by Lisa Kessler
Chandler rested his elbows on his knees. “The jaguar shifter who bit me was the son of the founder of the Nero Organization. They pioneered research into werewolves trying to create a soldier with heightened senses and strength, fast healing, and even psychic skills. They ended up driving good men to suicide and brain hemorrhages.”
Asher cleared his throat, drawing my attention to him. “I helped the wolf pack in Reno destroy Nero, but we discovered a satellite facility in Flagstaff where some of the jaguar shifters have taken refuge. They accepted work from Evolution Defense.”
“Work…as in kidnapping children?” I asked, unsure if I wanted to hear the answer.
Asher nodded as a knot formed in my stomach. I glanced over at Chandler. “That’s why you hustled me out of Phoenix.”
He nodded slowly. “That car that was tailing us was most likely reporting back to either the jaguar shifters in Flagstaff or to Evolution Defense.”
I stood up, needing a little distance from them so I could think. “But they’re a biotech company. Deidra is a researcher and a businesswoman. She—”
“She hired someone to kidnap Bart.” Naomi looked up at me, bringing her hand up to her forehead to keep the sunlight out of her eyes. “She also experimented on a military unit called the Timberwolves. Brad Newport was the leader. They have our heightened senses, but no wolf to tether the instincts.”
My heart pounded in my ears. “Why are you telling me this?”
Chandler rose, taking a step toward me. “We couldn’t figure out how they developed the serum. We thought maybe the jaguars in Flagstaff had shared some of Nero’s research, but now…”
His words faded away before he finished, but I had no trouble filling in the blank. “Oh god. All the blood draws and the dialysis treatments. You think they got it…from me.”
My skin crawled as the realization dug its claws into me. I’d been violated on a molecular level. Lied to and deceived. Betrayed. I was going to be sick.
“Wendy, wait,” Chandler called as I made my way around the house in borrowed clothes and flip-flops.
I didn’t slow down. My vision blurred as I hustled for his car in the driveway.
He caught up as I reached for the door. “Please. Talk to me.”
“All this time, I thought I could go back to the way I was. I thought…” I shook my head, refusing to cry. “I feel stupid and used. I…” Looking up into his eyes, I didn’t see judgment or pity. He looked…guarded. “There are people out there…soldiers are infected…because of me.”
Chandler grabbed my shoulders tightly. “You’re a wolf, Wendy. That’s not an infection; it’s part of your soul now, just like my jaguar. And those soldiers were juiced up by Evolution Defense. It’s not your fault; it’s on them.”
“I should’ve asked questions. What were they doing with my blood? Why weren’t they charging me for the labs and trials? But I was so focused on finding a cure, on finding someone to save me, I never thought about anyone else.”
“You can change that.” He searched my eyes. “You might be the only one who can.”
I raised a brow. “How?”
“The pack hasn’t been able to find Deidra Harlow or a way inside Evolution Defense, but you have.” He glanced up at the house and back to me. “The only way to stop them is to destroy the research, and to do that, we need a way in.”
“I’m not an undercover cop or a spy. I wouldn’t even know where to start.” I shook my head, breaking eye contact. “My only assets are financial.”
He cursed under his breath and met my eyes. “Are you shitting me right now?”
I crossed my arms, frowning. “What?”
He looked me up and down. “Just waiting for you to stop being a victim.”
I shoved him back a step. “Screw you.” He surprised me by pushing me back. My jaw went slack for a second as anger smoldered in my belly. “Why are you being an asshole?”
“Why are you forgetting you’re a badass werewolf?” he goaded me, his hands beckoning me to attack him again.
“I’m not a badass anything. I’m a stupid heiress that almost put targets on the backs of my dead brother’s children!” I shouted as the tears fed my rage.
“Bullshit.” Frustration lined his face. “I saw that white wolf on Lookout Mountain. The wolf stared right at me, taunting me, daring me to come closer. That wolf is inside you, Wendy.”
