Page 52 of Wild

“Hey, Colton. Looks like Boyd’s not the only one who found his—” Shelby, one of our younger pack females, stopped talking when I gave a tiny shake of my head. “—found himself a woman,” she said after a slight hesitation.

Dammit. This was getting downright awkward. I really needed to tell Marina, whether the rest of the pack approved or not. Or Rob. What kind of mate was I keeping such a crucial secret?

Honestly, when I first learned from Boyd that his mate was human, I’d been surprised the pack had accepted her without much fuss. I’d expected to hear some snide comments or whispers tonight, but I hadn’t. Maybe it was because the alpha was on board with it. Maybe it was because Boyd would probably rip anyone’s head off who spoke bad about his mate, no matter her DNA.

Their acceptance though, gave me hope. Would they be fine with both human sisters as mated into the pack?

“Shelby, this is Marina, Audrey’s younger sister,” I said, settling my hand at the small of Marina’s back. I wouldn’t stop touching her.

Shelby studied Marina with curiosity. “Sister, huh? Interesting. Well, this whole town loves Audrey. She’s everyone’s favorite doctor.”

Marina smiled. “Yeah, she’s pretty killer, isn’t she?”

If she thought there was anything weird about the conversation. She didn’t let on.

“Come here, sweetness, I need to tell you something about me.” I hoisted her legs up around my waist. I fucking loved carrying her. The wild, riotous cravings I had being near her calmed when I had all of her in my arms. Like my wolf knew I had her. She was safe. Mine.

Thunder boomed again and the rain came on, hard. Like suddenly the faucet in the sky got turned on full-blast. Just like the other night. It was storm season in Montana, but hell, they were strong. It pounded the barn roof, which unfortunately wasn’t completely water-tight.

I heard squeals and laughter as people had to move to avoid getting wet. The Barn Cats stopped and moved to a dry spot, then started back up. Boyd pulled Audrey close and spun her away from a drip. They were happy, completely unfazed by the change in weather. Thank fuck, they wouldn’t let a little rain ruin their night.

Marina laughed and squeezed her thighs around my waist, her arms looped around my neck. I found a quiet corner and sat down, arranging her on my lap, facing me. “What did you want to tell me?”

I glanced around. My wolf was tearing at the surface, but I shoved him down. Yeah, she had to know. She had to understand why I was pushing her away. Why I couldn’t kiss her. Couldn’t fuck her like I wanted. She deserved to know because keeping it from her was wrong. She’d be mine, no doubt of that. Later, sure, but I wanted her to know everything now. No secrets. “You see all these people here?”

“Yes.”

“They’re not just ranchers, they’re all sh—”

A whistle pierced the air and Rob’s alpha voice carried over the rain and music. “Everybody, listen up.”

The Barn Cats stopped playing.

“I hate to break up a party, but I have no doubt the creek along the canyon road back into town is rising pretty fast. Might even flood.”

There was complete silence as everyone remembered what had happened to our parents in a storm just like this one.

“We don’t mess around with that,” he added, for those who didn’t know our sad history. “Don’t want you all in danger or stuck here all night. So, anyone who needs to get back into town better leave now!”

“Oh my gosh,” Marina exclaimed, scrambling down from my arms.

“Hang on, little girl,” I said, but it was too late. Becky, Anna and Leigh came over to say goodbye. It was a parade of flurried greetings, and then Marina wanted to send them with slices of cake since they’d miss all of the food.

“There’s no time, sweetness. They need to get out of here now, or it could get dangerous driving home,” I warned.

She stared at me wide-eyed, then her look softened. Yeah, Audrey had told her. “Okay.”

“Save me some for later!” Becky said, squeezing Audrey then Marina for another quick hug before the ladies and half the shifter crew ran out into the pouring rain.

There were about ten of us left along with the band, who didn’t seem to mind being stuck here overnight. They’d crash in the bunk house. They played a tune I’d heard at Cody’s the night before. Audrey and Boyd moved into the middle of the space and started to line dance. I had no idea Boyd knew the steps. Neither did anyone else because they were clapping and whistling, impressed.

I had to admit, my brother was smooth.

Marina and a few others joined them. Marina crooked her finger at me to participate, but the one thing I didn’t do was dance. No fucking way. Besides, I was having too much fun watching. The camaraderie of the Wolf pack made me think back to times before our parents died.

Yeah, I was coming home. It was time. And all because of the pretty blonde doing the Boot Scootin’ Boogie.

A horrible crack filled the air, so loud I watched Marina jump. Immediately after, a huge crash sounded, then part of the barn roof caved in and fell all around us.