Legacy of the Wolf [The Gray Pack 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Lori King

  “Super hearing is another bonus to being a werewolf,” Ryley said with a wink, and she groaned.

  “Fuck a duck! I’m surprised you can’t hear my thoughts, too,” she snapped, feeling more and more like she was at a disadvantage with them.

  “Actually…” Ryley said, and she gasped.

  “You have got to be fucking kidding me!”

  “He is, angel. We can’t hear your thoughts, but judging from your face we don’t really want to right now. However, we can talk to each other in our minds. It seems to be something that is usually reserved for between mates, but in our pack more often than not siblings have the same ability. Ryley and I used to drive our parents nuts with it when we were kids,” Rafe said.

  “So you two can talk to each other, and I can’t hear you?” she asked.

  “Yes. Like Rafe said, it’s a thing that only siblings and mates have usually. It’s something about the mating bond that just gives mates access to each other on an entirely different level. Dev said it happened to him and Damon with Caroline after they claimed her, but before she claimed them,” Ryley said.

  “Who are they?”

  Rafe sighed heavily. “If we’re going to continue this conversation could we go back to the den? I don’t know about the two of you, but I’m getting hungry, and I really would like to check in on that wolf we found.”

  Ryley nodded and stood, offering Shandi his hand to help her to her feet. “The wolf—” she started to ask, but stopped when Rafe nodded. “Wow. That conversation makes a lot more sense now. So she isn’t part of your wolf club?”

  “Wolf pack, baby girl. And no, she doesn’t belong to our pack, but if she’s rogue—if she’s without a pack—she could petition Devin to let her join us,” Ryley answered, tucking her hand around his arm as he began to lead her back the way they came. Rafe came up beside her and took her other hand in his, lacing his fingers with hers.

  “Is the whole pack family?” she asked.

  “Nope. A lot of them are relatives, but wolves travel between packs all the time. Basically to be in a pack they have to agree to follow the pack creed, and honor the pack Alpha with their loyalty. Our pack is called the Gray Pack, because a member of the Gray family has been our leader for many years,” Rafe answered.

  She stayed quiet for the rest of the walk back to their fishing spot, unsure what other questions she had right now, and still slightly scared of going back to their place. Now that she knew it was in the middle of a pack of wolves it was a little more intimidating.

  When they finally reached the lakeside again, Rafe and Ryley made quick work out of cleaning up all of their gear. Once everything was loaded into Henley’s Jeep and Rafe’s SUV, they both turned to her.

  “I’m going to drive Dad’s Jeep, baby girl, but I’ll be right behind you guys,” Ryley said, surprising her with an affectionate kiss on her forehead.

  He jumped into the truck, and Rafe opened the SUV door for her, waiting patiently while she climbed into the front seat. He paused before closing the door, and leaned in to kiss her. Taking her silence as approval, he gently brushed a kiss on her mouth with a sigh.

  “I’m so sorry, angel. I wish I could go back to last night, and tell you everything all at once, but I can’t. Please, forgive me, and give us a chance,” he said quietly before he shut her door and went around to the driver’s side and climbed in.

  Shandi stayed silent, unsure how to react, or even if she wanted to react. She had a lot of thinking to do.

  Chapter 14

  It didn’t take long to unload the fishing gear at the brothers’ place, and before she knew it Shandi was climbing out of Rafe’s SUV in front of an enormous building. It was only a few minutes down the gravel road from Rafe and Ryley’s place, but it was more like a mansion than a cabin. Staring up at the wall of windows that was the front of the cabin, she felt a wave a panic crash over her. There were people milling about everywhere, and they seemed particularly interested in her presence there.

  Unsure what she was expected to do, she stood frozen to the ground, her eyes nervously darting around her. A familiar face caught her attention, and her stomach flip-flopped. The man coming out the front door of the cabin was the dark-haired man from the clearing. What was his name again? David? Darian?

  “Come on, angel. I want to formally introduce you to our Alpha,” Rafe said into her ear as he wrapped one arm around her waist. She immediately relaxed into his hold, and then cursed the easy way her body responded to him. She was still upset with the two of them, and she hadn’t quite decided if she was ready to forgive them for the secrets, or if she could even accept what they were asking of her.

