Training Their Mate [Pack Wars-Book 1] (3 page)

The clinic door opened and
she spotted her purse a split second before she noticed the man holding her
pink bag.

The newcomer strode over with
it slung over his shoulder and posed. “How do I look?” He stuck out his right
foot as if he was some runway model, and she swallowed a giggle. He wore a
loose fitting Hawaiian shirt over ripped jeans that topped black sandals. His
long, dark bangs were wet and stuck out at odd angles, but he looked like the
boy next door—the one every girl crushed on. The fact it looked like he
hadn’t shaven since yesterday morning implied he didn’t care all that much
about his appearance. What an amazing contrast to the man sitting next to her
dressed in black wearing combat boots.

For the first time in days,
she smiled. “Ridiculous, but I can’t thank you enough for retrieving my purse.”

“My pleasure.” He handed her
the bag then stuck out his hand. “I’m Dante Field, the stodgy one’s younger and
much better looking brother.”

This man was such a
refreshing change from the men she usually ran into. She held out both hands.
She wasn’t ready to let go of the bloodied handkerchief until she’d seen the
doctor. “Can you sit for a minute?” She didn’t know what possessed her to ask.
Maybe it was the way he held her gaze and never looked elsewhere. Or maybe it
was because his face was the first really friendly one she’d seen, and right
now she could use a friend.

Though why he’d want to sit
in a stupid doctor’s office, she didn’t know.

“I’d love to, but I can’t
stay long. I need to get back to work.”

“What do you do?” Come to
think of it, she hadn’t even asked the man with the gun what he did either. She
glanced between the two.

Dante smiled. “In theory, we
run Field’s Monitoring Service together, but to be honest, I do most of the
work. My slacker brother likes to use the equipment more than sell it.”

She had to think about that
comment.

“Ms. Wharton?” The nurse
opened the door and searched the room.

Trax stood. “You want me to
come in with you?”

For a moment, she was twelve
again and with her dad. “I can handle it. Thanks.” She took a few steps before
turning around. “Are you going to be here when I get out?” No reason existed
for him to stay, but she didn’t want to lose contact with him.

“If you’d like.”

“I would.” She wasn’t sure
what made her say that, but she sensed an intangible connection between them
she didn’t want to lose. As she walked to the back, she hoped she was right
about trusting this man.

#

Dante sat next to his
brother. “Bro, who is this girl?” This wasn’t like Trax to go out of his way
like this, but the minute Dante got near her he recognized she was special. Did
Trax feel the pull, too?

“She was with Couch today.”

His brother’s comment sobered
him, but that wasn’t what he’d meant. “You sure?”

“Yeah.” He told him about
this being her first day.

“Why would one of Couch’s men
follow her? And then try to kill her?”

His brother glanced toward
the receptionist. “I don’t know, but I’ll tell you one thing. Those werewolves
would have eaten her alive if I hadn’t come along.”

He quirked a brow. “How did
you happen to be there at the right time?” Trax was good, especially when he
was tracking one of the Colters, but his timing had been almost too good in
this case.

“The Pack listened in on
Couch’s phone call. He told his men to
kill
the bitch
. I had no idea who that meant, so I followed his guys. I was a
few car lengths behind them when the van cut across traffic, went up on the
sidewalk, and down the alley. I had to make a U-turn and park. By the time I
got there, the van had already stopped and the men had gotten out and shifted.”

“Fuck. Liz must have been
scared shitless.”

“I don’t think it’s hit her
yet. She hasn’t even commented about them changing right in front of her.”

“She’s probably in shock.
When she has time to assess what happened, she’ll want answers.” From Trax’s
description of the chain of events, she wasn’t one of Couch’s plants.

His brother’s lips thinned.
“I know. We have to figure out how to approach her.”

He’d leave that conversation
up to Trax. “Why do you think Couch wanted her dead if she only worked there
one day?”

He shrugged. “Don’t know. But
I intend to find out. She may have seen something she doesn’t realize is
critical to our investigation. We need to make sure she stays safe.”

“Damn. Couch has finally gone
rogue. We need to stop him before the cops or the FBI catch on.”

“We?”

Except when it came to
sharing women, Trax was a loner. Hell, if it weren’t for Dante, his brother
would never have a woman. As sure as he was a wolf shifter, Liz Wharton was the
one for them, and he was damned if he’d allow anything to happen to her.

The gentleman four seats down
rubbing his stomach seemed too preoccupied to care about listening in on their
conversation. It was probably safe to talk if he kept his voice low. “You know
how we like to share?”

“Yeah, but don’t even go
there.” Trax’s tone came out clipped and too fast. “This is about Liz’s safety
and finding evidence on Couch. It’s not about finding our mate.”

Dante leaned back and
laughed. “You feel it, too, don’t you?”

The moment a werewolf smelled
his mate, he realized she was the one he’d spend the rest of his life with. It
didn’t always happen that both men found the same woman, but in this case they
had, and he couldn’t have been more pleased.

“The timing couldn’t come at
a worse time. Until we catch Couch, I can’t be distracted.”

“Bro, this is our one chance
at happiness.”

His brother leveled him with
a stare. “Then you take her.”

He hadn’t seen that coming.
“You know that’s not how this works.”

Before they had a chance to
finish the conversation, Liz came out. Her knees were bandaged and her hand
stitched.

“Sir?” The receptionist waved
Trax over.

He stood and went over to the
counter. Since this was Dante’s future mate, he followed.

“Ms. Wharton may have a
possible concussion. The doctor recommends she not drive until tomorrow. Can
one of you stay with her?”

