by Celia Kyle
Trina took the woman’s hand and smiled. “Not today. We’re just here to take a walk.”
Persia had the grace to look only slightly disappointed. “Cool. And who’s this?”
“I’m sorry. Persia Moonshadow, this is Max Kincaid, my, um…” She turned wide eyes on Max, who looked highly amused and waited to see how she would finish the sentence. “Um, my boyfriend.”
Trina could feel how hard it was for Max to not roll his eyes at the woman’s name. To his credit, he kept a straight face and returned her handshake. Persia, on the other hand, seemed to have a harder time keeping her opinions to herself.
Leaning into Trina, she whispered conspiratorially, “Well done!”
Trina blushed and Max tried not to laugh at her discomfort. Before she could think of an appropriate response, someone called Persia back to the protest and, with a wave, the human hurried back to her group.
The deeper they walked into Wolf Woods, the fainter the chanting became, until all that remained were the natural—and typical—sounds of a forest.
Their pace was leisurely as they held hands and enjoyed the simple pleasure of being together. As they strolled, Max waxed rhapsodic about everything—the breeze whispering through the bright green canopy, the cheery twittering of songbirds greeting the day, the crunch of leaves and twigs under their feet, the faint rustling of small animals in the underbrush. Sounds she’d taken for granted her entire life.
Max seemed to come alive, as if the forest itself invigorated him, even healed his wounds—maybe not the physical ones, but certainly the emotional ones he had yet to share with her. One day, and very soon.
A rabbit darted across their path and disappeared into thick shrubbery. They both jerked to a stop, not out of fear, but from their wolves’ impulse to run after it.
“I never feel wilder than when my wolf wants to give chase for no good reason,” Max chuckled.
They fell into an easy silence until they reached a familiar clearing. Having grown up running in the woods outside town, Trina probably knew every knoll and creek like the back of her hand. That particular clearing was a favorite among young and old lovers alike.
“Here we are,” Max said, stopping dead in the center and taking a deep breath. “This is the clearing where Zeke found me. Where he stopped me from ripping that surveyor to shreds. Never thought I’d say this, but I’m glad he did. Not my finest moment. Still my favorite place in the woods, though.”
Max made a show of taking off his jacket and laying it on the grass for her to sit on. They snuggled close together, their scents mingling with that of the forest. Closing her eyes, Trina lifted her face to the warmth of the sun and marveled at her newfound appreciation for Wolf Woods.
“You know, this place has been in my life for so long, I think I didn’t really see it anymore. It was more like a backdrop for my life than an integral part of it.” She turned to give him a placid smile. “But seeing it through your eyes has made it shiny and new. Thank you for that.”
“My pleasure,” he murmured, his eyes locking onto her lips as he leaned in and brushed his mouth against hers. Nothing wild or passionate, just simple and sweet.
Resting her head on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around her, and Trina tried to ignore her rapid-fire thoughts. A jillionty questions rattled around in her brain, but she was afraid to ask most of them. Lone wolves were wild and known for being unpredictable, but then Max had said something earlier about not really being a lone wolf, not by choice anyway. What the hell did that mean?
But instead of barraging him with everything she wanted to know—which was pretty much everything about the man—she decided to play it safe.
“How are you doing?”
She knew that he knew she was asking about so much more than his physical wellbeing. The answers would be so much more meaningful if he opened up to her on his own, rather than from her pushing. Max stared out toward the tree line, giving no indication he’d even heard the question. Finally, he took a breath and pressed his cheek to her forehead. The morning stubble scratched her skin in a delightfully itchy way.
“I’m constantly amazed by your brilliance, my love. I told you earlier you were right to want to wait, and I meant every word. Seems I’ve been having some trouble letting go of my past too, and I don’t want any of that toxicity to taint what we have ahead of us.”
