Wooing Wynter

by Tianna Xander

  “No. I’m sure they can’t.” Geno lied. He wanted her to calm down and forget her violent outburst from a few minutes ago. The best way to do that was to get her to help him work out the details of the others’ rescue. Not that the two of them could work out many particulars before they discovered where her captors held those she’d left behind.

  In a perfect world, she would have known the address of the building where they had held her. However, Geno was bright enough to realize looking for street numbers, and landmarks would have been the last thing on her mind during her escape.

  Loud, jarring music filled the air between them. Startled, Geno stared at his phone, hardly able to believe the horrible noise came from the palm-sized device. He raised it to his ear with a grimace.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey, that VIN you gave me belongs to a Harvey Winger. He’s a thirty-year-old laboratory assistant, and right now, his car is not at his home if we can believe his GPS.”

  “Note those coordinates. Get your brother and meet the rest of us at the garage. Wynter left others behind, and we need to work out a way to release them before it’s too late.”

  After ending the call, he glanced at Wynter and sighed. She looked so pale and fragile. Her cheeks had lost most of their color, and she sat, head bowed, her hands clasped in her lap.

  The dark circles under her eyes made him want to strike something. She was too beautiful, too frail to have had to endure such an ordeal. Regardless of what she thought of herself, Geno could see her worth, though she could not.

  “We should probably check on the boys, they’ve been too quiet for too long. From my experience, that’s never a good sign.”

  “Yes.” She stood up. “Of course. I’ve only had them for a few days, and I’m not quite used to taking care of them on my own.” Her embarrassment colored her sallow complexion, tipping her cheeks in pink as she wrung her hands. “I have no business trying to care for two little ones. I have no idea what I’m doing.”

  “Then it’s a good thing you have me to help you.” He grinned at her and winked. “I have a lot of experience with boys, having six of my own.” He placed his hand at the small of her back as they exited the room. “And if there’s one thing I learned during their youth, it’s never to trust a prolonged silence, especially if they’re awake and alone.”

  They moved down the hallway, their steps muffled on the carpeted runner.

  “What do you suppose they’re up to?” Wynter whispered as they drew closer.

  “I hope they’re just playing with the new toys, but they could be up to some mischief.” He reached for the door and quietly turned the knob.

  “Oh, my,” Wynter whispered as they peered into the room.

  The two boys were sleeping on the floor. Nicky had his arm around a bright yellow toy truck that was almost as big as he was, and Noah’s head rested on the leg of a large gray and white stuffed dog with long shaggy hair.

  “Full stomachs will induce long naps. From what you said about their breakfast, I think they might sleep for a while.” Geno kept his voice low. He didn’t want to wake them. “Let them sleep. I’ll call one of my daughters-in-law to come to watch over them while we meet with my sons downstairs.”

  “That would be good.” She glanced into the room before he led her away. “I wouldn’t want to leave them alone in case they wake up and get scared.”

  “I don’t want that either, takana.” Geno wanted to pull her into his arms and tell her everything would be okay, but he knew she wouldn’t listen. Frankly, after everything she’d been through, he didn’t blame her.

  He pulled his phone from his pocket and called Birgit, hoping she would have the time and the energy to watch the boys.

  “Hi, dad! I didn’t expect to hear from you today.”

  “To tell you the truth, I didn’t plan to call you, but Wynter needs a babysitter. Would you mind coming over and staying with the twins while they nap?”

  “Sure. I’d say I could use the practice, but it’s going to be a while before my baby is their age.”

  “True. I hadn’t thought of that..” Geno felt like an idiot. It had been so many years since his sons were young enough to need a person to constantly watch over them that he hadn’t thought about the obvious differences between an infant and a six-year-old.

  “That’s okay.” She chuckled. “I like kids. I’ll be over in a few. I’m guessing that you’ll want Reno there as well?”

  “Yes. If you’d tell my son to meet us in the garage, I’d appreciate it.”

  “Consider it done. I’ll see you later.” She disconnected, and Geno pocketed his phone.

  “She’ll be here soon.” He led Wynter back to the kitchen, started a pot of decaffeinated coffee brewing, and grabbed the deli items from the refrigerator. “I’ll take this downstairs. Stay up here until Birgit arrives and then join us in the office.”

  “Who’s the unleaded for?” Wynter gestured to the coffee maker.

  “Birgit. She knows she shouldn’t drink coffee because of the caffeine, but she can’t seem to leave it alone. I made it for her so she can,” he paused, trying to think of the vernacular. “Have her cake and eat it, too, I believe is the way the saying goes.”

  “Does she know you’re sneaking in the decaf?” Wynter grinned. “Or does she think she’s getting away with something?”

  “I don’t know. I might be that I think that I’m getting away with something. It’s hard to be sure. Birgit is a smart one. I’ll give her that.” Geno made his way to the stairway door. “Remember to come right down as soon as she gets here. We must formulate our plan as quickly as we can. There’s no telling how long we’ll have before they—“

  “Before they kill them. I know.” Wynter thinned her lips, her eyes narrowed. “I hope we get there in time to save them. They’re good men and worth saving.”

