“She was just in the kitchen eating before she left for work,” he said as the two walked into Lea’s kitchen, where they found her sitting at the table, a cup of coffee in her hand.
“Hann!” Lea exclaimed, slamming the table with her knees as she quickly stood up when she noticed her alpha walk into her kitchen. Finn saw Lea glance around her kitchen to make sure it was clean, though it was spotless and had always been.
“No need to get up, my dear,” Hann told her, a hand half-raised as he motioned for her to sit back down. Hann himself took the seat across from her. Finn stood there awkwardly standing in the middle of the kitchen, watching the two, before he saw Hann was staring at him with that smile and those knowing eyes. Finn could bet that the wise alpha knew exactly what was going on here. “Take a seat, Finn.”
Finn immediately took the seat in between the two, even though a few minutes earlier he was leaving the house. He didn’t want to tell the alpha no. Plus, he was interested in what Hann was even doing at Lea’s house this early in the morning.
“Is everything okay, Hann?” Lea tentatively asked, taking a sip of coffee to calm her nerves. Finn wished he had something to do other than sit between the two, his head going back and forth as he watched them talk, twiddling his thumbs as he leaned back in his chair.
“I wanted to update you about the rogue situation we have found ourselves in, since you have been affected by it more than anyone else in this pack,” Hann said, leaning back in his own chair and crossing his legs as if this wasn’t a very serious conversation. His aura and body language definitely eased the tension in the room, and what could’ve been a very scary and fearful conversation turned into something a little more realistic and understandable. Finn could understand why Hann always seemed to carry that easygoing atmosphere around him. It was probably a really good tool to have as an alpha. Especially in times like this.
“Is everything okay?” Lea repeated, a bit more confident, but also a bit more fearful.
“Well, the rogue has died,” Hann sighed. “Not by our doing, though we would’ve because of what he tried to do to you and this whole pack. He managed to escape from our grasp momentarily, and he killed himself in the process. Suicide was better than answering our questions, it seemed. However, we did get some intel from him.”
“About Gabriel?” Lea prompted.
“About Gabriel and everything these rogues seem to be doing nowadays. Turns out our intel prior to this incident was right. Gabriel has been spreading the word that he wants lone-wolf attacks on any pack and anyone in the world. He wants there to be disruption as he and his head rogues hide in plain sight, hoping to buy themselves some time after everything that happened a few weeks ago with their failed uprising. They’re hoping that, with these rogues going around and attacking with no plan, our efforts will be focused on that instead of on what they’re doing. And, for some packs, it’s working.
“There has been a quick rise in rogue attacks, as there have always been incidents like this for as long as the shifter society and rogues existed. However, there is a clear indication that things have increased with Gabriel’s suggestion. More and more rogues are deciding that this is a way they can contribute to Gabriel’s cause. And, it’s working. We’re all finding it harder and harder to put our efforts on finding Gabriel and the ringleaders of the uprising because we’re putting all of our efforts and resources on protecting ourselves from all ends of our territory. And I’m afraid it’s only going to get worse.”
“So, what can we do?” Finn jumped in, concern etching his brow. What Hann was telling them wasn’t good. At all. “If we’re being dragged down by these lone wolf attacks, how can we stop Gabriel and the rest of them?”
“With patience,” Hann replied, nodding. “And more and more practice. I’ve been going around to the rest of the pack, as well as our lovely visitors from other packs, and telling them that they need to increase their training. We all need to be prepared for the inevitable. The only thing we can do, right now at least with the information we have, is to train to be our absolute best. Because we don’t know how bad this could get. In the end, we could all end up on the front line. I don’t want this, of course, but we need to be aware that the possibility is there.”
“I completely agree,” Lea replied. “Thank you for coming and keeping me in the loop, Hann. I really appreciate it.”
“I just want to make sure you feel safe, in these horribly unsafe times,” Hann smiled at her, looking like a father. “And you’re sure you’re okay?”
