Haunted Sanctuary (Green Pines Sanctuary) (13 page)

She’d already witnessed the tension between Jay and Fletcher. Too many strong personalities would be trouble when only one could lead. “So what did you do? Did you all leave together? Or just all leave?”

“We tried to travel together for a while. Finally, we figured out we do better if we can have our own space.” He squinted out into the dying evening light. “Dispersal, that’s what they call it. You know anything about wolves?”

“A little.” She ran her thumb along the edge of her mug and stared into the darkness. “When I was a kid, I read every book in the library that had anything to do with wolves. I wanted to be like Zack. Growing up, he was my hero.”

“And he was born a wolf.”

His tone was inquisitive enough to express interest in the answer without demanding it. “He was born a wolf,” she confirmed. “His mother was one.” She hesitated. “And I guess his father was too, whoever he happened to be. His mother seemed pretty certain it couldn’t have been my uncle.”

“No, it really couldn’t have been, huh?” Shane sat forward and braced his elbows on his knees. “This isn’t a pretty life. The few wolves who don’t wind up dead or traumatized have other problems. They don’t fit in with humans, they have urges and instincts they can’t necessarily control…”

“So I’m learning.” She glanced at him and raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t want the wolf to bite me, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

“It wasn’t.” He met her gaze. “You and Jay are going to do a good job. You’ve both got it in you.”

It felt nice to have the approval of someone who understood, and even better when it came from one of Jay’s closest friends. “Thank you. I hope you’re going to stick around for a while and help us.”

“I think I might.”

The door from the kitchen creaked open and Mae slipped out. “Kaley’s still out,” she said, her voice no louder than the squeak of Eden’s chair. “She hasn’t slept much since they first came for Zack.”

Shane rose, stripped off his hoodie and held it out to Mae. “It’s too chilly for no sleeves.”

Eden tensed, but Mae didn’t recoil. Her gaze stayed fixed on his hand as she reached out and accepted the offering without touching him. Eden held her breath, afraid to upset the quiet balance of the moment as Mae tugged the sweatshirt over her head. It fell to mid-thigh and enveloped her body, but she seemed to relax as the fabric draped around her, just like Eden had relaxed the first morning when she’d wrapped herself in Jay’s shirt and taken comfort from being surrounded by the scent of a strong wolf.

Mae pulled up the hood to cover her hair and stared at some point slightly beneath Shane’s chin. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Eden gestured to the empty rocking chair on her right. “Want to sit with us for a little bit?”
No pressure, no expectations.
The invitation hung between them for a dozen hopeful eternities before Mae nodded and slipped past her to the rocking chair.

Such a tiny bit of trust, but Eden had to fight back a triumphant smile. When Jay was safely home, she’d celebrate this step forward with him.

If he got safely home.

No. When.
Eden refused herself the satisfaction of checking her watch as she willed the headlights to appear. She found herself talking to fill up the empty air. “I think we’ll have everyone settled in here before the fall festival in town. Y’all are going to love it. There’s dancing and a carnival and so much food.”

Shane leaned one shoulder against a porch column. “That part sounds good, anyway. Can we bypass social niceties and head straight for the chow?”

Social niceties didn’t seem to be Shane’s specialty, not when they involved words instead of body language or wolfish instincts. Eden grinned at him. “What if the town girls chase you for a dance? Are you going to run from a fight?”

He snorted. “I think I’ll let Colin and Fletcher handle the Casanova stuff.”

Eden opened her mouth and forgot what she was going to say when headlights flashed through the trees lining the drive. Engines rumbled, and she was out of her chair and down the steps by the time Jay’s truck pulled into sight, followed by Fletcher’s car and a mid-sized U-Haul.

She ran across the yard and was waiting when Jay stopped the truck. Anxiety and relief bubbled up along with her power, and she hauled open the driver’s side door and dragged Jay’s head down for a blistering kiss.

