by Celia Kyle
Chapter Eight
Good lord, the woman couldn’t take an order to save her life. How the hell had she not only survived in the Army, but actually thrived? Ignoring her, Zeke had to admit a part of him would have been disappointed if she hadn’t followed him into City Hall. A bigger part was irritated by her disobedience. That was always the trouble with humans—they defied orders at every turn.
Just like Mayor Bertrand Calhoun.
The rat bastard mayor had maintained a tenuous agreement with the Soren family for years to leave Wolf Woods undeveloped. As one of the few humans in Tremble who knew the true nature of the Soren pack, Calhoun should have had some damn respect. Apparently not even the implicit threat of werewolves living amongst the human residents of Tremble was enough to keep him in line. Time to turn the threat from implicit to explicit.
“Asshole,” Zeke growled under his breath as he stormed into Calhoun’s outer office.
Calhoun’s secretary, a plump, middle-aged woman with a bad dye job, looked up from her computer screen as Zeke stomped in. Having dealt with him before, her eyes widened in apprehension. He had to give it to her though—she was dedicated to her job.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Soren,” she started, her voice spiking in pitch as her anxiety increased. “Mayor Calhoun is in a meeting at the moment and can’t be disturbed. Can I take a message?”
Slick, but not slick enough.
Without slowing his gait—or glancing over his shoulder as Valerie followed him into the office—he snapped, “He should have thought about that before disturbing me, Marsha.”
Marsha leapt from her chair and tried to stand in his way as he made a beeline for Calhoun’s private office door.
“Mr. Soren, I’m afraid I have to insist—”
Zeke stopped inches in front of the woman and scowled down at her. “Marsha, I know for a fact you’re not paid enough to keep me off his doorstep. Why don’t you do us both a favor and take an early lunch?”
He allowed his upper lip to curl back just a touch, showing off his slightly lengthened fangs. Marsha’s eyes grew as wide as hubcaps and she wisely stepped out of Zeke’s path in a hurry.
“Bertrand!” Zeke roared as he slammed open the doors leading to the mayor’s inner sanctum.
He planted himself in the center of the room, fists jammed onto his hips and fire blazing in his eyes. Doing his best to ignore Val slipping in before the doors bounced closed, he focused on the scene before him.
Calhoun sat behind his desk, a paunchy man at the tail-end of middle age, with jowls and beady eyes that looked up at Zeke with some measure of surprise. His stubby fingers held a fancy fountain pen over some official-looking papers that sent a chill down Zeke’s spine.
The man sitting across from Calhoun couldn’t have been any different from the mayor, in his bespoke suit and hundred-dollar haircut. Tall, thin and haughty as hell, he lifted a curious eyebrow at Zeke but gave no other indication that the sight of a very burly, very angry man storming into the office was out of the norm. Judging by the guy’s demeanor, maybe it wasn’t.
“What the filthy fuck is going on here?” Zeke barked as he slammed his hands down on the desk and glowered at Calhoun.
The mayor shot a worried glance at the other man and then found his balls. He set his flabby jaw and gave Zeke an equally dark look before forcing a smile in the direction of his guest.
“Dick, would you mind giving me a minute to have a word with my—” he let his smarmy gaze settle on Zeke again “—constituent?”
The dick in the chair sat perfectly still for several beats, as if considering whether he’d comply, but then stood slowly to give Zeke time to give him space as he brushed imaginary lint off his suit. Despite Zeke’s aggressive posture and superior size, Dick simply smirked and sauntered out as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
His calmness in the face of Zeke’s anger only spiked the alpha’s rage-o-meter. What was it with everyone defying him lately? Maybe he needed to hit the gym more. Or maybe he’d simply rip Calhoun’s head from his shoulders. That would get the message across. Plus, it would feel so good.
