Fierce Cowboy Wolf
Page 23
She turned back toward Blaze. Her face softened as she immediately realized why he was alone, nursing his beer. “I didn’t realize.”
Blaze waved a hand in dismissal. “Neither does she obviously.”
“I could put the idea in her head, if that would help.”
He shook his head. “No. I want her to come to me on her own terms, see me for what I really am. Otherwise, it wouldn’t mean anything.”
“The friend zone sucks.”
He nodded. “So does the you’re-supposed-to-be-like-a-sister-to-me zone, though you seem to have gotten past that with Maverick.”
She couldn’t bring herself to ask exactly how much he’d seen on those security cameras. “Maverick and I are past that, but unfortunately, that doesn’t change things.”
Blaze laughed. “Of course it changes things. He feels the same way, you know.”
“What do you mean?”
Blaze stood from where he’d been seated, wrapping a friendly, conspiratorial arm around her. “He sees you, Sierra. He has from the very start.” He paused for a beer sip. “That’s why he put your name forth to the council.”
“What?” Sierra’s attention snapped toward him. “I thought it was Wes or you…maybe Austin,” she stammered.
“Don’t tell me you’re surprised?” Blaze made a face like he was trying to decide whether to be confused or laugh. “You know we all love you and think you’re worthy of the position. We’d been waiting for Colt to do it, but when it was clear he was too concerned about how that would look, Maverick beat us all to the punch.”
Suddenly, the floor felt even more unsteady beneath her. Even more so with Blaze’s weight draped over her shoulders. “I–I thought he’d only approved the nomination. Not that he’d given it.”
“He’s the one who brought up the idea of appointing you in the first place. He’s been your main champion from the start. Not to mention once we found out he needed someone to take his last name and lead the Seven Range Pact if he kicked the bucket, you were always first in his mind.”
“What?” Sierra breathed. She’d thought it was only to appease the council. She…
Blaze licked a quick swipe of his tongue over his lips before he followed up with another swig. “Apparently Dakota isn’t the only she-wolf warrior who’s not very observant.”
Sierra frowned. “He never said—”
“Of course he didn’t. Pack rules didn’t allow him to. You weren’t a warrior yet.”
“But after…”
Blaze raised a silencing hand. “You know Maverick well enough to know he doesn’t do anything for the credit.”
Blaze was right. Lately, she knew that more than most.
“But…he had the chance to choose me, years ago, and he chose Rose.”
“We were both there in the cave. Like the packmaster of the Grey Wolves chooses anything for himself.” Blaze lifted his beer toward her. “Congratulations. That’s my wedding gift to you.” He set down his drink, his eyes zeroing in on Dakota. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a friend zone to work my way out of, and you have your husband waiting for you.” He stepped forward, then paused. “You look beautiful, Sierra, and from the looks of it, your husband appreciates your new wedding gown far more than I do.” Blaze gave a not-so-subtle wink.
Sierra turned to find Maverick rapidly approaching her, looking devilishly handsome in his black tux and dress Stetson, despite the hint of bright-red blood she’d left on the edge of his whites. She had more than a few questions for him after Blaze’s admission. She had more than a passing suspicion Blaze had done as much to distract her from probing about why he’d been meeting with Rock. But that wasn’t important now. As Maverick approached, she expected him to stop once he reached her, but before she knew what was going on, all questions were lost because she was in his arms, pressed against him, though they weren’t even on the dance floor.
Maverick’s other hand shot out, catching Blaze by the shoulder before the elite warrior could get very far. The packmaster’s order was a feral growl.
“No one dances with her but me,” Maverick ground out. “Let it be known.”
Blaze nodded as he turned away.
Maverick faced back toward her, still gripping her against him. “What are you doing?” he growled against her ear.
“I’m not sure what you mean, Husband.” She threw the word at him, because now more than ever, she resented it. Now that it was real. Now that she understood all she’d sacrificed.
Had it been worth it?
She only hoped it would pay off as she planned.
“I didn’t mind the first dress, but this?”
She glanced down at the gown Maeve had put her in. The slinky, fitted number was what Maeve had referred to as a mermaid gown, and despite its plunging neckline, which left little to the imagination up front, it had been the perfect choice, because in the back, the sparkling sheer material that trailed behind her was a perfect overlay to hide the small dagger tucked at her back.
“Explain to me what is inappropriate about this dress,” she demanded. She’d thought he wouldn’t be happy with the first, but then he’d laughed along with her. The sound had been perfection in her ears.
He growled. “The fact that people other than me can see you in it.”
She blinked. “You’re jealous?”
“Of course I’m jealous. You’re my wife.” Part of her took umbrage with the possessive tone in those words, but another part of her appreciated it, the part that two nights ago had been writhing and screaming his name as she arched against the porcelain tile of her bathroom wall while he pleasured her with his tongue.
She stifled a smile. “It’s payback.”
“Weren’t the cake tasting, the original monstrosity you called a dress, and the vows payback enough?”
