Page 83 of Ice King

“Not exactly. Think of the need as being more primal in nature.” Samantha was squirming. “You’ve studied enough about animal anatomy. We are animals at heart and within our DNA, no matter how diligently almost everyone in the past couple of generations has tried to shove our heritage aside so that when we were outed, we’d be accepted. What my generation is beginning to realize is that you can take the wolf out of the woods, but you can’t shove aside the most basic, carnal needs. Ford is really struggling with that and because he refuses to accept it, he’s suffering physically.”

“I’m confused. I thought wolves married humans.” Roxanne leaned forward.

Samantha folded her arms on the table. “Believe it or not, I don’t know every shifter requirement. Don’t laugh. My parents weren’t strict with us in requiring us to follow the old ways. However, what I’ve learned from books written by shifters is that only pure bloodlines are required to mate. Others can enjoy pretending to be human forever if that’s what they want. Their children are perfectly normal.”

“Can they shift?” I asked.

Her eyes opened wide. “You know what? I’m not certain.”

We all had a good laugh.

“So, your family has a pure bloodline?” I wasn’t certain I wanted to hear the answer.

Samantha shrugged. “You wouldn’t think we could because my mother is human. However, my father’s bloodline and heritage are very strong. He’s from a very powerful wolf family.”

“Your mother is human,” I repeated. The episode of theTwilight Zonewas becoming weirder by the second.

“I had no clue. That’s how good an actress she is.”

“So what you’re telling me is that he needs to find a nice little wolf shifter and settle down.” I was feeling a little more relaxed. Maybe I would track the man down and give him a piece of my mind.

“Actually, from what the family can tell, he’s already found his mate.”

For a split second, not only was I jealous of the concept but also aching inside. I’d missed the banter and the attitude we’d both had with each other.

I’d craved his physical presence and not only because of our passion, but the connection that seemed so natural, even beautiful in ways that few might understand. Suddenly, my skin wasn’t crawling as much as it was itching. Enough so I began to scratch my arm without thinking.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I don’t think I can take you telling me at this point that he’s off the table as a catch. Yes, we certainly didn’t get along very well, no matter what Roxanne may have told you about our brief interlude, but there was something about Ford that allowed me to breathe again. If thatmakes any sense. I want him happy. I just don’t think I can handle going to his engagement party.”

“That makes perfectly good sense,” Samantha said, the conviction in her voice noteworthy. “Hearing what you just said also makes me very happy.”

What did she say?

“Okay, I’ll bite. Why?”

Her grin turned into something as electric as the crackling interference between Ford and me.

“Because you’re his mate.”

CHAPTER 18

Ford

“Alright,” I offered after double checking the product sheet on the iPad. “You’re good to go.” I tapped the hood of the truck before taking a few steps away so the driver could pull out.

As soon as I did, I heard a rumble of thunder in the distance, With the level of noise coming from the various pieces of equipment, the sound was only loud enough for a wolf to catch. But a typical summer storm was brewing, already churning within the passing cloud cover.

The tractor trailer slowly rolled away from the mill, heading to its Arizona destination. When it cleared the area, I noticed one of the new guys Pops had hired struggling with a huge piece of timber brought in by the loggers. While we had equipment to transfer from the flatbed to the conveyer belt leading to the massive saws, human intervention was still needed to ensure the log was dropped where it needed to be.

Everyone hired went through a training process, including if something went wrong. That didn’t mean some weren’t convinced they knew better. Like this guy.

Where the idiot was standing, the crane’s operator had no chance of seeing him. I’d seen a man crushed that way.

The guy also wasn’t paying any attention to his surroundings, concentrating on whatever goddamn song was playing through his earbuds. How many times had he been told to remain alert?

A deep growl resonated from my throat as I thunked the computer onto one of the tables the saw operators used. I didn’t make it two feet before my instinct kicked in. The employee was about ready to crushed by three thousand pounds of wood and bark.

Lunging toward him, my feet left the ground just before I tackled him, the drop and roll hard.