Wolf Creek Alpha (Texas Pack 1) (11 page)

“Lisa, this is my brother Ian. 
In human terms, he
is the chief of
police.   The runt there is our younger brother, Devlin.  He’s our investmen
t guru.  Takes care of
the
pack’s
money.”

“Nice to meet
you,
Lisa.  We’re happy for both you and Rafe.  If you have any problems with him, just let me know. He’s not so big that I can’t take him,” said
Ian,
as he stepped forward and kissed her cheek.

“Too bad you didn’t meet me first.  Sorry you had to settle for the ugly one,” Devlin said as he kissed her also.

“Pleasure to meet you both.” 

She was surprised they welcomed her so easily.  Also,
they treated her
as if
the mating was a done deal.  She was afr
aid she might
disappoint
Rafe’s
family. 
Now she really was nervous about meeting the parents.

“Just ignore them.  They know you got the better brother,” Rafe said smiling.

He was acting
as if
they were a couple already too.  She didn’t want to say anything in front of his brothers.  Later, when they were alone, she would have to put the brakes on.

“Come on inside.  I’ll show you your room,” said Rafe.

Ok
ay
, she thought.  He didn’t say my room.  I’ll shut my mout
h until I see where he puts me.  

Entering through the large double doors, she saw a great room with large sofas placed in a C type pattern.  The room held plenty of seating areas for a large group of people.  There were beautiful rugs placed strategically around the room covering hardwood floors. 
She had
almost expected to see rushes, but
thankfully,
the inside wasn’t authentic like
a fifteenth century castle. 
As he was showing her around, she noticed a beautiful blonde woman coming down the hall.

“This is
Anna
.
She
has the difficult job of taking care of the place.  Anna, this is Lisa, my…”

Lisa interrupted.  It was time to stop him from introducing her as his mate.

“Friend.  Or I should say acquaintance, since we’ve only known each other for a day.  It’s nice to meet you, Anna.  I cannot imagine how difficult it would be keeping this huge castle clean,” Lisa said smiling.

“I learned long ago to keep it organized. 
Good thing the
boy’s
mom made them pick up after themselves, or it would be a lot harder,” she smiled. 

“Hey, we’re not messy.  I hang up my towels,” Rafe said jokingly.

Anna winked at
Lisa,
saying she had more work to do as she left the room. 

“She’s very pretty.  Is she married, or mated?”

“No, at least not that we know of.  My dad hired her about twenty years ago.  We don’t know her story
.
Just
that she needed a place so dad brought her here.  She’s sort of our adopted little sister now, at least that’s how we think of her.”

“Wait a minute.  Twenty years ago?  She only looks to be around twenty-five now.”

“That’s one of the things the pond did for us.  It slows down our aging.  My parents are over two hundred years ol
d,” he stated, waiting on the inevitable question.

“That’s just about the most impossible thing I’ve ever come across.  Well, besides shifters and fairies.   So, are you a dirty old man?  I mean, if you
r
parents have seen a couple of centuries, then you must be really old.”

He had no idea she was messing with him.  She looked up at him curiously. 

“Um, I’m one hundred and twenty-two
, but
that’s normal for us.  Some shifters don’t mate until they’re over three hundred.  It all depend
s on when they find their One.”

He saw she was biting her lip to keep from laughing.  He was relieved.  He’d never considered his age being a factor with her. 
He had
forgotten how short
a
human’s
lifespan was.
  He decided it was time to do some of his own teasing.

“So yes, I’m a dirty old man.  Want to know what I’
m thinking?
” he leered at her.

“I think I could probably guess,” she said deliberately.

She found she was enjoying their time together, getting to know him.  Maybe this would work out.  Staying here didn’t seem like such a bad idea anymore. 

He opened one of the doors off the hallway, telling her
it
was her room.  She went in
and noticed
there was an en suite attached.  There was a huge king
-
size bed in the middle of the room.  I could get lost in there, she thought.  The room was decorated in soft pastel colors, her favorite.  Seeing her bags by the bed, she went over to lift them up onto the bed for unpacking. 

Rafe moved quickly to assist and moved them for her. 

“I need to speak with Ia
n and see if Robert has arrived. 
As you can see, your b
athroom is over there.  If you’d like to rest, feel free.  Mom will be over to cook dinner around six.  If you need me, try the great room or kitchen.  Ask around if you don’t find me.  Someone will know where to look for me.”

“Thanks.  Where are Colin and Stephanie’s room?”

“They have a room
, which
they usually stay in when here.  It’s just across the hall.  Just so you know, my room is
down the hall a little bit further
, on
your
left,” he said smiling.

“Good to know.  I’d hate to end up in the wrong room if I go wandering at night,” Lisa smirked.

“Don’t
worry.
If
you wander, I’ll find you,” he warned.

Before he turned to go, he grabbed her to pull her towards him.  Sliding his arms around her waist, he leaned down to kiss her.
  Lisa reached up to put her arms around his neck.
 

