Heart of the Pack

by Jenny Frame

  “Look, it wasn’t my choice, nothing is my choice, so I just have to get on with it. If you could just get me one of your guys with a truck to pull me out, I’ll be on my way,” Lena said angrily.

  You’re a feisty human, aren’t you? She saw Lena look in her bag frantically and then count to five twice before letting out a breath. She had noticed Lena doing that frequently with her pens in the office and could only guess she was doing the same thing now. Dr. Jaycen was right. She was a frightened little deer.

  Caden stood and took off her hat. “We don’t need a truck. Just go and sit in your car, and I’ll push you out.”

  Lena crossed her arms and said in a sarcastic tone, “You’ll push me out?”

  Caden pulled herself up to her full height and said, “Yeah, we’re made of stronger stuff out here, city girl. Maybe if you ate some more, you would be stronger too.”

  She had meant it as a joke, but she felt awful when Lena’s face crumpled before her and tears welled in her eyes. “Lena, listen, I’m—”

  Before she got the chance to finish her apology, Lena jumped into her car and slammed the door shut.

  “Good going, Wolf.”

  Lena started the engine, so there was nothing more to do than push the car out. Caden could have done it easily with one hand, but she had to make more of a show to cover up her unusual strength. As she pushed the car out of its trap, the wheels splattered mud back onto her face. Lena didn’t stop as her car sped away down the farm road, leaving Caden to wipe the thick mud from her face.

  Which she guessed she deserved.

  *

  Caden made her way down Main Street to the New Moon Bar and Grill. After being drenched from head to foot in mud, she had headed home to her den for a shower and to change. The loneliness of her den made her head back into town to eat. She craved the company of the other wolves.

  As she entered, the bar customers stood in respect of her position as Second, but she waved them to sit down. She took off her hat and threw it onto the bar.

  Judy, a waitress, greeted her with a smile. “Second, good to see you. What can I get you?”

  “A large chocolate shake with caramel syrup—oh, and could you put a lot of syrup in it, Judy?”

  “Your fangs are going to rot one of these days, Caden,” she joked.

  “Yeah, yeah. You sound like my grandmother.”

  “So? You want something to eat?”

  Caden picked up the menu and looked down at the options. “You know it. Um…”

  At that moment all the chatter in the bar fell away to silence. Judy looked toward the door and said, “Human?” with surprise. The few humans who did live and work in Wolfgang County seldom patronized the local bars because they were non-alcohol establishments, and they tended to live in neighborhoods close to the Rutherford County line.

  The strange thing was, Caden didn’t scent human. She scented warmth and excitement, but also, strangely, anxiety. She turned around quickly, worried that she hadn’t scented the human the other wolves had, and saw Lena, hanging back by the door, looking around at the bar patrons watching her closely.

  Some wolves who were not sympathetic to humans looked at her with disdain, and a few of the dominant ones—there were some wolves who enjoyed the novelty of sex with humans—looked at her lustfully.

  Caden was on her feet in seconds and over by her new workmate. “Lena? Are you okay?”

  Despite how they had parted earlier, Lena looked relieved to see Caden beside her. “Yes—I was looking for the store, and I got lost. I don’t have any groceries in my apartment, you see. I’ve been shopping in the supermarket in Rutherford County until now, but it’s closed for remodeling, and I wasn’t sure…”

  Caden smiled at her. She was beginning to learn that when Lena was nervous or anxious, she tended to ramble. “Hey, slow down. Come and sit with me by the bar and tell me all about it, okay?”

  Lena smiled and showed visible relief that she now had Caden by her side. Caden put her hand on Lena’s shoulder and guided her toward the bar.

  Caden looked around the bar. The chatter and atmosphere had returned now that the pack’s Second was escorting the human, but those few dominants interested in the human for base sexual reasons continued to appraise her, until Caden met their eyes and subtly bared her teeth, without letting Lena see.

  Their eyes immediately fell away from the human. No wolf would disrespect the second most dominant wolf in the pack, especially when she had placed a possessive hand on the female to claim her.