She flashed him a coy grin. “Well, if those decisions had been payback, they were for announcing the date without me, since they preceded that damn kiss of yours, but no. They weren’t payback. I’d already planned those the moment we agreed to get married.”
He gave a derisive snort. “Why am I not surprised?”
“Because you know me.” She cast him a coy grin. “Better than most these days.”
“So whose idea was this then?” His gaze raked over her. Slowly and deliberately. Her nipples puckered in response, and from the aroused growl that rumbled in his throat, he could see that.
“It was your sister’s idea.”
“What a surprise.” The cutting sarcasm in his tone was evident.
“You haven’t even seen the best part.”
Quirking a brow, his eyes fell to the expanse of cleavage showcased at her neckline. “I think you might be right.”
“Your sister says accessories really boost a woman’s confidence.” She leaned closer to him, whispering with a conspiratorial grin. “And I, for one, feel a thousand times sexier when I have my knife hidden in my dress.”
An aroused grumble rose from Maverick’s lips. “You minx.” He shook his head as he swept his gaze over the full length of her again. “You may be in cahoots with my sister, but she’s not on your side as much as you think.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “How so?”
His large hands shaped the curve of her shoulders, moving down the sides of her breasts until he cupped her waist. “She’s clearly vying to be an aunt soon.”
Sierra’s breath caught as his eyes flashed to his wolf.
“Because the only thing I dislike about this dress is that you’re in it where others can see you, and considering the price my sister withdrew from my bank account in order to purchase it, it’s a damn shame it’s going to end up on my office floor.”
She bit her lower lip.
Before she knew what was going on, he lifted her off her feet and flung her over his shoulder.
He growled. “We did dance. Just now. I held you. Music played. That’s the end of it.”
“Not officially.” She laughed as she beat another fist against him, but it didn’t faze him.
“I’m the packmaster. In this, I can do as I damn well please.”
She wasn’t certain she wanted to argue with that—not this time—but she needed to.
For his sake.
“We need to follow the timeline. Stick to the plan.”
“Fuck the plan,” he snarled.
Sierra wasn’t certain she’d ever heard him say anything so sexy before, even in all their “lessons” over the past week. She smiled to herself.
He could have carried her with ease across the dance floor, but at her protest, he relented and set her down. “As you wish,” he grumbled. He’d do as she asked, but that didn’t mean he liked it.
She shook her head. “So impatient. Twenty minutes and then we’ll whisk away like we’re supposed to.” That was the plan, of course.
Over the past several days, the information they’d floated among the pack hinged on that same information being used as their enemy’s means of attack. According to the gossip they’d disseminated, she and Maverick would be leaving at half past midnight to steal away to the packmaster’s apartment for the remainder of the night, before they left on their honeymoon tour the following morning. The only part that was true was the departure time and the honeymoon. It was customary for the packmaster to visit the outer subpacks at least once a year, and a honeymoon with his new she-wolf bride who doubled as an elite warrior offered the perfect occasion. With Sierra and Maverick otherwise alone and completely unguarded, the continuing reception would prove as a distraction for all the pack, and it would present ample opportunity for their enemy to strike once again.
But it wouldn’t be her and Maverick who would be lying in wait.
Instead, the remaining whole of the elite warriors would be armed and ready inside his apartment, while she and Maverick stole away elsewhere using the underground tunnels. It wasn’t a perfect plan, considering neither she nor Maverick were pleased about not being able to catch the rat bastard in their own right and there was no guarantee that whoever came for Maverick would even be the shifter ordering the attacks. But if whoever showed up at the apartment didn’t reveal the identity of their enemy, with all seven packs of the Seven Range Shifters present…
Blaze’s cameras would.
Maverick grunted in response to her delay. In this instance, she recognized it was a reluctant agreement.
“Until then, we dance.” She gripped his hand and pulled him toward her. “Grunt once for yes,” she teased. “No isn’t an option in this case.”
Maverick nipped at her playfully, his wolf eyes flashing. “Dancing is nothing but sex with your clothes on,” he grumbled, though he pulled her into his arms all the same.
She grinned. “Then I have no doubt you’ll be amazing at it, Packmaster.” This time, she didn’t say his title with any disdain. She said it to tease him, to play.
They had plans tonight, plans that involved more than catching their enemies.
And from the feel of his erection pressing against her belly as he held her, they were both highly aware of it. He held her on the edge of the dance floor, gently swaying to a slow-paced country song as the lights dimmed. As they swayed, she rested her head against his chest. If she closed her eyes, it almost felt as if nothing had changed between them in the past ten years, like she’d been here before.
So much so it made her ache for it.
When the song ended, Maverick gently tipped her chin up toward him. “I’ve been waiting for this for far too long, warrior.”
Her breath caught. Something in his gaze made her feel as if he wasn’t discussing the events of the evening that lay before them. She cleared her throat, pulling her gaze away from him lest she get too caught up in the romance of the dimmed lights overhead and the gentle sway of his arms wrapped around her. “Twenty minutes won’t kill you, though it may kill me.”
