Heat Rising: A KinKaid Wolf Pack Story

by Lee, Jessica

  “You know what I’m talking about.” Kaleb tore the label from his beer, fisting it before tossing it into the empty peanut bowl on the bar. “You never said a word to me the other night about having recognized one of the scents at the kill site. One would think after we’d discovered a wolf culling on our territory you would have mentioned that important factor.”

  “I didn’t think it was relevant.” Landry raised his empty in the bartender’s direction, signaling for another round.

  “You didn’t think it was relevant?” A deep rumble vibrated off his friend’s chest.

  “No. I didn’t,” he added, his tone hard. “We’d already drawn the logical conclusion that the Gregorson pack was behind the attack. I only added the additional confirmation for our alpha’s benefit.”

  The bartender arrived with two more Buds, stifling whatever retort Kaleb had been about to deliver. Perfect timing.

  “Thanks.” Landry nodded at the dark-headed barkeep as the other man snagged the ten-dollar bill off the wood and collected their used shot glasses from an earlier round of whiskey. “Keep the change.”

  “Thanks. Let me know if you need anything else,” he added, flashing a grin, his pale blue gaze lingering on Landry, suggesting more than alcohol was on the menu. Landry couldn’t help the smile tugging the corner of his mouth. The guy was cute.

  “God. You’re such a man-whore.” Kaleb shook his head.

  “Fuck you.”

  “In your dreams.” Kaleb smirked.

  “You’re not my type.” Liar. Kaleb was exactly Landry’s type, except for the annoying fact he was straight.

  “Please,” Kaleb drawled. “Everyone is your type. That’s why Rosa will never let you anywhere near her.”

  Landry internally flinched, his hold tightening on his beer. The booze was going straight to Kaleb’s mouth. His partner wasn’t wrong, though. Kaleb knew Rosa had a piece of Landry’s heart. He should, because the other male had it just as bad for her, though he would deny his feelings went that deep. Landry cared for her more than she’d ever know because Rosa deserved better than a bastard male like himself with so much damn baggage a 747 would be challenged for takeoff.

  Landry slapped his friend on the back. “Like you’re on her short list for a mate. All she’s willing to give either of us is a right cross. Not to mention you broke her best friend’s heart last year.”

  “The female knew what she was getting into before she crawled into my bed.” Kaleb shook his head, auburn strands of hair falling into his face. “I told her I didn’t want anything more,” he stated, his words starting to slur.

  Landry suppressed a grin. Kaleb was over six foot-two and one badass wolf, but the male was a lightweight when it came to alcohol.

  “I would have only ended up hurting her even worse if we’d kept seeing each other.” He tilted his head in Landry’s direction. “She would have started talking about the future. And I’m just not cut out for that domestic kind of shit.” His voice croaked. “I refuse to turn into my parents. Don’t you think Rosa knows that?” He grabbed his bottle for another swig, beer sloshing over the top and onto his shirt and jeans. “Shit.” He hissed, brushing a palm over his damp clothes. “She has to understand.”

  “Yeah. I’m sure she does,” Landry conceded and wrapped an arm around his inebriated friend. This close, the cedar and mint scent of Kaleb’s skin and hair, invaded his nostrils like a strategic attack force on his libido. His cock responded to the onslaught, going rock hard.

  Landry bit back a groan. Only two people in the world held the power to crawl under his skin and subvert the tight reign he held on his control—Kaleb and Rosa. Problem was, both were miles beyond his reach. Untouchable as the moon, and just as beautiful, bright, and bigger than life. Yet, no matter how much he wished otherwise, neither would ever be his. “It’s been a long night. Let’s get you home.”

  Around midnight, Landry rolled his black SUV through the gates protecting the several thousand acres of KinKaid territory that sat within the Cascade Mountains. He followed the winding road deep into the property until he reached his partner’s brick and stone cottage. The small two-bedroom structure sat near the rear of the KinKaid lands, its backyard buffered by the sheer rock face of a mountain. Quiet and isolated, the place matched his best friend’s persona perfectly.