  “Take a seat, Lena.”

  “Thanks.” She sat up on the bar stool and Caden joined her. “Listen, I’m sorry you got muddy earlier, I—”

  “Hey, don’t worry about it. I deserved it. I know we haven’t gotten off to the best start, but how about we call a truce?” Caden couldn’t believe she was even saying this to a human, but when she was with Lena she forgot she was human, and her enemy. There was something so vulnerable about her that made Caden want to protect her.

  Lena smiled shyly. “I’d like that, thanks.”

  Caden felt Judy watching her closely, and probably wondering why she was being so friendly to this female. Her hatred of humans was well known. “Judy, this is Selena. She’s working with me at the ranch.”

  Judy gave her a warm smile. “Selena? Goddess of the moon, eh?”

  Lena blushed. “Yes, I guess so, but call me Lena. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Pleased to meet you, Lena. Can I get you something?”

  “No, thank you.”

  “Okay, here’s your shake, Caden.”

  Lena looked down at the drink and smiled at her. “Milkshake?”

  “Well, I have a very sweet tooth, and there’s no alcohol in Wolfgang County.”

  “Really? I mean, not that I drink very often, the odd glass of wine, but why isn’t there any alcohol?”

  Caden thought carefully about how to answer that. “We find alcohol doesn’t suit our community very well.” She tried to change the subject quickly. “So…you said you were lost?”

  “Oh. Yes, I’m looking for the grocery store. I thought I could come in and ask at the bar.” Lena looked up and gave her a smile. “I wasn’t expecting everyone to look at me like I’m the new cowboy in town.”

  Caden laughed. “I guess we’re not used to a lot of new faces, but it’s okay now? Yeah?”

  “Yes,” Lena agreed. “Now that you’re here, I feel better.”

  “Great.” Caden felt an unexpected surge of joy, that her presence could make Lena feel better.

  Judy came back over and said, “So, Caden? You were just about to order?”

  “Change of plan, Judy.” Caden grabbed her Stetson and took Lena’s hand. “I’m going shopping with Lena. Come on.”

  Lena allowed herself to be pulled up from the bar stool, but held her hand up in front of Caden. “Wait. You don’t have to do that—you were just going to eat. If you could point me in the right direction, I’ll be fine.”

  “No, it’ll be fun, and I need some…um…” She looked at Judy, searching for something to say, but Judy just smiled back at her floundering. “Milk. I need milk and cookies.”

  Lena looked skeptical. “Milk and cookies?”

  “Yeah, sweet tooth, remember?”

  “Well, if you’re sure.”

  Caden took out her wallet and handed Judy a couple of bills for her drink. “I’m sure. See you later, Judy.”

  *

  Lena continued to be surprised by Caden’s behavior. One minute Caden was dismissing her and being downright arrogant, and then at other times she would be so kind to her, like last night, and today going shopping. But despite everything, she had to admit she felt so much happier walking down Main Street with Caden by her side.

  As they walked, she noticed that those they passed in the street all lowered their eyes and gave Caden what she was sure was a bow of the head. And she’d noticed that when Caden had escorted her to the bar, everyone immediately stopped
staring at her and looked away. Caden seemed to be a very important figure in this insular little community.

  “Here it is.” Caden ushered them into the town supermarket and pulled a cart from the line at the front of the store. “Now, I don’t go food shopping too often, so why don’t I push this thing, and you point me where you want to go, okay?”

  Lena found herself looking in Caden’s icy blue eyes and felt her heart thud rapidly. “That would be great. Thank you for doing this.”

  “No problem.”

  Lena directed them to the fruit and vegetable section first, and Caden followed eagerly, watching the cart pile up with healthy items. “Lena, do you eat meat at all?”

  “Oh yes. Mostly I eat chicken and fish, because it’s so healthy. I do love red meat, but when I eat it, it just lands right here.” Lena smacked her hand against her hip.

  Caden immediately imagined sinking her teeth into that curvaceous hip and making Lena moan. Lust rushed through her and forced a growl from her throat.