“I’m okay.” Lea smiled even more from the care and attention Hann was giving her.
“I know I have dear Finn here to make sure you’re alright. I’ll be seeing you two.”
And with that little joke that he threw at them, Hann nodded and left Lea’s house, leaving the two of them sitting in silence. Finn looked over to see Lea was clutching her coffee mug, a nervous and scared look on her face.
“Lea?” Finn asked, snapping her back to attention and away from those horrible thoughts he knew that she was having. He didn’t want her to feel like that. He wanted to protect her, and the wolf inside of him screamed at the possibility that he wasn’t doing his job. He needed to protect her. And it was killing him that he obviously wasn’t doing his best job.
“Things are never going to be okay again, are they?” she finally asked him, looking into his eyes with so much sadness and fear. It broke Finn’s heart, and in that moment, Finn realized just how far he would go for her. He would go to the ends of the world for Lea. He would jump in front of a bullet, in front of a murderous rogue, in front of anything dangerous that came her way. He would put his own life on the line for her.
And he wouldn’t regret it.
Finn didn’t say anything. He just pulled Lea out of her chair and on his lap, hugging her and trying to make her feel the love that he felt for her. The love that he couldn’t say.
He wouldn’t lie to her and tell her that everything would be alright. He didn’t know that for sure, and those words wouldn’t comfort either of them. They would be meaningless. An empty promise. Something that people say just to calm others down. Finn wouldn’t do that to her.
So, he just held her to him, his heart breaking slowly with each shuddering breath that she took.
Chapter 13
Owen showed up to Lea’s work. Again. She was walking through the hallway after just talking with one of her patients when she saw him leaning against the nurses’ desk as if he owned the place. Lea’s fellow coworkers didn’t seem to mind. They all were flaunting themselves at him, though if she ever questioned them, they would deny this fact. Lea laughed silently to herself as she walked over. Owen seemed to like the attention he was getting from the human women as well. No surprise there.
“I feel like I’ve seen you more in the past few days than I ever have in my life,” Lea said as she walked over to her older brother, handing one of the nurses behind the desk her patient’s file so that she could put it up.
“Why, hello to you, too, sis,” Owen replied, a huge smile on his face as he subtly nodded to the nurses that were still giggling at him behind the desk. Lea rolled her eyes, beyond annoyed that her coworkers were so ga-ga over him.
“Is there a specific reason you’re here?” she finally asked.
“I have some bad news.” And just like that, Owen’s whole appearance changed drastically. He was no longer leaning up against the desk. Now, he was standing straight up with his arms crossed over his chest. Her typical older brother. Lea couldn’t help how her heartbeat quickened in pace from fear from his words, though.
“What happened?” she asked as she pulled him away from the nurses’ desk and their prying eyes and to a desolate hallway where no one would overhear them.
“There’s been another attack,” he told her, sighing and looking down in sadness. “Another rogue lone wolf attack.”
“Who?” Lea felt like she couldn’t breathe, and her mind immediately went to Finn. To H
azel. To her brothers. To everyone.
“Lorelei. She’s from Finn’s pack. She was running in the woods, in her wolf form, this morning when it happened. She was able to protect herself and call for help, though. There were a lot of shifters in the gym when they heard her call, her howl, and they went to help. They killed the rogue.”
“And how is she? Is she okay?”
“She’s wounded, but she’ll survive. She just needs to rest for a few days. Finn and her pack that is out here are pretty torn up about the whole thing. I just thought you should know.”
Owen had that knowing look in his eye, and Lea felt herself blush under his stare. She knew that he knew. He wasn’t that dumb. She didn’t know how she felt about him knowing, though. She felt embarrassed, but not embarrassed enough to stay put at work. Her heart, her soul, her veins–her everything–called for Finn and wanted to be near him during this time. She needed to.
