by Jackie May
I’m embarrassed, but at least my cheeks are already red from the exercise. “I’m not much of a runner. Never had a treadmill, and I’m not stupid enough to try to jog on the streets of Detroit—day or night.”
Wulf sighs. “Okay, we’ll need to work on conditioning first. The most important part of self-defense is being able to get away. You’re human and female. Most times your opponent is going to be larger and stronger than you. Your best bet will always be to run, if you can. You need speed and endurance training.”
“Understandable.” I’m not one of those girls that’s too proud to accept my reality. I want to know how to fight if I need it, but I’m completely okay with running when the situation allows it. Better to run than die.
“I’ll talk to Terrance about getting you a good treadmill. I want you to get up to six a day as quickly as possible.”
“Six laps at one time?” My eyes bulge. “I’m not even going to last three right now.”
I know I’m in trouble when Wulf smirks. “Miles, Nora. Six miles a day. These laps are only a quarter mile. I want you to do four today, even if you have to walk some of it.”
“Six miles a day…” I’m already huffing, and I haven’t even completed a half-mile yet. “I knew this was a bad idea. You’re going to kill me.”
“This is a better idea than I first thought. You need this, Nora. It’s your lack of being in shape that might get you killed someday. Not me.”
“If you say so.”
Wulf chuckles. “It won’t be as bad as you think. Now pick up your pace, run your third lap as fast as you can, and then you can walk the last one.”
At that, Wulf winks at me and takes off at a sprint. Well, I think it’s a sprint. It’s probably only a jog to him. Six miles a day… Yeah right, he’s not trying to kill me.
I’m a good sport, though, and I did tell him I was eager to learn. I don’t want to prove myself wrong on the first day, so I do as I’m told and run a lap as fast as I can. I can hardly breathe by the time I hit the last lap. I’ve never been more grateful to walk in my life. Wulf is there again as soon as I slow down. “Put your hands on the back of your head. It’ll make it easier to breathe.”
I startle at the voice, because it isn’t Wulf’s. Looking closer, I realize this man looks very similar to Wulf but is a little older and friendlier looking, and his eyes are blue instead of green. Otherwise, they could be identical.
Still, Wulf or not, I do as he suggested and put my hands behind my head. He’s right—my lungs open up. I greedily suck in huge gulps of air. A sharp pain lances my side, and I groan. “Damn. I’m the most out of shape girl on the planet,” I pant between gasps.
Wulf’s look-alike doesn’t argue. Instead, he frowns as he studies me head-to-toe with a critical eye. “We do have our work cut out for us, but don’t get too discouraged. Everyone starts somewhere.”
“We?” I ask, then state the obvious. “You’re not Wulf.”
The man grins at me. It’s a gorgeous smile. “Rook Winters. I’m Wulf’s grumpy older brother.” He winks to let me know he’s kidding. “And yes, we. If you got my brother here, then it must be serious. And if my baby brother’s finally found a female, you bet your ass I want to get to know her.”
I blush and look at the ground as I keep walking. Where the hell is Wulf? A glance across the room tells me he’s busy talking to some man. They’re standing close, speaking quietly, and they’re both looking my direction.
“That’s Alpha Toth,” Rook says, following my gaze. “He’d like to meet you, too, as soon as your training session is over.”
The alpha? No pressure, huh? Oddly enough, though, he doesn’t seem as intimidating as either Wulf or Rook. If I had to guess, I’d say both the brothers are dominant over the alpha, but that doesn’t make any sense.
“So, how did you and Wulf meet?”
Rook’s smile has me blushing again, even though my relationship with Wulf is completely innocent. “It’s not what you think,” I say. “There’s nothing going on between Wulf and me. He’s my boss at the club.”
“You work at Underworld?”
His surprise, though understandable and expected, is still insulting. “Yes. I just started last week. Terrance took me in as clan and thought my working there would be safe for me because he and Wulf could keep an eye on me.”
“Ah.” Rook’s smile turns to one of understanding. “You’re that human.”
I roll my eyes. “Yes. I’m that one. And I’m not dating your brother. I just work with him.”
