Werewolves & Whiskers: Sawtooth Peaks Wolf Shifter Romance Box Set

by Keira Blackwood

  “You were here before it was empty,” I said.

  “I made myself useful,” he replied.

  “Useful? You didn’t try to help Stratton. You didn’t help me. And worst of all, you left your mate to be used by any man working for Dashiell. Tell me why. I deserve to know why.” My voice was shaking, and I realized I was yelling.

  “I’m sorry about whatever happened to you. I did what I had to, just as I’m sure you did,” he said. “So, I’m guessing you won’t stay for dinner.”

  “Mara,” I yelled.

  My sister-in-law crept softly into the hall behind Troy. She kept her gaze down and stopped behind him.

  “Mara,” I said, pushing past Troy, and taking her hand. “Mara, are you okay?”

  “Yes,” she answered, eyes on my feet.

  “We should go,” I said, and pulled gently on her arm, but she didn’t follow.

  “Mara will stay here with me,” Troy said. “She is my mate, after all.”

  “Mara,” I said, “you don’t have to stay. You don’t owe him anything.”

  She met my eyes, with a hard, emotionless expression. “I belong with my mate. You should go.”

  My eyes stung as moisture welled in the corners.

  “Mara,” I said.

  If she wouldn’t go, I couldn’t make her. I couldn’t force her to leave him, even if I knew she wasn’t happy here. Maybe if he wanted her, he would try to make his actions up to her. Though ‘I did what I had to’ was a pathetic excuse.

  I reached into my backpack and pulled out the framed picture of Gran and me with Troy, something I had intended to bring home, a reminder that Troy needed more than I did.

  “I picked this up at your house when I went looking for you,” I said, handing my brother the photograph.

  Then I turned to Mara, and set the backpack full of her belongings at her feet. “These are for you,” I said. “You are welcome at my house anytime.”

  I hugged the sister that I had fed and clothed, the one who’d helped me find my strength again.

  Then I turned and left the way I had come. The air outside seemed colder as the sun set and I wandered back to my empty house alone. I was numb, mind and body, and my feet moved on their own as I watched the sky. Purples and reds swirled behind gray clouds, and the golden sun sank behind distant trees.

  I slipped my hands into my coat pockets and noticed the battered, rectangular paper within. My fingers slid across the upraised letters and numbers, and I pictured the face and the taste of the beautiful man who had given it to me.

  Chapter Eight

  Lance

  The cool, hard wall pressed against my back as I watched the room from beside the door. I had taken Harkins’s favorite spot to observe but not be bothered. Customers moved about, drinking, talking, and playing pool. Shea’s red hair drew my eye as she crossed the floor from bar to tables and back again. Her low ponytail gathered her fluffy ringlets at the nape of her neck. Shea was lovely in her own right, but she couldn’t compare to Trixie. Shea’s hair was a dull auburn, where Trixie’s was a scarlet flame that beckoned me to run my hands through her vibrant strands, and her emerald irises sparkled with intensity.

  After just a glimpse of Trixie Walker, the whole world looked dull by comparison.

  Callie walked between me and Shea, and blew me a kiss. I averted my eyes and listened to the chatter that filled the room. Sawtooth Den was full of calm and pleasant tones, laughter and drinking—all was well.

  An authoritative female voice stood out from the rest and caught my attention. Zaria. She was speaking to Axel. “There’s no better time, and none better qualified.”

  Zaria’s words reminded me of the way she had spoken to Cole. Now that he had taken a human mate and given up his right to put in a claim, it seemed it was Axel’s turn.

  She continued, “Your father performed many of the alpha’s duties while we’ve been without a true leader of this pack. If you were to take a mate and put in a claim, no one would oppose you.”

  Axel took a swig of his beer and turned toward me. Lines of concern crossed his forehead, and he looked like he wished he was somewhere else. His dark, brown eyes pleaded with me to save him. I had no desire to speak with Zaria, but I sympathized with Axel, knowing how his step-mother could be.