  Kaleb was the Daltons’ only son. One of the pack’s wealthier families who enjoyed spending their evenings all suit-and-tie amongst the other social elites. Kaleb loved his family, but he’d despised growing up on display as the Daltons’ prize offspring and burdened with the stress to fulfill all their dreams. So, it wasn’t hard to understand the other male’s strong affinity for his privacy—out of the pack and his family’s prying eyes.

  Hell, after spending every day while growing up wishing he could hide the black stain on his own family—or just erase it all together—Landry could certainly relate to the need for solitude.

  Landry pulled his vehicle onto the gravel drive, the stones crunching beneath the twenty-inch wheels. Kaleb had passed out on the return trip, his face pressed into the passenger door’s glass. Landry grinned at the sight, finding it hard to bring himself to reach over and wake his friend. He’d be happy to sit there until dawn just watching him.

  The male was irresistible. Only Kaleb could manage to pull off sexy in his drunken-passed out state. His friend was oblivious to just how destructively handsome his looks were.

  A thick fan of dark lashes rested on Kaleb’s cheeks, his generous mouth hung open. A slight snore reverberated from his throat with each inhale and exhale. Landry barely resisted leaning over to lick the full swell of the other male’s lower lip. Maybe he’d slide the seat back, straddle the other male’s thighs, positioning just so until Landry could release his pounding dick from behind his zipper, then…

  Landry’s breath hitched at the thought. His pulse raced. Shaking his head, he attempted to erase the mental image as if his brain were an Etch-A-Sketch. He glanced back over at his unconscious partner.

  Good luck with that, Michaels. You’re never going to get the guy out of your mind.

  “You’re home.” Landry reached over and shook his partner.

  “What?” Kaleb dragged a palm over his face, blinked, and straightened. “Ah, shit.” He hissed and ran his fingers through his hair, pushing it back over his forehead. “Where’s the damn semi that hit us?”

  “Back at the bar,” Landry said. “His name was Budweiser and his co-pilot was Jack.”

  “You’re hysterical.” Kaleb sneered, then popped the door, exited, and weaved around the front of Landry’s SUV. Apparently, the nap had done little to help sober him. Kaleb stumbled up the two steps to his door, and Landry cut the engine. He couldn’t be sure the male would actually make it to his bed without a broken limb.

  Landry left the vehicle, hustled across the lawn, and up onto the porch before Kaleb had managed to pick the correct key for the lock. He peered over Kaleb’s shoulder and tapped the gold one between the other male’s fingers. “That one.”

  “I know.” Kaleb shooed Landry’s fingers away. “I got this.”

  “Okay, okay.” Landry flipped his palm up in surrender. “Just making sure you get inside.”

  “I’m a grown male,” he slurred. “I think I can get in the door of my own house.” Kaleb stabbed the metal into the slit and twisted. The door clicked, and he shouldered the door open. “See,” he stated, sounding proud of his accomplishment and spun in Landry’s direction. Except along the way, Kaleb’s eyes crossed under the sudden movement, and he tilted sideways.

  “Whoa!” Landry quickly grabbed Kaleb by the arm and righted him. “I got you.”

  Kaleb lifted his head, his blue eyes doing their best to find Landry’s. “Thanks, man.” He patted Landry’s biceps. “You’re the best friend ever.”

  Landry lowered his lids, forcing the hard feel of the other man’s body out of his mind. “Yeah,” he managed to get out and opened his eyes. “I know.” Landr
y guided Kaleb across the threshold, flicked on the light switch, and kicked the front door closed behind them.

  Side-by-side, they trudged toward the back of the house and Kaleb’s bedroom. Once there, Landry directed Kaleb toward his mattress, and the enforcer toppled over onto the bed with a humpf. Fully clothed, the big guy’s size twelve’s hung off the side, and up top, his right arm had plopped over his face. He was out cold.

  Landry inhaled deeply and scrubbed a palm over his face. Shit. The mutt reeked of spilled beer. He lowered his arm.

  “Damn. I can’t leave him like this,” Landry mumbled to himself. No matter how bad of an idea this probably was, he couldn’t leave his partner to wake smelling like a brewery in day-old clothes. With a shifter’s enhanced olfactory system, breathing in the stale aroma first thing in the morning would not be a pleasant surprise. And his jeans still looked damp. How nasty would those feel to wake up in? Besides, if their situations were reversed, Kaleb wouldn’t walk out on him without first making sure Landry was comfortable.

