“What?”
“You.”
That was unexpected. “Why?”
“I could see you had feelings for him. In the way you looked at him. It hit me hard. Knowing I might be losing my little girl, and to someone so—different.”
“If you had a chance to know him,” she said, “you’d find some similarities.”
“You’re right,” he said. “It’s been the three of us for so long.” Her father turned back to face the road. “Do you love him?”
Love? She swallowed. How could she love someone she’d only known for a few days?
But the way she felt about him was too strong to be an infatuation. Besides, they’d spent more time together in those almost inseparable days than new couples did over several dates.
She took a deep inhalation and sighed. “I think I do.”
“Shit,” Liam said.
She thought he was talking about her love confession, but Liam pointed ahead.
“It’s Rogers.”
There he was. Trekking through the high grass with his rifle raised.
“Stop!” Hailey shouted. She jumped out the truck before it was at a full stop.
“What the bloody hell are you doing?” her father asked.
“Get back,” Rogers shouted at her. “There’s a wolf in there.” He motioned to the woods.
Oh my God. Her stomach dropped.
“I got him, but he kept moving.”
Her emotions spun out of control as she replayed his words. He’d been shot—but he was still moving. That meant he was alive. For the moment, at least. She had to keep Rogers from finishing him off.
“Are you off your head?” Liam asked. “There are no wolves in the area. It’s got to be a dog. A large one.”
She’d hug her brother right now if the situation wasn’t so tenuous.
“Dogs don’t howl like that.”
“Don’t shoot at it, for goodness sake!’ her father said. “It’s a defenseless animal!”
“A dangerous animal.”
“Damn it, you’re the one who’s dangerous right now!” her father boomed. “No matter what you think you saw, you don’t have any right to hunt on my land.”
“I have every right to protect my animals.”
“Get out of here before I have you arrested!”
Hailey dragged her eyes with surprise over to Liam. He rarely shouted like that, indicating the severity of the situation.
“You probably did this,” Rogers spat. “Brought wolves in with your sodden plans.”
“No,” her father said coolly.
“It’s what you’re always touting. And the result is what I knew would happen. A wolf attacking my livelihood. You disregarded everyone else in your quest to make your animal sanctuary.”
“I did no such thing,” her father boomed. “You, on the other hand, shot a defenseless creature. Get your arse out of here now or you’ll have far worse to worry about.” Her father’s voice ended on an icy tone she’d never heard him use.
Rogers stared at them both before turning his gaze to the woods. “It will probably die out there anyway. If it comes back on my property, I’m killing it. I will protect my herd.”
After Rogers turned back to his land, Hailey exhaled. Even with him gone, Seth was still in danger. She spotted drops of blood on the grass. That’s what Rogers was following. It was difficult to find under the darkening sky, but the impression where a large mass had moved through the grass made it easier to track him. Once in the forest, that guidepost was gone, and it was harder to track him. Only the sporadic droplets on ferns and fallen leaves provided clues.
When her father made a surprised sound, her gut clenched. “What is it?” she asked, afraid to hear the answer.
He didn’t respond but moved in slow motion toward a cluster of pine trees. He kneeled over something. A large gray mass. He ran his fingers over its fur. “Such a beautiful creature.”
Her blood froze, every capillary seemed to constrict, stopping the flow.
A wolf. A magnificent wolf shot and motionless, its gray fur marred by red.
Seth. Her wolf. Her lover.
She moved to him in slow motion, considering the implications, before hit by an intense wave to act. Liam had already taken off his shirt, and she grabbed it to staunch the wound.
“Bring him back to my place.” She had medical supplies in her workspace, not as fully equipped as a hospital, but the nearest one was too far. She’d treated many wounded animals, but never like this. Still, she had to do what he could before he bled out.
She didn’t take her eyes off Seth. When he began to shift to human form, her father made some sort of gasp. Was this a good sign or a bad one? Shivers of dread ran up her spine.
“Incredible,” he whispered. “Aye. He needs medical attention or he’s not going to make it.”
***
Seth heard murmured voices, one he recognized as Hailey’s. He struggled to open his eyes, but everything looked blurry. He was so tired. Eyelids too heavy.
“Seth!”
A gentle touch on his forehead soothed him before he went under.
Some time had to have passed before he roused again. When he finally opened his eyes, the first thing he focused on was Hailey. She sat on a chair in an unfamiliar room.
“Hailey,” he said. His voice came out gravelly from his parched throat.
“I’m here.”
He had to be dreaming. “Am I dead?”
“No.” Tears shined in her eyes. “You’re alive.”
He scanned the surroundings. White wooded furniture with landscape paintings on the walls. “Where am I?”
“In a guest room of the main house.”
“What happened?” He pulled himself upright, and the pain shooting from his hip made him arrest the movement. A sudden reminder of how he acquired that wound flashed before him. “Never mind. I remember.”
His wolf woke with a low growl, wincing from the movement, but wagged his tail on seeing their mate.
“You’re going to be okay,” she assured him. She handed him a glass of water. “Here, you must be thirsty. You’ve been out for a while.”