Lea gave Owen a little nod and quickly told the head nurse that she had to leave, as there was a family emergency. In less than five minutes, Lea was outside and getting into her car, driving to Finn’s house where Owen said everyone was.
She needed to see him. Her heartbeat quickened with every second she drove, and she could feel ice in her veins that was prompted by worry and fear.
She knew that once she saw him, she would be okay. Everything would be okay once she was in his arms.
Lea immediately found Finn’s blue eyes when she walked into his house. Her heart seemed to leap out of its chest when she saw the relief in his eyes as he saw her. She wanted to run into his arms and kiss him, but she held all of her emotions at bay. His house was packed with high ranking members of her pack, as well as others coming by to wish them all well.
Finn walked over to where Lea was standing in the corner so that she stayed out of everyone’s way. She could see Hann in the other corner of the room, and he lifted a hand in hello when she caught his eye. Everyone else was coming and going, and Lea could see that everyone was on high alert.
“Hey,” Finn said as he came to stand next to her, close enough to talk. He didn’t touch her, though. Not that she was worried about it–she didn’t know if she wanted their little thing to be public yet. Especially because they hadn’t really talked about it. All they’d done was . . . well, not talk. Plus, it wasn’t the time or the place, and all Lea could think about was Lorelei and how Finn must feel about the whole thing.
“How’s Lorelei doing?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest when she felt a little chill run through her body. She found that she was fearful of everything nowadays, and she hated that.
“She’s good,” Finn told her, running his hand through his blond hair in frustration while his other hand was in his pocket. “Kato checked her out and said that she would be fine by the end of tonight. She just needed to heal, and she says now that she’s fine physically–mentally is a whole other issue, I’m sure, but she won’t say anything. She doesn’t really want to see anyone, so Desmond, Tatiana, and I are just trying to calm everyone down.”
“I’m so sorry this happened,” she told him, risking a comforting arm squeeze. He seemed happy from her touch, so she felt a little better that she hadn’t crossed some line that she didn’t know about.
“I just can’t believe it happened to Lore,” he told her. “I mean, it almost happened to you. You almost got hurt. And if you did, I don’t know what I would’ve done. And Lore. She’s the sweetest, smartest shifter I’ve ever met. She’s like my little sister, and I hate that this happened to her. I hate that we have to live like this now.”
“I know.” Lea didn’t know what else she could say. She hated it, too, and it hurt her deeply that Finn was so distraught over this whole thing. “Is there anything I can do?”
“No.” Finn shook his head and smiled at her, squeezing her hand slightly. “Just you being here is already making me feel better. I got kicked out of Lorelei’s room because I was being too crazy. You’re already calming me down.”
“I’ll always be here for you,” Lea told him.
When the words left her mouth, she instantly regretted it. They hadn’t talked like that . . . ever. Not once. And here she was, throwing out ideas of her always being around him. Always being in love with him. So far, in their relationship, the only thing that they had talked about was sex. How could she spill like that?
Lea looked into Finn’s blue eyes and instantly felt better. He smiled at her, squeezed her hand even harder, and had the strangest look on his face. Lea felt the constant butterflies that were always in her stomach when she was around him grow and beat even faster. She didn’t know what to do other than stare at Finn with a smile on her face.
“Good,” was all Finn said, though his fingers were now interlaced with hers, and he had a smile that she hadn’t seen before.
Lea left Finn’s house a few hours later, after running to the café to get a huge order of food for all of the people still in his house. She had to get home and sleep, as she’d been up working for so long, and she knew that there was nothing else for her to do. She hated to leave Finn, though. Every time she left him, it was like she was tearing her heart apart, only to sew it back together when she saw him again–and then repeat the whole process when she left him again.
Instead of going home and crashing from exhaustion, Lea found herself driving to her best friend Hazel’s house. She hadn’t seen her best friend in what seemed like forever, and she desperately wanted to talk to her. Hazel knew nothing about her and Finn, and it was killing Lea inside to not have told her.
