Shifter’s Surrender (3 page)

In the split second it must have taken Dean to realize exactly who’d smacked chest first into him, his hands shifted from seizing her bare wrists to grasping her clothed shoulders instead. Kaylie automatically reached up to steady herself, and her hands pressed up against the soft material of the dark green Henley covering his chest. The action caused the two bags of food, now on her elbow, to swing forward and hit Dean square in the groin.

He let out a pained “oomph” and took two hasty steps back.

“Oh my God,” Kaylie exclaimed. “I’m so sorry.”

“You are too dangerous to be let out,” he growled at her, raking her from head to toe in a blatant, heated glance before his normal expression of mild interest slammed into place.

At the deliberate shift in his emotion, she felt a spurt of anger. If he wouldn’t allow himself to even attempt a more intimate relationship with her, well then, screw him. Yeah. It was contrary to what she thought only minutes before, but she was a female. She was entitled to change her mind.

“It was an accident you … baboon.”

He blinked. “Baboon?”

Yes, the word might seem childish, especially in light of her efforts to drop her juvenile betting ways, but she’d also been trying to minimize her cursing, and curb her temper. Unfortunately, her attempts at a trifecta of virtue had had mixed results, and changed on a daily basis.

Her lips tightened at the mocking gleam in his eyes. “I’m trying to watch my language.”

“And that’s the best you can do?”

With a jerk of her chin and a sparkle of challenge in her own eyes, she blurted out, “How’s ‘coward’ work for you? It’s much more accurate.”

Muscles tightened in his jaw, those beautiful eyes going steely hard with barely restrained temper, and for the first time that she could recall, he looked every inch the deadly predator he was. Kaylie almost took a step back. Almost.

“I am not a coward.” His voice had lowered, a low growl.

Out to prove her point, she took a step toward him, and Dean moved back until he stood at the edge of the concrete walkway at the corner of the building. If she advanced again, he’d be forced to retreat, either around the side of the cafe or off into the dirt lot. While she wouldn’t mind seeing the man who tied her into emotional and physical knots fall on his ass, she paused to continue her verbal attack. “Really? Because from where I’m standing, you’re a coward. You’re too careful not to touch me. Why is it that, Dean? Afraid to start something that’s beyond your control?”

He didn’t say a word for nearly a minute, just stared into her eyes, his own flashing hot then cold. “It’s … complicated.”

A mirthless laugh was ripped out of her throat. “How unoriginal. I expected more from you. After all, not every shifter denies his nature.”

A low growl rumbled in his chest. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

But she’d seen a flash of panic in his eyes, which to her only confirmed a niggling suspicion. It was the male of the species that had the ability to scent out a mate. The female only knew once skin-on-skin contact brought about the mating heat. But Kaylie had never felt this intense physical need for any other man. Maybe it was his bad boy looks, maybe it was the mystery surrounding his past, or maybe, just maybe, it was because of their intense chemistry. Hell, it was no doubt all three. Whatever it was, it drew her to Dean like a rat to a freaking pied piper; she couldn’t ignore it. Knowing he was deliberately denying not only their human physical attraction, but possibly battling his wolf’s instinct to mate hurt to her very soul.

“Whatever,” she slashed a trembling hand through the air in front of her in a false show of indifference. “No longer matters. Your constant rejection has forced me to look in another direction. And Pete is more than willing to act as a … substitute.”

With that parting shot, she turned on her heels, but his harsh tone had her glancing back over her shoulder. “Pete?”

She faced Dean once again, noting his clenched hands with no small measure of dark satisfaction. “Peter Everett? Real estate agent for Woodcliff, family owns Everett Tours? Also captain of the softball team.” Lowering her voice to what she hoped was a husky tone, she added, “He’s quite talented.” Then she lifted the two plastic bags. “And hungry”

Dean’s eyes never moved from her face, the small tendrils of amber that had begun to bleed into the now furious green unmistakable. “You’re feeding him?”

Kaylie knew she was on dangerous ground, baiting an obviously angry animal in this manner, but at the moment, Kaylie didn’t care. Enough was enough. If he didn’t want her, he needed to know that someone else did. Granted, Pete saw her as a friend only, and she was a little sorry at using him like that, but common sense had fled the instant Dean had taken that first step away from her. And though some small part of her was urging her to just shut the hell up and walk away, she lifted a brow and twisted the knife. “He needs to keep his strength up. I expect it will be a very … energetic night for him.”

A red haze filled Dean’s vision even as he saw Kaylie walk away from him. Saunter away was more like it, her lusciously curved hips swinging with that hypnotic sway. But at the moment, Dean was too furious to feel anything but a possessive rage at the idea of another man sliding inside Kaylie’s delectable body.

He knew Pete Everett, and though he considered the guy a friendly acquaintance, Dean wanted nothing better than to slice his now extended claws across the handsome younger man’s throat.

Controlling his beast was becoming harder with each passing month, and while he allowed the animal out for a short time period every full moon, it wasn’t enough. His obligations as Alpha, such as watching over his pack members each month at the Moon Haven—the shifter community center and retreat—curtailed his own shifting time. Truthfully, the so-called obligation was self-enforced, as any of the other eight co-leaders of the pack could easily handle the task, and had in fact brought that issue up to him on more than one occasion.