  “As you say.” Geno started down the stairs before he said something that would make him look like an ass.

  Had Wynter come to care for the man she’d said helped them escape, or was she merely concerned for a friend? Geno wondered if he’d have competition for her affections, or would she eventually come to care for him?

  The thought of her having a connection to the unknown man, made Geno’s chest ache. It was a foreign sensation. He wasn’t the type to fret about anything other than his sons. So, why did he worry now?

  He set his burden down on the counter and turned to look out over the empty station. They didn’t do a lot of business unless outsiders were in town. The locals were more conscious of their carbon footprint and didn’t use fossil fuels more than they needed to.

  It was one reason his sons had agreed to take over the garage. Their livelihood didn’t fully rely on the sale of gasoline or the repair of others’ vehicles. Over the years, the four had reverse-engineered many of the computer systems they’d salvaged from their crashed craft. They held patents on many things in computer technology and electronics. They’d designed a cyclonic vacuum cleaner that could out power most, if not all, of the devices already available. They also held the rights on computer chips for cell phones, satellites, and automobiles. They had even designed a zero-point energy system but had been hesitant to apply for a patent due to stories they’d heard of covert government officials seizing such tech.

  Geno glanced around the office with a smile. His sons had done well here, and he was proud of them. Perhaps more so than he would be willing to admit. He did have an image to uphold, after all. He wanted his sons to continue believing he was tougher than the transiom hull of a Barsillian freighter.

  After arranging the food on the counter, he set the coffee maker to brew and waited for his sons to arrive. He didn’t have a long wait. Rowen and Ronin sauntered in five minutes after he sat down with an engineering magazine.

  “Hey, there pops!”

  “Pops?” He looked at them each in turn and raised a brow. “I hope you were just trying that one out because that bit of slang doesn’t become you.” />
  “It doesn’t become you, either.” Rowen threw himself into the seat next to him with a sigh.

  “Snackage!” Ronin immediately foraged through the food Geno had left on the counter. “I’m glad you brought something to eat. I’m starving.”

  Rowen jumped from his chair and, without delay, joined his twin in pawing through the fare Geno had appropriated from the refrigerator upstairs.

  “I’m glad to see the two of you haven’t changed much since we got here,” Geno said with a chuckle. “I’m not sure I’m ready for you to leave the nest yet.”

  They both looked up, the food forgotten, if only for a moment.

  “Then, you’ve changed your mind about the cal’tratu?” Ronin stood, his hand paused over an open jar of olives, holding a spoonful of the little green delicacies.

  “Well, have you?” Rowen’s hand stopped halfway to his mouth. The dip from the baby carrot he held oozed down over his fingers.

  “You do love me, after all.” Geno grinned and shook his head. He ignored the swelling sensation in the center of his chest. “You’ve actually stopped eating to discover whether or not I still plan to perform the ritual.”

  “Of course, we love you.” They gave him identical scowls, and he chuckled.

  “I knew that. I just wasn’t sure if you loved me more than food.”

  “Only on a good day,” they both said with a snort.

  “And it depends on what food is available.” Rowen grinned. “Had this been chocolate cake, we’d have left you out in the cold, old man.”

  “I see you two made it in time to clean out the bribes,” Ceno said as he held the door for his mate.

  Geno loved the fact that his sons had found such beautiful and exotic mates. Ceno’s Sela, with her mocha skin and greenish-brown eyes, was as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside. All of his daughters-in-law were.

  “Wynter is still upstairs,” Geno told Sela as she looked around. The expression on her face was one of consternation as she found herself alone in the office with a group of men and no woman to back her up.

  “Thanks.” She sidled around the twins who had napkins wrapped around sandwiches, big enough to choke an elephant. “I’ll just go on up and keep her company, then.”

  “She’ll be coming down to help us plan when Birgit gets here. You’re welcome to join us or keep Birgit company while she watches the boys.”

  “I’ll think about that.” She smiled, her hazel eyes twinkling. Standing on her toes, Sela kissed him on the cheek, then made her way into the hallway on her way to the stairs. “See you later.” She waved back over her head before she disappeared around the corner.

  “Where are Xeno and Deno?” He glanced through the plate glass window. “I see Reno and Birgit. He’s taking her up the other way. It’s probably a good thing. The outside stairs aren’t as steep.” He sat back in his seat.

  “We were out in the garage working on cars,” Xeno said as he and his twin stepped into the room. They washed their hands, grabbed two clean shop towels, and wiped them off.

  “We left our women at home.” Deno rested his hands on his hips. “They wanted some time alone to catch up with each other.”

  Charly and Tabitha were sisters but had grown up separately after their parents died in a car accident. They had just found each other and took every available opportunity to spend time together and get to know each other again.

  “You might have left them at home, but if they had wanted to accompany you here, you wouldn’t have been able to say no to that either,” Ceno practically growled the words, his light-blue eyes swirling with untamed aggression.

  “Get your beast under control.” Geno did growl at him. “There is no reason to allow it free rein here.”

  “I’m sorry, Papan.” Ceno bowed his head in a show of respect. “It won’t happen again.”

