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Caleb grinned and offered his hand. Trent grasped it, his own smile friendly, and I exhaled forcefully.
“Now that’s done, you wanna run?” I asked them, already shedding my shirt. I needed to work off some of my frustration and since killing Hanleys was off the table at the moment, a run was the next best thing.
***
We didn’t go far since my wolf resented the distance from Jess and I reluctantly admitted to myself, so did I. It was difficult staying away from her because at some point the attraction had stopped being due to biology and started being her.
We circled back to where we’d left our clothes, the barely lasting an hour, and my frustration unappeased.
“I think they call it being whipped,” Caleb said sotto voice to Trent, who chuckled.
“I can hear you,” I reminded him needlessly since the dig had been meant for me. “One day you’re gonna understand and I will laugh the hardest.”
“Yeah, like that’ll ever happen,” Caleb replied bitterly and I could sense Trent’s curiosity. “It’s not like breeding females just wander on to Pack lands every day.”
“You can go find one,” Trent suggested, yanking his shirt on. “That pack to the North.”
“About that,” I interrupted hastily. “I wanted you to go check it out, Trent.”
“Me?” Trent eyed us. “I thought your Alpha wasn’t going to send you there?”
“He’s not,” I stated flatly. “But we need to know if this pack is friendly or not. Maybe they’re willing to ally with us. Whatever went down at the meeting with the Hanleys, it’s not going to hold.”
“Yeah, sure, I can go. I’m really good at meeting new packs,” Trent joked wryly. “When you want me to go?”
“Tomorrow if you can,” I replied. “I’d go with you but –”
“Whipped. Got it.”
“I’m not whipped,” I growled, knotting the shirt I held in my hands. “I have to sub for one of the teachers, Parker I think.”
“Uh huh, and being five hundred miles away from Jess wouldn’t be a problem,” he retorted, grinning. “I can’t decide if marking her was the smartest thing you ever did or the dumbest.”
“It was an accident,” I defended, the words sounding hollow. “I didn’t mean to mark her. There was no intent on my part.”
“Maybe not you, but your wolf knew exactly what he wanted,” Trent commented, eyes gleaming. “And it wanted Jess.”
“She’s hot,” Caleb mentioned with a shrug and I had to fight the urge to slam him into the nearest tree. “If you like that type, which I don’t,” he added hastily, backing out of reach.
“She’s more than that,” I snarled. “She’s funny, sarcastic – fearless.” I didn’t see their envious expressions, my thoughts turned inward on Jess. “She’s also clumsy, obstinate, and foolhardy.” I smiled ruefully. “She reminds me there’s no weakness in being compassionate, to listen to the quietest voice in the room, and that you’re only as strong as your weakest member.”
“Definitely the smartest thing you ever did,” Trent said quietly and I nodded. He cleared his throat and turned to Caleb. “Why don’t you come with me when I go visit this Northern Pack? Maybe we’ll find our own Jess.”
Caleb stared at the ground and I tried to divert Trent. “He’s got school and the Alpha is –”
“I can’t,” Caleb answered, his eyes burning as he looked at Trent. “What Dom is dancing around is that I can’t leave the area. Alpha’s orders.”
Trent looked at me in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“My father bound me as my Alpha to Pack lands,” Caleb answered him. “I can’t go with you because I’ve been commanded to go no further than fifty miles in any direction of our border.”
“Why would he do that?” Trent questioned, a horrified bafflement on his face at being so restricted.
“Because my mom left him when I was a kid. She got tired of competing with a damn ghost,” he said, bitter resignation in his voice. I clenched my fists, wishing he didn’t have to explain but knowing it was his choice. I hadn’t thought it would come up or I would have told Trent not to ask. “When I first shifted, I wanted to go visit my mom, show off my wolf,” he explained, his eyes unfocused as he remembered. “Dad flipped out. I guess he thought I was trying to leave him. He ordered me to stay, then included the order to make sure I couldn’t leave.”
Trent stared at him for a minute, pity in his eyes, but in traditional Trent fashion, he made a joke. “That’s one way to keep your kid from running away from home.”
It did what he intended and broke the tension. Caleb’s face cleared as he took a deep breath and I nodded in appreciation.
“So you’ll go Friday?” I verified and Trent nodded.
“It’ll take me a couple of days though.”
“That’s fine. I just want to find out more about this pack.” I frowned thoughtfully. “It feels important.”