But ever since his animal came back to life with a roaring vengeance over three years ago, Dean had become diligent about controlling the time he shifted into wolf form. It struck him as ironic, that for years he’d struggled to bring his sleeping animal to life, and now that he had, he fought to keep it caged, because every time he did shift, the beast seem to gain a bit more control over his human form.

Niggling at the back of his mind was the idea that if he permitted two instinctual things to happen: if he allowed the animal to run its full freedom for a night
and
to claim its mate, the ever increasing and unsettling fits of rage would ebb. Not to mention what it would do to ease the black hole that seemed to eat at his soul. But this thought he dismissed as the self-interested influence of his wolf.

Now, though, all Dean could think about was killing the male who dared to touch Kaylie. Yeah, it was illogical considering he had no right to claim her himself as a mate because of his past. But his wolf only understood that its mate was
right there
, and the man was doing nothing about it.

Caught up in his internal struggle Dean didn’t notice the approach of another shifter until a hand clapped down on his shoulder from behind. Swiveling, Dean threw up one clawed hand to attack. When it was trapped in a large unbreakable hold at his wrist, he brought up his other hand. It too was snared, and he was shoved around the side of the building.

A deep voice snarled in his face.“Dean, snap out of it. Do not make me take you down.”

Slowly, ever so slowly, the sound and touch of his second-in-command penetrated the fog of rage. Dean took in several long breaths, filling his lungs with the familiar scent of Caleb Bennett.

“That’s it,” Caleb said, loosening his grip only slightly. “Follow my breathing. Nice and easy. Now look into my eyes. Good. Do you hear my heart beating? Yes? Now try to match it.”

It was a calming technique used on humans that worked exceedingly well for shifters. Social and sensual creatures, shifters usually responded to any steady external stimulation of their senses. Fighting sights, sounds and smells created the urge to battle, while easy sounds and gentle touch soothed the beast.

After several long minutes Dean reigned himself in, both claws and temper, and nodded at Caleb in appreciation. “I’m good. Thanks.”

Caleb dropped his hands and stepped back, but not out of arms reach. A powerful shifter in his own right, Caleb Bennett could easily be the Alpha of any pack. Instead, he followed Dean’s leadership, often saying that being the sheriff was enough of a responsibility without the added headache of running his own pack. A personal decision that Dean had been thankful for on many levels and many occasions. This wasn’t the first time Caleb had had to pull Dean back from the edge, and probably wouldn’t be the last. Fortunately, the sheriff was just as big and strong as Dean, and should there come a time when Caleb couldn’t physically take down Woodcliff’s Alpha, a bullet from his gun would. It was a dismal thought.

Caleb swept an analytical gaze over Dean. “What the hell happened? I’ve never seen you this … upset.”

Dean nearly snorted at the mild term. Shifters were in complete control of their wolves until the full moon, when the animal had to come out. As a strong Alpha, Dean had the ability to revert any member of his pack from furry form to human with a simple touch, but he was losing control over his own changes. Another irony not lost on him.

Blowing out a breath, Dean rested his hands on his hips and starred up at the darkening sky. While he might want to lie and say nothing happened, he didn’t have a clue how long Caleb had been in the vicinity and what he might have seen. And if push came to shove, his second needed to know why one day, possibly sooner than later, Caleb would have to take Dean down, permanently.

Meeting the clear brown eyes of the sheriff’s, Dean made the decision to tell him the truth. “Kaylie happened.”

A minute tightening of Caleb’s eyes was the only reaction. “What exactly does that mean?”

As Caleb was engaged to Kaylie’s older and only sister, Tess, Dean knew the other man already considered Kaylie part of his family. And Caleb was very protective of his family.

Dean ran a hand over his chin, absently noticing the rough stubble that rasped against his palm. “Kaylie is … a mate.”

Though Dean hadn’t said “my mate,” the implication was clear. While there were possibly thousands of females in the world that had the compatible DNA to produce shifter cubs, the actual “mate” of a shifter tended to be the one the male not only had a compelling need to claim, she was also the only female the shifter actually desired. Basically, if a male shifter was placed blindfolded into a large room, or an open field for that matter, with every potential female mate in the world, the one he gravitated towards—identified by an enticing and irresistible scent that drew the male like a magnet—was the shifter’s true “mate.” It didn’t happen often, but when it did, it was cause for celebration, not rejection.

Ever the trained observer, Caleb caught Dean’s phrasing. “
A
mate or
your
mate?”

Dean hesitated a moment, his eyes focused on Caleb’s closed expression. When he finally answered, the words were barely louder than a whisper. “
My
mate.”

“I’ll be damned,” Caleb said softly, which was not at all what Dean expected. Anger or disavowal perhaps, but not the thoughtful surprise that transformed to understanding and then to questioning concern. “Which, if Kaylie wasn’t interested, would explain the increasing mood swings. But I have it on authority,”— aka Tess Gentry—“that my little sister would be receptive to your attention.” Caleb’s eyes narrowed to pinpoints of disapproval. “So what’s the problem … Alpha?”

