Pack Community (Were Chronicles) (9 page)

She licked her lips, causing his cock to twitch again. “Want me to wash your back?”

“No!” he growled at her. “I have to leave the room before noon.”

Her happy voice followed him into the bathroom. “I’ll just entertain myself then.”

He thumped his dick, trying to get himself under control, and jumped in a lukewarm shower. It was the best he could do under the time constraint.

Less than ten minutes later he was back, dressing while Beth smirked at him from the bed. He loved her playful attitude and really could see them sharing mornings like this together.

Once he was ready for the day ahead, he leaned over the bed and kissed her as chastely as he could. “Please be careful today. We don’t think anyone is in town, but you never know.”

Thankfully, she nodded. “Toby is probably already downstairs. We’ll stay either here or at the house. We’ll even stay out of town.”

She must have read the relief on his face.

“Hey, I won’t do anything to put Toby at risk,” she promised.

“Or yourself?” he added.

She smiled shyly. “Or myself. I promise.”

He kissed her again, this one deeper and a lot dirtier. His cock, which had finally settled, perked right back up.

“Trouble,” he grumbled at her, pulling away and adjusting himself.

“See you later,” she called and blew him a kiss.

He smiled the entire way down the stairs to the front entrance. There he met the sheriff, Dawson and Claude. Dorothy handed him a travel mug of coffee and a foil-wrapped package.

“For the road,” she told him with a fond smile.

He dipped his head in thanks. “Appreciate it.”

“You and Gray head out the same way as you did yesterday. Go the direct route. Claude and I will follow and make sure no one else is tailing you,” the sheriff ordered.

“Claude?” Gray asked, becoming uneasy. He didn’t want to leave the inn unprotected.

“I have my deputy stationed here and Claude has a few friends close by. Everyone here will be safe,” Jim answered his unspoken question.

Gray nodded and followed the other men out.

Gray drank his coffee and chowed down on the best breakfast burrito he’d ever had. “I got to tell you, I could move here just for the food,” he told Dawson.

“Are you thinking about it?” Dawson asked quietly.

Gray glanced over at him, not realising before that he had been silent so far. “Thinking about what?”

“Moving here,” Dawson clarified.

Gray crumpled up the foil and took a drink of his rich coffee to give him time. He knew he was stalling. So did Dawson by the frown he gave him.

“I’ve thought about it,” he admitted, not looking at the other man.

“Look, Gray, I won’t pressure you. Beth is a big girl and she knows what she’s doing. Like I said yesterday, just be honest with her. I’m not going to go all big brother on you.”

“Yeah, one of you is enough,” Gray muttered.

Dawson cut his eyes to him so Gray filled him in on Casey’s visit the night before. Dawson got a big kick out of what Beth had said about meeting Prince Zachary.

“I can just imagine what she’ll have to say to him,” Dawson shared with a grin.

They sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes before Gray spoke up. “Can I ask you a question?”

Dawson shrugged. “Sure.”

“Does it bother you?” Gray questioned. “Your brother taking a male mate?”

Dawson blew out a breath and looked like he was choosing his words carefully. “It doesn’t bother me that his mate is male. It bothers me that he kept that part to himself.”

Gray relaxed back in his seat.

“The three of us were always close. It hurt when he left. You know most felines stay solitary but his leaving… It felt like he put his animal nature before his family.”

“Beth said something similar the other night,” Gray told him.

Dawson smiled. “Beth and I have always felt the same. Family is the most important thing. We are humans first. Our parents were never there for us. Even when they were here, they always wanted to be somewhere else. I don’t know if it moulded our outlook, but I know I will never leave my son.”

“Toby is a great kid,” Gray assured him.

“Yeah. When I met his mom I thought we both wanted the same thing. And I think she did in the beginning, but it turned out she just couldn’t stay. I still can’t forgive her for leaving him.”

Gray took in everything that was said. Would Beth change her mind like Toby’s mom? He didn’t even know if they could have kids or what the result would be if they did.

“Have you ever heard of two different species mating?” he asked.

Dawson tilted his head in thought. “I know a few who have mated with humans. Claude and Dorothy, as matter of fact. Plus Casey is a bobcat and Prince Zachary is a lion, but as for a wolf and a bobcat, I just don’t know.”

That was what Gray had figured.

“I guess you will have to decide how far you want to take it,” Dawson suggested just as the ranger station came into view.

They repeated the same steps as yesterday, looking into the closed station before walking around to the trail that was barely there. Gray didn’t get any sense of being followed, not even by Jim and Claude. So either the other two shifters were still pretty far behind or they were better at hiding their scent than he’d thought.

Gray and Dawson had a better idea of where they were going this time but still took the time to cover their tracks and double back to make sure they didn’t lead anyone to the Prince’s hideout.

They stayed in human form, so the trip up the canyon took longer than it had the day before. Several times they had to help each other up embankments where their animals had easily jumped.

They took two breaks to drink water and eat a granola bar before they finally made it to where they had run into the wolves and Casey. Just as he’d suspected, as they reached the area, RJ Cross was waiting there for them.

He jumped down, landing gracefully on his feet. “There you are.”

Gray leaned against a rock and glared at the other man. Gray was in good shape but the late night and second day of hiking up the steep canyon were taking its toll on him. His back muscles protested and his legs were starting to cramp.

Meanwhile, RJ seemed full of energy. “Where’s the sheriff? Casey said he was coming with you.”

Gray motioned behind them. “He’s heading up with Claude. We split up so we could keep an eye out for if anyone was following.”

“Cool!” RJ hopped back up on the ledge. “We need to get started before I die of boredom. Here comes Mike.”

The other wolf stalked down in his animal form. He moved quietly, glancing behind him a few times. He shifted and seconds later a naked man stood in front of them all.

