The Werewolf Cowboy (Moonbound Book 1) (2 page)

A
llan stood
in the back of the massive dining room, as far from the horny Louisiana enforcer as he could get. He held his cowboy hat in front of his crotch and cursed Aaron for ordering him to stay. The girl—Reyna—wouldn’t take her eyes off him, and he would rather have been anywhere else. Root canals, major surgery… hell, he would have taken a torture chamber over this.

He didn’t give a shit what his dick thought. Reyna was trouble.

Aaron was blathering on, as always. He cared way too much about magick bullshit, and not enough about the fact that Reyna needed some discipline. She’d put them all in danger, and not just the wolves in the VonBrandt family, but all the people in Somewhere.

The last thing they needed was a bunch of drunk cowboys wondering why she could throw grown men across a bar, or how she could fight three men at once. People started asking questions when things didn’t make sense, and eventually, there would be a nutjob who asked the wrong questions and they’d have to do the spell—the one they’d never had to do—the one that made humans forget and disappear.

In a small town like Somewhere, Texas, Allan was all that stood between the humans and the wolves.

“Maybe we should ask Elise, instead of talking over her head.” Reyna’s alpha spoke up. “She’s here, isn’t she?”

Aaron signaled to their cousin Jared, who stood next to Allan, and twitched almost as nervously. “Jared doesn’t want her in the room for now. He knows the whole story.”

“The
whole
story?” asked the Oklahoma family’s alpha, a wide-faced, stocky man with a big scar on one cheek.

Aaron frowned. “There is no
whole
story. That’s why we’re here, Harry.”

While everyone had their attention focused on Jared, Allan noticed Reyna standing behind her alpha, nostrils flaring. She wasn’t paying attention to the pack business at all. When they made eye contact, the whites of her eyes flashed and her mouth fell open just enough for Allan to see her tongue snake out and lick around her lips.

He remembered what those lips had felt like, latched on to his skin. Too hot, too wet, too ready. She was the epitome of everything he was trying to avoid about female wolves—it was all about sex and mating and wolves and running.

But that wasn’t his life. He’d known since he was a boy that he wanted to be part of the human world. Now that he was the sheriff, he’d put his flag in the sand, and he intended to be the whole package.

He used his magick to keep humans safe from each other, or to punish the ones who couldn’t get their shit together. But that meant he had to be fully a part of the human world—not like his family, who stayed secluded and hidden. He would absolutely not be taking a wolf mate. He had it all planned out.

Jared was still talking with the Oklahoma alpha, explaining something about a church and a baby left on the steps. Aaron had called all the families together to talk about the wolf Jared had found in New Orleans. Elise. The one without a pack. This was exactly the kind of thing Allan hated about wolves. Being part of the human world was almost an arrestable offense.

“What I don’t understand is, how did she manage to change every month inside the city of New Orleans without y’all knowing anything about her.” The El Paso alpha, pounded on the big mahogany dining table. “Dammit, Francis, y’all fell down on the job.”

That got Reyna’s attention. For the first time since Allan had walked into the room, her gaze shifted elsewhere. Her teeth flashed and she took a step from Francis’s side, toward the group of black-clad El Paso wolves, but Francis had a hand on her arm. At least someone could keep her in check.

“We don’t patrol the city.” Francis yanked Reyna back to his side and she shook him off. “No one has ever heard of an unbonded wolf before, so it wasn’t like we were on the lookout.”

El Paso crossed his arms. “We woulda known.”

Aaron stood. “We’re not here to point fingers, gentlemen. We need to get to the bottom of this. Find out how it could have happened.”

Reyna’s chest was heaving, bringing her cleavage into view with each in-breath, for God and everyone. The woman needed a shawl or something. Cover that up. She shouldn’t be on display for anyone to ogle.

She clapped her eyes on his and seemed to calm and focus. Before long, she was almost panting, moving her tongue around inside her mouth in ways that made him think of all the things she could do with it.

“Allan?” Aaron’s voice snapped him out of that fantasy. He glanced at his brother.

“What?”

“Did you run her prints and DNA?”

“Whose?”

Aaron narrowed his eyes. They had talked about this. Right. He’d forgotten. Aaron had asked him to run a sheet on Elise, back before the election, when he hadn’t had time. “I haven’t yet, but I can do that tonight. I have to go back to the station to report the incident at Joe’s. I can do it then.”

“It helps to have a wolf in cop’s clothing.” The El Paso alpha lifted his gut and shared a laugh with his pack. “I’d like to see that up where we’re at.”

Allan’s shoulders snapped to attention. “I’m not a wolf in cop’s clothing. I’m the fucking sheriff, and I have a job to do.” He pulled his hat back on, and settled it down so it covered his eyes.

“Wait.” Aaron’s voice was almost a growl. “I need you to stay until we decide what to do. We might need you.”

