Protective Instinct (6 page)

Damn, her sisters really were worried. “Listen guys, I’m fine, I swear. What you’re doing is so sweet, thank you. But after a day of rest I’ll be ready to work again tomorrow.” Otherwise she’d go stir crazy. And she loved her job working around the ranch and with the horses.

At her words all three of them turned to stare at her as if she’d just said she ate kittens for breakfast.

“What?”

Natalia frowned. “Drink your coffee.” Then they all proceeded to set the table and finish up with breakfast. And Aldric hadn’t been kidding. He tried to help a couple times but got swatted by her two beta sisters. Which was funny to watch.

“Rafael asked about you yesterday,” Teresa said before taking a sip of her coffee, wanting to gauge Rosa’s reaction.

Since Rosa was the only one who looked at her, clearly it wasn’t a surprise who she was talking to. “What did he say?”

“Just wanted to know if you were seeing Matt.”

Her dark eyebrows rose. “Rafa’s come into the shop a few times and was a little hostile to Matt. I wondered about that.” Now her cheeks turned pink, but she didn’t say anything more. And her little nickname for him, Rafa, was adorable.

“So, what’s going on with you two?” Teresa persisted. She’d been so wrapped up in Ryan the past few months that clearly she was out of the loop on some things.

“Nothing, because Rosa’s a chicken-shit,” Natalia said without looking up from pulling plates from one of the cabinets.

“That’s not it and don’t be a bitch,” Gloria murmured before nudging Natalia with her hip.

As the three of them discussed what Rosa should do about Rafael, Aldric leaned closer in his seat, his own coffee in hand as he lowered his voice. “You gonna take pity on Ryan and let him in this morning?”

She frowned. “Take pity?”

Aldric shrugged. “Guy slept on the front porch all night. Saw him when I got here this morning.”

What? Ignoring her sisters’ protests, she got up and headed through the house. When she opened the front door sure enough she found Ryan laying on the front porch in wolf form just as Aldric had said. It was eight in the morning so he could have gone home last night then come back, but she didn’t think so.

Guilt racked her as he stood up on all fours, looking so sweetly at her. At the sight of him literally guarding her threshold, she couldn’t hold back. Ignoring the twinge of discomfort, she moved to her knees and wrapped her arms around his neck. In lupine form he was huge, with a dark brown coat that was incredibly soft. She buried her face against his neck, inhaling that desert smell. It didn’t matter that they lived on the East Coast, something about his scent had always reminded her of the desert; just a little bit wild.

“You’re a frustrating male,” she murmured, inhaling his masculine scent. It was addicting and soothing at the same time. Holding him now made it hit home exactly how much she’d missed him last night. She didn’t want to be apart from him anymore but she also didn’t know how much longer she could stand the pendulum swing of her emotions.

He just whined and nuzzled back.

“You want to shift?” she asked.

He let out a quiet yip before he underwent the change to his human form. His bones shifted as skin replaced fur and seconds later he was crouched in front of her. All beautiful, naked male. It was hard not to let her gaze roam over his delicious body. She loved it when he was naked.

“Did you stay out here all night?” She was already fairly certain of the answer but wanted to know. Since she was on her knees and he was crouching she didn’t change positions.

He nodded, his dark eyes filled with concern. “Yeah.” His voice was raspy and deeply sexy.

“I missed sleeping with you last night.” A small part of her wondered if she should have held that back but she didn’t want to keep anything from him. She wanted him to know how much he meant to her, how much she wanted to be with him. He needed to get it through his thick skull apparently.

She slid her hands up his chest and linked her fingers together behind his neck. His skin was so warm. It was hard to resist the male, especially when he was naked. There was just too much skin she wanted to touch and stroke. Even though he’d been making her edgy, she knew she was safe with the male.

“Me too.” His fingers gently skated down her hips, as if he was afraid to hold her too tight. “How are you feeling this morning?”

“Just sore. I should be okay to shift, but I’m going to wait until tonight or even tomorrow to try it.”

