Greatest Gift (8 page)

Chapter Fifteen

Cuddled into
Jakob
while
they sat on his sofa, Holland tried to grasp what was going on. His pack, or
rather the majority not including kids and teens, filled the room around them
both. Before they’d returned home he’d taken her for take-out. The purpose had
been to talk.

“An ex-pack mate has returned to town,” he’d told
her while she was stuffing her face with a taco.

She hadn’t exactly known what to say to that rather
odd statement, but she’d figured out from
Jakob’s
rather stiff posture it wasn’t a good thing. “Who is it, and why is it an
ex-pack mate?”

“His name is Carson Lloyd. Six years ago, he was
among the Alpha’s inner circle. My inner circle. What I didn’t realize at the
time was he had been planning a coup to take over the spot. Since he couldn’t
best me per traditional hand to hand, his plan was to kill me when I was
unaware. A visiting wolf from a pack up north overheard Carson discussing the
plan with someone he appeared to be attempting to sway to the cause. Promising
the individual a place at his right hand if they helped him oust me,
permanently.”

Nausea had nearly choked her thinking about a world
without
Jakob
in it. After setting her taco down, she
wiped at her mouth with a napkin, and then twisted it in her hands. “Obviously
it didn’t work.” She was seriously glad it hadn’t.

“No, our friend from the northern pack shared what
he’d overheard. He was naturally worried we might be skeptical given it was his
word against a pack member. But I’ve always taken any and every threat
seriously. We put a loose watch on Carson, and caught him in the act. He was
meeting with two others he thought he could sway to helping him and in we
walked. He has always been a cocky fuck, and that day was no different. Told me
straight out that it was time for new leadership and he was the guy for the
job. Even those he’d been attempting to convince minutes earlier told him flat
out it wasn’t happening. He didn’t have a leg to stand on. We called a vote and
he was tossed out, labeled a rogue, and told in no uncertain terms never to return
to our lands. To do so would be a death sentence. No judge, no jury, no defense.”

“Harsh but understandable. I’m amazed you let him
walk away.”

He shrugged. “Not my preference but the vote stood.
He had only been talking, and nothing had come from it. Therefore we couldn’t
call for a blood trial. That’s a fight to the death.”

“Right.” She wrinkled her nose. Holland was
squeamish and didn’t care who knew it.

Jakob’s
hand slid warmly over hers and squeezed. “The pack made the call and I
stood behind it. I could have vetoed being Alpha but there wasn’t a need at
that time. If Carson is back, and I’m willing to bet he is given my unease last
night, then he’s broken the agreement. When we find him it will be a slow,
painful death for him.”

She could understand the stance. The guy had been
plotting to kill
Jakob
, and take over the pack
leadership. It only made her realize the world
Jakob
lived in had different rules. Which made sense given they weren’t human. A
harsher world had different rules to live by.

Now she sat there wondering what she’d gotten
herself into. While she was ready to take the next steps, whatever they might
be, to be in his life she found herself questioning the choice. Not
Jakob
, but getting in deeper. And she was getting in deeper
since she was currently sitting in on the pack meeting about the Carson
problem. Or maybe threat would be a better term.

“We haven’t seen him yet,” someone was saying. “But
if he’s here there are only a few places he might consider safe. I’ve already
assigned a couple scouts to check them all out. We should have something later
today.”

“Good. I don’t want anyone approaching him, or
alerting him that we realize he’s here. We need to discover what his plan is
before he sets it in motion,”
Jakob
told the group.

Once everyone agreed the meeting broke up with
pretty much everyone leaving. Only Grady, Nix and someone
Jakob
had called Tia stuck around. Holland was wary around Grady and Nix, but Tia
made her downright nervous. The female wolf seemed to look right through
Holland and find her wanting. There wasn’t much there she could put her finger
on in regards to Tia, but thus far it had been frosty from the wolf’s end.

Nix went to raid the kitchen while Grady flopped
down in an armchair. Tia wandered to a window and stood staring outside.
Turning her face up to
Jakob
, she raised a brow.
Holland didn’t know if he wanted her to stick around for whatever this might be
or go find something else to do. His arms tightened around her in a silent
request to remain.

“You do realize he likely was scouting you out,
right?” Grady said.

“Yeah, which means he knows about Holland.”

Grady shot her a look, and winked. It startled her
that
Jakob’s
best friends, and cohorts into trouble,
seemed to approve her being with him. “We’ll keep an eye on her.”

“Won’t be much to see,” she piped up. “I’m off work
until after Boxing Day. I’ll be helping
Jakob
get the
shop’s accounting up to date but beyond that I have zero plans.”

“Then we’ll know where you are won’t we?” he asked.

