Love Found [Pack Law 6] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (6 page)

“You think any of us find this easy?” Chevy asked. “My cock is so fucking hard I could break a glacier, but she needs more time.”

Leaving the office and his brothers, Chevy paced out to the front. Cherry ducked out of the kitchen to bat her eyes at him, but Chevy brushed past her. He needed some mundane chores to help cool his raging hunger and settle his animal to a more manageable level.

After that, there was nothing for them to do but wait until Jerry called back.

If he doesn’t get some answers, what then?

Every time the image of Chevy changing from man to wolf flashed across her mind, Alyson pushed it aside. She couldn’t deal with what she had seen and heard this afternoon. Sighing with fatigue, she finished dressing after her shower and tried to decide what to have for dinner when there was a knock on her door. Frowning because she never had visitors, she cautiously made her way to the entrance and peeked through the peep hole.

Jerry. What’s he doing here?

Alyson opened the door and stepped back to admit her boss. The delicious aroma of pizza wafted to her nose as he passed her, carrying a large box.

“I thought you’d be hungry after your day and decided that I didn’t want to eat alone.” Jerry carried the box into the small kitchenette and placed it on the counter. “You got any beer?”

“Yeah,” Alyson replied. “Let me get it.”

She got them a beer each and then took out two plates and some napkins. After they loaded their plates with pizza, she led the way to her small two-seater sofa and turned the TV on then lowered the volume and turned toward Jerry. He was eying her speculatively as he took a big bite of his pizza. Alyson could see he wanted to say something to her, and she wanted to ask the real reason he was here, but she decided to wait him out. After taking a bite of her pizza, she chewed thoughtfully and watched as a frown marred his face.

“You are attracted to Rylan, Tarkyn, and Chevy Friess, aren’t you?”

“What?” Alyson asked. She had heard him clearly, but she was stunned.
Why is he asking me about the Friess brothers? Does he know they’re werewolves?

“Don’t play games with me, Alyson. I can smell Rylan and Tarkyn all over you.”

What does he mean he can smell them on me?

“Look, Jerry, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I know they told you what they are. Chevy told me he shifted in front of you, and I can smell their scent on you. I’m a werewolf, too, Alyson. We have a great sense of smell, so don’t you dare deny that you are attracted to them.”

Alyson knew she probably looked stupid with her mouth hanging open as she stared at her boss.
He’s a werewolf, too?
Jerry reached over and pushed her chin up, closing her gaping mouth, and smiled at her.

“Just sit there and listen to me, Alyson. You couldn’t have asked for better mates. The Friess Pack is one of the biggest in the United States. The Alphas, Jonah, Mikhail, and Brock Friess, are very fair and just, and they listen to the rest of the pack instead of just making decisions without any input. This pack has been around for generations, and if you decide to accept Rylan, Tarkyn, and Chevy, they will take good care of you. Wolves mate for life, and they would give theirs to keep you safe. Those three men would love you and protect you, and you would never want for anything. Why are you scared of that?”

Alyson finally found her voice. “I’m not scared of them.”

“You’re sure scared of something.” Keenly eying her, Jerry took another bite of pizza, chewed, and swallowed. “What are you running from, girl?”

“What makes you think I’m running from something?” Alyson mentally cursed the raised pitch of her voice.

“Oh, come on. Do you think I was born yesterday?” Jerry reached for his beer and took a swig. “I see the way you’re always looking over your shoulder. I could literally smell the fear emanating off you when you first walked in to apply for the job. Now, I can sit here all night long if need be, so you’d better think about telling me what’s going on.”

Alyson sighed and debated whether she should tell Jerry what was going on but then decided it was probably best if she did. What would happen if Virgil Minogue found out where she was?

“I lived and worked in Phoenix. I grew up there and was quite happy after I got out of the orphanage I lived in when I was sixteen.” Alyson sipped her beer. “I worked hard and paid my way through college to get my degree and was lucky enough to find employment as soon as I had finished school.”

“What did you major in?”

“Social welfare. I was working for the city helping battered women and children relocate and recover from their abusive families.”

Jerry sat up straighter in his chair and waited for her to continue, but she could see the tension in his body. Alyson knew just how he felt. She felt sick to her stomach now that she was talking about her problems and pushed her beer and pizza aside.

“There was a young woman who had a six-month-old baby. She came into the shelter so battered and bruised she could barely stand. I called in a doctor to check her over, and he suggested she should be in a hospital, but she adamantly refused. Mary Minogue had broken ribs and a fractured jaw, and not one inch of her body wasn’t bruised.” She glanced at Jerry and saw that his knuckles had turned white from gripping his beer bottle so hard. “I nearly cried when I saw her but kept it together for Mary. God, she was scared. It seemed after her husband had beat her he threatened to kill their baby. Thank the Lord her asshole husband was drunk and passed out before he could get his hands on the sweet little girl.”

Alyson realized she was crying. She wiped the moisture from her cheeks. “Mary was so scared that her husband would wake up and do what he’d said that she didn’t even take the time to pack herself any clothes. She always had a bag packed for her baby, so she grabbed it and ran.

“We placed her in one of the single rooms and got her clothes and constant medical care until she’d healed. It took six fucking weeks before she didn’t flinch every time the doctor came to treat her and she virtually stayed imprisoned in that room the whole time she was in the shelter.

“My boss asked me to help her go through the legalities of taking out a restraining order, and although I urged her to file for a divorce she was too scared at first. Thank God she eventually found some inner strength and divorced that bastard. The details of the proceedings came out, and while Mary never tried to have him put away, the rumors were enough to ruin her wealthy, successful, and formerly well-respected husband’s career.” Alyson took a deep, shuddering breath and exhaled slowly as renewed anger and anguish washed over her as she remembered all Mary’s pain and suffering. “Once she was free and clear of that fucker with full custody of her baby I helped find a place out of state for her to have a fresh start. We had become quite close while she was staying at the shelter, and even though I was sad to see her go, I knew it was for the best. She could have a new life away from her abusive ex and they would be safe.