Trina’s healer instincts sensed the deep pain plaguing him, stirring in her wolf the need to comfort her mate, to ask him what was wrong so she could fix it. But her healer instinct told her to let it go. For the moment, at least. She trusted that he’d tell her all about it when he was ready. After all, they had an entire lifetime to discover each other’s secrets. No sooner had that thought crossed her mind than panic flared in her heart. She’d thought the same thing about Dean. She’d assumed she would have forever with him, but then he’d died so damn young. She had taken time for granted and was punished with losing him. She couldn’t bear the thought of that happening again. Max had already been shot once, and he still had a primal vendetta against Dick McNish. What if he didn’t live long enough for them to claim each other and live happily ever after? Maybe waiting was a mistake.
As if reading her thoughts, or at least sensing her emotions, Max pulled her closer, until her face tipped up to his. His smoky hazel eyes overflowed with affection as he drank her in, and then he dropped his head and kissed her deeply. Trina sank into the kiss, reveling in the warmth of their shared contact. When he pulled back, determination filled his features.
“Don’t worry, my love,” he murmured, pressing his lips to her forehead once again. “I’m not going anywhere. There’s no need to rush any of this. Our love is worth the wait. I promise.”
Chapter Twelve
Max couldn’t wipe the stupid smile from his face. Trina’s attention was on the rutted, bumpy country road leading to the pack house, not on him, thank goodness. She probably would have thought he’d lost his mind entirely if she caught sight of his ridiculous grin, so he turned to watch the lush, Georgia landscape pass by.
Peace had eluded him for two long years. He’d honestly never thought it would find him again, and now that it had, he had no desire to hide how happy it made him. Connecting with another wolf so deeply had seemed impossible back then. Once he discovered that was a lie his stunted heart had told him, he embraced their bond wholeheartedly.
They drove in silence, which didn’t bother him in the slightest. In fact, getting to that place where he could sit in silence and not feel awkward felt like a slice of paradise. Still, he kept his emotions in check. Thinking too much about Trina and their bond always made his pants grow uncomfortably tight in the crotchal region, and he’d made a promise. As long as they stuck to the “slow and steady” thing, baseball and cute puppies and Margaret Thatcher would take the starring role in his thoughts to keep certain rebellious body parts under control.
As Trina negotiated a tight bend in the road, they spotted a woman standing off to the side, flagging them down. “Friend of yours?” Max asked.
“She’s a pack member,” Trina said, rolling the window down and pulling over on the side of the road.
“Hey, Trina,” the dark-haired woman said, leaning on the car door.
“Hi, Yvonne, what’s up?”
“I saw you drive by earlier,” the tall, mid-twenties woman said. “I tried calling your cell, but it went right to voicemail. Figured you’d be driving back sooner or later so I camped out to catch you.”
Trina’s expression grew worried. “Why? What’s wrong? Is it your grandmother?”
Yvonne nodded. “Yeah, she hasn’t been feeling well for a couple of days but wouldn’t let us bother you again. I’m worried though. Would you mind checking her out?”
“Absolutely,” Trina said without hesitation, glancing over at Max. “Would you mind driving my car back? Do you feel up to it?”
Max snorted. “Do I feel up to sitting on my ass and pressing my foot on a couple of pedals for
less than a mile? Yeah, I think I can handle that.”
She pressed a quick kiss on his cheek and then fetched her medical bag from the trunk as he took her seat. “See you back at your place,” he called as Trina and Yvonne disappeared into the woods.
As Max pulled up to the pack house a few minutes later, he decided the place had the kind of homey charm he could get used to. He parked in the same spot Trina’s car always sat in and headed for her cabin. About ten paces past the pack house, he heard the front door open and heavy footsteps pound across the porch.
“Hey, Max!” a voice called.
Max spun around, surprised that anyone from the Soren pack would be calling him by name. Zeke stood at the edge of the porch, leaning over the railing. He wasn’t smiling, but he didn’t look angry either.
“Got a minute to chat?” Zeke asked, although it was clearly not a question.
It was a command.
Uh oh, time for a heart to heart with the alpha. Honestly, Max wondered what had taken him so long.
