“Jesse,” Sam said as he reached over and grabbed Jesse’s uninjured arm. “It’s almost dark. We’ve been gone for hours. Your brothers have to know by now that something is wrong.”
“They do, Sam. I told them, remember?” There was a dark, brooding look on Jesse’s face when he turned to look at Sam over his shoulder. “We haven’t heard any more gunshots in a couple of hours. I’m hoping that means everyone is safe, but we won’t know until we reach the bunkhouse.”
“I’m sorry about this.”
Sam couldn’t help letting out a soft sigh or the way he leaned into the hand Jesse cupped around the side of his face. Jesse’s gentle touch seemed to ground him and make things not quite so scary and weird.
“You have nothing to be sorry for, sunshine,” Jesse said as he nuzzled his face into the hair on the top of Sam’s head. “This is your home. You’re supposed to be safe here. And no one has the right to take that away from you.”
Sam’s breath caught in his throat at Jesse’s words. He wondered how much of what Jesse said he actually believed. Or how much Jesse understood what the ranch meant to him. No matter where he went or how long he was gone, the ranch was always what he thought of when he needed to feel safe and protected. The ranch represented home.
But Sam was starting to wonder if it was the ranch itself, or the man that lived there. He didn’t want to test that theory, but needing Jesse made more sense than needing a pile of wood and stone.
“I’m scared, Jesse.”
“I know.” And Jesse didn’t look happy about it.
“But I’m glad I’m with you.”
“While I don’t like the idea of someone shooting at us, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.” Jesse pushed a lock of hair back from Sam’s face and tucked it behind his ear. “I’ve waited a long time to have you by my side, Sam. I’m not going to let anyone take you away from me again.”
“Oh, Jesse, I—”
“Sshhh.” Jesse pressed his finger over Sam’s lips. “I know you still need time, and I am more than willing to give you all of the time you need. I just need you to do it where I can protect you.”
Sam had the sudden urge to roll his eyes. He barely kept it restrained. Instead, he pulled Jesse’s finger away from his mouth. “I was going to say that I am sorry you had to wait so long for me. I still don’t know where any of this is headed, but I am not going anywhere.”
Jesse grinned. It was a sweet grin, one filled with hope and happiness. Sam wanted to keep that look on Jesse’s face, but he knew he couldn’t, not while they were still in danger. “Hold that thought until we reach the bunkhouse.”
“Unfortunately, sunshine, that thought just might have to wait a little longer than that.” Sam shivered when Jesse’s eyes hungrily roamed up and down his body. “As much as I would like to fuck you into the first flat surface we come to, finding out who is gunning for us has to take priority.”
Wow, bubble buster.
“How much farther?”
“Not too much farther, sunshine.”
This time, Sam couldn’t prevent his heavy eye roll. “You have got to stop calling me that.”
“Sooo not going to happen, sunshine.” Jesse chuckled and turned to start walking again.
“What are all of the other little wolves going to think?” Sam mumbled as he followed after Jesse.
“Not to worry, Sam,” Jesse said, winking at Sam over his shoulder. “One sniff of you and they will know exactly why I call you sunshine.”
Sam frowned in confusion then slowly raised his arms and sniffed. He didn’t smell bad, a little sweaty, but not bad. He knew Lycan were supposed to have better smelling than humans but he didn’t think he was giving off any scent that would be offensive.
At least he hoped not.
Sam was still trying to figure out if he smelled bad when he ran right into Jesse’s back. He stumbled for a moment until Jesse’s hand wrapped around his arm and steadied him. Sam glanced up only to find that they had reached the trees right behind the bunkhouse.
A one-story wooden building sat several yards away, just waiting for them. Sam could feel the tenseness in Jesse’s body even though they were only touching through Jesse’s hand on his arm. There was just an air about Jesse that said he was on guard.
“Is it safe?” Sam whispered as low as he could.
“It would seem so,” Jesse replied without taking his eyes off the quiet scene in front of them, “but I can’t be sure.”
“Well, we can’t just stand here with our thumbs up our asses.”
“Samuel!”
“Oh please, you grew up on a ranch with four brothers. You cannot tell me you’ve never heard anyone swear before.”
“I haven’t heard it from you. What would your mother think?”
“That I needed to get my ass inside where it can’t be shot off.”
Jesse growled.
Sam blinked up at Jesse then reached up and pushed his lip up. “Do those things always drop down when you growl?”
“Samuel!”
“Oh, you have got to stop doing that.”
“Samuel!”
“What?”
Jesse’s deep sigh almost made Sam laugh. The man was just too easy to drive crazy. Sam might not know exactly how to respond to his Lycan form, but he had no problem figuring out how to respond to his human form.
“Just run, Samuel.”
Sam didn’t even question Jesse’s words. He just took off running toward the bunkhouse as fast as his legs would carry him. At some point, he realized that Jesse was running right behind him, and then the man was beside him. And then Jesse picked him up and started running again, Sam tossed over his shoulder.
When they reached the bunkhouse, Jesse kept right on running, only stopping long enough to kick the door open. Sam covered his eyes. With as fast as Jesse was moving, he could see the collision with the floor coming.
Instead of crashing to the floor, Sam was slowly lowered to his feet and enveloped in strong, muscular arms. He breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Jesse had him, and then opened his eyes.
Sam knew his face was turning bright red when he spotted several men sitting at a table staring back at him. He lifted his hand and wiggled his fingers in hello. Damned if they didn’t wiggle theirs right back.
“Someone is trying to kill us,” Sam said as way of explanation.
The men all nodded.
Sam jumped back and pressed himself closer to Jesse when one of the men jumped to his feet as if suddenly unfrozen from his seated position and ran to a phone hanging on the wall. He spoke for a moment and then hung up, walking over to stand in front of Sam and Jesse.