After he drank, he asked. “How long?”
“Almost a full day. A doctor stitched up your wound. You need to rest so you can recover.”
Her words made him freeze. “You had a human prod at me?”
“I had to. I could only do so much. You were shot and losing too much blood.” Her voice softened. “Don’t worry. You were in human form when we brought you here.”
“Who’s we?”
“My father and Liam helped bring you back here.”
Her father? That didn’t seem likely after the conversation he’d heard.
“The doctor didn’t indicate he noticed anything different about you. Said you went into shock from the loss of blood.”
Seth examined the wound, covered in bandages he had to unwrap.
“What are you doing?” she protested. “You need to let it heal.”
“What is this?” He eyed the tiny black wires poking out of his flesh.
“Stitches.” She eyed him with speculation.
“Get them out of me!” He stared at the intrusions with horror, touching the area, which was still sore.
“Seth, no!” she cried. “You’ll aggravate the wound, make it bleed again.”
“I’m a shifter, Hailey. It will heal on its own.” He searched for something sharp. “Get me scissors or something so I can cut these blasted things out.”
Horror washed over her face, leaving her pale. “I’ll get something.” She pointed her finger. “Don’t touch it. I’ll take them out.”
She returned with some sort of scissor-like tool. When she cut the wires, he turned away—he couldn’t watch the vulgar procedure of pulling those wretched wires from his flesh.
Seth kept his gaze fixed on a window, seeking familiarity in the wooded area down a grassy slope, as he tried to ignore the tug around the painful woun
d. “I’m surprised your father brought me back here.”
“I apologize, Seth. I never would have expected him to react that way. He’s sorry, too. If it means anything, he and Liam went to find you when they heard the shots. I met up with them on their way.”
“That’s—unexpected.” When she paused in her ministrations, he faced her. “You saved me once again.”
She glanced at him with a worried look. “I hope you’re not angry. I know you wanted to leave.”
His wolf paid close attention to the conversation. Now that he was back with his mate, the restless vibe had calmed. “No, Hailey. I never wanted to leave you.”
She stared at him, not saying a word.
“I thought it was best—for you.”
Her lips parted as she blinked rapidly. “Why?”
He sat straighter, stifling the urge to wince as he shifted on his leg. “You had all these plans and dreams before you found me. I was an intrusion.”
“No, Seth, that’s not true…”
“I know you’re my mate, but that doesn’t mean I fit into your life, despite how I feel.”
“Mate?” she repeated. Opening and closing her mouth, she added, “How do you feel?”
“Even though we’re different species, I know you’re the one for me. My wolf has known it for some time. Before I got shot, I was coming back for you, to see if you’d accept me. But then—the full moon, and the scent of sheep distracted me and—” he gave her a lopsided grin, “I got shot.”
Her eyes glazed with wonder. “You think I’m your mate.” She put a hand over her chest. “But I’m human.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t make the rules.” Then he arched his brows. “And I guess I don’t play by them.”
“What does this mean? What can it mean, Seth?”
He paused before he put himself out there, exposing himself to the biggest challenge to date. “It means we’re meant to be together. And if you’ll take a chance with me, I’ll go wherever we must and do whatever it takes to make it work.”
Her eyes widened, shining with joy, which filled him with pride. He’d made her happy. That was all he wanted to do, make her happy.
“Then we’ll figure out a way.”
“I need to stay far from forbidden prey like those sheep during the full moon, until I get used to it.” With a sly grin, he added, “Or someone can distract me with my other cravings.”
“I will gladly take on that challenge.” She held up a roll of bandages. “But first, hold still. I’m not finished with you yet.”
Seth groaned. “Oh, and I have one request.”
“And what’s that?”
“Let me come back to your cottage. I’ve grown quite fond of your hands-on care.”
A small smile tugged at the corner of Hailey’s mouth. “My father might not be crazy about the idea, but let me deal with him. He seems to forget I’m not his little girl anymore.”
Seth gave her a knowing nod. “A part of me doesn’t blame him. Not only am I the big bad wolf, but he thinks I’m stealing his daughter from him.”
With a saucy glance, she replied, “I hope he’s right.”
***
Over the next week, Hailey monitored Seth’s condition as he recuperated from the bullet wound in her cottage. As she’d hoped, both he and her father came around, moving from guarded small talk to deeper conversations. Her father was fascinated by Seth, as she thought he would be. Seth was grateful for her father’s hospitality in letting him recuperate in his daughter’s house and gradually revealed more about himself.
Trying to keep their hands off each other while he recovered had to be the biggest challenge. Luckily, his shifter healing shortened the time. When she thought it was safe for them to be together without aggravating his wound, he pounced on her.
She laughed. “I guess you missed me.”
He kissed her neck. “More than you know. I’ve been going crazy waiting to touch you again.”
They shed their clothes and toppled onto the bed. His hands stoked a thousand fires as he brushed over her skin. Wild need consumed her, her body quivering under the heat of his hot mouth. She pawed at him, begging him not to make her wait any longer.
“You’re mine, Hailey. Only mine.”
