Mated (8 page)

Wolves were faster than most of the other preternaturals, even vampires in some cases. Stronger than a lot of them too. They hunted in packs; they traveled in packs; they hung out in packs. It was rare for someone to get the drop on one. But Deric had been the exception that proved it could happen if they weren’t all incredibly careful.

Since that time, the rules had become stiffer and penalties for breaking them harsher. It was what he had to do to keep them all safe.

“I’m considering moving us out of Cary Town, somewhere where we won’t be a target. I’m not sure the danger is worth it anymore.”

One of the wolves in the back spoke up. “But what about what they’re doing? If everyone just goes along with these rules they’re setting up, supposedly for everybody’s safety from the humans, they’ll start branching into other cities. Eventually they’ll have control of everything.”

Another wolf added his voice to the discussion. “Don’t be such an alarmist, Mara. We’d still have access to the demon dimension.”

Mara turned toward the other wolf. “There’s no hunting there. No places to run. We can’t live there.”

Cole raised a hand, and the wolves fell silent. “I haven’t said we should give up the fight. Only that with Anthony in charge, it’s not as safe for us as it was under the old administration. This vampire is more ambitious than his predecessor. Even with the stronger security in place, it’s only a matter of time before someone gets caught.”

“I don’t want to leave. This is my home,” a teenage girl said. “Why do any of us even have to go into town at all?”

Cole stared at her for a moment.

“Lucy!” Her mother looked horrified by her daughter’s outburst and at the same time scared for her.

Shit. The pack
was
afraid of him. He’d been protecting his status to protect them, but it clearly hadn’t been interpreted that way. Jane might be the best PR he could get within the pack, assuming he could convince them she wasn’t out to destroy them all.

“Why didn’t I think of that?” He hadn’t thought of it because it hadn’t been an issue until three months ago. Deric’s capture had caused massive levels of stress for everyone.

“Thought of what?” Blake said.

Cole was glad he hadn’t been the only one. “No more going into town unless you have direct permission from myself or Blake. From here on out, if you aren’t in the hive, you are to be outside the city limits. I’ll have to get more portal charms from Cain but I think I can swing it. We can hop portals from here in the main den.”

No one in the pack knew exactly how he’d struck the arrangement with Cain. Most demons didn’t mingle with preternaturals that had humanity in their veins. But he’d helped Cain out of a bind once. Demons were unkillable, true immortals on this plane. Unlike vampires. But that didn’t mean they didn’t get into tight and unpleasant spots. Plus he thought Cain found the whole thing amusing and liked undermining the vampires. The bastard half-breeds.

***

Jane’s muscles coiled in tension as she sat in the passenger seat of Cole’s Mustang, the black wool fabric covering her eyes. How was she supposed to defend herself against a rabid werewolf if she couldn’t see it?

“Sorry, but I forgot to ask Cole about that, and I’ve never known him to allow anyone outside the pack into the hive without it.”

“No, it’s fine,” Jane said a little shakily, hoping she didn’t sound as scared as she felt. Oh hell, Rhonda could no doubt smell it on her. And if she was the weakest of the pack, it might mean she was the least in control of the change. Jane concentrated on thinking happy thoughts. Peter Pan thoughts. Whatever she had to do to make sure Rhonda didn’t sprout fur on her.

She slipped a finger into the pocket of her jeans, felt the handle of the silver knife and relaxed a bit. If she had to, she’d use it. How hard could it be after staking a vampire?

Several minutes later Rhonda spoke, popping the bubble of girlie grunge rock music that had been pounding out of the speakers. “Okay, you can take off the blindfold.”

Jane folded it and put it in the glove box, before turning and offering a weak smile to the woman. It was hard to believe she was a werewolf. Somehow, just looking at Cole, she could see it. But Rhonda looked like a slutty cheerleader.

“So where do you want to shop? Cole didn’t give us a limit.” She giggled.

“I don’t care. Just nowhere vampire groupies would shop. And I need hair dye.”

“More pink?”

Jane gave Rhonda a look like she was on acid. More pink, was she serious? “If I never see pink hair again, it’ll be too soon.”

Two and a half hours later, Jane had several bags of clothes and a smaller bag containing hair dye. The label on the box read “Chestnut” and looked close to her natural color, as far as she could remember her natural color. She’d gotten special instructions from the woman who owned the little boutique on how to best cover the pink without unexpected results.

She and Rhonda found an outdoor cafe for lunch. The wolf ordered steak, rare. No surprise. Jane ordered blackened chicken over a bed of romaine lettuce with ranch dressing.

“On a diet?” Rhonda said sympathetically. She patted her sleek stomach. “I’m glad I don’t have to worry about that. We have very fast metabolisms.”

Or maybe cattily.

Jane smiled around a mouthful of food, chewed, then swallowed and reached for the water on her table. “I’m not on a diet. This just looked good.”

Rhonda didn’t seem to be buying it.

During their shopping excursion she’d poked around to subtly find out the nature of Jane and Cole’s relationship. Then when she was sure they weren’t sleeping together, she’d started playing the
Cole and I will be mated soon
card, saying things like, “Everyone in the pack knows it’s just a matter of time for us.”

While Jane had been in the dressing room at the third store, Rhonda had gone into graphic detail about her and Cole’s sexual interlude. Jane was glad the wolf didn’t have X-ray vision or she would have seen the gagging faces being made behind the door.

Now at lunch, Rhonda had resumed her territory pissing project. “Once Cole and I are mated and he’s more comfortable with you around the rest of the pack, you can stay in my little den. It’s very cozy. You’ll like it.”