He tumbled out and caught her around the waist, tugging her up off her feet. He met her kiss with more kissing, met her power with that wave of sweet, soothing magic she’d needed from the moment Kaley had fallen apart in her arms. The steadily building pressure vanished so fast her ears should have popped, and for a beautiful moment she floated on the release.

Then she just floated, her toes dangling inches above the ground as Jay turned his mouth to her ear. “Missed me, huh?”

“Just a little.” She closed her eyes and rested her cheek against his. “Is everyone all right?”

He tensed in her arms. “Yeah. We’ll talk about it later.”

The screen door slammed, and Kaley walked out on the porch, her arms crossed over her chest. It was Eden’s turn to tense as Zack took a few steps toward the house before shuddering to a halt.

Zack stared at Kaley. She stood, still as stone, expressionless. Jay lowered Eden to the ground as Mae eased toward Kaley, but no one spoke.

No one dared.

Finally Zack broke the silence by clearing his throat. “We brought the stuff you had in storage.”

“Thank you,” Kaley answered flatly.

Someone had to move before Kaley’s control snapped. Eden eased out of Jay’s arms and crossed the yard. “You boys leave the U-Haul for tomorrow and get cleaned up. We’re sitting down to dinner together tonight.” The steps creaked loudly in the silence as she climbed to stand next to Kaley. “Come on, honey. Will you help me set up the folding chairs?”

“I’ll do it,” the girl said, already turning toward the door. “You have other stuff going on.”

An offer. A way out of having to choose between pack and family, between her cousin’s sadness and a young woman’s pain. The fact that it didn’t feel like a choice at all might hurt later.

For now, it was painfully clear. Eden wrapped her arm around Kaley’s shoulders and reached out to Mae. “The men can deal. I’m all yours.”

Chapter Eight

Jay flipped the mattress into place and evened it on the box-spring platform with one leg. “There. How’s it look?”

“Perfect.” Eden tossed the fitted sheet onto the mattress and circled around to the opposite side. “Now I have beds in all the important places in town. My house, your house, above the diner and at the farm.” She smiled up at him. “Or should I say
we
have beds.”

As if there would be no question of them sharing said beds. Jay grinned. “Yes, we do.”

“You like that, huh?” She tucked the sheet under the mattress and gave him an arch look. “You’re the one with the no-sex rule. That witch better show up soon, that’s all I’m saying.”

“Didn’t Shane tell you? They’re due in today, the witch and her… Well, her bodyguard, for lack of a better word.”

Eden froze with one hand tangled in the sheet. “Already? I thought it would take her some time to make arrangements.”

Apparently, the alphas in Red Rock had felt there was no time to lose. “It’s a good thing,” he told her resolutely. She didn’t need to hear that Stella’s job would be to check them out as much as help.

“I know. I’m surprised, but mostly relieved.” She straightened and rubbed her hands over her arms. “Maybe a little nervous. I’ve never met a witch.”

“Not so different from anyone else until she starts breaking out the magic spells.”

After she pulled the sheet smooth, Eden dropped to the bed and leaned back on her hands. “Lorelei mentioned something about spells for soundproofing. Is that something you’re familiar with?”

With a house full of people with super senses, they’d soon have some pretty intimate privacy concerns. “I once knew a wizard who could make himself invisible when he was standing right in front of you. Couldn’t smell him, either.”

“I think everyone would appreciate a little protection from their super senses.” She sank lower on the bed, bracing her weight on her elbows in a deceptively casual pose, an invitation that her eyes backed up. “I’m not making out with you in this bed if your friends are going to hear it.”

“They’re very, very good at ignoring things like that.”

Her cheeks turned pink. “I may have a few kinks, but I’m pretty sure exhibitionism isn’t one of them. I’m going to have a hard enough time with all the nakedness and shapeshifting when we get to the full moon.”

Telling her that no one would pay any attention would do no good. He’d sure as hell be looking, and he didn’t bother to hide his grin. “I bet you look damn good naked in the moonlight.”

“You’ve already seen me naked,” she reminded him, nudging his foot with hers. “Very unfair, since I can’t say the same.”