“But he offered to train you. He brought you to the compound. He’s never done that for anyone before. I can’t even get him to come home.”
I try to hold my poker face. Wulf hadn’t told me that. Now I feel bad. Not enough to stop training, unless he asks me to. But I do feel a little guilty making him come home if he really hates it so much. I shrug. “He probably just feels bad that I was attacked on his watch last night.” I point out the bruises around my neck and watch, with mild satisfaction, as Rook’s eyes widen. “I was pretty shaken up after being strangled over the bar, so Wulf offered to teach me a little self-defense. That’s it. Nothing else is going on.” I smirk when he frowns. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
“Me too,” Rook says. “My baby brother could really use a good woman to make him settle down.”
“Ha!” I doubt that’s going to happen any time soon.
Rook startles at my laugh, but then chuckles. He understands his brother better than I do. He’s wishful thinking, and he knows it. He decides to change the subject instead of arguing the point any further. “So you were attacked over the bar last night? How’d that happen?”
We reach the end of my laps, and I look around for Wulf again. He’s still talking to his alpha now, but the conversation looks more relaxed. Both men are watching me still, but this time their focus isn’t just on me. It’s on Rook and me together. They both seem curious about Rook’s interest in me. I realize, now, that Wulf is giving his brother and me space, and I barely suppress a groan. Geez. Bunch of meddling busybodies!
“Nora?”
I turn my attention back to Rook and try to remember his question… Oh, the attack, right. “Yeah, it was just this stupid winter faerie. He grabbed me when I poured him a drink last night. I got a little colorful with my rejection. Guess I pissed him off, because he snapped and tried to strangle me.”
Rook’s eyes narrow, and a faint glow begins to shine from them. “Does that happen often?” His voice lowers and gets all growly like his brother’s does when he’s pissed. “Guys trying to grab you when you pour them drinks?”
“Often enough. Hence the reason I jumped at the self-defense lessons.”
The noise that escapes Rook next is a flat-out werewolf growl. No other way to describe it. “Whoa, dude. Relax.”
Rook blinks and shakes his head, as if startled he’d almost wolfed out right in front of me. “Sorry.”
“It’s all good. I just don’t need to witness my first werewolf shift right now.”
That reclaims his attention, and he smiles at me. “You haven’t seen a wolf shift before?”
“No. I was raised in the human world. I knew about the underworld, but no one was sharing their secrets with me, if you know what I mean. So really, I’m a newbie to all of it.”
“Oh. Well, allow me to give you a tour of the compound and explain a little more about my kind after I show you a few moves.”
He wants to teach me about werewolves? I won’t say no to that. “Yeah, sure. I’d like that. I might be allowed to be part of the underworld now, but so far most of the underworlders I’ve met have been close-lipped about everything.”
“Habit,” Rook says, stripping off his hoodie to reveal the most muscled body I’ve ever seen. The thin material of his black tank top does nothing to hide his ripped body. It’s hard not to drool. “Most underworlders are really wary around humans, even the ones who know about our world—which there aren’t many of. Wolves are
different. We blend better.”
Honey, I’ve got news for you. In no way would you blend in a human crowd, I think as I try to tear my gaze from his amazing body. I may not date, but just because I don’t want to get involved with guys doesn’t mean I don’t notice them. Rook is impossible to not notice.
“All right,” he says, moving to stand directly in front of me. “How did this guy grab you?”
Forcing myself to get my hormones under control, I grip my wrist where the faerie jerk grabbed my arm the night before. There are a few bruises there, too. Rook’s jaw clenches when he sees them, but he doesn’t growl again. He reaches for my other wrist and says, “Okay, there are a couple of ways you can escape this grip, even if you’re not as strong as your opponent.”
For the next half hour, Rook takes me through a handful of different moves to break a hold. Skin-to-skin contact is unavoidable. At first, I worry because I don’t know Rook, but he keeps his thoughts pretty focused on training me. He thinks I’m gorgeous, but my beauty worries him. I’m too vulnerable to be so stunning, so he dives headfirst into teaching me to protect myself from predators.