“I started getting threatening e-mails at work, but they weren’t directed to me, they were more of a general threat to the shelter, and they were pretty mild threats, so I just ignored them and deleted them. Then I started getting e-mails at home to my private e-mail address, and this time they threatened me personally. I knew almost from the first that it was Mary’s ex sending them. I don’t know how that fucker found out Mary had stayed with us or that I was her caseworker, but he did. He wanted to find his wife and baby, but there was no way I was giving him information on his family. That asshole only wanted to hurt them more, and I wasn’t about to let that happen. Not when I had just helped them escape. His e-mails terrified me.”

“Why didn’t you call the police?” Jerry asked. “Hell, why didn’t you go to the shelter you worked for? Someone there could have protected you.”

“Mary’s husband was a very influential man and well connected, and he felt that I somehow convinced Mary to divorce him and in doing so ruined his life and career. He threatened me by saying he was going to pay some women he knew to go to the police and tell them they were mistreated by someone at the shelter and then use his connections to shut it down. I couldn’t risk that happening.

“So many women and children went there looking for help and protection when they had nowhere else to go. There was no way I was going to hang around and watch him destroy so many more lives.” Alyson sighed. “I didn’t want to be the deciding factor in that asshole hurting more people.

“Besides, I knew that Mary was safely hidden. If he couldn’t get to me, then he couldn’t get to Mary either. Even a man with Virgil Minogue’s resources could only find her with a lot of effort. I packed up my stuff, handed in my resignation, and worked my way to Aztec. It took me six months to get here. I didn’t want to make it easy for that asshole if he was following me. I was careful and spent most of the time looking over my shoulder.” Alyson glanced at Jerry and shrugged. “You know the rest.”

“You can’t stay here by yourself. It’s not safe.” Jerry stood up and pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “Why don’t you start packing while I call in reinforcements?”

“What are you talking about?” Alyson asked as she, too, rose from the sofa. “I’m safe enough. Virgil doesn’t know where I am.”

“Are you sure about that?” Jerry spun and pinned her with a frown. “You’ve been traveling under your real name. When you filled out paperwork to work for me, you used your social security number, and this isn’t the first job you’ve had since leaving home. Employers, me included, have run background checks on you and paychecks have been deposited into your bank account every step of the way. A clever man or a rich one could use any of those to find out where you are.”

Alyson felt the blood drain from her face.
Shit! How could I be so naïve?
Virgil probably knew where she was every step of the way. It didn’t take a genius to realize it would be easy to find someone from their social security number, especially if he had help, like a private investigator. Even though Virgil had been a drunk and abusive, he wasn’t short on funds. He’d been a hedge fund manager, and Mary had told her his parents had been wealthy and powerful and had left him with a large amount of cash after they had died.

“Rylan,” Jerry said into his phone. Alyson moved closer and shook her head. Why was he calling the Friess brothers? She could take care of herself. She had been doing it for a long time.

Jerry scowled at her but continued with his conversation. “You need to get over to Alyson’s right now. She needs to be kept safe. I’ll explain everything when you get here.”

Alyson frowned as Jerry rattled off her address and then disconnected the call. “What the hell did you call him for?”

“You remind me of my niece, girl. Do you think I’ll just sit around and do nothing when you’re in trouble?” Jerry asked gruffly. “Go and start packing, because you aren’t going to have a choice when Rylan gets here.”

“You can’t tell me what to do!” Alyson yelled and then took a deep breath as she tried to control her frustration. “I am an adult, for goodness’ sake.”

She picked up the half-eaten pizza and carried her plate to the kitchen, where she dumped the pizza in the trash and then filled the sink with hot, soapy water. The kitchen was so small she didn’t have the luxury of a dishwasher. A noise behind her alerted her that Jerry had followed her.

“If you don’t want all your stuff packed haphazardly, I would start getting busy if I were you.”

“I’m not leaving. You and those furry butts can’t make me do anything I don’t want to. I think you should leave.”

“Oh, no. I’m not going anywhere. I know I’ve only known you for two weeks, Alyson, but you are like a niece to me and I’m not going to stand by and watch you get hurt.”

Alyson spun around to face Jerry and slammed her hands on her hips, heedless that they were dripping and soapy.

“Look, I really appreciate it that you are looking after me, Jerry. I really do, but I have been taking care of myself for years. I don’t need your or their help.”

“God, you sound like you’ve lived for fifty years instead of only twenty-three. I understand you don’t want to lose your independence, Alyson. Just give those men a chance. You have no idea what you would be throwing away. Don’t live with regret for the rest of your life because you’re afraid. I had the chance to be happy, and I let my fear dictate my decisions. I have regretted that for years. Don’t end up bitter and lonely like I have because you’re fearful.”

Alyson hated to see sadness and loneliness in her gruff boss’s eyes. He’d touched her heart by telling her she was like a niece to him. She opened her mouth to reply, but a knock on the door halted her speech. She glanced nervously at the door but didn’t move toward it. Jerry gave her a last look and then went to answer the knock.

Rylan walked across the threshold of her small house with Tarkyn and Chevy following right behind. Her breathing escalated as their imposing presence seemed to suck the oxygen out of the room. God, they were magnificent. Her breasts swelled and her nipples turned turgid. Alyson squeezed her thighs together, trying to ease the ache in her clit and pussy as fluid seeped out onto her panties.

“What’s going on, Jerry?” Rylan hadn’t taken his eyes off her from the moment he walked into her small house, and although she tried to break their connection, she couldn’t seem to manage it.