by R. E. Butler
“If I hadn’t gotten burned, I’d be a protector. I can’t run fast in my shift because of the way my muscles healed when I shifted. Because I’m not whole, I’m an omega.”
“What does that mean exactly?”
He wouldn’t look at her as they walked; his shoulders hunched and his whole body tensed.
“Omegas are the lowest members in the pack. Females are always omegas, and so are retired males who aren’t at full strength due to age or injury. In my case, I became an omega when I shifted as a teenager and it became clear that I couldn’t function fully. My leg tightens up and aches, and the pain has even brought me to a complete stop at times in the middle of a hunt. So while I might be a good tracker, and a good hunter, and even a good fighter, I will never be anything but an omega. I’m at the beck and call of the alphas and any high ranked males.”
“Are the omegas ranked?”
“Not officially, but there’s an unspoken hierarchy within the omegas. While all of us work for the high-ranked pack members, not all pull their own weight. For example, some of the females actually order around some of the lower-ranked females.”
“You mean wolves like Kammie?”
He nodded. “It’s supposed to be equal among the omegas – everyone should be working to make the pack a better place – but there are those who don’t, and the alphas aren’t interested enough to do anything about it. Or at least Acksel isn’t. Brynn cares, because she doesn’t really understand pack hierarchy.”
“It must be hard to be human in a pack. At least I understand about shifting.”
“My friend Jeremiah and his mate Honey are stewards. They work exclusively with the retirees.”
She hummed. In the sleuth, bears who were unable to hunt, take care of their homes, or help out, were taken care of by everyone. That wolves had to be assigned to take care of the retirees made her curious.
They stopped walking, and Dani looked around. The woods were beautiful. Snow and ice-covered trees stretched for what seemed like miles. “When we talk to Acksel tomorrow night,” he said, grasping both of her hands and giving them a squeeze, “I’d like to ask if you and I could join the stewards.”
“I thought I couldn’t join the pack because I’m not a wolf?”
“You can’t, but I know that Jeremiah and Honey could use some help with the retirees, and it would be a way for you and I to work together. Unless you wanted to do something else?” He stammered a little. “You can work wherever you like, or you don’t have to work. I wouldn’t mind if you stayed home.”
She quirked a brow. “Want me barefoot and pregnant, huh?”
His cheeks flushed, and he shook his head. “No. Yes.” He groaned in frustration, and Dani laughed.
Untangling their hands, she pressed her gloved fingers to his cheeks and smiled at him. “I never worked outside of the sleuth. I want to be able to do whatever you do in the pack, but I wasn’t sure if I would be allowed. If we can work together with your friends, then I think that’s a wonderful idea. I’d love to be able to help people who need it.”
He blew out a relieved breath. “Good. I’m sure Acksel will approve, and then I’ll call Jeremiah and we can go visit them and hash out the details.”
“He’s your best friend?”
Nodding, he gripped her hips and drew her close. “He and I shared a similar dislike of being omegas, but he found a place in the pack, with his mate, where he fits. Now that I have you in my life, I want us to find that, too. I think the stewards are the perfect place.”
They continued their walk through the woods until they reached the far edge, and she could see a row of homes through the trees. “This is the retiree development. Many of the retired pack members live here, but there are others scattered around town.”
“What does retiring mean?”
“Some wolves want to run and hunt their whole lives, but sometimes things happen to take a wolf out of that activity. Age can bring arthritis, and even in the wolf form the joints can ache. We heal faster than humans, but we don’t escape everything that comes with old age. Some wolves get injured and shifting causes them pain. Retiring is a way to stay a member of the pack and under the care of the alphas, without being required to hunt or be active pack members.”
She stared at the small houses. “Will they mind that I’m a reindeer?”
“Why would anyone care what you shift into?”
She shrugged. “I’m prey.”
He growled, and his upper lip curled. “You’re mine.”
“I know that,” she said, shaking her head. “I mean my shift is prey. Sometimes predator shifters don’t like prey shifters.”
He let out a deep sigh and wrapped his arms around her. “I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe, Dani. You could shift into a chipmunk and it shouldn’t matter to anyone in the pack, because you’re a shifter, not a natural animal.”
She quirked her brow. “Are there chipmunk shifters?”
He blinked and then laughed. “I have no idea.”
She looked around the woods and said, “Better not do anything really private out here, just to be safe.”
His eyes darkened and he leaned forward, pushing her gently against a tree. “We can be quiet.”
“Yeah right,” she said with a snort as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “I almost went deaf this morning. You howl when you come sometimes.”
“Just for you.” He lowered his lips to hers and everything ceased to exist around them. The world could have fallen away and she wouldn’t have cared.
She eased away from the kiss. “You make me forget everything.”
He laughed. “Is that good or bad?”
“It’s good, except when I want to take my clothes off and we’re out in the woods.”
“I wouldn’t want you to freeze anything important.”
“Let’s go home.”
He took a step back and swung her into his arms. She hugged herself close to him and rested her head on his shoulder, yawning and snuggling close.
“Sleepy, sweetheart?”
“I had a horny wolf in my bed last night.”
“Sounds like a real hardship.”