I blinked. The plane. “That was you?”
“Yeah.” He kept his stance wide and baited me to come at him again. “And that wolf… She’s not afraid of anything. Stop holding her back.”
All my anger, from my parents’ deaths, to my brother’s, to the wolf that attacked me, to Deidra’s lies and Evolution Defense’s betrayal, they all combined into a tempest of fury. I lunged at Chandler, knocking us both to the ground. I punched him in the stomach before he wrestled back and rolled me over until I was underneath him.
He pinned me in the dirt while I fought to break free of his grip. “Let me go!” I screeched.
“There she is. Feel that?” He released my wrists, but he didn’t get off me. I stared up into his eyes, surprised to see blood at the corner of his lips. He smiled, unfazed by my attack. “You’re a fighter. Don’t ever let them make you think otherwise.”
I blinked as his words sank in. My entire life I had someone to protect me—my mom and dad, then my brother. And when I lost Brock, I ran to find a cure, another savior. It never occurred to me that this wolf inside truly was part of me.
I could save myself. I already had by surviving the attack.
There was no way I could articulate the gift this man had just given me. So I pulled him to me and kissed him. My tongue parted his lips, and I moaned as I tasted his mouth. His fingers tightened in my hair, and deep in my soul, my wolf howled.
Mine, she whispered. I wasn’t sure how I understood, but I did.
Chandler was ours.
Mate.
His nostrils flared as he broke the kiss and stared into my eyes. “We can train you to defend yourself in hand-to-hand combat and how to shoot a gun, but no one can make you a fighter. Only you can decide to be that. You have to embrace it.”
“I am a fighter,” I whispered. “Let’s bring them down.”
“Let’s do it.” He got up and offered me a hand. “You’ve got a mean right hook, by the way.”
I took his hand, laughing as he pulled me up. “Sorry about that.”
“I was asking for it.” He didn’t let go of my hand. Instead, his fingers laced with mine as we walked back toward the house.
“What were you going to do if I melted into a puddle of tears?”
“No chance.” He chuckled. “I saw that lone wolf on the mountain during the full moon. You just needed to find her.”
I stopped him before we got to the porch. “Thank you.”
“For pissing you off?” He arched a brow.
“No.” I rolled my eyes, then sobered. “For believing in me.”
CHAPTER 10
Chandler
While Asher called the rest of the pack to come to the ranch, I struggled to rein in the desire Wendy kindled in me. Seeing her claim the wolf as a part of herself, tasting the passion in her kiss, she made it impossible to think straight. I held her hand all the way back up to the house before I’d realized it. It seemed natural.
Damn, I was losing the battle between self-preservation and destruction. She was a werewolf. That meant she had a mate out there somewhere. She would touch him skin to skin and her wolf would recognize him. She’d know.
And I’d be forgotten.
To make it worse, Bart and Ben were her nephews, her blood. She was going to be a part of my Pack. I’d have to either leave this pack, or learn to accept her with her mate, whoever the lucky bastard turned out to be.
Other than my sister, this pack was the only family I had. I wasn’t going to walk away. But if I didn’t find a way to get Wendy out of my head and keep her out of my heart, I could lose every
thing.
Hearing the little guys giggle with their new aunt wasn’t helping. I checked my work e-mail on my phone, skimming the subject lines, hoping one might be a lead on a story. Anything to get me out of this house.
One jumped out at me:
We know who you are.
I clicked it, but the body of the e-mail was empty. I checked the sender’s address. Random numbers and letters at Yahoo.com. Dead end. Plenty of spam e-mails came through the station e-mail accounts, including a few Tin Foil Hat conspiracy theorists every few weeks.
But I rarely was threatened. I took a screenshot and deleted the e-mail. It was probably nothing, but it didn’t hurt to have a record of it. I could look into it later. Right now, I had bigger problems to worry about.