“You bet,” Max replied, stifling his wolf’s snarl at being ordered around.
Being on his own for so long hadn’t just messed with his wolf’s mind. It had spoiled Max a little. He’d grown accustomed to ignoring the social hierarchy of packs altogether. Taking orders from anyone, especially some random pack’s alpha, was a non-starter. As a lone wolf, he’d pretty much acted as his own alpha, so swallowing his pride to subjugate himself to his mate’s alpha took more strength than even he thought he had.
But he’d do anything for Trina.
Following Zeke to his office at the back of the pack house, Max took the seat across from the alpha’s desk. Zeke sat forward, his forearms leaning on the desk and his brow furrowed as he stared at Max.
Not wanting to challenge the alpha—okay, he wanted to, but he wouldn’t—Max sat upright, neither leaning forward aggressively nor lounging back as if he didn’t have a care in the world. He knew what was at stake and he wouldn’t risk it. The most he’d do was return Zeke’s hard stare, while keeping his expression mild and placid.
Something about Zeke’s scent told Max the man had never done anything like that before, which was a relief because neither had Max. It was the kind of thing two alphas did upon first meeting—sizing each other up, proving their alphaness, taking no quarter.
Of course, Max’s wolf urged him to start some shit. To show this cocky newbie-alpha what real men were like, what they were capable of when push came to shove. And he had no doubt that Zeke’s wolf was whispering similar encouragements. But they both knew they had no beef with each other, so Max did everything he could to keep things civil.
Almost as if they’d read each other’s minds, they visibly relaxed at the same moment. Zeke spoke first.
“Max, I’ve been curious,” he said, leaning back and steepling his fingers in front of him. “How exactly do you know Dick McNish?”
Fuck off and mind your own damn business, Max’s wolf urged him to say, but Max shook that off.
“I’ve had run-ins with that asshole and his cronies before,” he finally said.
“What kind of run-ins?”
“Not too different from yours, it sounds like.”
Zeke narrowed his eyes and tipped the steeple to his mouth as he thought. “Take it that didn’t end too well.”
Max felt his lip start to curl, and his wolf was baring its teeth within him. Clenching his jaw tight, he took a deep, steadying breath, wishing Trina was there to calm the wildness in him.
“Look, I’ll be straight with you, Zeke. I’ve been roughing it on my own long enough that I’m…a little less civilized than I probably should be.” He tapped the side of his head to make his point. “I’m actively working on getting back to where I need to be, not just for Trina’s sake, but for my own. I promise you, digging up my old baggage isn’t going to help you deal with McNish, and it definitely isn’t gonna help me forge a new future with Trina. So, if you don’t mind, I’d rather keep my eyes ahead than double back over thorny old trails.”
Zeke stared at Max long and hard, thinking. Finally, he gave a single, curt nod. “Trina’s a good friend and a good healer. Both of those are hard enough to find on their own, but together? You’ve got a special girl on your hands, Max. And I can tell she likes the hell out of you. If it means giving her the shot at happiness she deserves, then so be it. You keep your demons. For now.”
Max breathed a sigh of relief. Zeke may have been new to being an alpha, but he was a damn fine one and he’d only get better.
“But let me ask you one thing. When you blew McNish’s trailer to pieces, my mate almost took the fall for it. Why’d you do it?”
Max certainly hadn’t meant for anyone except himself to take the blame for the explosion, so he was relieved to hear Val had been cleared. And he couldn’t deny the man’s request. They both deserved an answer, and as it happened, it was the only one Max could give.
“Because he deserved it.”
Zeke stared at Max for a beat and then burst out with hearty laughter from deep in his belly. Max grinned as Zeke held his sides.
“Shit, can’t argue with that logic.” Zeke chuckled, wiping a tear from his eye.
“I’m sorry Val took some heat over it,” Max said. “Wouldn’t have done it if I’d known it was going to put anyone else in the crosshairs. But then again, I kinda like the mental image of Val going toe-to-toe with those assholes McNish rounds up to do his dirty work. Bet that was a sight.”