As soon as the door clicked shut, Calhoun turned his quickly reddening face toward Zeke. “I’ve put up with too many of your family’s shenanigans over the years, Soren, but who the hell do you think you are, barging into my office like that while I’m in the middle of a meeting. The man is on the cusp of turning this town into something really special! Your father—”
“My father,” Zeke interrupted, crossing his arms over his chest and letting his biceps bulge just enough to show Calhoun exactly what he was up against, “would be pretty damn interested in knowing what’s going through your head. Don’t stand there and play dumb, Bertrand. Wolf Woods has always been off limits to developers, and now this? Was my father even in the ground before you started plotting to sell off our land?”
Calhoun matched Zeke’s angry stance, though with much less effect. “First of all, it’s not your land. It’s public land, and the man standing in my lobby has been offering obscene amounts of money for that useless swath of overgrown forest for years. Second, I know my arrangement with Boyd better than you, and if you would have taken a single one of my calls over the last few months, I would have filled you in.”
Red flags flapped frantically in Zeke’s brain. “What the hell are you talking about? What arrangement?”
Calhoun huffed out a disbelieving snort. “I guess it was too much to hope that Boyd gave you the long and short of it before he died.” He shot a wary glance at Val, and then gave Zeke a questioning look.
“She’s with me,” Zeke said, casting a quick glance back at Val, who stood in front of the door in a soldier’s stance. Despite her apparent stoicism, Zeke sensed that every muscle in her body was tensed and ready to spring into action if necessary. She really was one hell of a human—but now wasn’t the time for that nonsense. “She won’t say anything.”
“Fine,” Calhoun said, growing more comfortable in his newfound moxie. “Your father was a pragmatist, Zeke. His annual… donation ensured Wolf Woods remained undeveloped. By the way, he never gave me anything remotely close to Dick McNish’s lowest offer, but I worked with him because I felt it was in the best interest of the community as a whole.”
A strange hiss inside Zeke’s head almost drowned out Calhoun’s words, but he couldn’t deny hearing them. He couldn’t quite believe them, either. His entire body vibrated with anger and denial. Bribes? His dad had bribed Calhoun all these years to keep Wolf Woods wild? It didn’t seem possible, and yet… it would certainly explain why Boyd Soren constantly groused about corrupt politicians.
“No. No way.” Zeke shook his head, as if it might shake out this new information and he’d never have to think about it again. “I don’t believe it.”
A cocky smile slid across Calhoun’s flabby face. “You’d better believe it, boyo. It’s the truth, and deep down you know it.”
The worst part of it all was that Zeke believed it. Boyd Soren had been a strong leader, but he definitely had his faults. It would have been exactly like him to justify paying off a public official if it meant retaining control of the woods that separated Soren pack lands from the town of Tremble. Still, Calhoun was a shithead for telling him like that.
“So, what? You waited until I was mourning my father and my mother to drop this bombshell on me, thinking I wouldn’t notice?”
Calhoun rolled his eyes and then returned to his high-back leather chair, no doubt paid for with taxpayer—or his father’s—money. “Check your phone, Zeke. I’ve been calling you for ages. I guess you think you’re too good to do business with me, huh?”
Zeke stared at the mayor, jaw dropped and eyes bugging. Calhoun chuckled.
“Why’d you think I was calling you, boyo?”
Rage and confusion mixed in his blood. It wasn’t a feeling an alpha enjoyed, and that only served to make him angrier.
“To solicit bribes for the public works contracts,” he said with as much con
fidence as he could muster. His world had been flipped upside down over the course of a couple of minutes. He wasn’t sure what to believe anymore.
Calhoun gaped at him for a second before shaking his head in pity. “Wow, I really overestimated you, Zeke. Your company won those contracts on merit, nothing more. You really think I’m some greasy-palmed scumbag. Don’t you?”
“As a matter of fact,” Zeke seethed, not giving in to the turmoil inside.
It took every ounce of energy he had to hold back his wolf. What sweet revenge it would be to shift right there in the middle of Calhoun’s office and literally rip him a new asshole. Only Val’s presence held him in check.
“Wanna know what else I think?” Zeke asked, his voice dropping to a low, threatening pitch that brought a flash of fear into Calhoun’s beady eyes. “I think you need to remember who you’re dealing with and what kind of sway my family has in this town. Watch your back, Bertrand.”