  Lena looked back from the head of the cart and said, “Did you say something, Caden? You’re not going to give me a lecture about eating again, are you?”

  Caden felt out of control around this human. Lena bypassed her logical mind and made her angry, frustrated, attracted, and lustful, but above all, Lena made her feel, something she hadn’t done for a long, long time. “No lecture. I was just going to say that I couldn’t live without getting my teeth into a juicy piece of red meat every day.”

  She saw Lena blush at her words and wondered what she was thinking.

  They walked around the store in quiet companionship, Lena collecting different bits and pieces she needed for her new apartment. Caden was surprised at how comfortable she felt, taking part in such a domestic task. She was happy to follow Lena around the store like a little cub.

  The only time they split up was when Caden went in search of syrup for her milkshake. They were far enough apart for Lena to think she couldn’t see her, but her superior vision spotted Lena quickly put a large steak into the cart, hiding it under the other items.

  Strange. If Lena wouldn’t eat that, why was she hiding it?

  Then it hit her. Lena had bought it to cook for her. The happiness that she immediately felt inside was overwhelming, and she hurried back to her new friend.

  “Did you get what you needed, Caden?”

  “Sure. Where to next?” A small part of Caden chastised herself for sounding like an excited cub.

  “Just some bottled water to get now,” Lena said with a smile.

  They set off to find the drinks, and as they rounded the corner, came face-to-face with Eden, Stella, and Vance, Flash’s mate. The three friends looked surprised at seeing Caden in the store, and even more pushing a shopping cart with an unknown human.

  “Caden?” Eden said.

  Oh God. I’m going to be the hot topic in den talk now.

  “Eden, hi. This is Selena. She’s doing an audit of all the Wolfgang accounts, and she’s started with the ranch accounts first.” Caden knew her discomfort must be obvious.

  Vance and Stella giggled at Caden’s embarrassment, but Eden just kept smiling warmly.

  “Lena, this is Dante’s wife, Eden.”

  “Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Wolfgang,” Lena said.

  “It’s lovely to meet you, Selena. This is Stella, and Vance.”

  After they all shook hands, Eden said, “I hope you’re settling into our little community.”

  Lena pushed her glasses up on her nose, nervously. “Oh yes, it’s a beautiful place. I’m still getting my apartment all set up, you know, and Caden kindly offered to show me to the store. It’s a sweet little town—I’m sure I’m going to love it. My apartment’s kind of a mess at the moment, but…”

  Caden could scent the anxiety and tension Lena felt at meeting these new people. She wished she could put her arm around her and make her feel secure, but she knew her three friends would tease her mercilessly as it was.

  “Yes, it’s a great town,” Lena said finally, and then looked down at her feet.

  Eden looked at Caden knowingly, and she could feel the blush burnishing her cheeks.

  Vance winked at her and gave Lena a big smile. “I hope you’ll come over for tea with us one day when you’re free.”

  Caden was now squirming on the spot, and it got worse when Stella chimed in, “Yes, it’ll give us a chance to get to know you better—after all, the only conversation you’ll get out of Caden here is about animals and farm machinery.”

  Vance and Stella giggled again, but Eden brought the interrogation to an end. “Well, we’ll leave you to it and let you finish your shopping. Lovely to meet you, Lena, and I hope to see you again soon.”

  As they walked away, Lena said, “What nice people, Caden.”

  “Hmm.” Caden watched them walk away, whispering to each other, and she knew she wouldn’t hear the end of this. “Yeah, lovely.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  “Are you sure I can’t carry anything?” Lena asked Caden, who was laden down with shopping bags.

  “No, I’m fine. Just lead the way to your apartment.”

  She led Caden up two flights of stairs and they arrived at her apartment door. As she unlocked the door, Lena looked at Caden, who was holding five bags in her arms as if they weighed nothing. She had never seen anyone, man or woman, who had such strength and confidence in their body, and it was so attractive.

  “Thanks for helping me.”

  “No problem.”

  They walked into the apartment and Lena heard a growl from behind her. “Is everything okay, Caden?”

