The Love He Squirreled Away (8 page)

He didn’t think the pack understood this, though. Several of the people there gave him ugly looks only because he was holding Soren’s son. Or perhaps they’d guessed the reason behind the meeting. It couldn’t be too hard to figure out.

Daniel surreptitiously palmed the pocket of his jacket, feeling for the comforting weight of his gun. It was an old gift from Nicolas. His
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hummingbird friend didn’t trust carnivores, and he’d made it his business to always be prepared for the worst. Personally, Daniel disliked guns, more so since the episode with Shiloh’s injury.

However, he’d taken the thing along, both for Nicolas’s peace of mind and, secretly, for his own.

He knew Soren was somewhat uncomfortable with having a gun with silver bullets around, but the wolf had agreed to him having it anyway. Soren, it seemed, didn’t want to take any chances. Daniel felt thankful for it. Oddly, the weight of the gun comforted him now, when facing this gathering of hostile people.

“Thank you for coming, everyone.” Soren’s voice sounded loud and full of authority in the clearing. “I’ve asked you to be here because I’d like you to meet the four most important people in my life—my mate and my children.” Soren gestured Daniel forward.

Carlie stepped up with them, holding Derek and Melanie. In turn, Soren introduced each child, then turned to Daniel. “And this is my mate, Daniel Gardner-Boyd.”

There was a murmur of protest in the pack, and several wolves seemed shocked but not excessively so. It confirmed Daniel’s guess that the reason behind his presence had been grasped. Perhaps Soren intended it to be so from the very beginning.

“Daniel will be living with me, and I expect you to treat him as is his due.”

“But Alpha,” an older wolf said, “he’s prey. How can you ask that of us?”

Soren bared his teeth at the man. “He’s not prey. He’s my mate.

Anyone who has a problem with that can come to me.” It was quite clear the problem in question would be dealt with swiftly and efficiently.

Predictably, the other wolf backed off, but another took his place, this time female. “But what about your children?”

“What about them?” Soren replied coldly. “Are you questioning my ability to raise my pups?”

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“Err…no, but…your mate is male and well, not a wolf. The pups are bound to have trouble accepting that. And even for your mate, it might be hard to nurture them since they’re not his.”

The words irritated Daniel more than he’d thought possible. His concern turned to pure anger. “I beg to differ,” he said. “These pups are mine through Soren. It might not be a common situation for wolves, but between Soren, Carlie and I, they’ll have the best of care.

We do appreciate the concern, but it’s not necessary.”

The reply was delivered sharply, coldly, and the werewolf bitch seemed taken aback. She opened her mouth, but Daniel stopped her from replying. “And of course, I’m personally grateful to all of you for welcoming me in the pack. I believe that, for our Alpha and our future, we can do great things together. I may not be a wolf, but times are changing.”

“Daniel is correct,” Soren added. “In this modern world, there is no reason why we should cling to old ways of thought. My father, Elder Kevin Wade, has already agreed with and implemented this policy, and we hope to take it further in the next years.”

“Further?” a younger wolf repeated. “Like how?”

He didn’t sound doubtful, but rather curious, and Daniel took advantage of the offered occasion. “There is so much we can learn from each other. Shape-shifters have been at war for all time, but it’s time to let go of that. If we were to understand each other better, we’d live much more comfortable lives. From trading to education, we can truly grow together.” Daniel took Soren’s hand. “I realize that this must sound like just a fancy, foolish speech to you, but perhaps today we’ve made the first step.”

It was true. True enough, Brody and Carson had been the ones to brave the prejudice of the shape-shifter community before them.

However, the two, as well as Liam and Shiloh, now lived away from the rest of their species. Daniel understood them. Hell, he’d have done the same thing if he’d been able to. But he also knew that someone needed to take the stand, like Brody had done in his own way, and try
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to get another species to accept their common grounds. That person was going to have to be Daniel.

He didn’t know whether the wolves believed him or not, but the pride he sensed coming from Soren made everything worthwhile.

“Baby, that was amazing,”
Soren whispered in his head.

