Page 72 of The Enforcers: NOAH

Chapter 28

Mina waited nervously on the porch steps while Noah climbed the monstrous pine tree where Jasmin claimed they could get a cell phone signal. He was getting up into the bendy branches at the top, which was part of what was making her nervous, but mostly it was about meeting all these other wolves.

Jace Monroe was the one who would decide if she and Brock could go live with them, and if Noah could come too. And if he said no, her decision to let Noah claim her wouldn’t mean crap.

She hated the idea that some random man got to have so much power over her. She had an overwhelming urge to kick Jace Monroe in the nuts when she saw him, which probably would get them off on the wrong foot.

Noah stopped climbing and held up the phone, giving her a thumbs-up. She waved.

Brock was running around the clearing in wolf form, playing with Tristan. She was starting to get used to the idea that her son was also a wolf, though it still freaked her out if she thought about it too hard. Secretly, thought, she thought his little clumsy baby paws and feathery tail were too cute for anything.

Seeing him with Tristan made Mina go all mushy inside. Neither she nor Robbie had any family. At least, Robbie said he didn’t, the lying scumbag. Who knew if it was true? But Brock had never had any aunts or uncles or cousins, and now out of the blue he had family, however distantly related.

Noah was swinging down from branch to branch, making Mina’s heart lurch every time one bent too far under his weight. He dropped to the ground and jogged over to her, making her heart lurch in a different way.

He leaned down and kissed her. Brock ran over and wriggled in between them, putting his paws on Mina’s leg. She caught his muzzle between her hands and put smacking kisses all over the soft fur on top of his head.

He changed into human form and snuggled up under her arm. Noah ruffled his hair affectionately.

“Hey, buddy,” he said. “I’m going to have to go away for a couple of hours. You and Tristan will take care of your mom for me, right?”

Brock nodded. “And Mr. Roary Lion and Mr. Tank and Miss Jasmin. We’ll make sure Mommy is a good girl.” He gave her a mischievous grin.

Mina gave him another smacking kiss, but then she looked up at Noah, worried. “They’re not coming here?”

“Something came up over at Nashville,” he said. She knew he was referring to the pack, not the city. “Jace and Emma and Sophia are staying there for the moment, and Jesse and Rafe and Terin are coming out here. Jace wants me to come in and give him some perspective about the current situation in the pack, since I’ve been in place there for the last few weeks. We’ll come back out here when it’s dealt with.”

Mina didn’t say anything, but Noah had already learned to read her face. “I know,” he said. “I want to get this over with as soon as possible, and see you both safe at Silverlake. But it’s only a couple of hours.”

Mina nodded. There was nothing she could do about it—that’s what she hated so much about it. Everyone else was making the decisions. But there was nothing she could do about that either, and she’d learned during her stays in the psych ward that there was no use fighting when everyone else had all the power.

Sometimes you just had to work within the system you had.

Noah left, leaving Mina with nothing to do but pace and bite her nails. Flynn and the others stayed out of her way; she knew their animals didn’t deal well with strong emotions. Everything that had happened with her and Tristan yesterday had left them all restless and unsettled, and Flynn and Jasmin had already gotten into a bloody catfight once this morning. That had sent Brock scrambling into the house, tail between his legs.

All the more reason for them to move somewhere else.

It seemed like an eternity before the Silverlake wolves arrived. Mina was surprised to see they were driving Flynn’s old beater truck he’d lent to Noah. Flynn went to meet them, his face a stony mask, half-healed gouges from Jasmin’s claws still oozing along his neck.

A man with chestnut-brown hair and an easy air of authority climbed out of the cab. “Hey, Flynn,” he said.

The lion gave him a crooked grin that didn’t really seem too friendly. “Heard you were looking for me. Felt sorry for you, so I figured I’d finally let you find me.” His tone had an edge to it, and his stance was arrogant.

Jesse just smiled. “Thanks for the assist.” He threw the truck keys to Flynn. “We swapped vehicles halfway, in case you needed yours.”

Flynn gave a short nod, putting up his huge hand to catch the keys, but his eyes were still wary.

Jesse didn’t seem bothered. “How you doing?”

That got an enigmatic look. “Fine. Always. Don’t need any fucking help.”

Jesse just gave him a nod. “Mind if the others get out?”

Flynn shrugged his huge shoulders. “This isn’t my territory.”

Jesse snorted. “If you say so.”

The others got out of the truck, and Mina caught her breath. The woman had to be Terin—she really did look just like Tristan.