked her new scan and the swelling is gone. We can pull her out of the coma and see if we can wake her up.”
Aric entered Jordan’s room. The bruising on her face and body had been changing colors and was currently a brownish yellow.
“What about her other injuries?”
William checked her chart. “There’s no easy cure for a human.” He glanced at Aric with a frown. “She just needs time.”
It was two more days before Jordan’s eyes finally opened. By then Ellie was back to normal. Her wounds had healed. Aric sat at a corner of the room while Ellie and Emma spoke.
“I thought Nic and Karla would have joined us,” Emma said while holding Jordan’s hand in hers.
“No, they were here yesterday and had an after school program to attend.”
Emma slapped her forehead. “That’s right. Thankfully I backed out, or else I’d have to have been there too.”
Jordan groaned. Everyone stopped and glanced at the bed. Her face was creased in pain.
Aric rushed to her side, gripping her right hand in his. “Jordan?”
She blinked several times before he saw her focus on him. Pain dulled her eyes.
“Ellie?”
“I’m right here, love.” Ellie’s voice was thick with tears.
Jordan licked her lips and cleared her throat. “I’ve seen the guy that hit you before.”
This was unbelievable. It was exactly what Aric and his brothers had been trying to find out.
He sat on the edge of the bed and cupped her jaw. “Who was it, sweetheart?”
She leaned into his touch. His heart was heavy with the knowledge she was in pain and there was little he could do.
Jordan let go of his hand and lifted her hand to rub her fingers over his overgrown beard. Her touch sent peace through the beast that had been pacing since he’d found her unconscious.
“It was one of the men that came to your house the day I was chased by the white wolves. One of the guys I saw out the window that arrived with Caleb. The one with the blond hair.”
Aric lost it.
TEN
He could tell Jordan was in pain, and it only added to the fuel sparking the anger inside him. There was no stopping the storm of rage pumping through his veins. A frenzy of every possible violent thought rushed his head. Revenge filled his mind. For Ellie. For Jordan. For daring to touch someone in his family and think there’d be no repercussions. At first, he’d been surprised that one of Caleb’s men had dared cross the line and hurt one of the Wolfe pack, but with the chaos in the neighboring pack he shouldn’t be surprised.
Fur pushed at his skin. The wolf wanted out.
Ellie rushed by his side. “Aric, you need to calm the wolf.”
“One of Caleb’s men was in on this,” he ground out, his voice so rough it sounded like churned gravel. “I’m going to find them.”
Jordan winced. He scented her concern before she spoke. “You can’t go alone. There were four of them.”
At that moment, his brothers rushed into the room. Mason, Nathan, and Jake marched up to the bed, their gazes locked on him. “He won’t be alone. We’re going with him.”
Aric turned to Jordan. He wanted to touch her face and hold her, but his fingers had turned into claws, and he wouldn’t hurt her. She grabbed the front of his T-shirt and pulled him toward her.
Their faces mere inches from each other; she locked her gaze with his. “You better be careful, or these guys you’re going to see will be the least of your worries.”
He not only saw the fear in her eyes, but he scented it hovering at her pores. It made him want to reassure her. “I look forward to anything and everything you want to do to me after I get rid of this threat.”
She kissed him. It was a soft brush of her lips that had both man and animal rejoicing in her touch, in knowing she would be fine. His gut clenched and he inhaled her scent deep.
“I need you to be careful.” She whispered the words and pulled back, her lip trembling.
Seeing her concern in such clear display only added to his need to protect her. “I will be.” He stood to go. Only one thought filled his mind. “Let’s go hunting.”
Jordan watched the men, including the man she loved, march purposely out of her room. She turned to Ellie, who appeared to have lost all color in her face, and studied her closely. “How are you feeling? The last time I saw you four guys were kicking our asses.”
Emma snorted. “I highly doubt they left the attack unscratched.”
“I did see Jordan swinging that steel bar around at one guy.” Ellie jumped in.
“And this is why I like to keep something to defend myself within my vehicle. Do you now understand where I’m coming from? Shit happens, and we need a quick weapon, even a steel bar can help.” She pressed a button. The bed lifted her into a sitting position.
“Hey, I always carry around something to defend myself.” Emma shrugged. “I grew up in the ghetto with a paranoid family. You never walked around a bad neighborhood with no way to defend yourself. Especially if you’re a girl.”