  “I don’t give a damn if it happens again. Just don’t let it happen when you’re with family.” Geno noticed another absence and asked, “And where in the hell is that big mouth, Jonah? The last thing we need is to have him escape and lead the authorities here.”

  “He’s in the garage. We hooked the magnetic cuffs to a tow chain. I think he’s out there looking through one of our repair manuals,” Deno replied as he glanced back into the garage. “Yep. That’s what he’s doing. I figured it couldn’t hurt since we’re going to wipe his memory anyway.”

  Geno looked up when Reno stepped into the room, followed by Wynter and Sela. “Now that we’re all here, we need to plan a rescue.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  “I DON’T UNDERSTAND why we have to put our lives on the line to go save a bunch of strangers.” Rowen took a bite of his huge sandwich and proceeded to talk with his mouth full. “I mean, shouldn’t their families or clans, or whatever save them?”

  “I don’t believe you—“ Wynter stopped when Geno raised his hand and gave her a look that almost audibly said, “shut up.” She couldn’t believe his son had just said that.

  “For one, their people have no idea where to find them, and we have no idea how to find their loved ones to mount a rescue. Two, you will help me save those people because we owe them.” He leveled his stare on his two youngest sons. “You owe them. If they hadn’t helped Wynter escape, you would soon be in mourning.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?” Wynter asked, her eyes wide. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. I’m grateful that you want to help me, but they don’t owe me anything.” And why would they be in mourning?

  “Yes, ma’am,” the two younger twins said in unison. “We do owe you. If not for your arrival, our father would soon be on his way back to Zolon to perform the ritual of cal’tratu.”

  “That suicide thing?” She brought her hand to her neck and turned her gaze on Geno. “What do I have to do with that?” They barely knew each other. Why would her presence make a difference?

  “What you have to do with it isn’t important at the moment.” Geno turned his gaze on her. “Or would you rather discuss that than the possibility of rescuing those who you left behind?”

  It sounded so horrible when he said it that way. He made it seem as though she had a choice. If she’d had an option, she would have gotten them all out of there when she left.

  “We need to make a plan.” She twisted her fingers together until they hurt. “I know this really isn’t your fight, but they helped me when I had no one. They stood up for me when our captors mistreated me, and they cared for me when I was too weak to care for myself after the scientists took too much of my blood.” She raised her chin and swallowed every bit of her pride.

  “Please help me save them. I couldn’t live with myself if my friends died because I didn’t go back and try to set them free.”

  “We will do our best.” Reno straightened, raised his hand to his chest, and bowed. “After we get done with them, those who have tortured you and the others will know true fear.” His eyes narrowed, and they sparked a bit before he glanced at the others.

  Wynter swallowed, her heart pounding. You’re imagining things. His eyes did not light up. Whatever she’d seen, it surely wasn’t Reno’s ice-blue eyes glowing a pure molten silver. Nope. She’d imagined it. They might be shifters, but they weren’t any weirder than she was now.

  “I pledge my allegiance to you and to those who still suffer in that hellhole.” Ceno, too, raised his hand to his chest and bowed.

  Realizing she was witnessing some kind of formal acceptance, Wynter nodded. She rested her hand over her stomach as she realized the tight knot in her middle began to unravel a bit. “Thank you, Reno, and Ceno. I know the others will be grateful for your help, as well.”

  When Geno’s other sons did the same, there was no doubt it was some strange formal thing. Was it because they wanted to save other shifters, or did it have something to do with the cal’tratu thing they mentioned?

  Either way, it didn’t matter. She had the help she needed, and if they could all shapeshift into wolves the way she
could, they would not only rescue the others, but possibly put the fear of kidnapping anyone else into those crazy scientists’ heads.

  “What I don’t understand is why they’re experimenting on shifters.” One of the older twins said. She thought it was Deno, but she wasn’t sure. “What’s the point?”

  “If what happened to me is any indication, they’re trying to make more shifters.” What kind of lunatic would want to make more shapeshifters? Which seemed like a dangerous thing. “Why would anyone want to make someone a werewolf?” Xeno reached across the table for a pickle.

  “You’re not a werewolf, Wynter. You’re a wolf shifter. There’s a difference,” Geno said as he grasped her trembling hands. “Charly and Tabitha’s grandparents have been educating us on the Earth’s shifter history and customs. A werewolf is a wolf shifter who has gone rogue and preys on humans. A Wolf shifter is someone like you—a person who can shift into a wolf but doesn’t prey on others while in wolf form. Even while in your human shape, you are stronger and faster. Perhaps they are attempting to breed a new kind of soldier.”

  “Then... I’m not a monster?”

  “You, a monster?” Geno chuckled and drew her against his side, his arm wrapping around her waist. His warmth seeped into her, and her nerves began to settle a bit. “I am more of a monster than you will ever be.”

  “I doubt that, but I appreciate your effort to make me feel better.” She patted him on the chest and pulled away.

  Wynter didn’t like the way his sons looked at her. What if they didn’t appreciate the fact that some strange older woman was getting close to their dad? She glanced at Geno. He looked damn good for his age.