amazingly tight-lipped when he picked us up.”
Chase snorted as he rose to his feet to make room for Caroline, heading to the bar as per Evan’s suggestion. “Tight-lipped? Not bloody likely. The wolf never shut up the entire two-hour helicopter ride from our place to Whitehorse.”
“Well, he talked, but he never
“Hang on.” Caroline had requested Shaun pick up more than her family. “Where are Shaun and Gem? I’d have thought they’d be here as well, unofficial powwow that we seem to be holding.”
Evan pivoted on his bar stool, beer bottle in his hand. “He’s still fetching your friend from the north. She couldn’t get away until tomorrow. Shaun and Gem decided to spend the night in Chicken so they can help hurry Nadia along.”
Okay, that made sense. She nodded.
Evan kept watching her. Tyler was looking her and her sister over, Chase examining them as well. The only one of the guys not staring their way was Justin, and as soon as he finished pouring their drinks, he carried the glasses to them and stood looming like a statue.
Oh brother. “Minding own business, boys?”
A flurry of motion followed her words. Justin retreated behind the bar. The other three swung around on their bar stools so there was nothing but hulking male backs toward them.
Caroline leaned against her sister, providing the physical contact she knew Shelley craved as a wolf. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“We only left a week ago.”
Caroline looked down as Shelley linked their fingers together. “It seems like a whole lot longer, to be honest.”
“You’ve been busy.” Shelley leaned in close and whispered. “They can still hear us. You want to go elsewhere to talk?”
Ha. “To not be overheard we’d have to leave the building, and I don’t see your partner or Tyler letting that happen. Not with night coming on.”
Shelley nodded. “You’re right.”
Music started out of nowhere. Caroline blinked as Tyler smiled at her then cranked the volume on the music system even higher before going back to the guys’ conversation.
“So, the new boyfriend…” Shelley squeezed Caroline’s fingers. “He seems nice. Other than the hair trigger in the lobby.”
“He’s one of the bears in town for the voting.”
“What happened with Evan?” Shelley paused, and looked very uncomfortable. “Did he break up with you because of me?”
Caroline jerked upright. “Oh, honey, no. It wasn’t that at all—”
Evan was at their side in a flash. “Caroline and I are fine, Shelley. It has nothing to do with you or the pack or…”
Caroline swore she would break an eyeball one day, glaring at these creatures while they stomped willy- nilly all over her human boundaries.
Evan rose to his feet and shuffled back a step. “Umm, right. Sorry. Go on, I’ll find something to do until dinner arrives.”
It was tough to stay mad at him when he really couldn’t help it, and he meant well. With Shelley giggling beside her, Caroline chose to ignore the guys and focused instead on her sister.
“No, it wasn’t anything you or I did. He got a sniff of his mate.”
Shelley’s mouth hung open for a second. “Holy. Well, that’s awesome. You okay with it?”
“Of course. What kind of question is that?” Caroline shook her head. “As if I’d come between a wolf and his mate.”
Shelley nodded. “That’s what I’d expect to hear you say, even though it’s got to be tough. I love you so hard, sis.”
Caroline paused, concern flooding her. “The situation did make something pop to mind, though. You and Chase…”
Shelley leaned back on the couch. “You’re wondering if we’ll have the same thing happen? One of us sniffs out a fated mate, and the other ends up with our heart ripped in two?”
Whoa. “You’ve obviously given this some thought.”
Shelley smiled. “It would have been stupid not to think about it but, hon, Chase isn’t all wolf—he’s cougar as well. Only wolves have predestined mates, and my wolf is seriously broken. We’ve chosen each other and created our own fate. Nothing is going to rip us apart.”
“Damn right.” It was Chase’s deep growly voice. His back was still to them, the music blaring, and the guys seemed to be deep in conversation, but he’d still responded.
This time Shelley rolled her eyes. “No privacy. Ever. You should move north with us.”
“Once the bear conclave is over, I might move to Siberia.”
“Too many grizzlies in Siberia,” Justin interjected. “You could try Nepal. All they’ve got is sloth bears, and they’re rumoured to be very reclusive.”
Caroline pressed her hands to her forehead. “
Shelley squeezed her arm. “Ignore them and catch me up. What’s happening?”
The food arrived about the time Caroline had finished explaining the situation as she saw it. Tyler had joined in the mindless conversation with the guys, but all of them were distracted listening to the ladies. There was no denying it.
Caroline’s concise analysis of the bear situation astonished him. Justin was nodding like a bobblehead, impressed as well.
But in the middle of her explaining to Shelley what was going on, in the middle of the women teasing and reacting to the shifters’ continued interruptions, something poked Tyler.
He found a place at the table next to her. Plates were filled, conversation resumed. Shelley asked about his brother, Frank, and Tyler gave an update. All the while he worried at the puzzle, trying to solve it.
His bear rumbled, confused that he was upset, but this wasn’t a matter for the animal to figure out. Tyler had enjoyed his time with her over the day, even with the moments of frustration, but something about the situation wasn’t right.
They were nearly done the meal when he figured it out. Caroline was wearing a cloak. Her humanness was hidden away under a surface layer that screamed shifter. As if she were speaking a foreign language to make things easier for all of them.
The way she moved was more wolf than human. The way she reacted, like the momentary lowering of her eyes when Evan spoke—respect for an Alpha—followed by her straightening and proving her own strength and value.
She deferred just long enough to offer a kind of give-and-take, never being weak but never unwittingly becoming a challenge either. The impressive display was something most humans lacked and shifters didn’t need.
He’d never seen anything like it in his life.
Evan pulled him from his musings as the wolf asked Caroline about the event scheduled for the next day. “You booked off the pool from the public. I double-checked, the staff scheduled for the day are all pack. That will cut down on any humans stopping in, but not eliminate the chances.”
Caroline nodded. “The Takhini pool is remote enough to make an excellent setting for the gathering. I’m sorry to have to anticipate trouble, but something could happen.”
Evan shrugged. “We need a new coat of paint on the place soon, so don’t worry about structural damage.”
“I can join you if you’d like,” Shelley offered her sister. “Another lady in the mix.”