  “Devin Gray, this is Shandi Martin,” Rafe said next to her, as Devin came closer to them. He held out his hand and gave her a genuinely warm smile. Immediately she felt more at ease, and she smiled back.

  “Hi, Shandi, I’m glad we didn’t send you packing with that little stunt,” Devin said with a chuckle.

  “I don’t scare off too easily, although I have to admit I almost bolted. I guess it was the lure of the unknown that kept me in place,” she responded, as Ryley came up on her other side and ran his hand over her ass, making her jump.

  “Well, I’m pleased to hear you have a sense of adventure, and judging by your choice in mates you’ll need it,” Devin said with a loud laugh. He turned to wave another woman over.

  Warm pleasure filled her heart when he indicated that she belonged to Rafe and Ryley, but that was also the problem with agreeing to come here with them. Now everyone here would assume that they were already together. She stepped away from the two brothers, trying to put more distance between the three of them before this charade got any worse, but they weren’t having it. Each man reached out to touch her, keeping the proximity close.

  Shandi wasn’t ready to admit to herself that their touch was actually the only thing keeping her standing upright. Her knees felt weaker than Jell-O right then as the reality of being surrounded by werewolves slithered through her brain.

  The woman who joined them was petite, with long mahogany-colored hair that whirled around her in graceful waves. Moving to Devin’s side, she allowed him to wrap his arm around her slightly swollen waist. She was beautiful, with a delicately upturned nose on a small heart-shaped face. Her dark-brown eyes met Shandi’s, and Shandi felt an instant connection to her. It was like they had always been intended to be close friends.

  “Shandi, this is my fiancée, Caroline,” Devin said. He stared down at Caroline like she was the sun that his world revolved around, and Shandi nearly sighed out loud with envy.

  “Welcome to the den, Shandi. It’s great to meet you. I’m sorry it’s under these circumstances.” Caught off guard by the friendly hug that Caroline gave her, Shandi gaped at her mutely.

  “She’s a little overwhelmed, sugar. Dumb and Dumber here didn’t fill her in before they brought her onto pack land, so when Owen, Cash, and I came running out of the woods in wolf form I think we scared her,” Devin explained, as Shandi fought to close her mouth and blushed for behaving so rudely.

  “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to be disrespectful, but I am a little out of my element right now,” she said, and Caroline laughed.

  “You’d be surprised how many of us that’s happened to recently,” Caroline said with a laugh.

  “So are you all werewolves?” Shandi asked, her wide eyes roaming over the crowded front lawn of the cabin. There were dozens of people around, and here and there she could even see wolves in various sizes and colors.

  “Yes. We don’t have any humans around right now, well, except for you…and Delaky, but I don’t think she’s human. I was human before I mated with Devin and Damon, so I know how shocking this can be to the system. I’ll answer any questions you have, and so will everyone else,” Caroline said. The petite woman beamed as she surveyed the surrounding group as well. It was clear that she considered these people to be her family.

  For a moment Shandi let herself f
antasize about what that would be like. Growing up as the only child of a single parent meant she had little to no experience with family gatherings. The idea of a whole group of people that loved and cared for each other through thick and thin definitely sounded appealing to her.

  “Thank you, I appreciate that. Right now I have more questions than I know how to put into words, but give me a little bit to adjust,” Shandi said with a smile. Instantly she could feel Rafe and Ryley’s pleasure with her for accepting the situation. A twinge of irritation shot through her. Wouldn’t they be surprised when she got them back to their place, and could tell them in private what she thought of this whole wolf thing.

  Feeling a new presence to her right, Shandi broke eye contact with Caroline only to find a mirror image of Devin Gray standing next to her. She jumped a little and gasped, which only caused the new man to laugh as he held out his hand to her.

  “Hi, I’m Damon, Caroline’s good-looking future husband,” he said, making Devin growl low in his throat and everyone else laugh.