  “Of course. Where do you want these bags?” Caden replied unconvincingly.

  She pointed Caden over toward the kitchen side of her open-plan living space. “You can put them anywhere in there.” She followed Caden in and immediately put away the ice cream she had bought.

  “It’s a nice place,” Caden said.

  “It’s okay, I suppose. There’s still so much to do.” She gestured at the huge box sitting in the center of the room that held her collection of books. “Excuse the mess. I did ask the movers to put it in the spare bedroom, but they just left it there. It’s so heavy.”

  Lena watched open-mouthed as Caden walked over and picked up the box as easily as she had hefted the groceries.

  “Where’s the spare room?”

  How could she? “That door there,” she stuttered, pointing to a doorway on the other side of the room.

  Caden entered the room, put the box on the floor, and was overwhelmed by the scent of Lena, just as she had been when she walked into the apartment. She growled low in her throat, and her heart thudded. She took deep calming breaths, trying to regain control of her wolf. She was both shocked and angry that she had a reaction like this to a human. This had never happened before, not even with another wolf.

  Just as she was about to leave, she saw a silk scarf hanging on the back of the door. The scent that emanated from it drew Caden like a beacon. She picked it up, held it to her nose, and inhaled Lena’s scent. She closed her eyes and felt the same dizzying sensation that she’d felt when she entered the apartment.

  “Are you okay in there, Caden?” Lena shouted from the other room.

  “Yeah, be right there.” In a panic, and on impulse, Caden stuffed the scarf in her jeans pocket. She headed back into the main room and wondered why Lena was just staring at her. “What is it?”

  “It took three men to carry that box from the moving van.”

  Oh, shit. Caden was unused to mixing with humans and hiding her supernatural abilities. The only thing she could do was brazen it out.

  “Well…they must have been in really bad shape because it wasn’t that heavy at all. I mean, I’m wrangling animals every day, so I’ve got to be strong.”

  “I suppose. Thanks, anyway.”

  “No problem. Is there anything else you need done?” Caden asked.

  Lena walked over to her and gave her a shy smile.
“No, no, you’ve done plenty. I’m really grateful for your help.”

  The smile made Caden’s heart beat double time. No matter whether Lena directed anger or a smile at her, each elicited a response from her heart and her body. “Okay, well…” She found herself stepping closer to her, wanting to pull Lena into her arms.

  “Would you like to stay for some dinner? Just to thank you for your help?”

  Caden watched Lena nervously fiddle with her glasses and push her hair behind her ears. When she had seen Lena secretly put steak and a large tub of ice cream into her cart, she knew it was for her and felt a sense of excitement at the thought of sharing a meal with Lena. It felt far too good. She’s a human. Get out of here.

  “That’s really nice of you, but I already have plans.” Caden felt like an absolute bastard as she saw Lena’s face fall in sadness, before she forced an obviously pretend smile on her face.

  “Oh, that’s okay. It was just an idea. You probably wouldn’t enjoy a big salad anyway. I don’t have any meat or anything you would like, so it’s probably best.”

  What made it worse was that Caden knew that was a lie. She could see through the false smile, feel the disappointment and hurt Lena was feeling. “Maybe another time?”

  “Yes, sure.” All of a sudden Lena was hurrying her out the door. “See you tomorrow, Caden. Have a good night.”

  “Yeah, bye.” Caden found herself out in the hallway, and the door shut behind her. She heard muffled sobs coming from the other side of the door. Fuck. She’d handled that brilliantly. She was the only person Lena knew in the whole county and she’d made her cry. Oh yeah, she had big plans for tonight. Big plans to go back to her den on her own.

  Her frustrations were so fierce that she wanted to bite something really badly. She leaped over the banister and dropped two flights of stairs before running out of the building and heading to the forest. There was only one path that could soothe her wolf, and that was to run, hunt, and howl her frustrations away.

  *

  Leroux stood in the shadows of a junkyard waiting for her Wolfgang contact. Before her father died, he told them about one family in Wolfgang County who was not loyal to the leadership.