  “Okay,” he said and sighed. “Let’s get you undressed.” Landry bit back a groan.

  The boots were the easy part. Landry had those off in less than two minutes and stashed by his friend’s closet door. Back at Kaleb’s bedside, he stood over his friend, staring at the belt wrapped around the other male’s waist and swallowed hard. Yeah. The size twelves had been a breeze.

  On a deep breath, Landry leaned over and plucked the end of the leather from where it lay nestled under the belt loop and tugged the strap back, releasing it from the buckle. Every beat of Landry’s heart roared inside his head. With his thumb and forefinger, he worked the button free, then went for Kaleb’s fly. Beads of sweat popped on Landry’s forehead and rolled down his temples. God, this was insane. His fantasy had come to life but somehow had twisted into a tortuous game of try not to look and definitely don’t touch.

  He tugged on the zipper, and the denim parted, revealing a pair of black boxers beneath. Landry swallowed, and the air inside his lungs he hadn’t realized he’d been holding burst forth. Unlike himself, the other male wasn’t commando. Thank God.

  Landry liked to believe he was the master of his control, but if what he’d found beneath the male’s jeans had been different… He shook his head. The very idea too tempting to dwell on in his current state. It was a test Landry was glad he didn’t have to endure.

  Reaching around Kaleb’s hips, Landry dug his fingers into the other male’s waistband. “Come on, mutt.” Landry wrenched on the denim, rocking them back and forth to inch the material down Kaleb’s hips and legs.

  Kaleb groaned and squirmed. Fine copper hairs covered the male’s creamy white, hard thighs and calves. Landry tugged Kaleb’s jeans off, and the side’s of his thumbs brushed the surface of his friend’s skin. So damn soft. A shiver raced over Landry.

  Focus!

  Just get the guy out of his shirt, feet under the blankets, and tuck him in. Simple. So why did it feel like he was about to scale Mount Rainier—barefoot?

  Clamping down tight on his jaw, Landry eased his fingers beneath the hem of the unconscious male’s T-shirt. Smooth skin stretched taut over steel abs greeted him, and it was as if all the blood drained from his brain, making him lightheaded. Landry’s eyelids shuttered.

  Get the damn thing over his head then get the hell out! He pulled the material north, revealing the sweetest eight pack he’d ever seen. Granted, the sight of Kaleb without a shirt wasn’t new. He’d sparred and worked out with the bare-chested male more times than he could count, but seeing him like this—sprawled on top of the crisp white sheets…

  Landry glanced up at his partner. Strands of auburn hair covered Kaleb’s pillow and fell over his shoulders. The rich color popped in vivid contrast to his friend’s unblemished pale flesh. Unusual for a redhead, but he’d never seen a freckle on Kaleb. Not that Landry would have minded. Hell, he’d give his right nut for the chance to bathe every little brown fleck on the male’s body with his tongue.

  “Fuck,” Landry whispered under his breath, doing his best to resist the urge to grab his own cock and relieve the ache in his balls. Not now. Later, he’d have to do something about it in private or lose his mind. But for the moment, he had to take care of his friend and keep his hands off. Both of them.

  Carefully, Landry stretched the cotton and maneuvered Kaleb’s right arm, then left, through the holes in the sleeves. Next, he gently palmed his friend’s nape and lifted Kaleb’s head to pull the tee over. With his chin and forehead free, Landry released Kaleb and finished tugging the material off. The back of Kaleb’s head plopped onto the pillow, but before Landry could turn away, his friend’s eyelashes fluttered open. At the same moment, two large palms locked onto Landry’s face.

  Shit! Landry braced his hands on either side of Kaleb’s shoulders, his gaze snagging with Kaleb’s blue one. The pink tip of his tongue emerged, and Kaleb licked his lips before easing his head up and tapping his forehead to Landry’s.

  What the hell? Landry couldn’t breathe. Dear God, he didn’t dare move. Was Kaleb going to…Landry’s brain short-circuited at the very idea of the other male’s mouth connecting with his.

  “I-I love you, man,” Kaleb muttered and collapsed, a loud snore filling the room.