“You don’t need me.” He swiped at the edge of his hat, trying not to show his anger in front of the other wolves. “This is pack business. I have a job to do in town. Let me go do it. Y’all figure out your magick and let me know what happens.”

“Allan.” Aaron’s growl edged the little hairs on Allan’s neck up. “I asked you to stay.”

With a long breath, he met his brother’s eyes. “Do you want me to run her sheet or not?”

Aaron pressed his knuckles into the table and leaned forward. He exchanged a glance with Andrea, his enforcer. The two looked at Jared. In the silence, while all the VonBrandts appeared to be having a wordless conversation with their eyes, Reyna’s voice rang out.

“We ran her sheet back in New Orleans. These were just emailed to me this morning.” She reached for a couple of folders that sat in front of Francis and tossed them into the middle of the table. “Nothing. Not even a credit card or a parking ticket. It won’t help.”

If Allan hadn’t been so pissed at her, he might’ve given her a thankful glance, but he wasn’t going to give in to the urge to meet her eyes. No. He absolutely wasn’t.

“We need a new approach gentlemen. The girl isn’t hiding her history, she is seeking it.” Francis Dubois spoke up. He had the kind of voice that would silence a whole room. He was the oldest wolf at the table, and had the most experience as pack alpha.

All the wolves looked at him.

Except fucking Reyna. Allan could still feel her eyes on him. Could feel the pull of her magick on his.

His phone buzzed and he slid it carefully out of his pocket while the wolves discussed how to look into Elise’s mysterious past. Maybe it would be Laurel. Break the wolf monotony of his night.

I just got to the bar. What the fuck happened to my lamp?

Allan rolled his eyes. Joe Walker. He wanted to say, it’s just a fucking lamp. But he tried to play the politician, like human sheriffs had to do. He texted back.
The woman who broke it will pay whatever restitution you ask
.

He held the phone. He’d told his deputies not to make any arrests, assuming it would all blow over and he could get the she-wolf out of the public eye. But if Joe insisted on making a big deal out of this, it could put him in a bind.

Allan allowed himself a short glance at Reyna. She swayed her shoulders under his gaze and thrust her chest out. The movement seemed dangerous, more than a challenge.

She was going to be the fucking death of him.

Another text buzzed in his hand.

That was an authentic Tiffany antique lamp. It’s worth fucking $20K, Allan. I want to see this woman in jail.

Fucking fuck. Damn Joe Walker and his expensive shit lamps. Damn Reyna Dubois and her devil-may-care. Damn his fucking job and his fucking pack.

This was going to be a long night.

A
wolf trying
to avoid anything to do with wolves. Denial much? Or was there something she was missing?

Reyna moved back from the main table where her father and the other alphas still sat discussing the best option for locating a lead on where the hell Elise had come from. Wolves didn’t typically drop from the sky, so Elise had a past. The trick would be picking up the scent.

Right now the only scent that interested her sat directly across the room. Brooding and annoyed, the wolf in Sheriff’s clothing wanted to leave. Apparently, he did respect his alpha enough not to storm out without permission.

When they stopped the meeting for a dinner break, she easily found her way through the crowded room, and next to the object of her desire. He smelled good enough to lick from head to foot. “Why don’t you want to help the pack?” she asked, following him down a hallway and into beautiful kitchen.

A growl rumbled in his chest. “I am helping the pack. You’re not. You broke a twenty-thousand dollar lamp, and the bar owner wants you put in jail. How am I supposed to help the pack if one of the alpha’s daughters can’t keep a lid on her temper in town? I can’t arrest you. The full moon is in two nights.”

Reyna frowned.
Expensive lamp.
She never would’ve thought some cow-town bar would decorate with anything not found at a generic bulk warehouse. Didn’t matter. Her father would pay to replace it and more for the inconvenience.

“I’ll make sure to keep a low
-er
profile from here on out.” She crossed her fingers behind her back and gave Allan a reassuring smile. She didn’t plan to get into more trouble, but nothing she did was ever low profile. He needed to get used to that. She had no intention of changing, but she had no intention of giving up on him being her mate either.

“Sure you will,” he snapped, yanking open the fridge and taking a Shiner from the shelf inside. He closed the door without offering her one.

“I don’t try to get in trouble. But I won’t let you or anyone else make me feel bad for teaching those flannel-wearing-handsy-cowboys to
ask
before feeling up a girl. I wasn’t the only one in the bar they were bothering, just so you know.”

The two girls playing pool next to the cowboys hadn’t been able to convince them of their disinterest either. When she’d gone over to watch the girl’s game, the so-called flirting had commenced.

Hell, between all the touching and groping and lewd comments, she’d been tempted to put a lot more pain on those boys. They certainly deserved it.

“There are laws. Plus, you threw a grown man halfway across a room. Do you realize how lucky you are that no one questioned
how
you did that?”

Reyna opened her mouth and then snapped it back shut. He did have a point there.

She’d made a bad choice.