Wulf never once interrupts us. When we’re finished, and Rook asks again if he can give me a tour of the compound, Wulf sits down at a weight machine and waves me off. “Go look around. I’ll wait here until you’re done.” The man has his shirt off now and is all sweaty. I guess hotness isn’t the only thing to run in the Winters family. Muscles do, too. Hot damn.
The first stop on the “tour” happens to be the alpha’s office. I’m not really surprised, but I don’t feel prepared to meet the pack alpha, either.
Alpha Toth is a large, formidable-looking man, though, again, I get the feeling both Rook and Wulf are more dominant than he is. I’m not sure how I can tell; I just know. That puts me at ease a little as the bulky, dark-haired, dark-eyed werewolf stands up and comes around his large desk to greet me. “Miss Jacobs, I’m Alpha Peter Toth. Welcome to the Huron River pack compound. It’s wonderful to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too. And, please, call me Nora.” I can’t refuse when he offers a hand to shake. Luckily, he gives me a quick, firm pump and then lets go. I still catch a single odd thought. I hope I don’t regret this.
Rook shuts the door to the office about the same time as Alpha Toth says, “Please have a seat.”
He waves to a set of wingback chairs in front of his desk and moves to sit back down in his own chair. Rook encourages me to sit in one of the guest chairs and takes the other. There’s a grave tension in the air. “I’m sorry,” I say, my heart kicking up with anxiety. “What’s this about? Was I not supposed to come here? Wulf said it would be all right.”
Rook chuckles. “You’re not in trouble, Nora.”
Alpha Toth is still wearing a grim face, so I’m skeptical of Rook’s reassurances. Not that I don’t want to believe I’m safe with Wulf’s brother—he obviously thought I would be, or he wouldn’t have let me go off with him—but my track record with underworlders isn’t the best.
“I’m not being kidnapped, am I?” I ask. “Or being forced into a mate bonding of some kind?”
Both men’s jaws fall open when they realize I’m serious.
“Of course not,” Alpha Toth sputters. “Why on earth would you assume something like that?”
“Um, because that’s usually what happens when I find myself unexpectedly alone with strange underworlders.”
Neither man has a response to that.
“Well…” Alpha Toth continues to gape at me, openmouthed like a fish, unsure how to proceed. He clears his throat and shakes off his shock. “I assure you, you are safe here on my lands. We mean you no harm. In fact…”
He shoots Rook an unsure look and grimaces when Rook nods. “Miss Jacobs,” Alpha Toth begins, “the pack needs your help.”
That is so not what I’m expecting that I sit back, blinking at both men. “I’m sorry, what?”
Toth and Rook exchange another glance. The alpha rakes a hand through his hair and then meets my eyes with a grim look of determination. “One of my wolves, Maya Forsythe, was one of the underworlders you rescued last month.”
I nod, remembering the name, and can’t help my smile. “That’s right. Maya said she was part of the Huron River pack.”
“My third in command, actually.”
My eyebrows hit the ceiling. I knew wolves weren’t a sexist lot—their hierarchy is purely based on dominance—but I hadn’t realized Maya was such a strong wolf. Though, she’d been weak at the time from all the magic and silver used to keep her subdued. “Awesome. I like her. Tell her hello for me.”
My comment breaks the tension, and Alpha Toth chuckles. “I’m sure she’ll find you before you leave here today. She’s been wanting to thank you personally.”
I nod. “I’ll make sure I find her, then, but…what does she have to do with me now?” Maybe it’s rude to cut straight to the chase, but I can’t help it. I hate not knowing what’s going on.
Alpha Toth sighs. “She told me about you. She mentioned you were an extraordinary human, though she didn’t know exactly how you’re different. But she knows you have strong power and unique gifts. I’m hoping…that since you used those gifts to find Maya and the others, you might be able to use those gifts to help me with a different problem as well.”
I sit up in my chair. “Are you missing more pack members?”
“Money, actually.” He grimaces. “Someone in my pack is ripping me off.”
The anger in his expression tells me this isn’t about the actual missing money. He’s glaring when he looks at me again, but he’s not glaring at me. He’s just pissed. Supremely pissed. “Miss Jacobs, if this is something you can help with, I’d like to hire you to find the wolf or wolves who would dare betray their pack.”
