Pack Security (Were Chronicles) (8 page)

“How long has he worked for you?”

“Almost a year now. He applied for the job over the Internet and moved up here. He doesn’t have any family so he sort of became part of ours. Plus he’s a big help. I don’t have to worry about ordering supplies or anything else other than painting.”

“He seems kind of young.”

“Yeah, but he is talented. A few more years and he’ll probably have a show of his own.” She nudged his hip. “You’re looking into him?”

“I am,” Max admitted. “He has access to the ranch and knows all of you.”

“There is no way he’s involved.”

“Then he has nothing to worry about. Let me do my job, Cassie. He won’t even know I’m looking if he doesn’t have anything to do with this.”

She had to trust Max. If they were going to be able to explore the attraction between the two of them, she’d have to take Max at his word. “Just be careful. He’s been through a lot.”

“I will.” He squeezed her shoulder before moving over to the grill.

“So I take it everything is working out between you and Max?” Alpha Shawn asked as he took Max’s place at her side.

She grinned over at him. “Did you have any doubt?”

Shawn chuckled. “Nope.” He swung his arm over her shoulder and led her away from the others. “I knew Max would be a big help here. And I was sure that you would be a good influence on him also.”

Cassie checked over her shoulder to make sure no one else was within hearing range. “Tell me you’re not playing match maker.”

“No, actually, I’m not,” he assured her. “But Max needs to do something that will make him feel good about himself again, make him feel needed. Plus your family is one of the best I’ve ever known. He needs time to heal and less time to think.”

She tipped her head back to get a good look at him. “You’re worried about him?”

“Yes,” Shawn admitted. “I have plans for Max, but he needs to settle things in his mind before I can proceed.”

“What kind of plans?”

“The kind I’m sure he’ll fight me on. I want to name him as my successor if anything happens to me.”

She couldn’t hold in her gasp. “That’s awesome! Why wouldn’t he jump at the chance?”

Shawn looked over to where the other three men were laughing next to the grill. “Since he’s a non-shifter, Max has never felt truly part of the Pack. Even though everyone respects him, Max doesn’t see himself able to lead the others. I want to show him he’s wrong.”

“What can I do?” She wanted to help Max see that he could be a great leader.

“You already are. He seems comfortable here. Once we find out what is going on, I think Max will see on his own that he has even more to offer.”

She didn’t have time to respond. A loud commotion announced the arrival of her nephews, younger brother and her sister-in-law.

Her two nephews, Kyle and Korrie, raced up the wooden steps to where she and Shawn were standing.

“Alpha! Alpha!” Kyle, the youngest at four, cried out.

Shawn crouched down to catch the small boy. “Hey there, little man!”

“Me too!” Korrie called, jumping up and down.

Shawn easily picked him up in his other arm. It was a sight to see the two children in the arms of their powerful leader.

Cassie leaned over and kissed both boys on their cheeks. “Well, hello to you too.”

Kyle laughed. “Hi, Aunt Cassie.”

“Hi, honey,” she said, hugging her sister-in-law. Peyton had been her best friend since grade school. When Peyton and Jacob had gotten married, Cassie had been so happy. Peyton had always been like a sister to her and now she truly was.

Cassie accepted a quick hug from her brother. Pulling away, he then joined the other men.

“Come on, you monkeys,” Peyton said to her children. “Let Alpha Shawn breathe.”

Their Alpha set the kids down, patting them one last time, then he hugged Peyton, then strolled toward the grill.

“Well, look at Max Lawson,” Peyton murmured. “He sure is looking good.”

Cassie grinned. “Uh-huh.”

“Jacob tells me he’s staying at your place?”

“Yes.”

Peyton faced her. “And?”

Cassie laughed. She ran her gaze over the boys then back to Peyton.

“Oh, an adult conversation? Nice!” Peyton commented. “How would you boys like to play with the Legos?”

Kyle and Korrie hooted then raced over to where Alex had a small play area in the corner of the porch. The entire family enjoyed hanging out together, so Alex had made sure the boys had plenty with which to entertain themselves.

