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She shuddered. “That’s horrible. Those things aren’t around anymore, I hope.”
“No. The ones the Pack didn’t kill were sent back across the plane, into their own world. Hopefully never to cross again. Especially since Kalen killed their previous king, Malik.”
“Holy crap. Kalen must be all kinds of badass to kill an Unseelie king.”
“Yeah. He gets his power honest—Malik was his father.”
“Damn! Shades of Luke and Darth, anyone?”
“For real. Not only that, Kalen has a half brother at the compound as well. His name is Sariel, nicknamed Blue, and he’s the former Seelie prince who was cast out because the court found out Malik was his father, too. Fortunately for us, while extremely powerful, both of Malik’s sons are inherently good. They’re only bad when they need to be. Hopefully Kalen’s son, Kai, will follow in their footsteps and take after them, not his grandfather.”
“Oh? How old is Kai?”
“Only a couple of months. Cute little bugger, too. His mother is Kalen’s mate, Dr. Mackenzie Grant. He’s got his Uncle Blue wrapped around his little finger, and Blue absolutely hates handing him over to the new nanny when they’re all busy working.”
“I’ll bet. Gosh, that’s an interesting group you live with.”
“You have no idea.”
It occurred to her then that she would get to know all of his friends, too. Micah was her mate, and it was probable that she’d have to go to live on the compound with him eventually. That thought gave her a sudden jolt. Leave her home, her garden? She’d worked so hard for the things she had.
But they were just things. Objects. Nothing could replace a mate and that precious bond.
The Shoshone rose around them, the trees dark sentries against the sky. To a human, perhaps the sight might have been creepy, but her coyote was right at home and itching to run in the moonlight. Micah steered the car down a secluded road for a couple of miles, then pulled over into a turnabout and parked.
“The car will be fine here,” he said. “I’ve come here before on my way home from town.”
They got out of the vehicle and stretched their legs, and she contemplated stripping in front of him to shift. Would he think her too bold? Among her old pack, nakedness was normal. Not that they had been nudists, but when they’d been shifting, it was no big deal. Both forms were as natural as breathing.
“We’ll walk into the woods before we undress,” he said. “I doubt anyone will come along except maybe a deputy. I don’t think Sheriff Deveraux would be too happy to find us standing around in the buff.”
“Then Jesse would demand an explanation as to why we were naked outside the car rather than inside, making out.”
“Oh, he knows what we are. He just wouldn’t be happy about finding us naked.”
“He does? Since when?” That was news. Jesse Deveraux came into the Grizzly all the time, and she’d never gotten wind that he knew exactly what the Pack was or what they did.
“Since the Sluagh were attacking a bunch of local families and the sheriff saw shit he shouldn’t have. So Nick decided it would be good to have an ally inside local law enforcement, and the man has come in pretty handy, even if he is a grumpy bastard.”
“He is that, for sure. Sexy but an asshole.”
Micah frowned. “You think Jesse is sexy?”
Grinning, she pressed against him. “He can’t hold a candle to you, so don’t sweat it.”
They kissed slowly, which got her motor revved and ready to go. He tasted so good, she sincerely hoped to sample much more of him soon. Backing away, she took his hand and let him lead them into the forest.
After walking for a ways, he stopped next to a fallen log and began to undress, not bothering to turn away. That settled the question of whether they were going to stand on ceremony, and so she did the same. Unashamedly, they watched each other.
His shirt went first, and she admired his chest, sprinkled with a fine dusting of dark hair. He was toned and fit, not too bulky, his abs flat. On his right biceps was a gorgeous tattoo of a wolf’s head, and it rippled with his muscle.
Here and there she noted scars, some thin and long as though they’d been made by a whip or knife, some puckered and round as though by silver bullets or burns. But they were a warrior’s scars, and she admired him for them.
One baseball-sized scar on his chest looked recent and far too near his heart. “What happened there?”
“We had to battle some demons the other day. One almost got the best of me.”
“Are you all right?”