Lea walked through Hazel’s front door after hearing her friend yell to come in when she knocked. Lea instantly felt like Hazel should be a bit more watchful in some way, especially because of all of the things that were going on. Anybody could walk in her unlocked door and potentially harm her.
Lea got the chills just thinking about it.
“Hey, girly,” Hazel said with a smile when she saw her best friend walk through the door.
Hazel was wearing workout clothes and making dinner, which smelled delicious. Lea saw grilled chicken on a platter in the corner of the kitchen counter, as well as vegetables seasoned in a skillet that Hazel was currently mixing. It all smelled like heaven, and when Hazel handed Lea a plate of food, Lea hungrily dug in.
“I have so much to tell you,” Lea told her friend in between bites before jumping into the story of how she and Finn were now together. Well, together in some way. She still didn’t know where they stood, so she tried not to say that they were a couple or anything.
But that didn’t stop Hazel from questioning and asking that exact thing.
“So, are you guys like a couple now?” Hazel asked her after she had freaked out slightly that the two had gotten together. Her enthusiasm was infectious, and Lea found herself giggling like a little schoolgirl alongside her friend as she told her all her dirty stories.
“I don’t know,” Lea replied after pausing for a second. She played with the food on her plate, knowing that her friend was going to see right through her and know exactly what she was thinking.
“You want to be, though, don’t you?” Of course, Hazel knew what she wanted. She was her best friend for a reason. But that didn’t mean that Lea really liked hearing that statement out loud.
She didn’t know why. She just didn’t want to accept the idea that she truly liked Finn. Maybe even loved him–though she would never admit that little fact. It was much too early, and she didn’t necessarily know him enough to declare that she was in love with the man.
“I don’t know,” Lea sighed, playing with her food some more. “I like him. And he’s made me feel . . . well, I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. I can’t help it. But a relationship? He’s not really one for a relationship with a girl like me, is he?”
“Oh, because he has that bad-boy vibe?” Lea nodded, and Hazel continued. “So what? If he likes you, and if he’s not playing you, then it doesn’t matter what vibe he has
. If you guys like each other, ignore everyone else.”
“He’s not my type, though,” Lea sighed. “And what if he is just using me? For sex? For anything?”
“Do you think he is?”
Lea paused as she thought about the time she and Finn had spent together. She knew that he was a bad boy. She knew that he wasn’t the most reliable person. But in this new world they found themselves in, where they had to watch their back at every turn for fear of rogues coming and attacking them, Finn had seemed to change. He wanted to protect people, and Lea could see that.
But was he using her? Did he like her? More than as just a sexual partner, that is? Lea remembered the moment that they seemed to have at his house earlier today, where she was comforting him after everything that happened with Lorelei. That wasn’t something that sex buddies would do . . . would they?
Lea couldn’t imagine Finn using her. She just couldn’t, even though her brain was yelling at her for being so naïve. She couldn’t help the way her heart, her whole body other than her brain, felt. She couldn’t help but feel that maybe the thing between her and Finn was . . . well, real. She didn’t know if she felt comfortable enough to admit it, though.
“I don’t think he’s using me,” Lea finally said. “I hope he’s not. And maybe I do really like him–as in really like him. I could never tell him. Because then I might ruin what we have, and I love what we have right now. I guess I just don’t know what to do.”
“Maybe you should just talk to him,” Hazel offered, giving her a sympathetic smile.
Lea smiled back at her best friend, thankful that she had her to talk to. If she couldn’t express her feelings to anyone, she felt like she was going to explode. At least she had Hazel. And maybe Hazel was right–maybe she should just talk to Finn and lay all of her feelings and emotions out on the table.
Lea sighed. She knew she would never do that. She didn’t have the courage to. Because that might mean that Finn would get cold feet and leave her. She would never get to touch his body again, and he would never touch hers again.
Moonlight Wolves Box Set Page 44