Peyton put her arm through Cassie’s and pulled them even farther away from the crowd. “So?”

Cassie shook her head. “I don’t really know what to say. You’ve seen him, he is sexy as all get out, and he seems to be a really great guy. We kissed last night and ever since then I can’t seem to get him out of my mind. There is just something there, you know?”

“I do, but are you ready for that? You’ve been fighting Alex on finding a mate for a long time. ”

“But that’s because I never felt any sort of connection. Max is different. I don’t know what will happen between the two of us, but I do know that I have to find out. I want him, but I’m worried about scaring him off too. He might not be ready. ”

“Huh.” Peyton frowned. “All I can say is that if you are truly interested in him then don’t give up. Let him set the pace, yet let him know you’re interested.”

“I guess.” Cassie turned so she could watch Max.

He was standing between his brother and Alpha Shawn, talking and gesturing. His tight T-shirt was stretched against his chest muscles and damn if that sight didn’t make her mouth water.

Max glanced over at her and the heat in his eyes called to her. She licked her lips, watching as his gaze followed the motion.

Peyton bumped her arm. “Well, let’s go join them.”

As they made their way over, Alex declared the burgers were ready. The next several minutes consisted of everyone filling plates and grabbing new beers. The group settled at the wooden picnic table.

Cassie was filled with love. This was what family was all about. These people had come together to figure out how to protect one another and the entire Pack.

She sat between Max and Alex and felt one hundred percent safe. Of course, having a successful show would really prove that she had gotten her life back after the break-in. Let whoever was responsible know that they hadn’t won.

She’d felt compelled to bring Max’s wolf to life for him. There was no way that she would let that piece of art go into the show, though. The canvas of Max’s wolf would be for Max alone.

Even if he wasn’t able to shift into his animal, sometimes she could sense how close his wolf was to the surface. Even at a young age, she’d known that Max was different. It wasn’t until the night before that she’d really started to understand, though. She’d always taken the ability to shift for granted.

Now she was seeing things differently.

There was so much more to Max than what she had first considered.

“So, I spoke with the Council and they are sending out two guards to aid us in the investigation. The leader of the Church for Humanity was arrested in Nevada, but the Council has been keeping an eye on the other locations. However, owing to a problem with one of the people, they’ve pulled out all the shifters they had under cover in the church,” Alpha Shawn told them. “Now they have to watch from the outside.”

“What about the Coalition?” Max asked.

Shawn shook his head. “They said we can wait. The Council has dealt with the church before and the two guys they are sending already brought one location down. Since we want to remain in secret, we won’t bring in the Coalition until we have no other choice.”

This was great. At least it wouldn’t lead her Pack to having to reveal themselves. There were a few humans who lived around the canyon or in town, but not many. Luckily their community was mostly made up of Pack.

“With the security measures we’ve taken here and in town, I’m confident about what we’ll be coming up against,” Alpha Shawn assured everyone.

She felt Max’s hand on her back and leaned into his touch. She hoped they caught whoever was causing the trouble quickly.

The others spoke more about who could be involved and why, but Cassie just listened. She finished her burger. She accepted her bottle after Alex stood and grabbed another round of beers.

They were connecting the church with the break-in to her studio, but Cassie couldn’t really see the link. Okay, so the church didn’t like the art that featured animals since they were fighting against shifters, however there was no actual proof that her art had any association to shifters at all. It was a great chance someone from the church had to take.

No, the culprit had to be closer to home.

She didn’t realize that she’d spoken out loud until everyone turned to her. She flushed while ducking her head. “Sorry.”

“No,” Max said. “We want to hear your ideas too.”

She glanced over at their Alpha and saw him nod.

“I just don’t see how the church could know enough about me to break in.”

“They would have had to be watching.”

“How?” She motioned, indicating the property. “Our land isn’t easy to get to. And if strangers were wandering around, someone would have scented them.”

Alex and Max shared a look and she stiffened. “You don’t think it’s a stranger either.”

No one said anything. She glared at her older brother.

Alex sighed. “No, we don’t. We think that whoever is involved with the break-in has a connection to the church. ”

“Who?”