As if to confirm Soren’s words, Jace nuzzled Daniel’s neck with his snout, nipping him playfully. The pups’ teeth were just coming out. Soon, they’d begin to eat meat, and Daniel had taken to joking that they were already testing their new diet on him. It might have seemed odd that he could joke about it, but he didn’t feel concerned.

He was convinced the pups cared about him as much as he did about them.

Carlie joined them as Melanie and Derek began to demand their own right to play. Anson followed, and together, the four of them—

seven if one included the pups—watched the still-silent pack.

“Thank you for coming,” Soren said at last. “If you have any other issues that come to mind, feel free to come to me or my betas.”

Soren’s words caused a few more wolves to come forward and bring up some concerns not related to Daniel or Soren’s pups. Daniel listened, glad for the occasion to learn how things worked in the pack.

He didn’t kid himself. This wouldn’t be easy, but neither would it be impossible. In time, he’d find a way.

* * * *

A few weeks later

Daniel took a deep breath and sighed. The fresh air invaded his lungs, but it did nothing to quench his melancholy. His mate had been gone for a full day now, and time seemed to pass with excruciating slowness. It frustrated him that he could no longer go without Soren, but it was a clear, undeniable fact.

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As a creature with the forest in his blood, Daniel loved the pack lands. With trees that towered over him like skyscrapers and an abundance of plants of all sorts, it reminded Daniel of different times, when he and his family had lived in the forest. He barely remembered it now, but some of it stuck with him despite the passage of time, like the smell of the green grass or the fresh breeze that caressed his face in the morning.

Sighing once again, Daniel forced himself to head back. Perhaps he could look over some of the paperwork Soren asked him to do earlier that week. Apparently, everyone was required to pull their own weight in the pack, and Daniel, as the Alpha’s mate, would have to play an essential part in the financial administration of their families.

He hadn’t wandered too far from the Alpha’s house, so in mere minutes, he retraced his steps and reached the building that was his destination. As soon as he entered the structure, the yipping of puppies distracted him from his musings, and he grinned. He always loved being around the pups, whether their father was with him or not.

The three young wolves burst into the main hallway and headed straight toward him in a rush of puppy madness. Instead of wagging their tails, they were wagging their entire butts. As always, it made Daniel laugh.

Behind them was their mother. Daniel looked toward her and smiled. “They’re growing more and more each day.”

Carlie nodded. “That they are.” She beamed as Daniel knelt and allowed the pups to climb over him. “But they’re also exhausting.”

Daniel gave Carlie a serious look. “You shouldn’t strain yourself so. It’s too soon for you to take up beta duties again. For the moment, Anson can handle it.”

Carlie released a frustrated groan. “I know. I just... I want to stay with them, protect them, but... I want to do my job, too.” She smiled at him again. “Thanks, by the way. If it weren’t for you, I’d be unable to even think straight.”

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Daniel caressed Derek’s fur and narrowly avoided getting his nose bitten off by Melanie. “You know I love to spend time with them.”

In truth, he knew Carlie wasn’t actually thanking him for staying with the pups, but for allowing her to do so. Even if the original arrangement had been for Carlie to hand over the pups for Daniel and Soren to raise, they’d eventually decided there was no point in separating the triplets from their mother. Carlie didn’t have a mate yet, so it stood to reason that she’d stick around with the kids for a while longer. It worked out, especially since Daniel cared for her greatly. She also wanted to do the working-mother thing, so between the three of them, they could deal with the demanding pups with ease.

“Oh, one more thing.” Carlie looked like she’d just remembered something. “Your doctor called. Said you had an appointment today?”

Daniel groaned. Dr. Jenkins insisted on seeing him regularly since the fiasco before the mating. As much as Daniel tried to convince the man it wouldn’t be necessary, he’d agreed to do it for his parents’

peace of mind. But today, he truly wasn’t in the mood to be polite and ignore Jenkins’s jabs at his mate bond.

