by Ellen Lane
“I... I mean...who are you?” Georgia didn’t think she’d ever get used to wolves and their lack of modesty.
“Tempest.” The redhead stuck out her hand to grasp Georgia’s briefly. “Nice to finally meet you.”
Solomon’s Tempest? The one he spoke so fondly of? The engineering prodigy that fearlessly went away to school in the big city? “Oh, stop it.” Before she could even withdraw into herself, Tempest was shaking her head with a frown. “He’s like a freaking brother to me.” She shuddered in revulsion. “Personally, I think you and Anne are both out of your damned minds but, whatever floats your boat.”
“I’m just...I mean...it was only one time. And I’m leaving soon.”
“Right. Keep telling yourself that. Lean on me.” Georgia didn’t really have a choice when Tempest took her crutch and offered her solid shoulder instead.
“What are you doing out here?” Once she was comfortable, Georgia managed her first proper sentence since Tempest had surprised her.
“Trying to figure out how we’re going to relay the lines Ephraim cut. It’s going to be a bitch.”
“Lines?” Georgia was barely hobbling so much as being carried by a woman half her size - it was both embarrassing and fascinating.
“He cut out electrical. He and the Doziers have been getting bolder and bolder...which is why we shouldn’t be out here alone. Not that I can’t hold my own in a fight, but if I have you to protect, I’m not going to last long.”
Georgia reddened in embarrassment. If they were attacked in that moment, she could very well be responsible for Tempest’s death - all because she had wandered away in a completely unjustified jealous fit. “I’m sorr-”
“Apologize to me one more time and I drop your ass.” Georgia’s mouth snapped shut. When she glanced at Tempest’s expression, however, the Shifter’s grin was infectious. “You don’t apologize to anyone, Georgia. That’s how you get through on our turf.”
Before the blonde had a chance to answer her, a dark blur sped past them, darting through the trees before coming to a halt mere foot in front of them. Georgia nearly jumped out of her skin, but Tempest merely groaned. “Great.”
It was Solomon. Georgia recognized the immense shape of his wolf about three seconds before he shifted, slipping into his human form in a matter of moments.
Though she knew she should be used to it by now, Georgia couldn’t help the thrill of arousal that streaked through her at the sight of his magnificent naked form.
“Are both of you insane?” Solomon was barely on two feet before he was striding towards them, eyes blazing cold fury. He plucked Georgia from Tempest, tossing her over her shoulder so she squawked indignantly. “No one beyond the wall alone. No one. Not that you ever listen to me,” he directed at Tempest on a growl. “But I’ll deal with you later. Get back to the settlement.”
Unlike most of the other wolves, Tempest didn’t cower at Solomon’s anger. Instead, she merely sighed before a shudder ran the length of her. Within seconds, she had transformed into an auburn-hued wolf to bound back in the direction of the settlement.
“And you.” Georgia was torn between nervousness at Solomon’s fury and the scalding feel of his hand curled around one of her thighs to hold her in place on his shoulder. “Do you have any idea what the Doziers would do to a human? Ephraim holds them in about as much esteem as hunters. And how the hell did you get all the way out here on that ankle?”
The more he spoke, the more Georgia became aware of a strange emotion welling up within her. It began in her stomach, spreading upwards - something a mix of indignation, embarrassment, hopefulness and fear. When she finally opened her mouth, her tone was surprisingly firm. “Put me down, Solomon.”
“Like hell. I’ll put you down in the cabin - and maybe I’ll lock the door for good measure.” When he began striding back towards the safety of the settlement, Georgia pounded her fists against his shoulder blade in frustration. “Put me down!”
Her sharp demand halted him in place a moment before he tugged her back down his front to catch her waist before she could crumple on her bad ankle. Of course, this meant that every inch of her body slid against every inch of his, and Georgia went light-headed a moment before she remembered that she had been verbally undressing the man that held her. “What do you want with me?” She craned her neck to look up at him, her tone firm.