  “Shandi Martin. It’s nice to meet you. So is this normal? Does everyone around here have more than one man?” she asked in confusion, and Devin shook his head.

  “It does seem to be fairly common within werewolf packs, but there haven’t been more than a few in our pack for the last couple of generations,” Devin said.

  Shandi nodded, pretending to understand, but in all honesty she was beginning to think her head might explode if they kept springing more info on her.

  “No worries, angel, we’re the only two mates you’re going to have. Devin and Damon share Caroline, but our brother Liam only has one mate, Tina,” Rafe said, running his hand over her shoulders and stroking the nape of her neck with his thumb. It sent a shiver down her spine, and she could feel her nipples harden in response to his touch.

  The widening of eyes and flaring of masculine nostrils around her immediately reminded Shandi that these werewolves had some sort of super sense of smell, and there was no way she could hide her desire around them. A hot blush stole up her throat and cheeks, and she stared down at her feet, unable to look anyone in the eyes.

  A pair of feminine hands reached out to grab her twisting fingers and draw her gaze upward. “Don’t worry about it, Shandi. I would be more concerned if you weren’t hot for your mates. Lord knows I didn’t get pregnant by myself! No one here will judge you, and I hope you can feel at home with all of us. We’re all family here, and you’re part of us now,” Caroline said kindly, and Shandi wondered how she could have lucked out to find someone in the midst of all of these animals that understood her.

  “How did you end up here?” Shandi said sharply, and then, realizing how rude she sounded, she reworded her question. “I mean, if you were human, but now you’re a werewolf…”

  Caroline grinned widely. “Oh yeah, I’m all wolf now. Basically Damon saved my life. My apartment building caught on fire, and I helped get my neighbor and her son out of the building safely, but in the process, I put myself in a lot of danger. Damon was the firefighter that carried me out of the building.”

  “Yep, that’s me. I’m her hero,” Damon said, wrapping his arms around his fiancé and nuzzling her neck. Caroline’s eyelids drooped heavily as she let her head fall to the side to give him more room.

  “Hero, my ass. She had already gotten herself to the front doors when you finally got your butt in there to help,” Devin grumbled playfully, and Shandi found herself giggling with the rest of them.

  “So you just knew that you were meant to be together?” she asked.

  “I wish I could give you an easy explanation, Shandi, but that’s pretty much it. I resisted, but do you see them? They’re irresistible. In fact, there aren’t very many men in this pack that I wouldn’t call irresistible,” Caroline said with a wink, as her statement drew an irritated growl from both of her mates.

  “I’d suggest you resist them, sugar,” Devin said in a low, steely voice that meant business. Shandi had to admire Caroline’s backbone when instead of reacting to his pissed-off expression, she rose up on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips.

  “I wouldn’t be worried if I were you, Mr. Gray. There are only two wolves in this lifetime that will do it for me, and you’re lucky enough to be one of them,” she said softly, and Devin immediately swept her up against his chest and gave her a toe-curling openmouthed kiss.

  Rafe and Ryley were both laughing as Damon stood back watching the display put on by his brother and fiancée. There was no judgment or resentment in his eyes, only pure unadulterated love for his woman. It gave Shandi a boost of confidence, and when Ryley laced his fingers back through hers she let him, and even squeezed him back encouragingly.

  If Caroline could find a way to make it work with two men who were also werewolves, then perhaps there was a chance it could work for Shandi, too. Of course Caroline was also able to give her men a baby, unlike Shandi. She could feel her heart aching in her chest with envy, and she had to avert her eyes from the happy trio.

  They were all interrupted when Henley stepped out of the front door of the cabin and yelled, “Dev, she’s awake!”

  It took Shandi a moment to realize that he must mean the new wolf, and she found herself herded toward the intimidating home surrounded by the protective bulk of the Whetstone brothers. The three of them were right on Devin, Damon, and Caroline’s heels as they all entered the building and went up a massive staircase to a closed bedroom door.

  Henley stopped them all outside of the bedroom door with a raised hand. “Okay, whoa. Not everyone can go in at once. Devin, I think you and Damon need to hear her story first, and then you can decide what to do about it.”