Ellie leaned back on her seat, dropping her had on the back cushion. “I’ve never had to fight one much less three shifters at one time. With an Alpha family, it’s a given they will hurt you if you touch one of theirs. So this was unexpected and it proves that I need better training.”
“Ellie nobody coul
d have fought three full grown big-ass shifters and lived to tell the story.” Jordan reached for a glass of water, but Emma slapped her hand away and proceeded to put ice in the cup before passing it back to her. “Besides, you were doing some serious badass kick fighting with wolf twist moves.”
“What happens now?” Emma asked the question on Jordan’s mind.
“Now the men will go searching for the attackers.” Barbara Wolfe walked into the room. She stopped beside the bed and hugged Jordan. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I got my butt kicked by a big shifter with a bad attitude.”
Barbara laughed. “This is why I like you. I never know what you’re going to say.”
“Yeah, well that is usually a bad thing.” Emma chuckled. “Gets her into trouble all the time.”
Ellie grinned and moved over to give her mother space on the sofa. “Did anyone else go with them?”
“Once your father heard, he sent some of the enforcers with them. There will be no catching my boys off guard.”
Jordan’s sides hurt, but she was too interested in what was being said.
“I may be the only person that doesn’t understand what’s going on with Caleb’s pack.” Emma said, glancing from Ellie to Barbara.
“It started some years back. Caleb was a teen. He left the pack to spend time with his sick mother. She and his father had problems and she’d moved away. His father died unexpectedly, so his uncle Rocco took over the pack.”
Emma’s brows puckered. “Doesn’t whoever want to take over have to fight any others that want to lead?”
“Caleb’s father, like Ellie’s father, comes from a long line of strong Alphas. When his brother decided he would take over, nobody fought him that right.”
“What happened with Caleb?” Jordan asked, watching a nurse inject something into her IV. The effect was instant. The pain slowly dissipated.
“Caleb returned some years later, ready to take over, but with his father dead and Rocco as Alpha, he wasn’t going to fight him for the right. Until now.”
Jordan yawned. “What happened to get things this crazy?”
“Rocco started acting erratic. Giving young girls to his enforcers even. Girls that refused to mate. Some of the women have disappeared, and Caleb refuses to let things get worse.”
Ellie stood and sat beside Jordan on the bed, patting her hand. “So does what happened mean that Caleb has traitors in his own little group?”
That was what Jordan wanted to know as well.
“Seems like it. Now he’ll need to step up and decide how to proceed. Whoever that man is that helped attack Ellie and Jordan is probably giving away all details to his plans Rocco.”
“Sounds like what he needs to do is clean house.” Emma sat at the foot Jordan’s bed, rubbing her feet over the blankets.
Barbara frowned. “Clean house?”
“Yeah. It’s what we say in my family when you need to get rid of whatever is messing you up. You need to clean house or in his case clean his pack of the rats that are only there to destroy things.”
Barbara grinned. “Caleb’s pack can certainly do with some internal cleaning.”
“Alright, I should go.” Emma stood. “I need to go grade papers and homework for tomorrow.”
Emma kissed Jordan on the forehead. “Glad to see you’re doing better. Now hurry up and get back on your feet. Your students were split between our classes and all they ask for is you. In fact,” She dug through her handbag and pulled out a big card made out of construction paper, “this is for you.”
“I’ll walk you down to your car.” Ellie followed her to the door.
Jordan was getting sleepy from the painkillers. She watched Ellie and Emma walk out before turning to the card in her hands. A giant yellow sheet of construction paper had been folded in half. The front of the card displayed a bunch of yellow posies and a bear with a get-well sign. Inside the card, all her students had written little messages about how much they missed her and how they hoped she’d be back soon.
She didn’t realize she was crying until Barbara sat beside her and handed her a tissue.
“I’m sorry,” Jordan whispered, choking on the tears. Looking at that card, she realized what a close call she’d had.
“It’s alright dear. Those children clearly love their teacher.”
She covered her face with her hands, placing the tissue directly over her eyes. Barbara hugged her, and this was one of those moments where she was once again thankful that Ellie and her parents had been in her life.
“I feel so stupid. I’m getting upset thinking of what would have happened to Aric if I…If I hadn’t woken up again.”
Barbara glanced away from her. “My son would have experienced your loss very deeply.”
Jordan frowned at the way she said the words, almost as if it were too painful to consider. “How deeply? I mean he would have been sad, but he would’ve moved on eventually, right?”
