Cool evening air filled my lungs, sharp with pine and woodsmoke, but it didn’t ease the tension in my chest the way I’d hoped.
I stopped at the edge of the clearing, hands loose at my sides, staring at the cabin like it might have the answers I needed.
Mason’s face kept drifting through my mind. His uncertain smile, the way his scent had sharpened when I mentioned his brother. And still, my stubborn wolf refused to see him as a threat.
“Yeah,” I muttered under my breath. “This is getting real complicated.”
I shoved the door open and headed for the porch. Before I could knock, the door to the cabin swung wide. Dane filled the doorway, one brow already climbing toward his hairline.
“Well,” he drawled, folding his arms. “Either the world’s ending, or my favorite pain-in-the-ass brother needs something.”
Despite everything knotting up inside me, a crooked smile tugged at my mouth.
“Nice to see you too,” I said.
He stepped back with a snort. “Get in here before you start brooding on my porch and scare the wildlife.”
Warmth hit me the second I crossed the threshold, and something else. My nose twitched at the smell of steak. My stomach, traitorous thing that it was, perked up despite the fact I’d eaten two lunches.
Dane caught the shift in my expression immediately. His grin went feral.
“What’s for dinner?” I asked.
“Unbelievable. You don’t visit for days, and the first thing out of your mouth is about food,” he muttered.
I dropped into one of his kitchen chairs.
“That smells like ribeye,” I said gleefully. “Feed your favorite brother.”
He snorted but turned back toward the stove. “Beer’s in the fridge. And yeah, you’re staying for steak now. I already resigned myself the second you showed up looking like that,” he grumbled.
“Like what?” I asked.
“Like a lost wolf looking for advice,” Dane said.
I grabbed a beer and twisted the cap off, the cold bite grounding me a little as I took a long pull.
Dane plated the steaks with practiced ease and dropped into the chair across from me, eyes sharp despite his relaxed posture.
“So,” he said casually. “How’s the investigation going?”
I exhaled slowly. “Roadblock,” I admitted.
“Mm,” he hummed. “That so.”
We ate for a minute in comfortable silence. My brain was still doing laps, and apparently Dane noticed, because his mouth twitched.
“You know,” he said lightly, “word around the compound is you’ve been spending a lot of time with our little coyote guest.”
I froze mid-chew, and Dane’s grin widened like a shark scenting blood.
“There it is,” he sing-songed.
I set my fork down slowly. “You done?” I asked warily.
“Not even close.”
I dragged a hand down my face and sighed. I should’ve known better than to come here if I wasn’t ready for the full Dane experience, but the truth was I trusted him more than anyone else in the family.