He nodded, that expression of concern etching deeper in his face. His fingers tightened a fraction on her hips, but just barely. “I don’t like arguing with you.”

She sighed. “Me neither.”

“And I’m so sorry, Teresa. The last thing I ever want to do is hurt you.”

She swallowed hard, unsure how to take his apology. He wasn’t saying he wanted to bond with her, just that he didn’t want to hurt her. As she tried to think of a response—and she didn’t know what the heck to say at this point—the front door swung open.

Natalia looked at the two of them with her eyebrows raised. “Connor just called. Wants to see the two of you, pronto.”

Well, hell. She needed to have a serious sit down with Ryan, but apparently it would have to wait.

* * *

Ryan scented who was inside the main house before they stepped over the threshold. Connor, Ana, and Rafael. Ryan liked Rafael well enough, but after he’d gone off with Teresa yesterday, Ryan was feeling edgy. Territorial.

He and Teresa immediately veered to the right upon entering, heading into the living room where Rafael stood by the fireplace, his body practically vibrating with annoyance.

That wasn’t good. Ryan tensed, looking to Connor. “What’s going on?”

Teresa grabbed a handful of M&Ms from a bowl on one of the side tables and collapsed on the couch next to Ana. Ryan didn’t miss Teresa’s slight wince even though she tried to cover it.

His frown deepened.

He also didn’t miss how she sat in such a position that he couldn’t join her. Yeah, she was definitely making a statement right now. That familiar clawing inside started up again.

Connor’s expression remained mild, but he was tense, as if expecting an argument. “Rafael is convinced—and I agree—that we need to take extra precautions after last night’s ‘accident’.”

“Have the police found out anything?” Ryan asked. Not that it would matter if they discovered who’d come after Teresa and Rafael. If the situation warranted it, the pack had no problem handling things without the involvement of humans.

Connor shook his head. “No and I don’t expect them to. Some kids reported seeing a male and female at the crash site, but they can’t describe a vehicle. One of the guys says the woman was tall, blonde and had some other descriptors for her sexual attractiveness according to Parker. Apparently the teenage boys were disappointed enough that the woman disappeared because they’d wanted to get a better look at her. The couple was driving in front of them and for all we know, were the cause of the accident.”

“Or they could have just left because they didn’t care about some strangers.” Teresa popped an M&M into her mouth casually, but Ryan could see the tense lines in her body, could sense the trickle of worry rolling off her. He wanted to soothe that worry.

Connor nodded. “All true. Regardless, with everything that’s happened in the last few months I’m not taking chances with any of my pack. You and Rafael could have been random targets or you could have been specifically targeted.”

“Or the whole thing could have been random with no connection to the pack at all,” Teresa muttered.

Ana snorted, clearly disagreeing, which earned her a glare from Teresa.

“You don’t believe that.” Connor’s expression hardened, but he didn’t move from his seat. “Even if you do, I don’t care. We’re going to be proactive with this if there is a threat. And I want to know if this was target specific. You,” he said, looking at Teresa, “and Rafael will be sent somewhere—”

Ryan took a step forward, already not liking what Connor was saying. Teresa wasn’t going anywhere without him. No way in hell. He’d fight his Alpha over it too, if it came down to it.

His Alpha just held up a hand, ignoring Ryan as he continued. “You’ll be going somewhere
with
Ryan while Rafael will be sent elsewhere. I need you two separated and leaving the ranch in a semi-obvious manner. But not so obvious that it’s clear you’re trying to get tailed.”

Relief slid through Ryan as Teresa frowned. “So you’re sending us off…where?”

“You and Ryan will go to the cabin an hour and a half away from here. The one on the way to Winston-Salem. I’ve already got a team scouting out the place so once you arrive the cabin and surrounding area will already be under surveillance. If someone follows you, we’ll know.”

“And we’ll find out why,” Ryan growled. He didn’t like the idea of using Teresa as bait, but he liked the idea of bringing this shit out into the open immediately, and he loved the idea of having time alone with her. Whoever had tried to hurt her would regret it.

