The Mating (18 page)

“Uh-oh. Now she’s done it. Marla’s pissed off Kane,” Carrie whispered gleefully in Elise’s ear. Biting her lip to keep from smiling, Elise gave the briefest of nods and then refocused her attention on her mate. Kane was listening to someone from the far side of the room now.

“Do you think the oil company is deliberately poisoning our land in the hope of forcing our hand?”

“It’s a possibility that we’ve been looking into, but we’d need hard evidence to make such a claim stick.” Kane agreed. “It could also just be that someone unthinkingly dumped the oil by our river or maybe it fell off of a delivery truck—there is a bridge there, where the highway crosses that corner of our land.”

“Ryne’s footprints were found in that area weren’t they?” One of the Elders stood and addressed Kane.

“Yes, they were. His scent was also near the traps we found. That’s common knowledge. Whether any of these events are related or if they are all just coincidences, we don’t know. But rest assured, we are looking at every possible angle.” Kane checked his watch. “It’s getting late, if no one has any business that needs to be brought to the floor, we’ll adjourn. John and I are both willing to stay and answer any questions you still might have.”

When no one spoke up, Kane closed the meeting. A buzz filled the room as everyone started to talk. Small crowds began to gather around both Kane and John, and Elise could see that the evening was far from over for the Alpha and his Beta.

Elise and Helen worked together to clean up the meeting room, having sent Carrie off to bed. With her pregnancy so far advanced, she tired easily and her ankles were swollen. As Elise gathered paper plates and napkins, she glanced towards the front of the room. A few people still remained talking to Kane and John. Marla was standing near the edge of the group and seemed to be trying to catch Kane’s attention, but the Alpha was too busy to notice.

Helen walked by with the remains of the slab cake and paused, taking in the scene. “Marla made a strategic error tonight, when she mentioned selling the land, and now she’s trying to backpedal. Kane loves this place and he’s been worried sick about losing even a corner of it. Her ‘playing devil’s advocate’ line didn’t go over well. William could get away with it—Kane knows he’s a crafty old coot and was just setting things up so the facts could be stated, but Marla was just planting seeds of doubt. It’s going to take something pretty big to get her back into Kane’s good graces.” Smiling smugly, Helen went on her way.

Elise finished collecting the garbage, keeping one eye on the group at the front. Eventually, it was down to Kane, John, Marla, and Franz. Marla was looking distinctly irritated that Kane was basically ignoring her, and Elise wondered how the woman couldn’t get the message. Shrugging, Elise began to gather the chairs, stacking them in the corner.

“Elise, I can do that.” Kane began to walk away from the group, but Marla grabbed his arm.

“Kane, I need to talk to you—” The curvaceous blonde pressed herself closer to Kane, but he stepped back and frowned.

“Marla, I’m tired. Whatever you need to say, you can tell John.”

“Oh, but I was hoping you’d be able to drive me home tonight. One of my headlights isn’t working and…”

Kane cut her off. “Franz is heading into town, aren’t you Franz?” The man nodded. “I’m sure he’d be willing to give you a lift, or follow behind your car, to make sure you get home in one piece.” Pulling his arm free, Kane walked away and started to fold up chairs, failing to see the astonished look on Marla’s face, which was then followed by a pout. Abruptly the woman turned and stomped out of the room. John and Franz just shrugged and continued their conversation.

Elise had watched the whole incident with interest. Helen was right. Kane was upset and Marla would have to do some fancy footwork to get back on his good side. The thought pleased her no end. Kane was her mate, and while she wasn’t sure exactly how she felt about him, she did know that she couldn’t tolerate the idea of Marla getting her claws into him.

Between the two of them, they had the chairs put away in no time. John carried the coffee urn upstairs and Helen declared that the room was ‘good enough’ for the night. “We can vacuum, wipe the tables, and deal with the presents tomorrow. I don’t know about you young people, but my old body doesn’t appreciate being up until midnight anymore.” With that, Helen took her leave and John headed upstairs as well. Turning off the lights, Kane put his arm around Elise’s waist and led her to their suite.