“I’m sure it’s great,” Jane said, forcing a smile and pushing back another impending eye roll. She didn’t know why her skin felt prickly and uncomfortable about the idea. If Cole and Rhonda really were an item, more power to them. She definitely wasn’t looking for a sexual relationship right now.

Her mind drifted to Cole in a towel fresh out of the shower and then his warm body pressed against hers that morning. Then her memory flashed to his tongue running over the back of her hand the night before, far more erotic than it should have been.

Jane stopped herself in time before she reached full-on arousal. If Rhonda smelled her attraction to the alpha, she might have to use the silver knife in her pocket. And how would she explain that to Cole?

She sighed and took another bite of chicken. Maybe Cole had sent her with Rhonda, hoping this conversation would happen so he wouldn’t have to tell her himself. Maybe that was why he’d blatantly ignored her reaction to him the previous night. She’d thought he was being a gentleman and trying not to make her feel unsafe.

Jane was mortified now for ever thinking he’d want some kind of sexual payment. If he and Rhonda were together that was unlikely to be the case, and it only made her feel dirty. Rhonda went up to the front to pay the bill as Jane dug through all her bags, collecting the receipts.

She folded them neatly and put them in the pocket of her jeans. She would find a way eventually to pay Cole back. She wasn’t a charity case.

On the ride back Rhonda said, “I always knew Cole and I would be together.” They were back to that again?
You’ve made your point, really. Cole is off-limits. Gotcha.
Jane was glad for the first time the blindfold was over her eyes.

Rhonda continued with the Cole talk. “When he was nine and I was six, he said he was going to marry me. Of course, that was before he knew about mating.”

“That’s very nice,” Jane said, trying to sound sincere. But then a smile broke out on her face.

When Cole was nine and Rhonda was six? If Cole was really so in love with her all that time, he would have mated with her by now. Jane had thought they’d just gotten together. Maybe things weren’t what they appeared. He’d given her a silver knife. He wouldn’t give some human woman he’d just met the means to end his future mate.
Duh, Jane.

She tried to ignore the fact that she seemed to give a damn about Cole Riley’s love life all of a sudden. Hadn’t she learned by now that men were evil?

Chapter Eight

After pack business was squared away, Cole retreated to his study to catch up on emails and get an update from Mick on the Dayne situation.

He wondered if he should tell Jane how worried Charlee had been. He stared at the phone on the desk. Maybe he should give her a phone call at least. Didn’t most prisoners in this country get one phone call? Then again, she’d already used up that privilege the previous night.

He was disturbed by how strongly he felt the need to care for the woman. No one in his pack had inspired such strong protective feelings in him before. If she were a wolf he’d suspect she was his mate. Werewolves didn’t mate with humans . . . did they? Moments like this it was lonely being the leader. Who did Cole go to for guidance and direction? Who kept his secrets? Who listened to his fears?

That was the alpha female’s job. He had no alpha female, though Rhonda had been trying her damnedest to get the position. His excuse had always been that she was like a sister. And while that was true, she was also the pack omega.

She wasn’t strong enough to command respect as his mate. He
really
couldn’t think of looking at Jane in that way.

His human guest had been quiet since she’d gotten back from her shopping excursion, and he couldn’t get a read on her emotional state. All he knew was she’d come back with plenty of bags, which very much pleased him. That was another thing that should have him worried. Cole had always been an excellent money manager, and in less than forty-eight hours he’d lost ten grand and dropped however much Rhonda and Jane had managed to spend on clothes.

He looked up to see her standing in the doorway, and a low growl rumbled from his chest. A long lavender dress flowed off her frame. The garment had thin straps that could be ripped apart with barely any effort. Her hair was a warm honey brown now, which made her blue eyes glitter in contrast. Jane most definitely was not a vampire groupie.

He cleared his throat, searching for the ability to speak. “I . . . is this what you would wear if you’d never met me or a vampire?”

Her face flamed red. “You don’t like it?”

“That’s not what I asked.”

“Yes. This is what I would wear.”

“It’s very nice. Would you like to go out to dinner?”

“The sun is down. Vampires,” she mumbled.

“We’ll be leaving the city.”

She bit her lip, hovering in a moment of indecision, then nodded and put the rest of her things away. When she returned, he created a portal in his private den and placed the amulet around his neck.

“Shall we?”

She walked through the shimmery film with her arm in his. Cole watched her reaction as they passed through the portal together. The film felt like walking through a spider’s web until it dissipated into nothing.

Thirty minutes later they were in an Italian restaurant in Georgia. Jane’s expression was guarded as she took in her surroundings, trying to get her bearings. No doubt she’d been shocked going through Cain’s domain. And it hadn’t helped that the demon had a woman hanging off him at the time, giggling and unaware she was about to become a footnote in history.

“It’s safe here,” Cole said as she continued her surveillance of the room. “There are no vampires living in Golatha Falls.”

“How do you know?”

“I come here a lot. It’s a good area for hunting, and it’s an easy entry point to get to from Cain’s neighborhood.”

She shivered at the mention of Cain’s name and looked down at her plate. Cole smelled the fear wafting off her and could see how frustrating it must be for vampires not to be able to get into her head. It was frustrating for him, and he couldn’t get inside anyone’s head. Unsure if it was the right move, he reached across the table and took her hand in his.

“Cain and I have an alliance. It doesn’t mean I approve of his behavior. But we need the portal to protect the pack.”

She nodded.

He made his own visual appraisal of the room. Although there were no vampires in Golatha Falls, it didn’t mean there was no danger. He let out a sigh as he noted only one person he recognized.

Quinton Worthington, CEO of
Worthington Paper Products
, was low on the danger meter. The man sat in a corner booth eating a plate of spaghetti way larger than he should and packing in the bread. Cole had heard the man had a weak heart.
He’s not doing it any good being here.