“Your assistant,” Max informed her.

“James? There is no way! I already told you that!”

“Think about it, Cass,” Alex responded. “He has access to the house and studio. He knows if you’re out. No one would think it was strange for him to be around, and since his scent is already familiar to us, we wouldn’t notice it.”

She shook her head as she stood. It wasn’t possible that the sweet kid who she had spent so much time with would do something as horrible as destroy her work. No way.

“You’re wrong. I’ll prove that you’re wrong,” she told them and stalked away.

She heard someone start to follow her but didn’t look back to see who it was. Her heart ached and she wasn’t exactly sure why. It didn’t seem right that her family, who knew James, would accuse him.

Cassie also wanted to silence the small part of her that wondered if they were right. Everything they said was true and she really needed time alone to think about it.

Chapter Eight

It had been three days since the barbeque, and Max was finding Cassie both intriguing and aggravating.

She refused to talk to him about James or the break-in. Alex had warned him that she would act this way, but Max just didn’t get it. Cassie had no problem discussing what they were investigating and had met the two wolf shifters the Council had sent. However, she wouldn’t hear of James being involved.

Since she spent most of her time in her studio, Max was glad to see she was back doing what she loved. They’d also made it a habit of sitting together on the porch late each night talking and sharing a few kisses. They were growing closer each day. He felt himself start to heal too. During the day, with Cassie working, he hung out with his Alpha, Alex and Chase. He was beginning to feel like the man he used to be. Even though he knew the camaraderie with the other three men was helping him, it was really Cassie to whom he attributed the change in him. He wanted to be the man she deserved.

He hated to leave her every time he ushered her inside and into her bedroom. He just wasn’t sure they were ready to move their relationship to the next step. Oh, it wouldn’t be long. He ached to have her against him. However she was busy, and he wanted to insure her safety above everything else.

Getting to know Cassie better by keeping their relationship at a slow pace had the added benefit of making Max feel like he really knew Cassie. Max found that Cassie was a talented, smart and warm woman. While she didn’t like to be in a group of people in strange surroundings, she loved to be with family and enjoyed gatherings with them.

She spoke to her brothers and sister-in-law at least once a day. He liked that they were so important to her.

The more Max learned about her the more he liked her. He’d started to connect to her right away, and over the last couple of days, he knew that he’d started to fall for her. Their connection was more than just sex, especially since they hadn’t had sex yet.

The nightmares that he’d been plagued with since he’d returned home had eased. In the last two nights, Max had dreamed of some good times with his team.

Cassie asked lots of questions about what he’d done in the Navy and his friends. Out of all the stories he’d shared, he hadn’t been able to talk about losing Evan just yet. But he shared stories of his best friend, glad that she seemed to want to listen.

It was nice just relaxing on the patio with her.

His wolf did not fully agree. Every time Max was close enough to smell Cassie, his animal wanted to claim her. The human part of him understood that Cassie needed time to get to know him better, but the wolf wanted to mate.

As he locked up the house and checked the security, he heard Cassie’s shower turn on farther back in the house. His cock, which had been half hard the entire time he’d sat talking with her, grew even more so. He palmed himself thinking about how she would look, naked and wet, under the hot spray.

He bit back a moan and yanked his hand away. He’d jacked off every single night since he’d started staying with her. Tonight would be no different. He needed to get to bed. It was already after midnight. Hopefully Cassie would be turning in soon too.

She’d gotten only a few hours’ sleep before she’d risen to start painting again. It seemed to Max that she got very little rest, but she assured him it was normal for her. She painted when she could and, once she was done, she would be able to catch up on her sleep.

Max worried she wasn’t taking proper care of herself, but he also didn’t want to interfere.

He closed his bedroom door behind him and pulled his T-shirt off. Walking around the end of the bed, he folded the comforter back before dropping his shorts and boxers. He didn’t have to sleep in the nude even though he was more comfortable that way. However, he’d found with Cassie close by, the need to jack off every night was strong and the only way to really calm himself enough to fall asleep.