“If you’re angling for me to drop trou, things aren’t going to be very quiet in here.”

She huffed and flopped back on the bed with a groan. “I know. I don’t think I can spend too many more nights squirming in your lap without imploding. Does this Guide-bond thing take a long time?”

He’d only gone through the ceremony a few times. “Depends on your definition. Twenty minutes, maybe, once it’s all set up?”

“Thank God. We’re almost through this, right? Soon we might be able to stop for a little while and breathe?”

The words brought the fiasco in Memphis rushing back. “Shit, with those bastards in the city…who even knows?”

An engine rumbled in the distance, and Eden popped up and tilted her head. “That doesn’t sound like my dad’s truck,” she said after a second of intent listening.

“No.” Jay held out his hand for hers and walked out of the room, all the way out of the small house.

The dark truck that pulled down the driveway wasn’t the same one from Memphis. For one, it had a bouncy woman with tawny blonde hair hanging out of the passenger window. “Hey there,” she called out as the truck pulled to a stop.

Eden raised a hand. “Stella, I presume?”

She didn’t even wait for the stern-faced man behind the wheel to shift into park before bounding out of the door. “Shane said this place was rustic, but I think it looks like a movie. Hi, yeah. I’m Stella.”

“I’m Eden Green.” She nudged Jay with her hip. “This is Jay.”

“Ancheta,” he supplied, holding out his hand.

The girl grabbed it. “Right on. Shane’s friend.”

The driver slammed his door and circled the vehicle, his movements slow and easy as his gaze flicked over each of them before continuing to take in both houses. Power flowed from him as he drew even with Stella. “I’m Keith Winston.”

Jay took his hand. “Welcome to Clover.”

Keith’s grip was strong, but not so firm as to be challenging. He smiled as he released Jay’s hand to clasp Eden’s. “You must be the new wolf.”

“Is it that obvious?” Eden asked, faking overdone dismay. “I haven’t tried to sniff anyone in days.”

“Well, that’s no fun.” He winked at her. “Jay, Eden, I’d like to thank you both a great deal for getting this troublemaker out of my hair.”

“Don’t mention it.” Red Rock had its own witch, and could well afford to spare her apprentice. “How are Gavin and Sam?”

“Buried in honorary grandchildren and loving every minute of it.” Keith rested a hand on Stella’s shoulder. “I can only stay long enough to make sure Stella’s settled, as a matter of fact. I’ve got a pair of twins celebrating their second birthday.”

The blonde snorted. “If Daddy isn’t there, Aunt Stella’s the one who’ll catch hell for it.”

Eden laughed. “You’ve had a long trip from Montana. Come inside and I’ll show you around. Anything to keep you out of trouble.”

Two pots of coffee later, Jay had explained the situation to an increasingly somber Keith. Stella sat beside him, cursing and shaking her head until the dreadlocks framing her face swung into her eyes.

“It’s ridiculous,” she proclaimed. “Keith, come
on
.”

He clenched his jaw. “Jay’s right. Most of the mess that went down in Helena happened because Joe and I took out the leaders of a corrupt pack and didn’t think about what would rise in their place. They can’t kill their way through the Memphis pack.”

“And we don’t want to,” Jay added. “It’s too much blood to be on anyone’s hands, much less the people who came here. We just want peace.”

Eden covered Jay’s hand with her own. “Not just want it. They need it. They’ve been through too much.”

Stella rose with another mutter. “I’m going to find Shane. I need a beer.”

Jay stopped her. “Wait. Eden’s a new wolf. I need some help setting up a Guide ceremony. As soon as possible, but definitely before the full moon.”

“Yeah?” Stella propped a hand on her hip. “You two look pretty cozy. You gonna be her Guide?”

“Yes,” Eden answered for both of them, her tone a little tart. “That’s what I want.”

“And that’s what matters,” Keith said firmly. “Stella, use the spell Sasha taught you. This isn’t the time for fancy rituals.”