“She held her own,” Zeke said, still laughing. “Takes more than that to ruffle my mate.”
“Glad to hear it.”
Zeke’s smile drifted away until he turned deathly serious. “But listen to me, Max, and listen hard. Nothing like that can happen again, understand? You know they have a video of you, right? They caught you on camera, but your face was hidden, thank god. Still, we really don’t need that coming back on us. Got it?”
Max ground his teeth for a second and then nodded stiffly. “Got it. I just want to stop him from fucking over any other packs. I’m here to help, in whatever way you think is best.”
“Well, alrighty then,” Zeke said, extending his hand.
Before Max could take it, the office door slammed open. Trina stood in the doorway looking like a furious warrior woman.
“Ezekiel Sasha Soren!” she roared, stomping across the room with fire in her eyes. “Just what on god’s green earth do you think you’re doing, interrogating my patient before the goddamn hole in his side has even had a chance to stop bleeding? I swear, if you do something like that again—”
“Trina,” Max jumped in front of her to stop her from taking her aggression out on her alpha. “I’m fine. Really.”
“No!” she shouted, not even looking at him, but keeping her fiery gaze pinned on Zeke. “Max needs rest, not field trips to chat with the one man he hates most in the world, and most certainly not an unauthorized interrogation.”
“Trina,” Zeke said, the warning in his voice setting Max’s wolf to snarling. But before he could do anything about it, Trina handled it.
“Nuh-uh, don’t you get all growly with me, Zeke. You and I both know healers have the final say when it comes to their patients’ health. I still kick myself for letting you railroad me into allowing him to go see that asshole yesterday. It won’t happen again. You can be sure of that!”
Zeke clenched his face up tight. Alpha though he was, pack rules were pack rules.
“I just—”
“You just wait and see what happens next time you stumble through a poison ivy patch and come crawling to me, begging for relief!”
Zeke tried to apologize—or maybe argue—but before any words could form, his cell phone buzzed loudly. Snatching from his back pocket, he punched the screen harder than was strictly necessary and barked, “What!”
Trina finally turned her gaze to Max, so furious she looked like she was about to combust. Max patted the air, trying to get across everything was fine. Trina
pursed her lips, unconvinced, but they weren’t able to finish their silent conversation.
Zeke jumped out of his chair, his face turning an alarming shade of red, as if it were his turn to explode in fury. Then he shouted, “What?”
Chapter Thirteen
“Motherfucker!” Zeke bellowed, his arm cocking back as if he were about to throw his phone against the wall. He managed to control himself, but—judging by the fine layer of fur sprouting along his arms—just barely.
The last time Trina had seen him that angry was moments after his mother had passed away. But that had been a different kind of anger—irrational, emotional, born from lost hope and grief. The rage in his eyes as he carefully and purposefully set his phone on his desk was lucid and rational. He practically vibrated with it.
“What happened, Zeke? Anything I can help with?” Max asked.
She loved that he’d offered, but whatever was going on, she wouldn’t allow him to risk his life. No way, no how.
Zeke took five deep breaths before answering, a trick Val had taught him to calm himself down. When he finally spoke, his voice quavered with indignation. “That was our lawyer, informing me that our old pal Dick McNish has apparently upped his shitheel game and filed a boundary dispute. Claims Wolf Woods should actually encompass an even larger tract of land.”
“What?” Trina sputtered, eyes wide. “On what grounds?”
“Says the parcels were never properly surveyed back when they were settled a million years ago.”
“Okay, so what’s that mean?” Max prompted.
Zeke looked at him hard, a muscle twitching in his jaw, proving his barely restrained anger at the situation. “What that means is, if McNish wins, our pack lands will be effectively cut in half. Maybe even more.”
Trina gasped, her stomach twisting up into curlicues. When Max laid a hand on her shoulder, she wrapped it around her shoulders and buried her face in his chest, doing her best to keep her fears at bay.