  “Axel,” I called, strolling across the room to him, with my hands in my pockets and a casual grin across my face.

  “Lance.” He smiled back, concern melting away from his brow.

  “How’s it going?” I asked, and held out a hand.

  He turned his body away from the small, raven-haired woman and took my palm in a solid shake.

  Zaria turned and walked away—my presence was the best repellent to that woman.

  After she had exited the bar, Axel said, “Thank you.”

  “Anytime,” I answered, and sat across the table from him.

  “Did you hear her?” he asked.

  “I did.”

  “Fuck alpha. Now that my father’s gone and I got my revenge, this place feels even less like home than it did before,” Axel said.

  I studied the blond man before me. His shoulders hung, and the dark circles under his eyes made him look tired. All of his resentment for Cole, and the fire that seemed to control him had faded. What was left after the deaths of Garret and Dashiell was a different man than Axel had been before.

  “That makes sense,” I replied.

  “I never really wanted to move to this town to begin with,” he said.

  “But your father had chosen Zaria.”

  “Yeah. And you know what she’s like,” he said.

  I smiled in response.

  “The more she talks, the more I think I’d be better off packing a bag and taking my bike on the road. I don’t get it,” he said. “It’s like she thinks I should want the responsibility, want to take a leading role here.”

  “She always wanted to be tied to the alpha,” I replied.

  “First my father, then Cole, now she’s pushing me? Fuck that,” he said. “What about you?”

  “What about me?” I asked. We both knew Zaria had no interest in me.

  “Are you going to take a mate and put in a claim?”

  “I hadn’t considered it until recently,” I said. Not until I met Trixie. I hadn’t wanted a mate, and so I wouldn’t have claimed alpha. But now, all I knew was that I wanted her, needed the fiery haired woman who constantly occupied my thoughts.

  “Well, I’m not going to be your competition,” he said.

  “And I haven’t said that I’m putting in a claim,” I replied.

  “True.”

  “You’ve earned a place in this pack on your own,” I said. “If you want to stay, we’re happy to have you. If you choose to go, don’t go without saying goodbye.”

  “Thanks,” he said.

  My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out to check the number. It wasn’t one I recognized. Few calls came in from numbers I didn’t know. I hoped it was her.

  “Excuse me,” I said, and walked back the hall toward Cole’s office.

  I pressed the button to accept and stepped into the quiet office.

  “Hello?” I answered.

  “Hi,” she said in that smooth, sultry tone that made me want to reach through the phone and touch her.

  “Trixie.”

  “I’m sorry to bother you,” she said. “And sorry for my behavior.”

  “You have nothing to be sorry about,” I replied.

  “I made a complete ass of myself,” she said.

  “You were perfect.”

  She let out a small laugh, and I pictured her freckled cheeks raising and wrinkling her eyes as she smiled.

  “What can I do for you?” I asked.

  “I don’t know, really,” she said. “I just…I just needed someone to talk to.”

  “I’m glad you called me.”

  “Am I interrupting anything?” she asked. “I don’t want to bother you if you’re busy.”
>
  “Really, Trixie, you’re no bother. I’m at work. This place runs itself. I have an amazing bartender who can run the shift without me. If there’s something she can’t handle, she has an enforcer that sticks to her like glue.”

  “I wish I had found someone like that,” she said.

  “Before all of this, you had a bar, too?” I asked.

  “Kind of,” she said. “Stratton and I had a place, Walker Bar and Grill. It was more his vision than mine, but I’ve always had a passion for cooking, or at least I did.”

  “What’s your vision?” I asked. “If you could do anything, what would it be?”

  “I guess it would have been mostly the same,” she said, and I could imagine her smiling again.

  I sat down in the hard chair across from my brother’s desk, tipped back, and closed my eyes. I pictured her intense, green eyes, her fiery, red hair, and the taste of her mouth on mine.

  She said, “If it had been all up to me, I would have probably made more kinds of food. We did burgers and fries mostly, and I would have liked to make more of my Gran’s recipes.”