The first was a woman with silver eyes. My gaze wandered to the living room where Naomi and Wendy were playing with Ben and Bart. Ever since Wendy had tackled me out front, I’d been wrestling with myself. Seeing her connect with her wolf reminded me of when I’d first been bitten, of darker days.
I scrolled through my contacts, my thumb hovering over Vivi’s name. Talk about dark days. Right after I’d been bitten, I’d shown up on her doorstep and forced my way into her apartment. Not only was she my ex, she was also my sister’s best friend. My sister, Madison didn’t know what I’d become, but Vivi did. And I had frightened her that night.
Calling her would pierce old wounds; it wouldn’t help anything. Part of me was desperate to rip them open, to remind myself of the pain in my future if I didn’t change course. Vivi broke my heart. This was what I needed to remember to keep myself form making the same mistake again.
Fuck it.
I went out back onto the patio and pressed her name. It rang twice. Maybe she had the good sense not to answer.
“Chandler?”
No such luck.
I cleared my throat. “Hey, Vivi.”
“Is everything okay?” Music played in the background. His music. Logan Reynolds. Her high school sweetheart I’d heard so much about. The one she swore she hated. The one she left me for. Now she was part of his pack up in Reno.
His mate.
And I was alone.
There was that ache I was looking for. I waited for it to swell, to numb my heart, but it wasn’t as vicious as I had hoped. “Yeah. I just… I never apologized for…that night after I was bitten.”
“Don’t worry about it.” The music stopped, and she added, “It’s ancient history now.”
Hearing her voice used to anchor me when life seemed to be spiraling out of control. Now it just reminded me that while she had been a light in the dark for me, I hadn’t been the same for her.
I was…convenient.
“I threatened you, and I knew you were scared.” I swallowed the lump of guilt. “I wanted you to be.”
“Where is this coming from?” she asked. A muffled male voice sounded on her end of the line.
“I’m part of the Sedona Pack now.” I cleared my throat. “Just wanted to let you know I’m…all right now.”
“Luke told me.” Luke was her mate’s twin brother. “I’m glad you found a family.” She paused. “You deserve that. Does Madison know?”
“No.” My sister didn’t know about werewolf packs. She didn’t even know I’d been bitten, and I intended to keep it that way. This was a dangerous world. “Thanks for keeping her out of all this.”
“I still think she’d understand if you told her the truth.”
Fuck. I never should have called Vivi, but if I wanted to snap out of this infatuation with Wendy, mission accomplished. Just hearing Vivi’s voice, hearing her happy with someone else reminded me of all the plans I’d made for us, for the life we’d never have. The familiar bitterness swelled in my cold heart.
“Madison might understand, but she’s safer if she doesn’t know about werewolves and jaguar shifters.” I stared up at the sky. “Look, just know I’m sorry and I’m better now, okay?”
“I’m glad.”
“Bye, Vivi.”
I ended the call and closed my eyes. Goodbye. That was the constant for me with relationships. I always ended up alone. This was the stab I’d needed.
Fucking love. It wasn’t worth it.
“Chandler, can you give me a ride back to my car?” Wendy came out and stopped beside me. “I need to go home clean up. Asher said the pack is all meeting here for dinner.”
I nodded without looking her way. “I’ve got to get back anyway. I have to be at the station for the evening news.”
She stopped and I glanced her way. Concern lined her face. “You’re not going to be here tonight?”
I shrugged. “Asher will introduce you. I might come by later.”
“Okay.” She didn’t look happy about it, but she didn’t question me further.
Asher came outside as I took my keys out of my pocket. “Are you leaving?”
I nodded. “The news waits for no man.”
Asher clasped my forearm in the traditional pack greeting. “Thanks for bringing Wendy over. The boys are crazy about her.”
I didn’t risk looking at her again. “I’ll come by after the broadcast tonight.”
We walked through the house, and Wendy hugged Naomi and the boys as I went to the door. I grabbed my tux shirt and coat off the back of the recliner and held the door for her. She passed by, giving me a questioning look, but what could I say? Things were moving a little too fast, and I’d just remembered I was sick of getting fucked over by love. I opted for silence.