  Air rushed from Landry’s lungs. “Son of a bitch,” he barked, his arms stiff and trembling where he’d braced himself over his sleeping partner. “If you weren’t already unconscious…” He huffed, straightened, and spun, stabbing his fingers through the short hairs on top of his head. Absently, he tossed a blanket over Kaleb’s half-naked form, then marched from the room.

  Seconds later, the front door slammed behind him, and he headed for his SUV, the pressure behind his zipper with every step a painful reminder of what he’d allowed himself to be sucked into. He grimaced and cursed under his breath. Sucked wasn’t the best choice of words.

  He took his seat behind the wheel. Next time, he was cutting the other enforcer off after two drinks. Landry prided himself on the strength of his will, but there was only so much a male could take before he snapped. And having to strip Kaleb Dalton down, then put the male to bed—alone—took Landry too close to the maximum tensile strength of his sanity. He couldn’t allow another night like this one to recur. If it did, Landry was pretty sure he would not merely edge the line of what was appropriate between partners he’d charge right over the damn thing. Possibly ruining a two-decade old friendship.

  Landry shoved the key into the ignition, twisted, and the engine rumbled to life. With the vehicle in reverse, he rolled out of the driveway. Studying the front porch where only minutes ago he’d helped his partner through the door, Landry tried to imagine what his life would be like without Dalton in it.

  Empty.

  Dark. His chest ached at the conjured altered reality.

  No way could he fucking allow that to happen and survive.

  Chapter Three

  Arick Gregorson closed the door to his office and turned to face the male who’d entered. “I’m glad we’ve finally gotten a chance to talk alone.”

  “When are we going back to get my brother the hell out of the KinKaid’s hands?” The redheaded shifter snarled.

  “Patience, Carl,” Arick said, his voice hushed. “Stefan and I have everything under control and plan to pay Evin KinKaid a visit very soon.” Not soon enough for Arick’s taste. Stefan, Arick’s brother and the Gregorson alpha, was dragging his feet about taking the next obvious move against the KinKaids.

  “The arrogant bastard KinKaid wanted to play it stupid. As if he had no idea why we’d be trespassing onto his land.”

  “You told our alpha you hadn’t found anything in Evin’s home,” Arick stated.

  “That’s right,” he grumbled. “We tore the place apart, but it was clean. Not one piece of damn evidence that he’s been spying on our territory. I just knew we’d find something to show Stefan and have the final proof we need to slay those bastards and show them what it’s like
to be part of a real pack.” The shifter white-knuckled his fist in emphasis.

  “We appreciated your efforts, Carl, and don’t worry about your brother.” Arick narrowed his gaze on the other male and nodded. “We’ll get him back.”

  Carl snarled, his upper lip curling, revealing a thick set of fangs. “There have been too many things going down around here for it not to be the KinKaids. And damn if it didn’t feel good to hand them a little payback for the wolves they left dead on our lands. Not to mention…” Carl’s voice lowered. “You know we’ve heard rumors of the threats being left for your brother to find.”

  Arick schooled his features, making sure nothing but disdain at the acts the other male referenced showed on his face. Of course the pack had heard of the notes left for the alpha and the other little signs that a terrorist with a thirst for power was among them. Arick had made sure of it, and his plan was proceeding perfectly. Soon the pack rage against the KinKaids would reach a fever pitch, and his brother would fall from power without a sliver of suspicion ever pointing in Arick’s direction. Everything he’d been waiting for would soon be his—the alpha’s seat and Landry Michaels back in his bed.

  “Yes, I’m aware the word has gotten out. As lead enforcer for our pack, I take any threat very seriously. But especially those aimed at Stefan. The alpha’s security is my top priority.” Arick rounded his desk and eased onto the thick leather cushion of his executive chair. He glanced up and met the dark blue gaze of the shifter on the other side of the furniture. “Stefan is not only our leader but my blood. And no one gets away with threatening family.” Except for me, of course. But Carl didn’t need to know that little detail.

  “No doubt, enforcer.” Carl squared his shoulders.

  “You filled Stefan in on the details of your search and of your encounter with Evin. Now, I want you to think very hard about every shifter you interacted with while you were there. Was there anything you found out of the ordinary?”