She kissed his neck. “Well, it helps that he’s sexy as hell and has a talented mouth.”
“At your service,” he said with a soft growl.
He carried her all the way across the woods and into the house. After they’d removed their winter gear, they hurried to the bedroom, stripping and slipping under the covers as quickly as possible. As they settled on the bed together, she could see his face tighten in pain when he moved his leg. She had no doubt it was aching from the strain of carrying her.
“Can I do something to help your leg?”
“The pain will ease with time,” he said. He kissed her gently and tugged her closer. She rested her head on his bent arm and slid her hand up his side. The scars had become familiar to her already.
“I don’t want you to be in pain.”
“To be honest, it doesn’t matter to me much right now. I get to have you in my arms. The pain is dull compared to how I’m feeling inside.”
She tilted her head to look up at him. “What do you mean?”
“You’re mine.”
“I am. You’re mine, too.”
“I’m falling for you, sweetheart. I know it’s only been a few days, but when you’re in my arms everything else slips away, even the pain.” He kissed her and she settled her head on his bicep.
“I’m falling for you, too.”
“We’ll catch each other.”
* * * * *
The following night, Dani took care to dress well for dinner with the alphas. She didn’t have a lot of fancy clothes with her, but from what Adam had told her about the alphas, they sounded like pretty down-to-earth people. She dried her long, blonde hair with her travel hair dryer and braided sections on both sides, connecting them at the back with a few bobby pins. The mating mark that Adam had given her their first time together had sc
arred, and now showed with her hair pulled up.
She had unpacked her things the day before, filling up one dresser drawer and a little bit of closet space. She rummaged in the drawer until she found a bra and pair of panties, slipping them on before heading into the closet to find something to wear.
Adam was waiting in the family room for her. It had taken him no time at all to get ready; men had it so easy. Dani finally decided on a white sweater and a pair of navy leggings. After dressing, she tugged on socks and slipped into her favorite leather boots.
“I’m ready,” she said as she walked into the family room. Adam stood from the couch and growled softly.
“You look amazing.”
“Aw, you’re sweet.”
He crossed to her so quickly his movements were a blur, caught her in his arms and kissed her. “Gorgeous,” he whispered against her lips before kissing down her jaw to her throat, where he nibbled on the mating mark and made shivers shoot down her spine.
“Careful. Compliments like that will make us late.”
He lifted from her neck with an annoyed grumble. “Why didn’t I tell Acksel that tonight was a bad time for us to leave the house?”
“It’s only for a few hours,” she said, patting his cheek and slipping from his arms to get her coat from the hook by the door.
He joined her, tugging on his own jacket. “We’ll eat fast.”
They walked together to his truck and he opened the door, helping her inside. “Do you have a car in Oakville we need to make arrangements to get?” he asked as he climbed in behind the wheel and started the engine.
“No. Mom let me use her car.”
“You can use my truck whenever you’d like, and we can get a car for you if you want,” he suggested, pulling away from the curb.
She thought it was sweet of him to offer. “I don’t think I’ll need one, but if it turns out I do then we can cross that bridge when we come to it.”
As he drove to the alphas’ house, she asked, “How long has Acksel been alpha?”
“Four years. He and Brynn have been together since the fall. She’s human and grew up in Wilde Creek.”
“Is it a big deal that she’s human?”
“According to our old laws, it was a huge issue. The old laws said that wolves weren’t allowed to mate with anyone but another wolf. If a wolf chose another kind of shifter or a human for a mate, they were exiled from the pack.”
“That seems harsh.”
He shrugged. “It’s pack life. I guess Acksel and Brynn had a long history, but he was determined to never be with her because she was human and he’d have to leave the pack. Then his sister, Eveny, decided to mate with a human named Luke. Acksel opted to change that one law and allow pack members to mate with whoever they wanted, regardless of whether they shifted or not. The law change allowed Acksel to finally claim Brynn as his mate.”
She mused on that for a moment. “There was a time when bears only mated with other bears, and I think that was actually true of reindeer, too. From the little memory I have of my herd, they were all reindeers. I guess if you only stick to your own group then you eventually end up mated to one of your own. Personally, I’m glad I wandered through Wilde Creek.”
He smiled. “Me too, sweetheart.”
He parked on the street in front of a house. The yard was covered with snow, and the salt scattered on the freshly shoveled sidewalk glittered in the porch lights. As Dani looked at the house and thought about where she was and who she was going to meet, her nerves kicked in.
She was literally walking into a wolf’s den; and not just any wolf, but the freaking head of a wolf pack. Her pulse raced as Adam turned off the engine. The automatic doors unlocked, and the sound made her jump.
“Baby?”
“Sorry, this is just…a lot to take in.” She forced her hands to unclench.
Adam unbuckled his seatbelt and released hers, then pulled her into his arms. His spicy scent surrounded her and eased her fears. She slid her hands under his coat and gripped his shirt.
“I would never let anyone hurt you, Dani.”
“I know. My reindeer is just reminding me that I’m prey.”
A growl rumbled in his chest. “Because you wear my mark, even in your human form shifters would recognize you as one of their own kind, regardless of what kind of beast you shift into.”