Those five words meant for her, spoken in that dark burr left her burning with need. “Only yours,” she affirmed.
He ran his hands from her neck down over her breasts and then her midriff until he stroked her soft, wet flesh. “No other man will ever touch you like I do.”
She gasped when he circled her sensitive bud. “Never.”
He grabbed his hard length and sheathed it before sliding inside her. She pawed at his shoulders, clinging to him as she braced herself for his welcome onslaught. He drove in and out of her, slow and deep at first, but then hard and unrelenting, leaving her scrambling to hold onto something.
“You’re my love. My mate.”
“Yes,” she cried, arching up to him.
“I want to claim you,” he said. “Mark you as mine.”
Lost in their wilderness, she only had a vague notion of what his words meant. “Do it.”
His face hardened as his eyes turned feral and he opened his mouth, revealing sharpened canine teeth. Her heart pounded and she froze. Then she tilted her head, surprised by the quick thrill that shot through her.
He bent down and bit the fleshy part of her neck. She cried out at first, but the pain soon turned pleasurable. An unexpected orgasm rose quickly, crashing through her, leaving her in a space where there were no thoughts, no words, just heady sensations. He slammed into her with fierce thrusts and then stilled.
He pulled his mouth from her skin and whispered. “And I’m yours. Always.”
They lingered in bed, limbs entwined as they recovered.
Later that afternoon, they went for a walk, holding hands. When they returned to the cottage, her father was waiting. “Can you give Seth and me some privacy, Hailey?”
Despite the progress, she wasn’t one hundred percent certain they’d taken to one another. Trust and relationships formed gradually, including hers with Seth. Although they’d vowed to make it work, they’d only known each other less than a fortnight and had a lot to discover.
Hailey shook her head, wary about whatever her father might say. “I’m not leaving.”
“Fine, I understand your concern.” He turned to Seth. “What are your intentions with my daughter?”
“Dad!” she protested.
“It’s okay,” Seth replied. “He wants what’s best for you, wants to protect you. As do I.” He turned back to her father. “I care about her a great deal.”
“How long do you intend to stay with her? Until you have the itch to move on and find another female?”
“That’s won’t happen,” Seth said. “Not only do I love her.” His gaze shifted to her, full of warmth. “She’s my mate.”
Whoa, despite the progress Seth and her father had made in their discussions, this was a big admission. Huge. Warm tingles spread over her skin as if heated by the sun.
“Your kind—you take on a mate for life?” her father replied with some awe.
“Aye. Most often for love, other times for a political alliance,” Seth admitted.
Her father turned to Hailey. “What do you think about this, Hailey?”
“I want to be with him, Dad. After he’s healed, we’ll go wherever we can to make it work.”
Her father exhaled with a low whoosh. “You don’t have to go anywhere. I’ve had plenty of time to think and I’ve seen how you both care for each other. It might be dangerous if others find out about a wolf here, but we have plenty of land with ample cover. With all my talk about creating a sanctuary for wildlife, I’ve been a hypocrite. If you both want to stay, I see no reason why we all shouldn’t work together.” His eyes switched back and forth from Seth to Hailey. “I’d like you both to stay.”
Seth blinked, showing his surprise at her father’s invitation. Haile
y was just as stunned, not sure what to say.
“Thank you, sir,” he said. “I’d like that a great deal.”
Hailey faced Seth and found her voice. “What about finding another pack?”
He squeezed her hand. “The only pack I need is right here.”
Epilogue
One month later
Seth grew accustomed to living at the Crenshaw estate in Hailey’s cottage—no, their cottage. He still hadn’t grown used to calling it his home. The acres of land with a range of diversity offered him plenty of places to roam while Hailey worked, and most mornings he headed out for a swim in the loch.
Although Rogers wasn’t convinced the Crenshaws didn’t have wolves on their estate, they invited him over and drove through the lands to reassure him of their absence. Seth took care to be in human form, especially since his wolf was eager to tear out Rogers’s throat for trying to kill him. It took some time, but Liam convinced the farmer that what he’d shot was a large dog, that must have had rabies, which explained why it would have gone after the sheep.
The more Seth learned about the rewilding and conservation efforts Hailey’s family was part of, the more he wanted to join the efforts. He read articles, watched videos, and discussed what he’d learned with Hailey as they walked the grounds.
Humans weren’t as terrible as he’d feared, and many, like the ones involved in this effort spent their lives trying to improve the natural world, not destroy it. He had a keen interest in the initiative to bring back wolves to the Highlands and restore the Caledonian forests, as he had a connection to both. If he was going to live on this land, he’d find a way to contribute, especially with a cause he could champion. He started by helping to pull the rhododendron growth that had invaded too much of the landscape, which would create space for the forest to spread. With his strength, he was able to pull out many by hand, while Hailey and Liam used the tools, and Seth only resorted to using them for the deeper, more established roots.
He also joined her family during a volunteering effort at Dundreggan, where they pulled non-native growth and planted hundreds of types of trees. Working alongside humans was odd after a lifetime of wariness of them, but he shared their end goal—restore the forests and bring back the lost species.
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