  “Did she teach you to cook?” I asked.

  “She did. And passed down her passion for it to me. It was just me, Troy, and Mom until Mom died, then we moved in with Gran,” she said.

  “I’m sorry about your mom,” I said.

  “I don’t remember her all that well. It was harder when Gran died a few years ago. She was the one who raised me.”

  “Now it’s just you and Troy?” I asked, remembering that she had been out looking for him when we had met.

  “And his mate, Mara.”

  “Have you found any new leads on your brother’s whereabouts?” I asked.

  “I found him,” she answered, but the warmth in her voice was gone.

  “That’s good, right?” I asked.

  “I hope so.”

  We sat in silence for a few moments, then I asked, “Trixie, what are you doing tomorrow?”

  “Well, I guess I’ll take the girls out into town, and see what we can do to start making this place whole again.”

  “Is there anything I can bring by to help?”

  “Gloves, hammers, and nails would be a good start,” she said. “Some tarps to cover the holes. And I’d be happy to have an extra set of hands.”

  “I’ll go by the store when it opens.”

  “Lance,” she said, “we’ll pay for the supplies.”

  “I’m not worried about it, Trixie. I just want to help.” I left out the rest—I just want to help you, provide anything you need.

  “Thank you, Lance. I’m feeling a bit better.”

  “Call me anytime,” I said.

  “Good night,” she said, voice soft and alluring.

  “Good night, Trixie.”

  The rest of the evening went by in a blur. Trixie filled my thoughts, and I couldn’t stop smiling. I spoke to customers and invited Axel to come with me to Ellistown. Trixie had said they needed an extra set of hands, and I thought it could be good for him to escape Zaria for the day.

  I couldn’t wait for the morning to come and for the chance to see Trixie again.

  Chapter Nine

  Trixie

  The chilly mattress of the sofa bed indented under my flexed paws as I stretched my legs. The warmth of my fur had helped me sleep through the night even after the fire had burned out.

  Once the sleep drifted from my eyes, I remembered that Stratton was gone, Mara was gone, and I was all alone. I expected the loss to hurt more, but this morning the pain had dulled. Stratton would have wanted me to survive and be happy, and so far I had survived. My sister-in-law couldn’t stay with me forever, and had chosen to go back to her mate. It was her choice to make.

  And as much as I had helped Mara, she had helped me. I had channeled my strength to support her, and moved through the days and nights feeling like a person again. The girls needed me, the town needed me, and Lance was coming. I pictured the tall, athletic man with the crooked grin. His deep, blue eyes shined nearly as brightly as his extraordinary silver hair. Never had I seen someone with that shade of hair. It wasn’t gray like an older man, but metallic and elegant over his masculine face. Did he have hair the same gorgeous color in other places? I blushed at the thought. Focusing forward was the best option.

  Giving up the warmth of my fur, I shifted back to human form. Goosebumps covered my skin and I rushed to dress. Only one pair of jeans and one sweater were left in the corner where I had stacked my clean clothes. The chilled fabric was uncomfortable against my bare skin as I slid on my last outfit. The idea of washing a load of laundry felt so mundane and out of place in my post-Dashiell life. As I scooped the pile of dirty laundry into my arms, I noticed my hands were shaking, a shiver from the cold. I dropped the linens by the sheet that shielded the living room from the open section of the house, and went back to the hearth to start a fire.

  Only three logs remained. Just like with everything else, I would have to look for more soon. I placed one in the waiting fireplace with some kindling and lit the wood. Flickering flames grew stronger as they fed from the tinder. The reddish-orange heat stopped my shivering, but I lingered by the fireside to be sure it had finished its job. Dancing reds and oranges grew to include hotter yellows. How long would it take to stop picturing the town ablaze every time I looked at my source of heat?

  After the fire had warmed me thoroughly, I slid on my boots and coat, and packed my pile of dirty clothes into a tote bag. One of the abandoned houses down the street had a working washer and dryer, and no problems with its electricity. I’d have to borrow them soon.