Solomon’s green eyes narrowed in irritation. “Woman, don’t play games. You’re a sitting duck out here. You need to be back at the settlement-”
“I mean in your bed, Solomon. Am I just a way for you to blow off steam until this is all over?” Her inquiry was enough to make his eyes widen. “Was it just the one-off and now you ignore me and pretend it didn’t happen?”
The warning growl in his throat should have scared her, but Georgia kept on. “Anne told me about Shifters and humans - it’s just a diversion for you. Pure fucking - nothing else. Is that what you want me for?”
“What do you want?” His impassioned bark stunned her into silence. “My undying devotion? A marriage proposal? I was weak, you were there, and you felt like fucking heaven and I…” Solomon released her with a snarl, shoving both hands through his hair as his eyes flashed gold. “I can’t give you any of that. You’re human, Georgia. I could fucking tear you apart.”
“But you didn’t.” Goddamn it, was she crying? Her eyes were hot, her stomach clenched. “You’ve never hurt me. You saved my life.”
“And since then, you’re the only thing I can fucking think about.” His expression was angry, but the words themselves seemed to pain him, clenching his fists and tightening every muscle in his torso. “Clearing my head before waging a war I don’t fucking want, sleeping, eating...functioning...hell, Georgia, it all seems impossible when all I want is you wrapped around me.”
A shiver traveled down her spine at his words as her eyes slid closed. “But I can’t.” Georgia’s gray eyes popped wide at his rough declaration - but Solomon wouldn’t meet her gaze. “I’m Alpha here, Georgia. Anything that threatens my pack can’t be allowed. You’re a distraction...and a human woman can’t give me pups. If I let you out of my sight for an instant, who knows what could happen to you. Threats from the Doziers, from inside my own pack...you’re too fragile. No matter what I want...I have a duty to this pack.”
Of course he did. Could she really fault him that? Could she really be so selfish to demand that he fall into his arms if it cost him everything? “So,” He finally dragged his emerald gaze to hers. “If you want to warm my bed, you’re welcome. But know that’s all it is. All it can ever be.”
For a moment - a fleeting, split-second of agonizing regret, Georgia wished the men who’d chased her up the mountain had caught her. Whatever they might have done couldn’t hurt as much as this did.
Chapter 12
It was better this way.
Georgia was safe, locked inside his cabin where she couldn’t get into any more trouble, and she knew full well that if there was to be anything between them at all, it was entirely physical.
There should have been a huge weight lifted from his shoulders. One less thing to worry about amongst the chaos that surrounded him.
So why the hell did he feel like an incomparable ass?
Through everything she’d been through - being chased up the side of a mountain by attackers, breaking her ankle and being concussed, and then confined to a settlement where literally anyone had the power to kill her - Georgia hadn’t shed a single tear. She held her head high and dealt with whatever the world threw at her with as much grace as she could muster - it was one of the things he most admired about her.
But his words had hurt her.
Of course, that was the point. He and Georgia had already been closer than they should have. The further away he drove her, the better.
Even if the memory of tears glistening in her eyes tortured him.
“You look like shit, boy.”
Solomon lifted his head to glare down the front
steps of his porch at the bent man standing there. Thomas sightless eyes were fixed on him, his mouth curved upwards in an annoyingly knowing smile.
“You can’t see me.” He glowered, flicking a rock in Thomas’ general direction.
The Elder’s hand shot out reflexively, enclosing the projectile in aged fingers. “Then you must really look like shit.”
Groaning, Solomon leaned back against the steps. “I’m tired, old man.”
“Of course you are. Run ragged every day, a crazy rival Alpha at your borders, mate upset with you…”
Solomon’s head jerked upward as he narrowed his eyes in irritation. “She’s not my mate, grandfather. She’s human.”
Thomas shrugged, merely sidling up to the stairs until he could lower his smaller form onto the step next to Solomon. “I’ve never seen a wolf this worked up over a female who’s not his mate.”
