Freedom in the Smokies (2 page)

He loved this house—which they all referred to as a cabin—as much today as the day he and his two brothers had designed it. Each of them had their own wing jutting off the main living space in a perfect configuration that afforded them privacy while staying connected. That had been long before the women had come along. When Sergius, Jaxon and Micah had worked on the blueprints for this cabin eleven years ago, they’d believed they could avoid mating and remain bachelors for life.
Riiight
.

They’d been wrong. Micah was the only one left standing. After watching his brothers succumb to the wiles of their females, he had no doubt his days were numbered. Especially if he kept going out into the world as the face of the family business.

Yep. The more people he met, the greater his risk of finding a mate. It was a mixed angst. On the one hand, he longed for the relationships his brothers had with their mates. On the other hand, he didn’t look forward to the obvious stress of worrying about a mate’s safety and well-being. He wasn’t ready, but Sergius and Jaxon hadn’t been either. Fate had a way.

“How’d it go?” Juliana asked.

Micah smiled at Sergius’s mate. Sure, he liked to pretend his brothers’ mates were actually witches sent to lure them with evil spells. But, truth be told, he envied both brothers. They couldn’t have picked better mates if they’d had a choice. And honestly, the women hadn’t been the ones to “lure” anybody. If anything, they’d both needed a bit of coaxing.

Not surprising since the women were both human. It was difficult to explain the ways of wolf shifters to a human, and even more challenging when that human was your mate.

“Fine. I think we have ourselves another buyer.” He wandered toward the kitchen area.

“Great.” Her face lit up with a broad smile. Too broad.

“Why are you in such a good mood?” He narrowed his gaze on Juliana. She wasn’t his mate, but still, he knew a diversionary tactic when he saw one. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to see something was going on.

“Me? No reason.” She ducked her head and resumed chopping something on the island.

The car
.

“Whose god-awful vehicle is that?” He nodded toward the front of the house.

“Oh, that. It’s Kaitlyn’s. Isn’t it cute?”

“Cute?” He shook his head. Did she really find that color attractive? “No. It’s the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen. Who’s Kaitlyn?”

“No one told you?” She batted her lashes at him, tipping her head to one side. “She’s our new horse trainer. She’s wonderful. You’re going to love her.” Juliana turned, opened the refrigerator and leaned into the cool space. She was avoiding his gaze.

“Employee? Are you kidding? I thought we’d agreed not to hire anyone right now. Vampire? Remember? Not safe? And a
woman
?”

Juliana headed toward the counter, kicking the fridge closed behind her. She had a bundle of carrots and celery.

Huh. She’d actually been in there for a reason.

She shot Micah a quick glance before she started chopping. “Yeah, well, things changed.”

“Things? In the last forty hours you guys managed to kill McKinney
and
interview prospective horse trainers?” Micah planted his hands on the island and leaned forward.

The squeak of the screen door had him jerking his head to the right as his brother Sergius entered the house.

“What the fuck?” Micah crossed his arms and glared at his brother.

“Hey to you too. Welcome home.” Sergius nodded and dropped his hat on the counter by the back door.

“Would you care to explain the decision the four of you made in my absence of only two days?”

“Calm down, little bro. It snuck up on us. It wasn’t as though we deliberately planned anything behind your back.”

“Really? ’Cause it sure looks that way to me. We agreed not to hire anyone until there was no longer any threat of imminent death. I know we need the help, but is it worth the risk?” He scowled. His family must’ve been taken over by aliens during his absence.

Sergius laughed and shook his head as he leaned against the counter. “Yeah, well…wait until you meet Kaitlyn.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Did the woman have some sort of superhuman quality? Micah froze. He tipped his head back and inhaled deeply. Nope. Nothing. This Kaitlyn wasn’t a wolf shifter. The house was filled with the scents of the people he already knew with the new addition of a faint scent of floral perfume, expensive perfume he didn’t recall smelling before.

