“Liza.”
“Human?” Uh-oh. Dangerous ground. The question should have been innocent since there was no one named Liza in their pack, but he got the impression his mother knew a lot more than she was letting on.
“Yes,” he answered. It wasn't a lie. She was human, just had a lot more thrown in.
“I suppose this has something to do with the woman you and Caleb almost came to blows over at the bar,” Michael, the beta and one of his fathers, said with amusement.
Busted. He gave up. If they knew that much, they probably knew it all. “That's the one.” He took a deep breath. “Caleb is returning to Redhawke. I'm going with him. Tonight.”
“As his beta?” Donald, the alpha, asked.
“Yes.”
“So your woman is their witch.”
His back stiffened as his senses went on guard. He didn't feel any danger in the room. Hell, they were family, but hatred against witches ran deep throughout the lupine world.
“Our woman. She is. Is that a problem?”
Michael chuckled. “Might keep you on your toes.”
“About time someone did,” his mother teased.
“Grant and Henry trust her,” Donald said. “From what I hear, she's earned that trust. You won't hear any objections from me.”
Leaving only his brothers, the oldest of which, the next alpha and second oldest, the next beta, were in the room.
Matthew shrugged when Zach turned to look at him. “Your woman, man.” But his second-oldest brother was grinning like an idiot. “It'll be good for you. She's not one of those helpless wolves you seem to like so much.” He sobered in an instant. “And, brother, it would be bad if you forgot that. Better to learn that right from the start. She doesn't need protection.”
And he would know. David's mate was one of the highest-ranking soldiers in the pack.
Zach's ears still hurt from some of the fights David and his mate had had in the beginning of their relationship over whether she needed him to fight for her.
Chapter Eight
Liza let Caleb herd her to the car. She could have stopped him, could have gone her own way, but what was the point? He'd decided that he was going home, and this way, she got to keep an eye on him. It didn't hurt that the eyeful was so…nice. Man. Time to get her mind on something else.
She turned sideways in her seat. “So.” She didn't continue until he glanced over and met her gaze. “You and Zach. What exactly is going on there?” His hands convulsed on the wheel. “You have a problem with Zach?”
“I have a right to know. You both marked me.” She muttered, “I have no idea why.”
“Zach is my best friend. He's also my lover. For three years now.”
“I didn't have any idea,” she said softly. “All my reports just mentioned brief flings with women.”
“You were getting reports on me?” He sounded more interested than pissed.
She shrugged. “You're the alpha's heir. Plus, I get reports on everyone who leaves the pack.” She paused. “So you and Zach? That's not a friends-with-benefits thing, is it? You love him.”
He grunted and she figured it was all the answer she would get.
“That's why there was never any steady woman. Why bring me into the mix then? You were obviously happy before without bringing someone in you don't particularly even like.” He didn't respond, and sighing, she leaned back in her seat and pretended to sleep. Her stomach was a tight knot of emotions. Anger. Desire. Confusion. The last few hours had brought about such big changes. Caleb coming home. Caleb and Zach claiming her. She should be freaking out about all of it, but it felt right. All except the animosity she still felt from Caleb.
Over the past.
She was so distracted she didn't react when he picked up her hand, lifted it to his face, and licked her palm. Then he chuckled. “I know you're awake.” Well, hell. In that case, she might as well get some answers. “Why the change of heart?
What's different now? You're still gonna be alpha and I'm still just as likely to have human babies.”
Anger rose and with it a pang of disappointment. Of sorrow. He'd really been willing to throw them away, and whatever children they might have had, over an ability to shift. What was different now? Pack politics? She yanked her hand back.
“Fuck, Liza. I never cared about that.”
“Excuse me?” What an asshole. She remembered that conversation too well. If they weren't going eighty miles per hour down the expressway, she might have strangled him. She still might.
“I was furious. And hurt,” he added softly. “I was lashing back.” She tried to retrieve her hand, but he wouldn't let go. She took a deep breath, struggling to keep her voice low and controlled, but man was she pissed. “Furious at me?” she countered.
“You practically attacked me when you opened the door!”
“How
His rage vibrated in the SUV, but hers matched it. He really believed this nonsense? That she'd slept with him because she was ordered to? She was so stunned that she couldn't do more than huff and try to free herself again. A lost cause.
