“He came in after you left last night and sat all broody at his table,” she said casually while we wiped down tables. “Your new red-headed friend plastered herself to that sexy blond that came with them. Blondie seemed pretty happy about it, too. Lucky bitch.” She muttered the last words and I stifled a laugh.
“Thanks, Jackie,” I couldn’t help the smile on my face.
Chapter Ten
Alex
“It’s good to have you back,” I clapped Jarren on the back. The solemn male nodded his head. I watched a shudder ripple through the muscles under his caramel colored skin. His ice blue eyes shifted restlessly around the room, landing briefly on each wolf, searching out exits. He was making me twitchy. I could feel his need to get out of the house quickly.
My gaze fell on the family of wolves Jarren had brought to the house. The adult male, Aaron, looked strong. A fighter if needed, a worker, but not after my alpha status. His mate, Mackenzie, easily caught everyone’s attention. Her smile was constant and contagious. Tegan sat near her talking happily about cooking, of all things. Shaking my head, I glanced at the last member of their family. Cody was pup, the first in our new pack. For a six-year-old he listened well. He explored and seemed endlessly curious. Taking him out to explore the woods would be a lot of fun.
Aaron had filled us all in on their reason for relocating. Their pack’s alpha had died and two wolves vied for the position of alpha. Eventually the packs split and followed whichever wolf they liked. That had led to territory disputes and constant fighting between packs. Aaron and Mackenzie were looking for something safer and more stable for their family. I could get that. I wouldn’t want a pup in a constant war between packs. I was happy to have them. Mackenzie had already agreed to take over all the work in the kitchen and Aaron was going to in charge of building and taking care of pack homes. They both seemed pleased with the responsibilities.
My eyes were drawn back to Jarren. He wouldn’t leave without asking or being told. I knew that enough of his Marine training stayed ingrained in him even with the instincts to run. Still his eyes darted towards the door throughout the time we were introducing the new family to our pack. As Tegan and Mackenzie headed into the kitchen, Cody tagging along at the mention of cookies, I nodded to the door. Jarren moved swiftly outside. I heard his sudden intake of air the moment he left the house.
“Is it so hard?” I was genuinely curious. He wasn’t overly forthcoming with how his time in the Marines affected him, and I never asked. He wasn’t a danger to my pack and that was all that mattered. But as I watched him clench and unclench his fists while he let out a shaky breath, I reconsidered.
“Not when I’m busy,” the usually stern former Marine shrugged his shoulders. It was the most normal thing I’d seen him do and it caught me off guard. He was always so stiff, who knew he could shrug. Outside of the house I could see him visibly relaxing. His body never seemed to be at ease, but the tremors stopped running through him.
“Not when you’re outside,” I stated casually, wondering what had happened. His response was immediate. I watched every muscles clench in his body and his jaw tightened. I didn’t comment, he’d answer when he was ready. I didn’t need his affirmation; I could tell the difference in him. I suspected that he might need to admit to it, though.
“Yes, sir,” his answer was quiet but staccato, like I was his CO. I supposed that worked. He hadn’t relaxed even with the admission. I stared at him for a moment before nodding and walking towards the woods. There was no reason to keep digging at him like a chick. I’d keep him outdoors as much as I could.
Without asking I knew Jarren would follow me. His footsteps were light, even for my wolf hearing. It was one of the things that made him such a good tracker. It was why I pushed so hard for him to join the pack. He was an asset, and he needed a pack whether he admitted it or not. He stood silently with me at the edge of our clearing. Both of our eyes scanned the dark, searching for any dangers.
“Something happened while I was gone,” not a question, but I nodded anyway. Jarren practically bristled beside me as he searched harder in the silent forest. Guess I wasn’t as good at hiding my anxiety as I thought. Or maybe Jarren was just more perceptive than the rest of the pack.
“We found a scent,” I still couldn’t wrap my head around it. “Human, but wrong somehow. I was waiting for you to get back. I want you to see if you can track it for me.” I hoped Jarren would have better luck. No matter how hard any of us searched, the trail just ended abruptly at the road. Without a word Jarren shifted suddenly into a dark grey wolf. He raised his head and scented the air, flicking his tongue out to get a better reading of the air. I heard the rumble of a growl in his chest. He must have found the scent.
I changed easily into my black wolf form and we set off at a fast pace to the edge of the territory. When did you first pick up the scent? Jarren questioned as we ran toward the Eastern edge of the territory. I found it late afternoon on Monday. I