“You’ll see for yourself soon enough. In fact, why don’t you head down to the barn now if you’re so curious? I believe a few minutes with Kaitlyn will change your attitude about our decision.”

“What aren’t you telling me?” Micah approached his brother. He wanted to shake the man for being so evasive.

“Let’s just say Kaitlyn is…formidable. I think that’s the right word. Her determination made it difficult to deny her. We’re lucky to have her.”

“What do you mean?”

“Look, Kaitlyn saw our old ad in the local paper. She didn’t call first and set up an appointment. She showed up. She wouldn’t let a simple “no” deter her, and frankly we need her. She’s perfect for the job and willing to accept the fact she’ll be underpaid for her qualifications. She has a degree in veterinary science, an impressive resume and more experience than anyone her age I’ve ever met.

“The woman is a horse whisperer, I tell you. Go…” Sergius pointed toward the back door. “See for yourself. If you don’t like her, we can readdress the issue. We told her the position was temporary, pending your approval. And, yes, it’s a dangerous time. But hell, she was determined to take a job in this area. How could she possibly be safer than with us?”

“What did you tell her about the danger?” Micah leaned toward his brother and grasped the edge of the kitchen island.

“Nothing.” Sergius shook his head. “Not a word.”

Micah looked at Juliana, who smiled at him. “She’s impressive. You won’t be disappointed. I guarantee it.” She went back to chopping. “It’s like she cast a spell on us. We fell in love with her on sight.” She chuckled.

She wasn’t kidding. She and Sergius seemed to be under the woman’s spell. “What about McKinney? Have you all gone mad? That bastard kidnapped Juliana with the intent to kill her just last year. And even more recently, he captured Jaxon with the same intentions. Why the hell would you hire a human right now?” Micah narrowed his gaze at Sergius.

“Dude, the vampire hasn’t bothered us for eight months. Maybe he gave up. We know he’s out there. We’ve seen the signs. But he hasn’t approached any of us and hasn’t been scented anywhere near our farm.”

“Are you crazy? Gave up? McKinney?” Micah shook his head. “McKinney will never give up. I’m betting it took him this long to heal and regroup after Jaxon staked him. He’s fucking pissed and biding his time before he strikes again.”

“Maybe. Maybe not.” Sergius stepped closer. “But it still doesn’t belie the fact that Kaitlyn Winston wanted a job in the area. If I hadn’t hired her, someone else would’ve and then she’d be in even more danger. We can protect her better than anyone.”

Micah snorted. “Sure, except for the fact McKinney derives great pleasure in torturing anybody who comes near us. Did you think of that?”

Sergius nodded and leaned his elbows on the counter. “Of course I did. But her determination and qualifications trumped the negatives. She’s a godsend. You’ll see.”

“Where’s she staying?” It wasn’t safe for someone—anyone, man or woman—to travel back and forth from town to the farm.

Sergius glanced at the floor, as did Juliana.
Shit
.

“We put her in the guest room in your wing,” she whispered. “We didn’t think you’d mind.”

“What?” he shouted. “Just because I’m the only one not mated, you thought it would be okay to bunk some strange woman in my wing?” Blood flooded his neck and climbed up to flush his face.

What the hell?
The entire family was possessed.

“We didn’t mean—” Juliana’s voice rose as she tried to defend their actions.

Sergius stepped forward and cut his mate off. “Calm down, little brother. We can always move her. We thought she’d like some privacy last night, and no one was in your wing. It doesn’t matter whose wing she lives in.”

Sure. What Sergius meant was neither he nor Jaxon could be bothered to keep their hands off their mates and the sounds of their fucking to a low roar last night, so they’d put this Kaitlyn woman in Micah’s wing.

Great. Just great. How the hell was he supposed to undo that?

Wait…

“Did you say, live? She’s planning to live with us?” Why hadn’t that idea occurred to him earlier? Of course she would live here because of McKinney.