  As I went through the sheet and into the kitchen, my boots crunched on the icy floor. The last can of tuna sat alone in the cabinet where we had kept all of our blizzard supplies. I used a can opener and grabbed a fork, then went back to eat in front of the fire. It was strange how normal it was all starting to feel—the hole in the roof, sleeping on the sofa, Ellistown standing in ruins. Was it normal now, or was I just growing numb?

  When the tuna was gone, I set off into the icy town outside. Sunlight reflected off of the frozen earth, lawns, and unused streets alike, creating a blinding glare. At least it had stopped snowing. Except for the crunchy ice beneath my feet, the streets were quiet as I approached the Come On Inn. Without traffic entering or exiting town, every change stood out. I recognized the silver pickup parked by the front of the building, and I blushed.

  An unfamiliar blonde man stood by the truck, and I paused. His scent was definitely wolf, and he dressed in a worn, leather jacket, dark blue jeans, and boots. Something about him was familiar. Was he one of Dashiell’s men? Had Lance brought him here? Or was he lingering by the truck for some other reason?

  I continued forward, hoping Lance would show up sooner rather than later. It was probably just nerves, but it was hard to trust anyone anymore.

  The blond man caught sight of me, and our gazes locked. Dark circles surrounded his deep-set eyes, with nearly black irises. I recognized that stare, that face. When I had seen him last, he was a crazed, snow-white wolf, devouring Dashiell.

  Unsure whether I should feel more or less at ease, I continued my approach.

  “Lance,” the man called, but kept his eyes on mine.

  The door to the inn opened, and silver-haired perfection stepped out. He wore a dark, distressed leather jacket over a fitted, white t-shirt that clung to his flat chest. With loose jeans and dark boots, he pulled off the casual look as well as his more formal attire.

  His piercing blue eyes met mine, and the frigidity I had felt melted away. Sexy silver stubble speckled his square jaw, a shade darker than the hair on his head, and his confident grin told me he was a man who could show me a side of myself I had never known.

  My cheeks heated and I gave him a small smile.

  “Trixie,” he said in a tone that made me wish we were alone.

  “Hi, Lance,” I said, then turned back toward the man beside him.

  “Trixie
, this is Axel. Have you two already met?” he asked.

  “I believe we have,” I said. Then held out my hand to greet Axel. Up close, I noticed no signs of the fury he had shown that night. And to be fair, I hadn’t been much better off at the time.

  “Yes,” Axel said, shaking my hand. “How are you?”

  “I am,” I started, and paused to choose an appropriate term, “surviving. How are you?”

  “The same,” he said.

  Lance turned to me and said, “I thought we could use an extra hand today, and fortunately Axel was available.”

  “Your assistance is much appreciated,” I said.

  Axel lifted a tarp out of the bed of the pickup and said, “Where do we start?”

  “Anywhere there’s a hole,” I said. “But we should focus first on the homes of those who remain. There are survivors staying in the inn that would like nothing more than to return to their homes.”

  “Sounds good,” Lance said.

  “Let me get the girls,” I said. “We’ll meet you here.”

  “Okay,” Axel said as I entered the building.

  After being outside, the lobby of the inn was dark by comparison. I wasn’t surprised to see the grizzly behind the reception desk, as his scent preceded him. What I didn’t expect was to see Blake attaching a tool belt to his waist.

  “Don’t squint at me like that,” he growled, keeping his eyes down on the task he was completing.

  “What?” I asked, and forcibly relaxed my face. Had I been scowling?

  “I see the way you look at me. Your silver-haired friend out there told me what the lot of you would be up to today.”

  “Okay,” I said.

  “I’ve been charged with keeping the town safe, which doesn’t mean I have to stay at this desk. I’m coming out to help.” His big, brown eyes met mine. Other than his threatening scent, Blake seemed okay, for a bear.

  “That would be appreciated,” I said, and continued back the hall. With the company of Lance, Axel, Blake, and the girls, this would prove to be an interesting day.