“I am not worked up,” Solomon retorted venomously, even as his stomach rolled with the lie. “I’m just fucking nervous. A human on our turf during a conflict like this? If the Doziers get to her, the entire world is going to fucking eviscerate us. They don’t like us as things are.”
“The world, hm?” Thomas scratched his ear with a yellowing claw. “And, of course, I suppose you wouldn’t give two shits if she died. Not your concern at all.”
The moment he said the words, a snarl ripped from Solomon’s throat as he turned to his grandfather, expression livid. “She’s my concern as much as she helps our image.”
He could see it now - Georgia lying cold and lifeless, her throat ripped out by the Dozier pack. He’d never see her gray eyes gleam with life again - never feel the warmth of her skin against his. Certainly, it would be the end of the wolves in Dockery...but that’s not what terrified him.
“I have a duty,” Solomon forced himself to relax as he crossed his arms over his chest, leaving back against the porch, “To my pack, and my race. That is far more important than a little human distraction.”
A tense moment of silence passed between them before Thomas answered. “Don’t you think she’s thought of that?”
Solomon scowled. “What are you talking about?”
“Your duties. The human girl is more perceptive than you think.” Solomon snorted in disbelief, but Thomas ignored him. “She doesn’t have to stay here.”
“She does if she values her life.”
“Think, you stubborn lummox.” Thomas snapped, his expression irate. “If she didn’t give two shits about you or this pack, she could have called the sheriff up here on day one. Human law dictates that we can’t keep her here. She could have tattled about the war you’ve got brewing here and the wolves that have been killed. Hell, she could have told on your ass for offing the human chasing her.” Thomas sighed, shaking her head. “She deals with Anne for God’s sake, the woman is an absolute bitch to her - and if you don’t know why, you’re a goddamned idiot. If she were sane, she would steer clear. But she wants to help. Even if it means taking verbal abuse. Being ridiculed and turned away. So, wave your duty around all you want. That’s not going to help you.”
Solomon stared at his grandfather; his mind awhirl.
Certainly, it made sense. Their kind had seen more than their fair share of humans who showed up just to cause trouble - the more the better. And even when it came to the humans of Dockery, there was less trust than fear. Georgia had every reason to fear their kind - hell, she was caught in the middle of a goddamned war.
But she hadn’t demanded to be taken home, or called the human sheriff up and complicated things. She hadn’t tried to escape or gotten in the way - instead, she did everything she could to make his life easier.
Including comforting him when no one else could.
Fuck.
“You’re a fine Alpha, boy. Just not the brightest,” Thomas complimented him dryly, patting him firmly on the back.
Slowly, Solomon shook his head. This was insane. Even if he were to entertain the notion, there were far too many obstacles. “She can’t give me pups...she breaks too easily.”
Thomas scoffed. “Your momma gave you to your daddy pretty easy, the way I hear it. She can’t be the only one.”
Solomon’s eyes widened as he stared at the Elder in shock. As far as he knew, he was the only one to know the truth of his heritage. His father had told him only once before he died, and Solomon had only ever confided in Hunter. Everyone else simply believed Solomon to be a product of his father’s secret mating with a wolf from another pack. He wanted to ask -to demand how his grandfather knew...but this was neither the time nor the place.
Instead, Solomon merely took a steadying breath.
Nothing was ever simple. Ephraim and his wolves could attack at any moment, and it wouldn’t matter what he felt. The only thing that mattered was that his pack was protected.
It was simply alarming how quickly he’d come to think of Georgia as part of that pack.
The rest of the day passed in a blur.
Solomon avoided his cabin, and any further contact with his grandfather. His inner reflection, of course, only made him ornerier towards Hunter, who stopped trying to approach him after Solomon merely snapped at him in agitation.
Anne kept trying to get him alone - as she had ever since she’d been entrusted with his secret - and it took several attempts to dislodge her and get some time on his own to think - and that was time away from the fortifications of the settlement.
Tempest lectured him that they’d taken every precaution they could, but Solomon couldn’t help but feel restless. This was his pack in the balance.
This was Georgia.
