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“How far away is your house from the pack house?” I ask carefully. If it’s too close, the other wolves will smell my presence, and that will put this ridiculous idea completely off the table.
“Far enough.” He holds eye contact, and I know he knows exactly what my concern is.
Can we really trust a complete stranger?I ask my wolf uncertainly.
I don’t think we can afford not to.She coaxes me to accept the offer, mentally urging me toward him again. I take a couple steps forward, but leave polite distance between us. The last thing I want to do is muddy my intentions. I won’t be marked by any wolf of the Anchorage Lake Pack. Not over my dead body.
Chapter Eight
Tess
Despite my protests, Luca carries me onto pack land on his back. I feel ridiculous with my arms around his neck and legs tightly grasping his waist, but I have to admit it’s better than having to hobble my way around. The break must have been worse than I thought to be causing me this much trouble even after shifting.
“Almost there, Tess,” he tells me, his voice completely normal as if he’s not carrying a whole other person on his back. To be fair, considering my size versus his, he can probably barely tell I’m back here.
“You live this close to the outskirts?” I ask, surprised. Most wolves live in a more central location to the pack house, but there’s no way the pack house is anywhere near here.
Shit, my wolf realizes before I do…
“It’s my Beta house,” he explains casually, completely unaware that he’s just said the one thing that would make me change my mind instantly about this arrangement.
I start to struggle against him.
“Woah. Hey, hold on, we’re just past these bushes here.” He tries to keep hold of my good ankle to keep me in place, but I wiggle out of his grasp and slide off his back, gritting my teeth as both of my feet hit the ground, jarring my bad leg.
“I can’t stay here.” I’m already backing away and ignoring the pain the best I can.
“Because I’m a Beta?” he asks, his face falling. “This is a big pack, and my position is highly coveted here.”
It takes me a second to realize he’s misunderstood my reluctance.He thinks we’re insinuating a Beta is beneath us,my wolf acknowledges in disbelief. I bite my lip, feeling bad that I’ve upset him after he actually turned out to be quite kind, but I also don’t want to tell him the truth about my history with his Alpha—the man he works extremely close with.
I settle for middle ground.
“I’ve had bad experiences with pack hierarchy in the past,” I say softly. I know he’ll assume some Alpha or Beta has treated me poorly in the past, and in that he’ll be right, but I’m certain he won’t guess it was his Alpha and not one of mine who did the damage. It’s for the best that way.
He reaches for me and runs a hand over my forearm for a moment. “You don’t have to feel uneasy about me. I’m a good guy.”
My wolf urges me to believe him. Traitor.
“Okay.” I take a deep breath. I can do this. One night. I only have to stay one night.
* * *
I sit curled up on the loveseat in Luca’s living room as he flits around the kitchen. I’ve never seen a man cook for me before, and I’m mesmerized by the sight. His small house is open, so I can see right into the kitchen area as he works. He turns the TV on for me, but I’m not even sure what’s playing.
Luca keeps pausing, tilting his head to the side like he’s concentrating. I know it’s not the cooking since he’s only making steak and potatoes; I suspect he’s talking through the mind link.
The first time he did it, I got paranoid. Now we’ve been here long enough without anyone else showing up that I know he stayed true to his word not to let anyone else know I’m here. The wolves he was running with must really trust and respect him to keep a secret like that on his behalf. From their own Alpha, no less.
“Is everything okay?” I ask when he scowls harshly out of nowhere.
He jolts a little as he looks up at me, clearly not realizing he’s had my full attention this whole time. He nods, but it’s slow in a way that makes me think things are definitely not okay.
“If I’m going to stay here, I need you to not lie to me. It’s only making me itch to run,” I admit bluntly.
He leans away from the oven, crossing his arms over his impressive chest, and works his jaw back and forth. He studies me from across the distance, which somehow makes me more uneasy than when he studied me close up. At least I’m dressed, drowning in his oversized clothes that were a better choice than staying naked.
He seemed adamant he wouldn’t mark me without my consent, but I’m not interested in tempting the gods, fate, or a wolf’s libido.