I’m stunned. I can’t believe he’s asking for my help. I know I’ve garnered a bit of a reputation in the underworld, but I had no idea it was as some kind of supernatural detective. “Mr. Toth—Alpha Toth…I don’t know what to say.”
“What are these powers you have? Is this something you could help me with?”
I think about it. I’d have to mentally vet the pack members somehow, which would be difficult without admitting what I can do, but not impossible. And I might be able to pick up imprints if they have some kind of accounting office.
I don’t necessarily want to get involved in pack business—that could be hazardous to my health. But it felt good last time to be able to use my gifts to help people. And Maya and Wulf, and even Rook, all seem like very good people. Wulf is a great boss, he’s loyal to Terrance, and he offered to help me, even though he hates coming home. Of course I’d want to help his pack.
“I might be able to help,” I finally say. “But it’s not a guarantee.”
“What are your gifts?” Alpha Toth asks, leaning forward in his chair. His eyes are hopeful. “What powers do you have? How can you help?”
I cringe. “I like to keep my gifts to myself as much as possible. I’d become a target if people knew what I can do, but just know that they’re a sort of psychic-based set of gifts. It’s not an exact science, but it can be helpful. If we could handle this very discreetly, I wouldn’t mind doing what I can for you. I’m talking it-can’t-leave-this-room, secret. I’m not exactly Supergirl. If your pack were to find out I was investigating them, and getting all up in their business, well, that could get ugly very quickly.”
Rook and Alpha Toth share another grim look. “Agreed, Miss Jacobs. It won’t leave this room. You have my word.”
I’m surprised he agreed to that one so quickly. Reading the suspicion on my face, Alpha Toth grimaces again. “We’d prefer discretion as well. Having a traitor in our pack is a dangerous thing. It’ll be seen as a huge weakness. Not only would that cause trouble within our own ranks that could lead to mutiny, but it would catch the attention of neighboring packs as well. Unfortunately, a hostile takeover isn’t outside the realm of possibility for so
mething like this.”
Damn. And I thought I had problems. No wonder he was reluctant to ask for my help. He’s putting a shitload of trust in me right now. I can’t leave him hanging. “Okay. I’m in, then. I’ll do everything I can to help.”
“As far as compensation, you can have the money you recover, and if you don’t find—”
I hold up a hand. “I don’t need compensation. I don’t want to be paid for helping out a friend. I’d feel skeezy.”
Alpha Toth sits up in his chair and arches a single brow. It’s the first truly alpha-looking move I’ve seen him make. “I didn’t realize you considered us friends.”
My lips twitch, but I fight my smile. “I don’t. But Wulf is my friend, and you’re his pack.”
Surprise lights up Alpha Toth’s face, and Rook grins a huge, knowing smile that makes me groan. “Stop, dude. Stop right there. Wulf helped me get free from Henry a month ago when the vampire asshole tried to keep me as a pet. He’s also giving me self-defense lessons. I owe him. I told you there’s nothing romantic going on between us.”
Rook’s smile grows even more annoying. “So you say.”
“Ugh. I do say. You do realize that this guy right here”—I point to Alpha Toth—“and Wulf were watching you teach me those moves in the gym earlier with that same shit-eating grin, right? And that Wulf only let you take me on a tour because he thinks you’re interested in me, and he was letting you make your move?”
Rook’s smile drops into a frown as he thinks back on what I’m saying. When he realizes I’m right, he looks to his alpha to confirm it. The man gives him a sheepish shrug that makes Rook curse. “Aw, man. I really thought there was a chance. I mean, he brought you home.”
I laugh. “Yeah, he really didn’t want to do that. But, look, I swear, stop planning my wedding to your brother.”
“Mating ceremony,” Alpha Toth corrects with a smile.
I roll my eyes. “Mating ceremony, then. Whatever. It’s not happening. I don’t date. Sorry.” I think about the task I need to do and add, “I do need to snoop a little, though, so I will still take you up on that tour of the compound, especially if you have, like, a specific financial office where someone is most likely to steal the money from you.”