Once we were in the car, she fastened her seat belt, and in my peripheral vision, I saw her glance at me. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” I gripped the wheel and started the car. The roar of the V-8 engine sounded like freedom. I pulled out of the ranch and gave my Z some gas, enjoying the way she hugged the curves of the road. This was something I could control.
“Did I say something to piss you off?” Wendy asked.
I kept my eyes on the road. “No, just have a lot on my mind.”
“Okay.” She let it go for about five minutes before clearing her throat. “Want to tell me about the rest of your pack?”
“You’ll meet them soon enough.” I turned on the radio.
She reached over to turn it down. “I feel like I missed something here. Weren’t we kissing a couple hours ago?”
“Yeah.” It was going to take years to forget kissing her, the way she fit in my arms, those eyes. She had demolished all the boundaries I’d built around my heart without even trying.
“So, what happened?”
I got on the freeway, keeping my attention on the rearview mirror for highway patrol. “You had me off-balance from the second we met. It’s my fault.” I allowed myself a quick glance in her direction. “I don’t do relationships. It’s not you.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” She shook her head. “I don’t recall asking for one.” She turned the radio back up.
A twinge stabbed my heart. No, it was better this way.
I got us back to the parking structure and her car in record time.
She opened the door but didn’t get out. “Thanks for the ride.”
“No problem.” I faced forward, waiting for her go to her car.
“And thanks for taking me to the ranch. I never would have known what happened to my brother.” She paused. “You gave me my family back.”
God, I was a fucking asshole. But I’d rather her hate me now than have her walk out of my life after she discovered she could do better.
She leaned in and brushed a soft kiss against my cheek. “Thanks for believing in me when I didn’t. I owe you one.”
“You don’t owe me anything.” I looked at her, hating myself. “I’ll see you later.”
She searched my eyes. “Okay.”
The door slammed, and she got in her car and drove away.
Good. This was safer. She was a werewolf. That meant she had a mate out there somewhere. She’d know the first time she touched hi
m skin to skin, and I’d be a distant memory. I wouldn’t get played again. I wasn’t sure I’d survive it if I did.
My tires squealed as I cranked the wheel. Time to get back to real life.
Days blurred together as the week passed. Now that Friday was here, I was running out of excuses to stay away from Sedona. Asher had reached out a couple of times this week, but I’d bowed out of pack meetings. Wendy had been staying with them for a few days and I didn’t trust my emotional barriers when it came to her. Not yet.
I walked into the station, ready for the evening news, eager to focus on work. There was a rush right before the cameras went live. The broadcast was live, but unlike an actor in a Broadway show, I was presenting real events and people. I took pride in my delivery, and any opportunity I got to shine a light on investigative stories was a bonus. This was all the love I needed. My job was my significant other.
I took my seat behind the news desk and smiled over at my co-anchor. “Hey, Kay. Any big plans for the weekend?”
Kay Hallmark was a legend in Phoenix. She’d started in local radio right out of college, eventually moved into local news, and finally landed here. She had already been a part of the network for over ten years before I had gotten a chance to sit at the table.
“I’m going to swim and read a book.” Kay smoothed her burgundy suit and took a sip of her water. “How about you?”
“I’m not sure yet.” I checked my tie in the handheld mirror.
Rodney started counting behind the camera, and we straightened up as the teleprompter rolled forward. I stowed the mirror on the shelf under the news desk.
My phone buzzed as another e-mail popped up on my screen:
Stay away from her.
That same anonymous e-mail address seemed ominous now. Was I being stalked?
The theme began for the Friday evening news, and I tried to focus on the teleprompter. “Thank you for joining us tonight,” I started. “Here are the top stories as we head into the weekend in the desert. I’m Chandler Williams…”
“And I’m Kay Hallmark.” Kay picked up the lead, reading a story about a robbery at a pawn shop.