A small yet strong hand landed on his shoulder and he whipped his head around to see Val standing next to him.
“Down boy,” she murmured to him, though her shark-like eyes never wavered from Calhoun.
Her iron gaze seemed to have even more effect on the mayor than all of Zeke’s shouting and bravado. The coward shrank back into his chair, trying desperately to disappear. When a slow, devilish smile turned her lips upward, Calhoun actually whimpered a little.
“Let’s get out of here, big guy,” she said so softly and with such malice it raised goosebumps on Zeke’s arms. “We’re at City Hall. I’d bet good money there’s an upstanding judge somewhere around here who would be very interested to hear about Mayor Calhoun’s most recent… transaction.”
Zeke allowed her to drag him toward the door, a grin splitting his face in two. Who needed fangs with a sharp tongue like Val’s?
“Wait!” Calhoun jumped from his chair, frantic to stop them.
Val was doing such a bang-up job of handling Calhoun, Zeke followed her lead, just to see how it played out. She stopped with her hand reaching for the doorknob and then slowly turned to face the mayor. Crossing her arms, she waited for him to speak, not giving an inch of gained ground. A total badass.
Calhoun stammered and stuttered for a bit and then finally managed to find his balls. “I’ll give you forty-eight hours to match McNish’s offer!”
Zeke wanted to tell him to shove his offer up his own ass and then go find that judge, but Val’s grip on his arm tightened, telling him to chill.
Sure enough, Calhoun scribbled something on a piece of scrap paper and waved it at Val, ignoring Zeke completely. She watched him for several long beats, showing him exactly who was in charge, before crossing the distance between them. Snatching the paper from his hand, she didn’t even glance at it—just shoved it into her back pocket.
“A week,” Val countered.
Calhoun sputtered, as if it was the most ridiculous request he’d ever heard, but Val remained perfectly still, staring at him. Finally, he coughed and dropped his gaze to his desk.
“Fine. A week.”
Val spun on her heel, a satisfied smirk on her face, and walked briskly toward the door. As she whipped it open, she said over her shoulder, “Nice doing business with you, Bertrand.”
Zeke followed her in a state of amused shock. He’d all but threatened the mayor’s life, yet the piece of shit had stood up to him—knowing full well that Zeke was a fucking werewolf! Yet a little wisp of a human had barely said two words and he’d bent over and asked for more.
What a fine mate!
Zeke frowned at what his wolf was telling him, even if he didn’t totally disagree. His beast was simply enamored with her take-no-prisoners attitude, and while it had come in handy, he wasn’t used to women protecting him. It was supposed to be the other way around.
As they strode through the office, Val gave Dick McNish an icy glare. He returned the greeting with a placid nod. If her death glare didn’t get to him, nothing would.
Zeke struggled to keep his gaze from drifting to her round, muscular ass. Every time it did, his heart would do somersaults in his chest, and that wouldn’t do. Not at all. Val was proving to be a force to be reckoned with, but none of that made her his mate. Still, he couldn’t deny she was pretty special.
For a human.
Chapter Nine
Valerie zoned out as she followed Zeke in her Jeep, listening to the comforting rumble of the engine and the crunch of tires over the gravel roads. The pastoral beauty of rural Georgia—with its trees with long, leafy limbs and impressively thick trunks—was quite beautiful, and part of her wished she was riding with Zeke so she could tell him so.
After their little showdown in the mayor’s office, she’d felt oddly excited. As if every nerve in her body had caught fire, igniting with a spark shared between her and the sexy shifter. Even thinking about the undeniable connection between them was absurd. Surely, she imagined it. That had to be it. After all, she was human, and he was a wolf. Nothing could ever happen between them. It had to be some kind of biological impossibility. So why was she drawn to him like a bee to honey?
Trees turned into greenish-gray blurs as she racked her brain for an explanation. It had been quite a while since her last sexual encounter, so maybe her libido was simply fooling her into thinking Zeke was something more than a smoking hot dude. Every time they were together, heat rolled between them like ocean waves caught inside a small bay.