He nuzzled her throat and kissed her pulse, which beat erratically. “The rational part of me knows that.”
“This isn’t the same as when you’re in your shift. There’s no danger here. This is my pack, you’re marked as my mate, and you’re covered in my scent.”
She inhaled and willed herself to relax. She did trust Adam to keep her safe, and although a deep, ancient part of her wanted to tuck tail and skedaddle, she wasn’t about to walk away from her mate for anything.
“Okay.”
“Yeah?” He tilted her face and studied her. “We can leave.”
His concern for her made her smile. “No, it’s okay. It’s just that I’ve only known bears. They’re predators, but not like wolves. I trust you.”
He kissed her briefly and opened his door, then walked around to her side of the truck and opened hers, offering her his hand. She loved how much of a gentleman he was. He always thought of her first, not just in bed but in all things. She mentally shook her reindeer out of the fear that kept trying to creep in and grab hold, and she walked purposefully up the sidewalk with Adam.
Adam knocked on the front door and it swung open a few moments later. A tall, dark-haired male stood in the doorway.
“Good to see you, Adam,” he said, extending his hand.
“Thanks, Alpha. This is my mate, Dani Grayson. Dani, this is my alpha, Acksel Moore.”
Dani stared at Acksel, who regarded her with gray eyes. He didn’t look at her like she was something furry to chase through the forest and devour. “It’s nice to meet you,” she said.
“I’d shake your hand, but males can be funny about others touching their females,” Acksel said as he took a step backward into his home. “Please come in. My mate is in the kitchen.”
The door swung shut after they stepped inside, and Adam took her coat and hung it up next to his on hooks by the front door. A pretty woman, smelling of human and wolf, walked into the front room, brushing what looked like flour from her hands.
“I was trying to make gravy. It’s hard as heck,” she said. “You must be Dani. I’m Brynn, Acksel’s mate.”
“Thanks for inviting us to dinner,” Dani said, shaking Brynn’s hand and discreetly brushing flour from her own hand. “Can I help? My mom makes really good gravy.”
“Oh, wow, that would be great!” Brynn grabbed Dani’s hand and said, “Make yourself comfortable, Adam; we’ll be a few minutes.”
Dani smiled at Adam, and he winked at her. She was gently tugged into a large kitchen filled with the scent of roasted meat and vegetables. Her stomach rumbled and Brynn said, “I’m glad you’re hungry. I eat like six times a day because of the baby, and he likes red meat.”
“Congratulations on the baby. When are you due?” Dani asked as she stepped in front of a saucepan bubbling with gravy, which was an unpleasant dark brown color.
“June seventeenth.”
“Are you sure you’re having a boy?” Letting a drop of gravy fall on her finger, she tasted it and found it to be extremely bland.
“I want it to be a surprise, so we’re not going to find out until he’s born, but I’m pretty sure it will be a boy. Motherly instinct I suppose.”
Adding seasonings and milk until the gravy looked and tasted great, Dani turned to Brynn with a spoonful. Brynn took the spoon and popped the end into her mouth. Her eyes widened. “Oh, yum! How did you do that?”
“I had a good teacher.”
“Tell me about your bear family,” Brynn said as she lifted the lid from a slow cooker on the counter and spooned carrots and potatoes onto a platter.
“My parents were killed by a p
ack of natural coyotes when I was three. I’d been left with my aunt while the herd went foraging. Everything was fine, and then the coyotes found them. They don’t normally hunt in packs unless it’s a big group of prey, but it was my herd’s bad luck to be near the coyotes’ territory. My aunt shoved me up into a tree and tried to shift to protect herself, but she was killed.”
Dani blinked at the sting of tears. She had been thinking a lot about her people since she’d met Adam. She wished she had more memories of her family. She had vague, fuzzy recollections of what they looked like: her mom was blonde and her dad had dark hair. She remembered her mother loved to make handheld apple pies over the fire.
Brynn put her hand gently on Dani’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry, hon. What happened?”
“I hid in the tree. The coyotes knew I was there, but they ignored me. I was terrified. I clung to that tree, all night, crying. I climbed down later that morning. The coyotes had caused a lot of destruction, but one of the tents survived. I stayed there for a few days, hoping someone from the herd would come back, and when they didn’t I started walking. I don’t know how long I walked, maybe a day or two, before I ended up in Oakville. Fayar, the king bear, found me, and his mate Gloria took me in while they tried to figure out where I came from. Then Row’s mom Alice adopted me. She loved me from the start, and so did Row.”
“You were so young. It’s a miracle you didn’t die from the elements or get caught by another predator. I’m surprised you don’t hate all predators.”
Her brows rose. “I know they were natural coyotes running on instinct. I don’t look at shifters as being same as their natural counterparts. Shifters have a consciousness, a humanity that allows them to make choices. Natural animals don’t have that.”
“Did you ever find any evidence of your people or other herds?”
She shook her head. “Not of my herd. Just recently, though, we’ve learned that reindeer like to stay off the radar. Mom hired a private investigator to look for them, and it’s taken years to find a herd. Row was on his way with me to meet them when we got sidetracked here.”