But in this house?

In his wing?

Because he was single and the others weren’t?

Fuck
.

What the hell was he supposed to do when he became…unsingle?

Micah had been tired, grouchy and achy when he’d arrived home. Now he was fuming.

Turning on his heel, he grumbled as he retraced his steps to the front door. He grabbed his overnight bag in a huff and stomped down the hall toward his wing. At the very least, he needed to tighten the rein on his emotions before he headed to the barn. Just because his family had lost their minds didn’t mean he had to take it out on this flaming-green-loving Kaitlyn person.
What color do you suppose her hair is? Pink?

Micah passed the closed door of his guest room. A stronger whiff of the floral perfume he’d scented earlier made him scrunch his nose. It wasn’t unpleasant; it simply reminded him he was now practically rooming with a girl.

The next door led into his suite of rooms. He entered and kicked the door shut behind him. After dropping his pack by the entrance, he headed straight for his giant bed and flung himself down on his back to regroup.

It wasn’t that the house wasn’t big enough for one extra person. Hell, he and his brothers had spent months designing it for their future needs. The idea to add guest rooms to each brother’s wing had been Jaxon’s. Just in case.
Sure.
Just in case a decade down the road, an eccentric woman might show up in a tiny green car and need a place to live.

Micah wasn’t being fair. He took a deep breath and stretched his body to work out the kinks.

Hell, he hadn’t even met the woman yet.

Under normal circumstances, his brothers and their women were sharp as tacks. He could only pray they hadn’t made a mistake this time.

Chapter Two

Kaitlyn couldn’t wipe the smile off her face. She was currently the luckiest person alive. What were the odds? When she’d seen the tiny ad for this job in the bottom corner of an out-of-date news article, she’d had little hope it was still available.

Her world couldn’t be more perfect. A job on a small family farm in her beloved Smokies.

She leaned into the gorgeous mare and laid her cheek against the lean neck. “Aren’t you a pretty one?”

The mare’s ears twitched in answer, and she eagerly took the carrot from Kaitlyn’s outstretched hand. Kaitlyn had managed to spend time with six of the marvelous thoroughbreds so far this morning. She wanted each horse to have a chance to get to know her before she started working with them. Trust was a key part of their training.

As Kaitlyn brushed the horse’s mane, she mumbled soft words of encouragement. When she came around front, she made eye contact and gazed into the deep brown eyes that would soon come to know and respect her. Warmth spread through her body. Nothing could compare to the love affair she had with horses. Unconditional. They were even better than dogs. They would stand still and truly appear to listen to her when she spoke to them. Hell, they even nodded sometimes.

Kaitlyn smiled.

A throat clearing to her left made her whip her head around.

“Sorry. I…” The man in the doorway had to be the missing brother, Micah.

Kaitlyn swallowed hard. The man was so sexy. His bronzed arms bulged with muscles. Even though it was chilly, he wore no jacket, just a T-shirt that showed off his firm pecs. She licked her lips. He leaned casually against the frame of the stall, one leg crossed over the other.

She couldn’t take her gaze off him. He looked similar enough to his two older brothers to be obviously of the same family, but something about him was different—and that something made her clench her legs together. She gripped the brush in her hand and leaned into the mare for support. A tightening in the pit of her stomach made her aware of the instantaneous attraction she had for this man. She struggled on wobbly legs to remain upright and gather her wits.

What the hell was the matter with her? She never swooned over anyone. She so didn’t need this. A
man
was not in her plans. Ever.

His lips moved again, but no sounds came out. He glanced at the ground and then back at Kaitlyn. “You were so engrossed. I couldn’t bring myself to interrupt.”

His eyes were a more penetrating deep brown than Jaxon’s or Sergius’s. They bored into her as he spoke. His brow furrowed in concentration. A chill went up her spine as something from her past niggled in the back of her mind—like déjà vu. The look he gave her reminded her of something.