Dean bristled at Caleb’s cool tone, until he realized it wasn’t the fact that Kaylie was Dean’s mate that caused the sheriff to look so formidable, it was that Dean had yet to claim her. A strange tightness caught in his throat, and he had to clear it before he spoke. His words were gruff. “I’m not right for her.”

Caleb raised one mocking brow. “I’d say nature would disagree with that statement.”

Feeling the sudden urge to shift on his feet like a kid being scolded, Dean scowled back. “It’s complicated,” he said roughly. Kaylie’s taunt came back to him. When he’d said those same words to her, he’d known it might not be original, but it was true. At least to him. If Kaylie knew about the things he’d done in his past, first to survive and then simply for the brief periods of respite from his terrible childhood memories, she would be horrified. And that was something he figured he could never live with. He would lose her either way, but Dean believed it was better to piss his mate off than to see disgust fill her eyes.

“Really,” Caleb drawled with clear derision.

Dean let out a harsh breath and dragged his hands through his hair, dislodging the leather thong. He ripped it out, letting the long, thick, black locks free. “I’ve done things I’m not proud of.”

Caleb only stared at his Alpha, his expression calm. “Most of us have.”

Frustrated, Dean knocked his head against the brick building and closed his weary eyes. He was so fucking tired. Mentally and physically. Tired of living a lie, of fighting his wolf and damn exhausted by pretending Kaylie wasn’t his. “You don’t understand.”

A moment of silence. “About Eros?”

Dean’s eyes flew open, the green clouding with shock. “You know?”

Caleb shrugged, but his lips curled into a satisfied smug. “Of course I do. No matter what Brandon said, I wasn’t about to up and move from one pack to another without doing a background check on its Alpha. I am one thorough cop.”

Dean knew Caleb and Brandon Dermot had been partners in the St. Louis Police Department many years ago. When Brandon had found his human mate, Tia, and followed her back to Woodcliff, he’d convinced his buddy to do the same. After a lengthy visit, during which Dean had been introduced to the highly-intelligent prospective pack member, Caleb had returned to the big city, put in his notice and moved to the quaint town in the mountains. Within a few short months, Caleb had gone from being one of four deputies to the elected position of town sheriff when Jake Holden had decided to retire to Florida. Not only that, but Caleb had earned the position of second in the shifter pack, and was one of the most respected leaders, both in the pack and in the human community.

And right now, the quietly intense shifter had one brow quirked over his brown eyes in mild amusement even as Dean’s muscles clenched as both man and wolf waited in tense silence for the contempt that would surely come. But it never did.

“You know what that place was? What I did there?” Dean’s voice came out low and hoarse.

Caleb’s head tilted, his nostril flaring slightly, no doubt taking in Dean’s wariness. “I have an idea.”

Dean scowled in confusion. “And you’re not disgusted?”

Caleb let out a soft chuckle. “How could I be? You lived every man’s fantasy.”

Now Dean’s expression hardened in reflection. “The reality is not always pleasant.”

“Which is why it’s better to keep a fantasy just that. A fantasy.”

Or a nightmare. Dean had lived both, and both the fantasy and nightmare had done serious damage, both to his body and soul. Not to mention the serious ramifications for his wolf. Dean didn’t know of any other shifter who’d had his animal whither to near death, only to have him come back to life with a vengeance that at times nearly overwhelmed Dean. From pain and nightmares to shallow pleasure and fantasies, Dean had lived on both edges. What he’d never had was love. Not the parental unconditional kind that Caleb had grown up with, and certainly not the passionate love the sheriff shared with his mate. As much as Dean liked Caleb, he envied him his life. Not in a mean spirited way, just quietly wishful. And that pissed him off. Dean would never have what his second did, and he needed to get used to it. He’d never touch Kaylie. Despite her temper and spirited nature, she was too damn good and too damn human for the likes of his mangy ass.

Which made him wonder. “You knew about me, and yet you came here and agreed to follow my leadership?”

Caleb shrugged. “I liked what I saw. Whatever you did in your past made you the man you are today. If I didn’t like it, I would have challenged you for Alpha a long time ago.”

Dean grunted in thought. “And you’re not warning me away from Kaylie?”

“Same reason.”

Feeling a sense of anger at Caleb’s nonchalant attitude, because if the situation were reversed, Dean would have taken Caleb out a long time ago. “There are things I did, lived through, that you don’t know about. No one does and no one ever will. Things that make my job at Eros look like sainthood.”

Another shrug that made Dean want to shake some sense into the other shifter. “There’s no record of you before the age of eighteen. I know the man you are now, and therefore I know that whatever happened, whatever you did, you did to survive.

“I’m not good enough for her,” Dean growled out in desperation.

“And I’m not good enough for Tess. But that didn’t stop me.” With that, Caleb turned away, heading toward the front of the building. Suddenly he stopped, swung back and leveled a steely-eyed glare on Dean. “But then again. I’m not a coward.”

Dean growled again. Yeah, Caleb had heard it all.