“We need to talk to Lucas first.” Teresa looked at Ryan as she spoke, as if seeking his agreement.

This was one of the reasons he’d fallen so damn hard for her. She accepted Lucas as her own and had from the start. Right now she was making the cub a priority. Months ago she’d even told Ryan that if he’d brushed Lucas aside for a relationship, he wouldn’t have been the male she wanted to be with. Though her words had been a lot more colorful.

“I figured as much,” Connor said. “Let your sisters know and obviously Lucas will stay here with us.” He looked at Ryan questioningly, even though he already knew the answer would be yes. There was no safer place on the ranch than the Alpha’s house and Lucas would jump at the chance to stay with Vivian. The two were inseparable.

“I don’t want him to know there’s a potential threat to Teresa,” Ryan said. He would just worry.

“Agreed.” Connor stood now, signaling the conversation was coming to a close.

“Your sisters need to know though,” Rafael said. “Someone should be with them while we’re gone. We might not be the only targets.” He cleared his throat almost nervously, which seemed out of character for the male. “Rosa has been working in town every day. Someone needs to be with her or I’m not going anywhere.” There was a hint of defiance in the male’s voice, the kind most males only directed at their Alpha when a mate was involved.

Something in Ryan eased when he realized Rafael was into Rosa. God, he felt like an even bigger jackass now after he’d basically accused Teresa of trying to make him jealous last night.

Once they were outside, Teresa sighed. “Lucas is going to know something’s up no matter what we say.”

Ryan scrubbed a hand over his face. “Yeah.” The kid was smart. He started to put an arm around Teresa, but she tensed. It was slight, and he wondered if she was even aware of it or if it was just a reaction because of the way things had been between them. He’d noticed that she hadn’t stayed next to him when they’d been in the main house. Again, it was small, but the past few months there had been no distance between them. She’d have been sitting in his lap or next to him in any other circumstance.

His inner wolf clawed at him, telling him to get his shit together. He knew what he wanted and that was Teresa. Forever. Absently he rubbed a hand over the middle of his chest. He was going to be in a secluded cabin with Teresa, the only woman he’d ever wanted with such a ferocity it terrified him. He’d give anything to be with her, to claim her. He just had to get over himself.

But if he fucked up or she wasn’t ready… He didn’t want to risk any future cubs growing up the way he had.

Chapter 6

“I love this place,” Teresa murmured, stretching out on the pile of soft blankets in front of the fireplace. It wasn’t warm enough to use so they’d turned on the fake fire without the heat. She liked the atmosphere, especially since they still needed to talk. She was nervous about having that conversation but it needed to be done. Now before she lost her nerve.

Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, Ryan stretched out next to her. He rolled to his side and slid a hand over her stomach, teasing the hem of her top.

Shifters as a whole liked touch and she was no different. But right now the feel of his big hand on her was heaven and hell intermixed. Tingles skittered over her skin, heat already building inside her. Since she doubted he’d give her the release she craved, yeah, it was more hell than anything.

She wasn’t sure if any of their packmates could hear them since they were out on patrol in the area, but even if they could, she decided to just say what she needed to say. Ryan had been on the phone with Connor most of the ride to the cabin but now they had no excuse and she couldn’t wait any longer.

“You want me to take our bags upstairs?” He fully moved his hand under her shirt now, palming her stomach. The question was innocuous but there was a wealth of sensuality in his voice.

She swallowed hard. “They’ll be fine for now. Listen, I think…and don’t take this the wrong way, but I think we should sleep in separate beds tonight.”

Ryan went impossibly still, his wolf flashing in his dark eyes. Yeah, he didn’t like that at all.

Before he could respond—and she could see the argument in his gaze—she continued. “I think we need to set some ground rules, especially since we’re away from the ranch and it’s just the two of us right now. Well, sort of just us. First, while we’re here, I need some physical space. I don’t want to argue about it, but it’s easier for me. My wolf is agitated and it’s making me a little crazy. Can you deal with that?” She wasn’t pulling back from him forever, but until he figured out what he wanted, this had to be done.