Page 5 of Wicked Wolf

A lieutenant. That made sense. While the Redwoods had enforcers, lowercase e, to protect the Alpha, the Talons had lieutenants. They were strong wolves, loyal to the core, and would put their body in front of a claw or bullet to protect their Alpha.

Gina swallowed hard and looked at Quinn. He didn’t react. Instead, he stood there, his gaze on her intense, and for some reason, she felt anger…or something akin to it rolling over him. She didn’t know what she’d done to cause that kind of reaction, but she didn’t like it. The two of them would now have to stand side by side in order to find a way for the Packs to work together more than they already were.

They had to prove that the Packs could have faith in one another.

Her lusting after him and him looking like he wanted to growl at her for something or another wouldn’t help anyone.

“So that’s six people, three from each Pack,” Kade said finally. “We don’t know what’s coming, only that we need to stand united.”

“We can’t move on unless we know that we can help every person within our Packs, even those who feel they don’t have a voice,” Gideon said softly.

“Our jobs as Betas mean we look for those,” Jasper said, his eyes on Mitchell, who nodded.

“But that doesn’t mean we can help everyone,” Mitchell added.

“If we have an outlet for people who want the Packs to work together, then we’re one step closer,” Gina said, her wolf growling in approval.

Quinn narrowed his eyes. “Talking won’t do much, but action will, even if that action is showing that we’re in agreement after all these years.”

“The Packs fought together in the war that almost killed us,” Kade put in. “Now we need to show that, in times of peace, that collaboration is still needed.”

“Agreed,” Gideon said.

With that, they finalized their plans to tell the other new members of the council, and Gina stood up, her wolf needing to run. There was too much energy in the room, too many dominant males. She was a dominant wolf in her own right, but in this room, she knew she was most likely the lowest rank. That didn’t mean she was weak. That just showed how much freaking power was actually in the room to begin with.

“Gina? You and Quinn go for a walk along the neutral perimeter,” Kade ordered. “Get to know one another since the two of you are the leaders of this experiment.”

Gina stood, forcing her knees not to shake. If her father knew about the very dirty, sweaty images rolling through her brain right then, he probably wouldn’t have ordered her to undertake such a task.

“Come with me,” Quinn said then stalked out of the room.

She raised a brow at Jasper. “Bossy much?”

Her uncle snorted then shook his head. “He’s not a submissive wolf, that’s for sure.” He grinned. “Well, even submissives have a strong drive.”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re thinking of your mate, and now I’m going to tell Willow you called her submissive.”

Her uncle narrowed his eyes. “Do that, and I’ll tell Finn you’re the one who stole his favorite shirt.”

She held up her hands in surrender. “I won’t mention it then.” She grinned, knowing Jasper was only teasing. “I’d best be off to find Quinn since he’s probably brooding or something outside.”

“Watch yourself with that one, Gina,” Gideon said, and she froze, surprised the Alpha would say anything like that.

“Excuse me?” she asked.

Gideon sighed. “He’s a strong wolf. A good wolf. But he’s not the same wolf he once was. It’s not my story to tell, but don’t antagonize him.”

Kade growled, and she did the same.

“Don’t threaten my daughter.”

“Alpha, he didn’t threaten me,” she said, her voice cool. “He only warned a council wolf about a wolf she will be working with in the future. That’s how I’m taking it.” If she didn’t, there might just be bloodshed, and that was not a good idea in this small room with no real escape.

Kade tore his gaze from Gideon’s and met hers before giving her a nod.

Their family relationship was a slippery slope. She was the oldest of her generation, and therefore, the first to blend into the roles that suited them as adults, rather than children. It wasn’t easy finding a balance. Finn might be eighteen and older than his years, but he wasn’t allowed to be a part of many of the Pack decisions. That would be changing soon. Finn was, after all, the Heir to the Redwood Pack. His time would come.

With one last glance at the others, she left the room and looked for Quinn. She didn’t have to go far since he was right outside the main door. He probably had heard everything, but his face didn’t show it. Maybe he didn’t care that his Alpha felt the need to warn her about him, but she didn’t want to think of that too much. She had enough to worry about.