“Cort and Nate are on their way.”
Jesse shook his head. “Call them back and tell them to stay where they are. I’ve already warned them that there’s a sniper out there taking potshots at us. I want the ranch put on lockdown until we know what in the hell is going on.” Jesse’s arms tightened around Sam for a moment. “And tell them that Sam is going to need some clean clothes.”
Sam frowned and slapped Jesse on the chest. “You need medical attention more than I need clean clothes. I’m not shot.”
Sam whipped around when he heard the sudden scraping of chair legs across the floor and realized that the other men in the room had stood up and were even now walking toward him and Jesse.
“You’ve been shot, Jesse?” the first man asked.
“I’m fine, Rocky. It was a through and through and I’ve already shifted. It’ll be gone by morning.” Jesse’s hands rubbed up and down Sam’s sides. “My mate is just worried about me.”
“This is him?” Rocky asked.
“This is my Sam.” Jesse sounded so damn proud that Sam couldn’t help but glance back at him. Jesse had a huge smile on his face almost as if he had just been told he won the crown jewels.
It was odd.
Sam turned back to the men eyeing him intently and held out his hand. “Hi, I’m Sam Bishop.”
Not a single man moved.
“Um…”
“Relax, Sam,” Jesse said from behind him. “They’re not trying to be rude, but they haven’t been given my permission to touch you.”
Sam tilted his head to one side as he rolled that statement around in his head over and over again, and no matter how many times he replayed it in his head, it never came out any differently.
His eyes narrowed as he turned to glare up at Jesse. “Excuse me?”
“Now, Sam…” Jesse raised his hands in the air and started backing up.
Sam met him step for step until Jesse backed right into the wall. He stepped closer and tapped his finger into Jesse’s chest. “Want to try again?”
“It’s a Lycan thing, Sam.”
“I am not Lycan, Jesse,” Sam snapped between clenched teeth.
“No, but you’re mated to one,” Jesse countered.
Sam could feel his teeth grinding together to keep from nailing Jesse’s ass to the wall. Once again he felt like everyone knew something he didn’t. “Since when?”
Jesse winced. “Remember that claiming bite thing?”
“You claimed me without asking me first? That whole claiming thing is for real?” Sam was outraged. He was pissed. He was…Sam growled low in his throat and spun on his heels. He marched right over to the door and flung it open, storming out into the darkness.
He could hear everyone yelling behind him, and knew that leaving the shelter of the bunkhouse probably wasn’t his best choice. He just couldn’t bring himself to care at the moment. He couldn’t remember ever being so angry at someone as he was at Jesse.
He was tired of his choices being taken away from him. Just once, he would like to be asked before the whole course of his life changed.
Sam was a little surprised when he suddenly found himself standing in front of the back door of the main house. He didn’t remember walking across the yard from the bunkhouse. He had been too immersed in his thoughts, and his anger.
Sam pulled the door open and walked into the house. He wanted to head straight to his room to fume until he reached the main entry and realized that it was filled with people. Sam started to turn around to go back out the back door only to hear it open and then footsteps.
He suspected it was Jesse.
And he wasn’t ready to talk to him.
Sam stepped out into the entry and made a beeline for the stairs. He ignored everyone, walking right past them even when they called out his name. He had just reached the top of the stairs when everything below him went quiet.
Sam paused and slowly turned. Jesse stood at the bottom of the steps staring up at him. He wasn’t saying a word. He didn’t need to. The sullen glower on Jesse’s face said it all. Jesse was just as pissed as Sam was.
“I’ll be in our room.”
“I’ll be up soon to talk to you.”
Yeah, that wasn’t going to go well. Sam could just tell. He nodded anyway and turned to walk down the hallway to the room he apparently now shared with Jesse. He didn’t exactly understand what he had done, but Sam suddenly felt like he was in a whole lot of trouble.
Sam let himself into the bedroom and walked over to sit on the side of the bed. This whole Lycan thing was becoming a lot more complicated than they made out on the animal channel. Nothing was like he expected it to be.
Nothing made sense.
Especially the deep ache building in his chest. Sam could feel it growing, heating his body until he was sweating. It was almost claustrophobic, like he was being trapped or crushed. Sam pressed his hand against his chest to relieve the ache then moved it down over his stomach when it started to clench and roll.
Sam slapped his hand over his mouth and dashed for the bathroom when his stomach rebelled. He made it into the bathroom just in time to drop to his knees and bend over the toilet before everything in his stomach came rushing out.
After emptying his stomach for what seemed like forever, Sam leaned his head against the toilet seat and tried to draw in enough air that he didn’t feel like he was going to pass out from lack of oxygen. After a few moments, Sam stood up. He flushed the toilet then walked over to the sink to rinse his mouth and wash his face with a cool cloth.
Sam frowned when he looked at himself in the mirror. He knew he had experienced a very stressful day—everything from learning about Lycans to being shot at to discovering he had been mated without his knowledge. It was enough to make anyone feel like shit. But damn, did it have to make him look like shit, too?
His face was pale and pinched. He noticed his fingers tremble when he brought his hand up to brush some hair out of his eyes. To top it all off, he felt like crap. He was tired, stressed out more than he could ever remember being, and he just wanted to sleep until everything went away.
Sam walked back into the bedroom, thankful that the room was empty. Right now, he didn’t even think he could deal with Jesse. He just wanted to sleep. Sam pulled his clothes off and dropped them on the floor and then climbed under the covers. His head barely hit the pillow before Sam felt sleep start to pull him under.
Maybe things would look better when he woke up.
And maybe not.
“Jesse.”
Jesse turned away from the window he was staring out of and glanced over at his brother. It didn’t matter really. He wasn’t seeing anything out the window anyway. His mind was on the man sleeping upstairs in his bed.