At home she was used to being surrounded by wolves. The New Orleans pack was massive compared to the VonBrandt family. There were whole businesses, bars, and restaurants that catered only to werewolves. Places where they didn’t have to fear being “seen.” Plus, New Orleans had so much weird shit and voodoo stuff twenty-four seven, the locals didn’t think twice about seeing anything out of the ordinary.

“Just stay on the ranch and out of town.”

“You need to loosen up a little.” She sidled a little closer and took the beer from his hand, taking a long sip before handing it back to him.

He stared at her, a mixture of lust and irritation swirling in his big brown eyes, as if he couldn’t decide whether to yell at her or kiss her.

She made the choice for him.

Grabbing the lapels of his shirt, she attacked his mouth without hesitation. Her body burned with need. He was her mate. She was more sure of it than anything else in her life. He just didn’t agree with her—correction—he was trying to pretend it wasn’t true.
Denial, again.
This man had some issues to work through. First and foremost, he needed to embrace being a wolf.

Allan returned the kiss for a millisecond before pushing her away, but that small taste hadn’t been enough. No way in hell was she giving up now. She tightened her grip on his shirt and wrapped a leg around his thigh, rubbing her hip directly across a very hard bulge in his pants.
Now we’re talking.

“No. We can’t do this.”

Fuck.
She pouted as he untangled her body from his and pushed her away.
Can’t. Sman’t.
By the end of the day, she’d have those delicious lips of his on her again. And next time, there would be no pushing away.

“Look,” she said. “I’ll talk to the bar owner. I’m sure he’ll be fine if we make it right. We can replace the light.”

“How are you going to explain that
you
threw a man over the mechanical bull with your spaghetti arms?”

“I wasn’t going to go into detail. I was just going to apologize and give him a check. Money talks, cowboy.” She crossed her arms beneath her breasts, forcing them just a little higher in the corseted top she was wearing.
Boobs do too and they’ve yet to fail me.

His nostrils flared slightly, and she smiled. He might be in denial about her being his mate, but he could only hold out for so long. What a wolf wanted, a wolf always got in the end.

“I don’t want you anywhere near Joe. If he forces my hand, I’ll have to arrest you. He’s pissed.” He put the half empty beer bottle on the counter behind her and huffed away. “Just leave it be. I’ll take care of it.”

Reyna grabbed the Shiner and downed what was left in a few swallows. Something a little harder would’ve been nice, but it would do for now.

The back door slammed shut behind Allan. She needed to move fast.

A quick powerwalk down the hallway toward the large study where everyone had been meeting before produced nothing. Chatter up ahead from another room drew her further down the hall. Her father was standing aside with the alpha from Oklahoma.

She waited to interrupt until there was a natural break in the conversation. “Dad.”

Her father nodded and the other alpha smiled at her before walking away. “What is it, Reyna?”

“I need to give Allan a check for some damages. Apparently, the bar owner where I broke an antique lamp is really pissed and wants me arrested.”

“Reyna, you shouldn’t have been in town to begin with. We’re here for the summit meeting and the full moon run. That’s it. Allan was right to be angry with you. This is a small town. Their small town. The VonBrandts are very careful here. We are their guests. You are protected back in New Orleans, Reyna. There we exist outside of most human circles. This town is very different.” Her father pulled his billfold from his back pocket and handed it to her. “Whatever the cost of the damage. Double the amount.”

She nodded. “I’m sorry.” Guilt from her father’s disappointment quickened her pulse. She hated disappointing him. He carried the weight of their family sorrow the hardest. He blamed himself and even though she did as she pleased and he let her, she never wanted to lay more weight on his shoulders.

He cupped her face and smiled. “I know, my darling. I also know that you will continue to follow your heart and Allan into town again, but this isn’t New Orleans, so just be mindful of your surroundings.”

“I will.”

A smile tugged the corners of her mouth. Of course, he knew she was interested in Allan. It wasn’t like she’d been trying to hide it. She never tried to hide anything from anyone.

“
A
llan
.” Reyna jogged down the sidewalk toward the SUV marked Somewhere, TX Sheriff.

He was already backing up and turning around to leave. She waved the check in the air and he rolled down his window.

She sprinted up and handed over the check. “This should cover and make up for the inconvenience. Please apologize for me. I did not mean to cause you a problem in town.”

His face softened just a little with her apology. He took the check from her and his eyes widened. “This is too much.”

“No. This is damages, plus inconvenience. I might’ve made a mistake—”

“Might’ve?” Allan scoffed.

A growl started in her throat, but she bit it back. “I acted irrationally in a bar full of humans. It won’t be an issue again.” Reyna chose her words carefully. She fully intended to act irrationally again. It just wouldn’t be in a bar next time.

“I’ll make it right with Joe. It’ll be fine. Just stay away from his place, okay?”

“I can do that.”

She had no desire to visit the honky-tonk bar again, anyway. She had other plans.