Regardless, he didn’t think he could get out of it. He’d been feeling a bit out of it lately, more so than usual, and anything seemed to set him off. He was trying to control the seizures with the provided pills, but he didn’t have much luck. Soren had even been reluctant to leave because of it, but Daniel had insisted.

In the end, Daniel couldn’t slip out of the medical visit. He owed it to his mate to take care of himself better. Besides, he supposed he should at least drop by his house and see his family. They were unused to him living someplace else, and Daniel at least owed them to visit once in a while.

“Thank you, Carlie. I will head out now. Hopefully, I won’t have to linger away for too long.”

He hugged Carlie and the pups one more time, feeling the same melancholy sweep over him. It was so very strange that in only a couple of weeks, he’d already come to care so much about these
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people, to the extent that he would prefer them over his own relatives.

Then again, they were his family now, Soren, Carlie, and the pups. Of course, Daniel would always love his parents and siblings, but from now on, his priority would be the people in the pack.

For whatever reason, he felt somewhat apprehensive as he said his good-byes. He mused over this as he left the house and headed for the garage, bypassing the guards around the Alpha compound. Carson and Brody had gifted him with a car in celebration of his mating, a gorgeous, sleek Lamborghini convertible. Daniel got behind the wheel and inserted the key in the ignition. He drove off, still lost in his thoughts, wondering about the reason of his disquiet.

As much as he’d have liked to push aside his misgivings, Daniel found that he couldn’t do it. Cursing to himself, he decided to blow the meeting with the doctor off. He couldn’t even focus on driving, and the farther he got from pack lands, the more concerned he felt. It might have been just his condition rearing its ugly head again—and what a frustrating thing it was that he couldn’t get over a childhood ailment—but even this knowledge didn’t help him feel better.

Soren’s voice drifted in his mind, calm and soothing.
“Don’t
worry, baby,”
the wolf said.
“Everything’s fine. What can possibly
happen?”

Daniel didn’t know, and he couldn’t even put his finger on the reason behind his sudden fear. Soren seemed to sense his growing unease.
“Go back,”
he said.
“I’m not comfortable with you driving
that car when you’re so distracted. I’m going to try to get out of the
next meetings.”

“Thank you, Soren.”
Daniel breathed in a sigh of relief.
“I’ll meet
you at the house, all right?”

Decision made, Daniel turned the car around and headed back.

He’d gotten a good distance away from his new home, so by the time he reached within sight of pack lands, his anxiety had turned into full-fledged panic.

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Much to his dismay, he realized he hadn’t been mistaken in his fear. Even from the distance, he spotted a thick column of smoke looming over the forest. His heart began to beat even faster, and he speedily drove in the direction of the fire.

“Baby, be careful,”
Soren sent him.
“I’m on my way.”

“I will,”
Daniel promised. He stopped the car when he hit a roadblock. It wasn’t actually man-made, but a large tree had fallen onto the path, blocking it.

“Please go back, sir,” a wolf shouted at him, looking anxious. It was Anson, and he seemed to be giving directions to others. “It’s too dangerous here.”

“Did you notify Soren?”

Anson nodded. “Carlie said she would talk to the Alpha.”

In the distance, Daniel spotted several wolves running around, trying to stop the fire from spreading. The heat felt smoldering even from Daniel’s position, and he could only imagine how hot it was for the wolves fighting the fire. He wanted to help as well, but a thought occurred to him.
“Did anyone call you?”
he asked Soren through their bond. His mate had given him the impression of not knowing about the fire.

“No,”
Soren replied.
“I’m going to have words with my people.”

Daniel frowned, the feeling of anxiety intensifying even more.

“Who is guarding the house?” he asked Anson.

The wolf just gave him a blank look. “Almost everyone headed here. We have a few people stationed at the mansion, but with the fire…”

Daniel had heard enough. He didn’t know how, but he felt certain Carlie and the pups were in danger. He turned the car and drove off, heading toward the house.

The gate was open when he got there. It didn’t have to mean anything, but it just solidified Daniel’s belief that something more was going on. He parked the car and abandoned it in the driveway.