She closed
her eyes as she tilted her head back for his kiss.  As his lips moved over hers, his hands slid up caressing the soft skin under her breasts.
 

   Lisa moaned when he released her mouth to run kisses along her jaw.
  He stepped back and let her go.  It took her a moment to realize he was leaving the room.  Darn, just when she was enjoying herself.
 

“I’ll see you later,” he said as he left the room.

Rafe moved down the hall quickly.  If he didn’t leave now,
he would
be carrying her off to his room.  He didn’t want to scare her or give her any reason to leave.  He
reminded himself humans moved slower,
so
he would have to wait until she was ready, even if it killed him. 

Lisa was berating herself.  Lord, if he hadn’t left when he did, I would have tackled him onto the bed.  Running her finger over her lips, she was remembering that kiss.  Wow, I am in so much trouble, she thought. 
Here not
even an
hour
and
I already want
to jump his bones. 

As she lay down on the bed, she decided that she would give this, what
,
relationship
…m
ating
…a chance
?
She
wasn’t sure what to call it
.
  Drifting into a light sleep, she found herself dreaming about the dark haired stranger.

She was standing at the edge of the pond.  There was a man across the pond, staring at her.  She recognized him as the man in town
who was
watching her.  His arms were stretched out, reaching for her.  “What do you want?
”
She yelled to him. 
He just stared,
beseechingly.
  She could feel him,
wanting something from her
.  He didn’t seem to be evil, yet there was a darkness surrounding him.
  He slowly faded away as she went deeper into sleep.
 

Someone was knocking on her door.  It took Lisa a second to realize she was not in her own bed or her apartment. 
As she lay there remembering, the
door open
ed
.

“Hey, I just wanted to check on you.  Make sure you weren’t
having
a
nervous
breakdown
or something
,” Stephanie said smiling.
 

“You are just
soooo
helpful.  No breakdown yet
.
I was just taking a little nap.  What time is it?”

“Around four-thirty.  Want to come
to
check out the place?  I think Rafe is busy in his office,
so
I thought we could go explore
outside
.”

“Give me minute
.
I need to splash some water on my face to wake up.”

Lisa entered the bathroom, thinking about her dream.  Another weird thing to add to my day.  Washing
her face helped clear out the cobwebs. 
Finishing her business, she came out to see Stephanie sitting on her bed.

“Come on, I thought we’d go out back.  Colin’s parents brought the girls over, so I thought we could take them for a walk through the woods.”

They went down the stairs and entered the great room.  Hearing laughter from the kitchen, they headed there.  Amy and Sarah were sitting at a smaller table in a nook at the window. 

“I hope you don’
t mind, I gave them a cookie.
And don’t worry, I didn’t make them,” Anna said smiling. 

Stephanie laughed. 
“Not at all, thanks for looking out for them.  I hope they weren’t bothering you.”

As Anna assured her they were no bother at all,
as
she smiled over at Lisa.

“Come
on,
girls, we’re
taking
Aunt Lisa
for a walk through
the woods.  You’re welcome to come with us, Anna, if you’d like.”

Anna declined saying she had some work to do.  With th
e girls hopping around excitedly
, they left through the
kitchen’s
back door. 

Watching Amy toddle down the path, they laughed as she tried to go faster to keep up with Sarah. 

“Amy looks like a little drunk at this age.  She
just wobbles from side to side,
”
Stephanie said.

Laughing, Lisa agreed.  Th
ey were too
cute
. 
Then she started thinking
and couldn’t help questioning her
.

“Are they wolves too?”

“Yes, it’s in their blood from birth
, not changed
by the waters
.  Shifters seem to have the dominant gene. 
They can start shifting around the time they start walking. 
And no, I did not give birth to a puppy,”
Steph
cracked up
, anticipating the question.

“
Ok
ay
, that would have been just too strange.
  What’s it like?  I mean, how do you handle all this?”

“First,
I love my life, my family.  It scares me to think about what ifs.  What if the day Colin came to the station,
I had
been off?  Or sometimes I remember the
moment he told me he was a wolf.  Let me tell you, Lisa, I was ready to run.  I really do understand what you’re going through right now.  I can only tell you to trust your instincts.  If you don’t give Rafe a chance, I promise you it would be the biggest mistake of your life,” she said solemnly. 

“I have decided to stay and get to know him.  Beyond that, I don’
t know.”

Stephanie picked Amy up while Lisa took hold of Sarah’s hand.  They made their way around through the woods to the other side of the castle.  Finding the stables, they went inside to see the horses. 

“Can we go for a ride,
please,
Mommy?” asked Sarah.

“
May we go riding
,
not
can,
and m
aybe tomorrow.  We need to get back and
cleanup
for dinner.”

Rafe entered as they were leaving.  He swung
Sarah up into his arms, smooching
her cheek loudly as she giggled.