“You know,” Tia suddenly said, the frost still in
her tone. “If Carson left the northern pack when they said he did he would have
been here prior to the break in at her apartment. Seems awfully coincidental
when you start looking at the pieces from the outside. Everyone in town knows
you’ve had a thing for her, seen you two dancing around one another, and then
suddenly her car breaks down leaving you to take her home.”

Jakob’s
body was tense under her. Holland hadn’t even considered that angle,
but then she hadn’t known who, or what
Jakob
was at
that point. “Why would they break into her place, or the others?” Nix asked.
He’d wandered back out with a plate in hand to take the other armchair. “I mean
they could have tracked his scent up to her place since he wouldn’t have been
thinking to conceal it, there was no reason to. But why the break-ins?”

“Carson has a hate on for
Jakob
,
we all know that. What better way to hurt him than to hurt someone he cares
about? Yes, Carson could go after the pack, but the bond isn’t the same. Not
like with a mate,” Tia said.

Grady was sitting forward now with his elbows
braced to his knees. “She has a point. Everyone in town knows that Holland has
no family here, sorry.”

She waved it off. “It’s fine.” It was a fact she
couldn’t dispute.

“And if Carson only recently hit town he would have
only seen some interaction between them. Enough that he might ask a few
questions, and hear what he wanted to hear. But he couldn’t have known for sure
until she’d called
Jakob
. Hell, even I would have bet
against that. No offence, Alpha, but you really weren’t her most
fave
person until recent days.”

Holland glared at the other wolf even while her
face heated up. She couldn’t deny his words any more than
Jakob
could. But the asshole didn’t have point it out like that.

“True, but he may not have found anyone that could
tell him that part. Or maybe he’s had a spy here the entire time watching us
dance around one another. They wouldn’t have been able to get too close without
tipping someone off.”

“Which means they’ll only have seen bits and
pieces,” Grady concluded. “And depending on what they did see they might have
concluded that if something happened at her place she’d most likely call on
you. Makes sense to a degree. But this is all guesswork, and the break-in might
not have anything to do with Carson. The cops are still working it with no
leads. We can’t assume anything when it comes to Carson.”

“You’re right,”
Jakob
said. “We also can’t become complacent either. He will make a move, which means
we need to ready for it.”

“What move is he going to make?” Holland finally
asked. She’d followed their lines of reasoning easily enough, but she didn’t
know nearly enough about this Carson individual.

“Best guess is he’ll try to cut
Jakob
off from the pack,” Tia told her. The whole speaking down her nose really was
getting old for Holland. She would need to ask
Jakob
about the other woman and find out why she kept getting frostbite each time she
spoke. “Either he’ll make a call with false information, or use you.”

“Me?”

“You are his greatest weakness.”

Oh no she did not!
Holland would have gotten off
Jakob’s
lap to
get in the bitch’s face if not for the tightening hold he had on her.

“Tia, enough.”
Jakob’s
tone was biting before he looked to his friends. “Set up the watch and make
sure you keep me in the loop on what is found at Carson’s old haunts. I don’t
want to be caught unaware.”

“We’re on it,” Grady told him.

Nix set his now empty plate aside, got to his feet,
and then headed right for Tia. The other woman looked like she was ready to dig
in her heels, but changed her mind. Turning on her heel, she headed for the
front door, likely would have slammed it if Nixon hadn’t been on her heels to
stop it. Grady followed them out already on his phone.

“What the hell is up her ass?” Holland demanded the
moment they were alone in the house.

Chapter Sixteen

Now there was a loaded question. Sighing,
Jakob
pulled Holland in closer, and pressed a kiss to her
forehead. “Tia’s overprotective, always has been. For a time, I thought she had
feelings for me but I was wrong. I’m not entirely sure what’s gone on in her
past but it’s hardened her. Though, when she makes friends she will go to the
wall for them with little to no regard for her own personal safety.”

A breath against his neck and Holland relaxed. He’d
been stunned when he’d had to hold her down. She hadn’t struggled against the
hold, but if he hadn’t been attuned to her like he was he knew she’d have
slipped free. What she might have done was anyone’s guess.
Jakob
had a feeling it wouldn’t have been pretty.

“Well, she needs to get over it,” she muttered.
“I’m sticking around.”

Smiling at her words, he nuzzled her cheek. “Glad
to hear it. Not that I was going to let you go, but it’s much easier when you capitulate
easily.”

That earned him a smack to his arm. “You are such a
Neanderthal at times.”

“Yes, I am.” He would own that proudly. While it
wasn’t the PC thing, he didn’t care.
Jakob
had long
ago learned to be who he was and not who everyone else wanted him to be. “You
like it, admit it.”

“I am currently tolerating it. We’ll see how long
that lasts.”

“I’m in this for the long haul, sweet cheeks. We’ll
find our balance in time.” Rubbing his hand over her thigh, he checked the
time. “We should finish wrapping those gifts up if you want to get them dropped
off today. Or are you planning to wait until tomorrow?”