He wouldn’t go to her.
He decided this by the time he returned to the cabin, late that evening. He would stand by his decision and keep her safe until things with Ephraim had blown over, and then she would be on her way, as per the original plan. He wouldn’t touch her. He wouldn’t even think of her unless it was necessary.
Solomon managed to cling to this line of thought until he realized that it was well past two in the morning and he hadn’t heard a peep from Georgia’s room - not even the soft, steady rhythm of her breathing.
Immediately, he was up and out of bed.
Solomon knew what he would find before he opened the bedroom door, but even so, he cursed at the sight of the empty room. How long had she been gone? And where?
He was out of the cabin in a trice. With the walls up and curfew enforced, there weren’t very many people around - just the men he’d posted at the heavily fortified front gate. One of them was Hunter, and at the thunderous expression on Solomon’s face, he arched a brow.
“Did Georgia pass by here?”
Hunter shook his head, mouth twisted in confusion. “Not while I’ve been on duty.”
“Didn’t you send her out?” When Lucas spoke from beside Hunter, Solomon’s heart sank. Though his first impulse was to throttle the younger wolf, he knew that would do no good. Instead, he merely exhaled a long breath before turning to him.
“She left.” The words were a statement, not a question.
Lucas looked just as confused a Hunter. “She said the Sheriff was coming for her - waiting at the edge of the territory. I asked Anne and she confirmed it.”
Solomon swore loudly enough to wake half the pack. Georgia sneaking out after dark was one thing, but that Anne would be so jealous as to let her, knowing the danger she’d be in...
But Anne would have to wait.
“Seal the gate behind me,” Solomon was already kicking out of the pants he wore in anticipation of the coming change. “Make sure that no one else leaves. I’ll be back as soon as I find her.” His tone booked no argument. Both Lucas and Hunter knew better than to question him.
Solomon barely felt the pain of the change. His body shredded apart, then came back together, but the only thing he could think of was Georgia.
His Georgia, alone, injured, and in the dark.
He had to have lost his mind. Mere weeks ago, Solomon wou
ld never have ventured out after dark, risking his own life, to find a single wayward human. But this wasn’t just any human - and he had every right to believe that she was endangering herself because she believed it would benefit him.
Like hell he’d stand for that.
Solomon picked up her scent about half a mile beyond the gate. It was already pitch black, and he wondered with no small amount of awe how the hell she’d gotten so far away when she could hardly walk. Fortunately, he followed her trail away from the drop-off at the edge of the mountain and back down the other side…
Towards Dozier territory.
All four of his paws picked up the pace at the realization. There was no way that Georgia had hobbled over six miles and into an enemy pack - not on her human legs. But six miles was a long way in which things could go wrong - Doziers had hardly respected territory lines lately.
He covered one mile, and then two, before a slight tinge of coppery sweetness began to overtake Georgia’s fragrant scent. Snarling, Solomon pushed even harder, chasing Georgia’s trail until, at last, after what seemed like an eternity, he caught a glimpse of her.
She’d made it a good two miles from the settlement and was perched on a rock near a downed tree, her complexion pales in the sparse moonlight. While Solomon was gratified to see that there were no Doziers in the immediate vicinity, his ire rose again at the sight of her feet - blistered and bloodied in her borrowed flip-flops.
He barely took the time to plan what he would do. Instead, Solomon merely skidded to a stop at the edge of the clearing and changed, the pain blinding for a few scant seconds. Georgia sensed him far too late - if he were a Dozier her throat would have been torn open before she knew she wasn’t alone. As it was, she grabbed her crutch and held it out between them - a flimsy defense at best. “Who’s there? Don’t come any closer!”
Solomon grabbed the lower portion of the stick and ripped it from Georgia’s hand as he stepped into the pale light of the moon. If he expected her to be afraid or even apologetic, he was disappointed. Instead, her face flushed darkly - humans and their damned modesty - before she averted her eyes. “Solomon you scared the shit out of me. I thought you were a Dozier wolf.”
