“Run? We’re sure. We want to stay with you,” Theo said firmly. “We don’t need to run to let off steam. We have you now.” He grinned, probably thinking about how we’d satisfied her before we climbed into the truck.
“Am I going to need protection?” she asked, biting her lip.
Damn. Our female was too smart to fool. She had reason to be worried. She was a rancher. Illegal activity had occurred on her land. She had shot us. None of it sounded good on the surface, but I had to hope the pack would take the time to see through the mess of it and know Ali was innocent. And ours.
She wasn’t going anywhere, so they needed to come around. I only hoped they already had.
“Nope,” Theo said with total confidence. He was only sure because the two of us had agreed we wouldn’t leave her side tonight, and would make sure everyone in the pack knew she was one of us now.
“Will I get to see the wolves?” Ali asked. I took a moment to see this monthly event through her eyes. Shifters were a new concept for her, and a group of us, becoming our wolves and going out to run through the mountains with a full moon? It didn’t matter how worldly she was, it was definitely unusual for her.
“Yeah,” I said with surprise. I’d never considered that seeing the whole pack as wolves might be something she craved. Proof, maybe, of what we were. Theo and I had shifted several times for her, as she loved to pet and stroke our fur… fuck, that was incredible. “Of course.”
I pulled up in front of the lodge, and parked. We’d arrived early because we planned on leaving early and not joining in on the run. We would enjoy the post-run fuck though, without the run. We didn’t have to find a horny she-wolf for a little fun. The mere idea left a bad taste in my mouth. No, I wanted Ali, and we’d have all kinds of fun with her. We were quickly learning her need for domination was something that made us all hot.
We walked into the sprawling old meeting building, which had been erected over one hundred years ago by the first shifter settlers in the area—the West family.
“Ali!” Ariel raced over and gave Ali a giant hug. It was great to see her close with the girl, and that Theo’s family already considered Ali part of their family, even if they hadn’t met yet.
“What am I, chopped liver?” Theo asked, stroking Ariel’s sleek hair.
“No, but you don’t have horses.” Ariel gave her brother a hug and then bestowed one on me. “Hi, Holt.”
“That’s right, you got to ride one of Ali’s horses, didn’t you? Of course she’s your new best friend,” I said.
“She’s my new sister,” Ariel corrected.
“That she is, kiddo.” Theo dropped a kiss on top of his baby sister’s head, and squeezed Ali’s hand.
“Aren’t you going to introduce us?” Theo’s mother, Marjorie, asked, a broad smile spread across her face. Her eyes were on Ali, taking in every inch of her, as if she’d been waiting for the moment her oldest presented his mate. Perhaps she had. It was poignant, and I couldn’t wait for when I could show off Ali to my parents. A trip to Alaska was going to happen.
Theo’s father, Hank, stood beside her. I shook his hand as Marjorie enveloped Ali in a warm hug. Theo had a traditional two-parent household. Not all the pack members in Two Marks had scent-matches or fated mates creating triads. The fact that Theo did was probably a source of pride for them, though, because it was considered special to be blessed with the genes that made our pack species unique.
“Congratulations,” Hank said to me, obviously as pleased as his mate at seeing Ali. “We’re happy for all three of you.”
“We’re thrilled,” Marjorie said, wiping a happy tear from her cheek. “You have no idea how much a mother suffers when her son approaches his thirties and hasn’t found his mate.”
“No reason to worry, Mom.” Theo kissed her head as she reached out and held my hand in both of hers, patting it with affection. Marjorie was like a second mom to me, and my wolf was soothed by her caring.
“I worried about both of you,” she declared with still-wet eyes.
I stiffened slightly as Gibson, Ben, and Shelby arrived. Of course Gibson and Ben knew how things had resolved, but they had yet to meet Ali in person, and of course, the last time we’d seen our alpha, he’d made a direct threat against our mate.
Claim or kill.
He strode over, his cowboy boots thunking on the wooden plank floors. “This must be Ali,” he said. Gib wasn’t the overly friendly type, but I relaxed slightly, recognizing the good will in his words and stance.
He took a deep breath, which told him she was claimed. Our bites on her neck were hidden beneath her shirt, but our scent embedded in her couldn’t be missed by one as powerful as him. While we’d told him we’d claimed her, he had his proof now.
“Ali, this is Gibson West, our alpha,” I said, holding a hand out toward Gib, then Ben. “Ben is our pack enforcer, and they are both mated to Shelby, who came here from Montana last year.”
“Nice to meet all three of you,” Ali said, offering a handshake to each. She smiled, but I could tell it was a touch unsure. She knew the importance of the alpha, and how he was the one whose judgment of her was the most important. “I, uh, I wanted to say that I know relations have been strained between the pack and the ranchers, but I intend to make sure that changes. The ranching community will get on board with protecting and honoring the wolves of this area.”
“That’s a bold promise,” Gibson observed neutrally.
“Well, I’m a bold woman,” she countered, tipping her chin up.
A slow smile grew on Gibson’s face. “I have heard that about you,” he said mildly.
Ali flushed, and I wrapped an arm around her waist from behind, pulling her tight against my body. She melted against me and I was glad to offer her the reassurance she needed.
“Welcome to the pack, Ali,” Gib said, his words loud enough to carry. There was a formal ring to his voice, like this was an induction. “We appreciate you protecting our pack members, as we will always protect you.”
Goosebumps covered Ali’s skin. I kissed the mark I’d left on her shoulder. Theo reached for her hand.
“Thank you.” Her voice cracked a little as she answered, and she cleared it and offered a wobbly smile.
It was done. Gibson had accepted her into the pack even though she came from the enemy camp—to his eyes, and everyone else’s who surrounded us. But if the alpha considered her one of ours, then the others would as well.
“There you are!” Bessie, the diner owner, peeked out from the kitchen and gave us a wave. “Come on in here. We were just talking about you three.”
“Who is we?” Ali murmured, leaning into me. We had yet to tell her about shifter hearing, so she wasn’t aware that Bessie had probably heard her question.
“Don’t forget that shifter hearing makes private conversations impossible around here,” Theo murmured back. Yeah, we’d thought the same thing.
“Oh?” Ali asked, blushing. I kissed her temple, letting her know she was perfect just the way she was. No one expected her to know everything about a completely different culture—even if it had been in her own town—all at once.