“I think they’re here,” he announced, accepting the bottle of water RJ handed him.

“About damn time,” RJ muttered. “Time we finished this.”

Gray exchanged looks with Dawson, not sure how he felt about the upcoming conflict.

“They came through this morning as soon as the gates opened. They didn’t take a map or ask about any of the trails. The ranger had the feeling they knew where they were headed.”

“Are you sure it’s them?” Gray had to ask.

Mike scowled at him. “Yeah, I sniffed around their vehicle. They’re shifters and I recognised their scent from the cabin we took Zach from.”

“So it’s on.” RJ clapped his hands together. “We need to tell Casey.”

The other men nodded and they followed them to the cave they’d been to before. Jim and Claude would just have to catch up.

Casey greeted his brother with a hug and Gray with a handshake. Prince Zachary looked tired but offered them a small smile as they entered the cave. The other feline stood at the far cave wall, rifle on his shoulder.

Mike explained to the rest of them what he had seen and found out.

“So it’s time,” Prince Zachary acknowledged, although he seemed more resigned than RJ and Mike had been.

Casey rubbed his shoulder. “We capture these guys then at least we know, when he goes back to get your cousin, there will be fewer complications. It has to be done.”

“I just don’t want anyone else hurt on my account,” he told his mate, shaking his head sadly.

Casey wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him off to the side of the cave.

“How long to do you think it will take them to get up here?” Gray asked Mike and RJ.

“I figure about two or three hours, tops. It’s one thing to map out the canyon and know where to go, but a whole other thing to do it when you’re on foot. I knew where all the shortcuts were, and luckily they didn’t or they would have beaten me here. I expect they will come shifted. There are a couple of wolves, two cats, and something else,” Mike informed them.

“Something else?” RJ questioned his buddy.

Mike shook his head. “Couldn’t get a good read.”

“Jim and Claude should be here by then also. So five of them and nine of us—pretty damn good odds,” Dawson stated.

“Seven of us,” RJ corrected. “Jesse stays with Zach to guard him. No one will get their hands on him again.”

“I can take care of myself,” Prince Zachary interrupted, coming back over. “You need Jesse with you.”

“Not gonna happen,” Casey voiced, narrowing his eyes at his mate. “Above and beyond all else, you are the Prince of our people. Jesse will guard you.”

“I am also one of the most powerful cats in the world,” he argued back.

“No,” Casey snapped. “You stay here.”

“I’m sorry to get in the middle, Prince Zachary, but I have to agree with Casey. We need to finish this, capture these men, and get you to safety. I have a son and sister who are dying to meet you. And you don’t want to disappoint those two,” Dawson added respectfully.

The Prince opened his mouth and closed it again. Finally, he nodded. “Nicely played,” he grumbled. “You take after your brother more than you think.”

Casey beamed and Gray hid his own smile. He could see the family dynamic coming together. It made him feel warm inside that Beth would have these men in her life. Would he be part of the family too? He just didn’t know.

He shook the question from his head. He had to concentrate on the task before him.

“We should split up and take our positions. It might be a few hours but we can’t take any chances,” Casey suggested.

The others all agreed. “Gray and RJ will take point. They’ll take the furthest position,” Casey directed. “Dawson and Mike will go south—block anyone from sneaking up on us that way. I’ll wait for the sheriff and Claude. They’ll cover the high ground.”

“What about you?” Dawson enquired with a lift of his brow.

Casey grinned. “I’m bait. I’ll lead them to us.”

Zachary and Dawson started to protest but Casey held up a hand to cut them off.

“My show, my call.”

“Sounds good to me.” RJ grabbed a pack and threw it over to Gray. He caught it easily and looked down at it. “Water and some beef jerky,” RJ clarified. “Should hold us over till we get some action.”

Gray shook his head at the other man but hefted the pack to his shoulder.

“I can’t tell you how much I am looking forward to a hot shower and a nice home-cooked meal,” his partner told him as he motioned towards the mouth of the cave. Gray didn’t blame the man. Hadn’t he just had the same thoughts?

Gray caught Dawson’s eye and gave a slight nod of his head. He clasped the other man’s shoulder and followed the young wolf out. He hoped everything went according to plan.

Chapter Nine

While the canyon was truly a beautiful environment, the waiting was driving him crazy. It’d been two and a half hours since he and RJ had left the cave and still there was no sign of anyone else.

“So you’re retiring after this?” Gray asked the other man.

“Yeah, my older brother accepted an Alpha position in a Pack in New Mexico. Our Pack has so many strong dominants—and our Alpha has several sons who will take over the Pack—that my brother’s name was mentioned as a replacement for the New Mexico Pack.”

“You’ll move with him then?”

“Yeah.” RJ was crouched down flexing his fingers. “Dylan and our younger brother Ben are going to head there in a couple of weeks. I’ll meet them there.”

“What are you planning on doing?”

“Ben’s set up a storefront in town for me. I’ll have the first tattoo shop there.”

“Cool,” Gray noted. RJ had enough ink to show that he enjoyed it. “Did you do all of the unit’s tattoos?”

“Yeah, but my favourites are the two custom pieces I did for Zach and Casey. I’d like to do that more. Give mates something to show off.”

Gray could imagine having a picture of Beth’s sexy little bobcat on his body. “That’s awesome, actually.”

RJ chuckled. “Glad you think so. I’ll give you a good price when you mate.”

Gray bowed his head in thanks. “Appreciate it.”

Of course, all the talk about mates made him think of Beth. He knew she was the woman meant for him. Even his wolf agreed that she was the perfect mate. He wanted kids, didn’t care if they were wolf or feline, but he wanted a future with Beth.