He lifted his scarred brow.
“I feel like everyone’s watching us.”
“They are.” He shrugged a single shoulder as he swung her into a twirl and then back into his arms again. He was a natural on the dance floor, despite the massive, hulking size of him. “You get used to it.”
“That’s easy for you to say. When packmembers don’t like you, all they do is make up dopey nicknames like the Monster of Montana. When packmembers don’t like me, they put nasty notes in my mailbox.”
Immediately, Maverick brought their dancing to a halt. “What?”
Reluctantly, she launched into an explanation about the notes she’d been receiving over the past few weeks along with Rock’s cryptic warning. With each additional sentence, she could see the rage that radiated off him mounting, and by the end of the dance, the gold of Maverick’s wolf eyes glowed with fury as he bared the sharp points of his canine teeth.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he snarled once she was finished.
She knew that snarl wasn’t directed at her but toward the threats she’d received.
“I didn’t think it was relevant, considering it had started before all this.” She gestured to the reception around them. “That aside,” she said, cutting him off, “when Rock said ‘old enemies,’ it set off alarm bells for me.”
Maverick’s jaw clenched.
“Don’t look now, but those alarm bells are being set off again. We’re not just being looked at, we’re being watched.” She emphasized the word. “By Silas. Last night while you were meeting with that hunter from the Execution Underground, he confronted me.”
“He what?” Maverick growled. He moved to drop his hands from where he held her and move toward the other wolf.
Sierra gripped his biceps—hard. “Maverick,” she hissed, “if it is him, you can’t do anything until we have proof.”
His eyes narrowed and he looked at her as if she’d gone insane. “I’m the packmaster. I don’t need proof.” He moved to step away from her again.
This time, she caught him by the jacket. “He didn’t hurt me. He was just…threatening.”
“Threatening is enough.” From the look of deadly fury in his eyes, she believed it.
She rubbed a hand over one of his shoulders in an attempt to calm him like she did when she was trying to soothe a scared or feral creature. Goodness, he was large. He dwarfed even her, and she was no wee-miss cowgirl. “Only a little,” she whispered.
That didn’t seem to matter.
He stepped forward again, and this time, she had to physically block him. “Maverick, you can’t botch all our plans in the name of protecting me, and I’ve already told you. I don’t need protection.”
He drew toe-to-toe with her, likely the only man on this ranch who wasn’t intimidated by her in the slightest. “If he’s the rat and I call him out, that will only scare whoever he’s working for into a panic, and they’ll be forced to strike. Tonight.”
She couldn’t argue with that. She had to admit it was strategic. Though she knew that reason was only secondary. From the look in his eyes, he was aching for a fight.
“And as for protecting you, you misunderstand,” he said.
She placed her hands on her hips. “I think I understand enough. You’re treating me like I’m weak. Like I can’t defend myself.”
“No,” he growled. “A real man understands he doesn’t protect his woman because she is weak. He protects her because she’s important.” He eased closer, pinning her in place with that sharp, piercing stare. “You, Sierra Cavanaugh, are important to me.” He beat a large fist against his chest. “And as leader of this pack and you
r husband, I’ll be damned if I sit by while any man dares threaten the woman I call my own.” He pushed past her, headed straight toward Silas.
And to her surprise, she didn’t want to stop him.
Chapter 24
Maverick felt more rage now than he ever had in his life. He’d given his trust to the new packmember, if not a small bit of his respect for the way the other man had dared to be so plainspoken with him, and now on an evening that was supposed to be about him and his wife, that same man’s action forced him to remember that because of his duty to the pack, he was best off alone. A man like him could never afford weakness.
Even when that weakness was his love for a fierce female warrior…
Silas saw him coming, but to the former Wild Eight’s credit, he didn’t run. Instead, he watched Maverick’s approach with a resigned sort of withdrawal. Like the dog that he was, he knew what he’d done was wrong, which as far as Maverick was concerned was evidence enough.
Maverick didn’t stop as he reached the other wolf. Gripping the other man by his neck, he lifted and slammed him into the adjacent wall, leaving Silas gasping for breath. The crowd of guests around them fell silent, and a moment later, the music followed. Each passing moment turned the new packmember’s face a deeper shade of red.
But Silas didn’t fight. Didn’t struggle.
He gripped Maverick’s hands against his throat, his eyes flashing to the gold of his wolf.
“Trust and respect. Two things that are easy to lose but the hardest things to get back.” Maverick bared his teeth. “Tonight, you’ve lost mine, mere days after I allowed you to become one of my pack.” His grip tightened as he leaned nose to nose with his enemy. “You’re not fit to beg at her feet,” he snarled.
With one last crushing grip of the other man’s throat, Maverick cast him aside, tossing Silas to the floor. Maverick faced away from the other man to find Colt and the rest of the elite warriors flanking him. With one tilt of his chin, Blaze and Austin stepped behind him and dragged the other man to his feet. They’d toss him in the cells for the night.