Barbara smiled sadly. “No. You’re his mate. It would be devastating for him to lose you. I don’t know how much you know about mates, but it would take him years, maybe even his entire lifetime to get over losing you. It’s why protecting our mates, our families, is so important to us. The loss of one or both can kill us.”
If that were true, that would explain his anger the night he found her in the shifter club alone. Barbara was right. Anything could happen to her, and he’d be left to deal with it alone.
Something inside her cracked. She couldn’t imagine her life without Aric, and she wasn’t a shifter. If he felt half as strongly for her as she did for him, then she knew what she had to do.
“I can’t put him through that kind of pain. I love him.”
“And he loves you. It’s why he’s out hunting. He needs to get rid of any threat against you. Our family is all that matters to our kind.”
For a person who hadn’t really known what family was first hand, Jordan began to understand that she had been lucky to be taken in by them. “Why did you and your husband help me after my parents left?”
Barbara lips tilted up slowly. “So you finally ask. I didn’t think you ever would, seeing as you’ve been like another daughter to us for so many years.”
“Tell me, please.” Jordan fought the nerves twisting knots in her stomach. She hated thinking of those years, but they’d never hesitated to help her.
“When you were a tiny thirteen-year-old with her first crush on my son.” Barbara laughed. “I see you remember those days.”
“Well, in my defense, he was the cutest eighteen-year-old ever. And way too old for me, but still.” She had forgotten the fact the shifters scented everything. Jesus Christ. How often had she fantasized about Aric in front of his mother?
“He most certainly was. All my boys were,” Barbara said with pride.
Jordan giggled. “It’s why they’re the sexy four.”
Barbara’s eyes went wide and then she burst into laughter. “Oh, don’t let them hear you call them that or their heads won’t fit through my house door.”
“We only call them that in our man-bashing sessions.” Jordan laughed and then winced at the discomfort she felt. “Only our man-bashing sessions usually end up with us talking about how cute they all are.”
“I think I should come join in one of these sessions. They sound fun.”
“You’re definitely welcomed to. They are tons of fun, and there’s wine.” Jordan added as if she needed an incentive.
Barbara chortled. “As I was saying, you saw Aric and he saw you. That was it.”
“What do you mean that was it?” What did she miss out of the first time she met him?
“You were too busy being stressed over the stuff at home, so you didn’t see his instant need to protect you. The scent of a mate is recognized at the first time we see them. It doesn’t matter how old you are, it doesn’t matter if you’re separated for years, or that he’s your best friend’s brother. All that matters is you’ll eventually end up together, which y
ou did.”
“You mean the first time I saw him, he…liked me?” She’d been an overweight teen with glasses, a bad attitude and some serious issues at home.
“Honey, he was never the same again. My son went from being this carefree teen who chased girls in the pack, to hanging on to every word Ellie said about her friend.”
Wow. She never would’ve guessed that her own crush was returned. Aric was older, so she never considered he’d see her as anything other than a pesky young girl. She had to stop kidding herself about him. She was in love with him. There were no longer any thoughts of being away from him. That meant she needed to start focusing on one hundred percent commitment to their happiness. Hell, she was officially in a committed relationship with the man of her dreams, but instead of nerves all she felt was joy.
Aric and his brothers didn’t warn Caleb of the person in his group. They needed to keep the man from running. Catching them unawares was the best way to get their hands on the traitor. Fury rolled around his gut, firing his need for revenge on the person who hurt his mate and sister.
Caleb’s message indicated they’d be at his bar later. Wolfe’s Den was filled with males and females from his and Caleb’s packs. His brothers took seats at multiple entryways to wait.
The group arrived shortly after them with Caleb leading the way. His short brown hair hung in disarray. He took that moment to slide his fingers through, mussing it up some more. Aric glanced at the others following Caleb, until his gaze zeroed in on one man. Eddie. The only blond in Caleb’s small group of back-up, strolling in without a care in the world. Cocky. It would cost him his life. Aric’s tenuous hold on his animal started slipping. Fur pushed under his skin. His fingers burned with the shift into claws. His face heated as he fought the bones from popping.
He glanced back at Caleb. No words were needed. His friend had seen it in his eyes. He whirled fast, grabbing Eddie by the throat. All conversation halted.
“What did you do?” The deathly growl echoed inside the bar.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Guilt was written all over Eddie’s face. The bitter scent of his lies and sharp fear shot out of his pores to tell the truth he denied. “Let me go man.”