“No, we should get them all delivered tonight. I
plan to have you all to myself all day tomorrow. Unless you have other plans.”

Jakob
quickly ran through everything in his head. “Nope. Shop’s closed until
the New Year to give everyone time off with their family, which means I have no
plans. Although, there will be a pack dinner on Boxing Day. We used to do it on
Christmas but that’s a pain for everyone. This way they have the day with their
families, and the following with everyone else.”

Holland sat up on his lap to look at him. “What did
you used to do for Christmas?”

The question was gently asked, her worry obvious in
her expression. She didn’t want to hurt him he realized. “Not much. Usually
watched a football game, and occasionally caught up with Grady or Nix for an
early dinner in the city. There’s a couple joints we know about open all year
round. They do close early than normal on Christmas, but we made it work.”

“Not this year.”

“Nope, not this year. It’s time for new traditions,
ones you and I create together.”

“Which I should get started on. I want to do the
prep today, it’ll give us more free time tomorrow. Want to help?” she asked.

“Absolutely.” Any time he got to be with Holland
was a good time in his books.

Gripping her jaw, he tipped her head back and
kissed her deeply. She let out a moan that raked through his body to end in a
deep throb in his cock.
Jakob
forced his head up with
one last peck to her lips. “What do you need me to do?”

“What?”

Amused at the glassy eyed look she gave him, he
brushed his lips over her cheek. “What do you want me to help you with for the
preparations, sweet cheeks?”

“Stop calling me that, and quit frying my brain out,
Nichols. God damn, you should come with a fucking warning label.” Shoving up
off his lap, she glared at him before heading to the kitchen. “Get your ass up.
You get to chop vegetables.”

With a snort, he followed her and turned himself
over to her tender mercies. Whatever she needed him to do he would do.

****

Two hours later, he was grating carrots for the
coleslaw she planned to make when his phone rang. Digging it up, he stuck it
between shoulder and ear to talk while he kept working.
Jakob
hadn’t missed the look Holland had thrown over her shoulder in his direction.

“Nichols,” he said.

“We found Carson.”

He had to make a grab for the phone at the words
that startled him. “What?”

“I said, we found Carson.”

“Funny, Nix.” Fucker had enunciated slowly in that
way perfectly designed to piss
Jakob
off. “How the
hell did you find him?”

“Wasn’t that hard. He’s sitting at the diner on
Main Street with another male wolf. According to Leona they’ve been there all
day. Since they kept ordering she didn’t kick them out, but was growing
suspicious about their intent.”

Munching on the leftover carrot he had in hand,
Jakob
propped a hip to the counter. “Take Grady in, leave
the others on watch. Keep it peaceful, Nix. If the sheriff arrests you I’m damn
well leaving your ass in jail until the new year.”

“Fuck you, my mom would totally kick your ass if
you did that.”

“Well, you could call her to bail you out?”

“Are you fucking insane? That woman would neuter my
ass if she had to bail me out.”

“Pick your poison carefully then, bro. Let me know
what the fucker has to say and let me know if I need to come down there.”

“Talk later.”

After sliding his phone back into a pocket,
Jakob
stared out the window into his back yard. A warm hand
on his back jolted him from his reverie. “Sorry, sweet cheeks, didn’t mean to
get distracted from my task.”

“It’s okay,” she said. Leaning her cheek on his
upper arm, she stared up at him. “Is everything all right with Nix?”

“Yeah, they found Carson sitting out where anyone
and everyone could see him. It feels like a ploy to me.”

“If you need to go, go,” she said.

“Nope, not happening. I am sticking close to you,
little mate. If they need me down there they’ll call.”

After a minute longer staring up at him, she pulled
away and ordered him back to work. He loved the fact she had no qualms about
ordering him around. She’d quite obviously gotten over her wariness in his
presence at some point. He didn’t know when precisely this blessing had
occurred, but he was happy it had come to be.

He accepted the green onions and cabbage halves she
passed over. Grabbing a cutting board, he got to work after receiving detailed
instructions. She really was a bossy little thing. If she had been anyone other
than his mate, he’d have torn them a strip off before kicking them out. It was
amazing what a man would put up with when he was in love.

That thought had him stilling with the knife in
hand partway through a cabbage. Love. He was in love with Holland. Not nearly
the terrifying thought he would have guessed it might be. He’d already accepted
it on some level, probably why he wasn’t hyperventilating right then.

Now all he had to do was figure out when and how to
tell her. He did not want her freaking out on him and running off. His wolf
would not take kindly to that. Not that he’d hurt her, he couldn’t, but she
might hurt herself in the process. And that would not do.
Jakob
would have to be delicate about telling her. Maybe sex her up. Now there was an
option he could get behind.