Although they were both pissed off at the same people, she couldn’t figure out why she was mad in the first place. The situation between Zeke and the mayor shouldn’t have held any interest for her. She wasn’t part of his pack. Hell, she wasn’t even a member of the greater Tremble community. She was an outsider, just passing through, yet she seemed to feel Zeke’s rage as intensely as if it were her own.
It had to be her internal and unwavering sense of justice. Corruption of any kind made her blood boil, especially when it came to men in positions of authority. And she could smell the corruption in Tremble City Hall from a mile away. That had to be it. It certainly couldn’t have anything to do with personal concern for the Soren pack. Yup, it was the general injustice of it all that irked her, nothing else.
When they pulled up to what Zeke insisted on calling “his” house instead of the pack house, Val hopped out before Zeke could hurry to open her door. So-called chivalry made her uncomfortable, mostly because men always wanted to do things for her that she was perfectly capable of doing herself. Besides, considering her attraction to Zeke, the smart move was to keep as much distance between their bodies as possible.
Before she took two steps, the front door opened, and Fang tore outside as fast as her spindly legs could carry her. The silly beast jumped around, pranced on her hind feet, ran circles around Val and generally acted like the most adorable idiot on the planet. Val scooped her up and let the pooch give her puppy kisses all over her face. No matter what Val was feeling, Fang kisses always made things better.
“If you needed a shower, you could have just used the one down the hall from your room,” Zeke said, chuckling at the scene.
“Don’t listen to him, princess,” Val murmured at Fang, speaking loudly enough for Zeke to hear. “He’s just jealous. Were you a good little princess while I was gone? Did that stinky mutt from this morning bully you?”
Fang finally settled into Val’s arms, panting happily as she stared at her mistress with unadulterated love. Zeke, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes at her before stomping up the porch steps. Val buried her face in the dog’s neck to hide her grin.
The handsome blond man who’d greeted them the night before leaned casually against the door jamb. He stood slightly taller than Zeke, but with a leaner, less muscular frame. Of course, Zeke had muscles on top of his muscles, so that didn’t mean much.
“Morning, Zeke,” the man glanced pointedly at Val.
Grudgingly, Zeke introduced them. “Sorry, I forgot the formal introductions last night. Warren Edgecomb, meet
Valerie Logan, Chloe’s college roommate.”
“Nice to meet you, Valerie.” Warren stepped forward and shook her hand—perhaps for a moment longer than strictly necessary, but not in a creepy way. A soft warning growl came from Zeke’s direction and Warren quickly dropped her hand and flushed red.
“Call me Val,” she replied, amused at Zeke’s jealousy. She was tempted to torture him a bit by flirting with this handsome fellow, but her heart wasn’t in it. Besides, Zeke no doubt wanted to discuss their encounter with Mayor Calhoun. On top of all that, she was famished. “I think it’s time for these two lovely ladies to get some grub. Isn’t that right, princess?”
Fang yipped her agreement.
Leaving the two men, Val followed delicious smells into the house. Before she was out of earshot, Zeke said something about calling the elders for a meeting that night. They’d no doubt have a lot to talk about.
Fang growled softly as soon as they stepped into the kitchen, and it only took a second for Val to figure out why. Levi stood next to a stunning blonde at the big kitchen island. Even though the enforcer towered over the woman, she was still taller than average. Supermodel tall. And supermodel gorgeous. Long, blonde hair tucked into a messy bun, big curves up top tucking into a tiny waist, flaring back out into voluptuous hips. She looked like a mash-up of Marilyn Monroe, Jessica Rabbit and one of the Kardashians.
Valerie had never felt entirely comfortable around really beautiful women, mostly because they usually had nothing in common. But this woman gave her a gentle smile that carried a hint of sadness, as if she’d lived with it for so long it had become an integral part of her soul. Val instantly wanted to wrap her in a hug, and Val wasn’t the hugging type.
Levi glanced up when he noticed the woman’s distraction, and his face lit up like a Beyoncé concert on steroids.
Oh boy, here we go again.
“Oh hey, Val,” he said, working really hard to not look too eager—and failing miserably. She had no one to blame but herself. “How’s it going?”