  Devin nodded and turned back to Rafe and Ryley. “Do me a favor and keep close. I need one of you to grab Cash and Owen. Actually, you might grab the rest of them as well—Noah, Luke, Justin, Tate, even Heath. Let Mom know that we’ll need a tray with some soup broth and some fresh meat on it. This girl will probably need some time to recover her energy after she lost so much blood.”

  “And tea from Delaky. Someone needs to go get ahold of Delaky,” Caroline interrupted, but her request received a nod from the assembled group.

  Henley turned to Rafe. “Son, go find your mother, too. I think she needs to be here.”

  Shandi could see the confusion on Rafe’s face, but he nodded his acceptance of his dad’s request.

  “She’s probably already in the kitchen with Victoria,” Caroline said, nodding her own agreement.

  A moment later the Alphas of the pack, along with Henley, were ensconced in the darkened bedroom, leaving Shandi alone with Rafe and Ryley again. Unsure of what she was supposed to do with herself, she glanced up at them questioningly.

  “What now?”

  “I’m going to go gather up the cavalry, and you and Ry can go look for Delaky. She’s our pack shaman, basically like our elder. She gives advice that no one would even consider ignoring, and she is a fantastic healer,” Rafe said lifting her chin with his hand and kissing her gently.

  Shandi nodded at his directions, and watched him exchange a hard glance with Ryley before he took off out of the house. She and Ry left a little more slowly, and this time he led her out the back door of the cabin and directly into the woods.

  “Umm…Ryley? Why are we going into the woods? I thought we were supposed to go collect Delaky?” she asked him warily, pressing closer to his side as the darker shadows of the trees left a lot to her imagination.

  “We are, baby girl. Delaky has a cabin not too far from here. We’ll be there and back in no time,” he said, kissing her forehead and wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

  “So, Devin and Damon said that Caroline is their fiancée. When are they getting married?” she said, trying to find somewhere to start with all of her questions about this unique group.

  “Yeah, their wedding is actually next weekend. I want you to come with us if you can,” Ryley said, and Shandi stopped in her tracks on the path.
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br />   “Ryley. I know you want this to be perfectly okay with me, but I’m not exactly sure where my feelings stand right now. You guys aren’t regular people, and I’m not the average woman. I just don’t know how we can get past it all—”

  “Enough. The words are false, as is the question. My soul can’t listen to false notions of denial.” The voice that interrupted Shandi was soft like a song, and it fit the small woman who appeared on the path in front of them perfectly.

  The woman was extremely pale, but it was absolutely stunning on her. If Shandi had to describe her for someone to paint, she would have said that the petite female was created from a beam of moonlight. Her long, white-blonde hair was braided in a thick rope and hanging down over her shoulder. Her almost colorless eyes held Shandi’s gaze for a moment as a small smile quirked her pale-pink lips.

  “Shandi, I’d like to introduce you to Delaky,” Ryley said softly, and nudged Shandi ahead of him on the path. Fumbling to cover her shock at being so bluntly accused of lying, Shandi stuttered a hello and held out her hand.

  Instead of taking her proffered grip, Delaky stepped closer to Shandi and put her tiny hands on her face, holding her gaze. “Mmm…I can see why you ignore your truth. You have no need to hide behind pride here, pretty child. Your men love you, and will accept even what you cannot give.”

  “I’m sorry, but what are you talking about?” Shandi said pulling her face free. This woman assumed a lot, and although Shandi wanted to be polite, she was feeling a little bitchy at the moment.

  “You are not broken, you refuse to mend. That man in your old world was not for you, but you let him poison your love for your mates.”

  “I’m not letting anyone poison anything!” Shandi exclaimed, spinning around to glare at Ryley, who just shrugged.

  “Childish denial. When you are ready you will hear. You will see that what your heart desires most, the spirit will provide, even if the body cannot. Now I must reach the newest child of my soul. I have brought a sweet tea to soothe her heart. She has come far, and faces a journey yet.” Delaky breezed past Shandi and Ryley on her way down the path as though none of the conversation had ever happened, and Shandi stared after her.