Trax nodded. “Yes, ma’am.
I’ll see she gets home safely.”

Liz pressed her lips
together.

Oh,
boy
. She was going to be
a feisty one. Even though he usually left the protection duty to Trax, this was
one time he wanted to help. Hell, if it involved keeping her warm in his bed,
he’d be the first to volunteer.

“I’ve got my car.” He looked
at his brother. “Why don’t I drop you off downtown to pick up your SUV? Then I
can drive Liz home.”

“Sounds good.”

She planted her good hand on
her hip. “As much as I appreciate you both helping me, I’d rather have a cab
take me home. I’ll be fine.”

Now what were they to do? Dante
touched her arm. “Do you think we’d harm you?”

She glanced to the ground.
Great
. Just being around them seemed to
make her uncomfortable.

He held up a hand. “No
problem. I’ll call a cab for you.”

Trax shot him a glance.
I want her to stay with us. Couch might try
again
.

Trax didn’t often resort to
telepathy except in times of need.
I
agree.
Don’t worry. I have a plan
.

“Thanks.” Her smile came out
weak, but at least it was a smile.

His brother led her over to
the chairs while he called for a ride.

“Does your head hurt?” Trax
asked.

“Yes.” As if to prove the
point, she rubbed her temple.

Dante didn’t like that she
wasn’t feeling well.

Trax’s gaze traveled from her
head down to her knees. “Can you call a friend to stay with you? You heard the
nurse.”

“Maybe.”

“If you become nauseated, you
do know to call 9-1-1, right?”

Damn,
Trax
. He wished his
brother hadn’t offered that suggestion. His plan didn’t include a friend. It
might be harder to convince her to stay with them if she had someone hovering
nearby. Maybe her scent had messed with his brother’s brain. Or perhaps it was
the way her lacy white bra was visible under her white blouse. Then again, it
could be her heart-shaped face, her long luscious legs, or the way her breath
caught when he’d walked in that was screwing with both of their cocks.

The cab company finally
answered and Dante asked for them to send one. They said they’d be there in ten
minutes. He glanced over at Liz.
The
moment he’d spotted her, he felt a strong connection with her. The big question
was if she’d felt it, too.

She bit her bottom lip and
his cock instantly hardened.
Christ
.
He didn’t need to lose control in a goddamn health clinic.

“I’ll remember.”

We
need to find out where she lives.

Trax glanced up at him.
I know her address
.

Why
the fuck didn’t you tell me?
Here he’d been thinking of ways to put a tracking device on the taxi.

You
didn’t ask
.

At times, like now, he wanted
to beat the shit out of his brother. Given Dante was a good thirty pounds
heavier and almost two inches taller than Trax, he bet he could take his
brother down.
Or maybe not
. Trax
worked out like a possessed maniac whereas he spent his spare time partying and
only hit the gym when the mood struck.

Hmm
. Maybe that needed to change.

“I’ll wait outside for the
taxi.”
And to clear my head
.

The moment he got away from
the intoxicating blonde, he was able to inhale and not have his body react. His
back to the door, he adjusted his balls. He’d had a ton of women but never had
he been affected like this. Sure, his uncle had told them what to expect when
they met their mate. The craziness wouldn’t go away until they’d both sank
their fangs into her neck and claimed her, and their bodies would take on a
life of their own around the right woman, but Dante never expected it to be
this uncomfortable. The loss of control worried him. Trax had more willpower
than he did. If Dante got too excited and shifted, he’d ruin what his brother
and the Pack had tried to keep under wraps forever.

The problem was as much as he
wanted Liz, there was no guarantee she’d even find either of them acceptable—especially
his sullen brother.

Boy did he have a long hill
to climb for a chance to win her heart.

Chapter Three

Liz paid the cabbie and limped to her front
door as fast as she could. The climb up the three steps to her worn porch made
her knees twinge, and being outside in the rain at night was no fun. The men
who’d chased her couldn’t know where she lived, yet she darted a glance to the
bushes close to her house, looking for shadows.

Once inside, she sagged against the wall and
closed her eyes. She was finally safe. Her only regret at this moment was not
getting Trax’s number so she could verify what she saw was real.
She bet she’d have nightmares for weeks
over those shape-shifting things. She might have hit her head, but she didn’t
think she’d lost consciousness. Sure her vision blurred, and she was scared out
of her mind believing she was about to die, but there was no explanation for
the way those dogs turned into men. Yes, she’d read romance stories about
werecats, werewolves, and a host of other shifter types roaming the earth, but
they were stories.
Not even
a hint existed to those things being real
.
Had she seen little gray men in the alley, she might have tried to convince the
world that aliens existed. But werewolves? No way. They were a result of
writers’ imaginations or a movie director’s special effects.

Right now, all she wanted to
do was take some aspirin, crawl in the shower, and then climb into bed. Maybe
when she woke up tomorrow, this nightmare would be over.

Get
real
. Her mom would
still be dead, she’d still have the guilt that she’d actually wanted to kill a
man, and her body would still ache. What had she been thinking going after
Couch?
Stupid, stupid, stupid.

If she had Trax’s address,
she’d send him a card or a small gift for saving her life and for taking the
time to bring her to the clinic. And then there was Dante. From the way his
Hawaiian shirt had been buttoned, the man had probably been in the middle of
doing something important when his brother called. How many men would traipse
into a stinky alley to find a woman’s pink purse then drive it all the way out
to her? No doubt, these were nice men. Now, she had no way to thank them.