Once upstairs, he wearily began to pull his shirt off, stretching his neck as his tense muscles twinged. “What a day. I’m exhausted.” He dropped to the edge of the bed and pulled off his shoes and socks then rested his forearms on his knees. “I don’t know how it was for you, but the unease of the pack during that meeting was really noticeable to me. I’m not sure if John and I managed to reassure them sufficiently or not.” He exhaled gustily and rubbed the back of his neck.

Remembering her thoughts during dinner, Elise sat down beside him and began to rub his shoulders. “I think you did the best that you could, given the circumstances. It seems to me that with so much happening all at once, there’s really no way to completely soothe everyone’s concerns. You presented the facts, stated what you were doing to deal with the issues, and now they just have to have faith that their Alpha will do his job.”

“Thanks. I know that the pack is behind me and some just needed to air their concerns, but it’s really wearing trying to remain calm and reasonable. The Alphas of old would have just ripped the throat out of anyone who questioned them or gave them a hard time. It wasn’t the right way to do things, but in some ways it was easier.” Kane gave a rueful chuckle and then smiled gratefully at Elise. “Mmm, that shoulder massage feels good.” He leaned appreciatively into her hands.

“Here, lie down.” Elise gave him a gentle push and Kane rolled onto his stomach. Straddling his hips, she began to work on the stiff muscles of his shoulders, neck, and back. “My goodness, I’ve felt concrete with more give than your back.”

“That’s where my stress always goes; right into my back and shoulders.” Kane closed his eyes and gave a moan of pleasure as her efforts began to meet with some success. “I can’t believe the mess I’m facing. When I was Beta, there were never this many problems, but since Zack’s death it’s just been one thing after another.”

“You do seem to have more than your fair share to deal with.” Elise agreed as she shifted a bit in order to apply more pressure to a particularly nasty knot in his shoulder.

“Problems with hunters and trappers are common every fall, but this business with Ryne really has me down. I never would have thought he’d turn on his pack like this and, despite what I’m saying to the others, I’m beginning to have my doubts as to his innocence. It’s just too many coincidences.”

“What was Ryne like?”

“Well—he was always more impulsive than me. Quick to fly off the handle or jump to conclusions, but he was equally quick to apologise and admit he’d made a mistake. Ryne was hard working and loyal to the pack, but he fit into the human world quite well too. He had a promising career as a nature photographer and actually had a few exhibits of his work. They weren’t economically profitable, but there was quite a bit of critical praise for his pictures.”

Elise suddenly remembered the picture she’d seen and admired in the mall. It had been one of Ryne’s. Opening her mouth to comment on it, Kane sighed and began talking again before she could speak.

“In the weeks before Zack’s death, and the challenge, Ryne seemed to change. He’d usually been upbeat and sociable, but suddenly he was like a bear with a sore paw, keeping to himself and miserable with everyone. Something was bothering him, but he would never tell me what it was. Even so, it was a complete surprise when he issued the challenge for the leadership. He’d seemed happy as a co-Beta and more interested in pursuing photography. Being Alpha wouldn’t have left him time for that.”

“Did you ever consider not accepting the challenge?”

“No—there was something inside me that wouldn’t let me back down. Call it instinct or ego, but I just knew that I had to step forward, that the pack needed me and I was the best man for the job. That’s not to say that on days like this, I don’t wish that I had just stayed a Beta.” He chuckled into the pillow.

“So what do you think Ryne’s doing right now? Is he really going around trying to hurt members of the pack as some sort of twisted revenge against you?”

“It’s the only reason I can think of; though any vendetta should just be against me, not the whole pack.” Kane shifted under her and rolled over, folding his hands behind his head. Elise’s palm rested against his chest and their eyes locked. “I’ve had enough work for one day. Let’s talk about something more pleasant.” Reaching up, Kane twirled a lock of her hair around his finger. “Did you enjoy the party?”

“Well, it was certainly a surprise—I honestly had no idea—and it was very nice of everyone to be so welcoming.”

“Helen and Carrie approached me with the idea the first day you were here. Initially, I thought it was just a welcoming party for you, but somewhere along the line it became the next best thing to a wedding reception. Both of them felt a public acknowledgement of our union was needed.” He shrugged then tugged gently on her hair so that she was lying on top of him. The steady beat of his heart thudded under her ear and he wrapped an arm around her waist while trailing his other hand up and down her back.

“Elise, are you happy here? I know it’s only been a few days and I’ve been so caught up in business, that I haven’t given you the attention you deserve but… Is it okay? Is this working for you?”

Feeling the warmth of his body spreading through hers and the play of his muscles beneath her, Elise could only think of how right it felt to be pressed against him, to feel such closeness. She nodded. “Yeah—so far it’s been okay.”

“Good.” Kane rubbed his hand leisurely up and down her back. “You know, I was a bit nervous about this whole being mated business. I’ve never really had a family—a long boring story that I’ll tell you some day—but it’s something I’ve always wanted. I’ll give you fair warning, I’m not sure exactly how to be part of a small family unit. I know how to belong to a pack, but being close to just one person is a bit foreign to me. I promise I will do my best by you, though.”

Elise lifted her head and looked down at Kane. He seemed vulnerable at that moment, not the self-assured Alpha that had faced a large crowd just a few hours earlier. “I know you will,” she whispered softly, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips.

“I think I’m going to like this.” He replied half teasing, but she could see the sincerity in his eyes. “It will be nice to just be myself around someone and not always the stern, oh-so-wise Alpha.”

“Somehow, I think the Alpha part isn’t going to disappear, just because we’re alone.” She chuckled softly as she tried to picture Kane just being an ordinary, run of the mill person.

Kane seemed to consider the point. “You’re probably right. When I became Alpha, I could almost sense a change within myself, like a set of extra dominant chemicals or genes were suddenly set free within me. I’m trying to remain calm and impartial, but I find myself having to rein in my temper when someone opposes me. I guess the old instincts will always be there.”

“It’s who we are. Yes, we’ve evolved and become more civilized over the years, but on some level the wolf mentality will always be a part of us; it’s our heritage.” Elise said simply.

“You’re pretty wise for one so young.” He kissed the tip of her nose.

“I’ve always thought so!” Smiling smugly, Elise rested her head on his chest again, gently tracing patterns on his upper arm with her fingertips. This was nice, being together like this, just talking. There was a level of comfort developing between them and it made her feel good inside.

Kane’s breathing was slowing, she suddenly realised, and his arms around her waist were loose. Lifting her head, she saw that his eyes had shut and he was sound asleep. Carefully, she climbed off him and he frowned, but didn’t wake up. Elise changed into her nightgown, removed Kane’s belt and pulled off his pants so he’d be more comfortable. Settling a blanket over him, she crawled into bed beside him. “Good night, Kane,” she whispered and then turned out the lights, soon falling into a deep sleep with her head against the shoulder of her mate.

Kane was gone when Elise woke up the next morning. She stretched luxuriously and smiled. Last night had been nice. They hadn’t had sex; they’d just talked and then slept beside each other yet she felt so much closer to him. Knowing that he really wanted to build a future with her, made her feel more confident. Let the Marlas of the world do what they would!

Rolling out of bed, she showered and wandered downstairs. Kane didn’t show up for breakfast but he’d left a her a note stating that he had a meeting with the pack’s lawyers, over the Northern Oil issue, and would be back for lunch. Elise smiled, pleased that he’d informed her himself, rather than just having someone else pass the word along. She felt it showed he was really trying to build a relationship with her.

After breakfast, Elise went downstairs to the recreation room where they’d had the meeting and party last night, to begin the task of taking the bonding presents up to their suite. There were picture frames and vases, gift certificates and even an intricate carving of a wolf guarding his mate. She wasn’t sure where to put everything, but thought maybe she and Kane could decide that together. Her morning was busy running up and down the stairs and by noon, she was ready to sit and rest for a while.

Kane was back for lunch just as he’d promised, and afterwards they went to visit with Julia and Thomas, Kane holding her hand as they strolled along. Thomas was chafing at having been confined inside for so long and Julia rolled her eyes as he expressed his frustration. Grabbing Elise’s hand, she pulled her out the door, calling over her shoulder to Kane. “You listen to him complain for awhile. I’m going for a walk with Elise while I still have my sanity!”