Wolf on Board (Wolves of Willow Bend Book 14) (9 page)

“I’m gonna change,” Mimi told Mitch when he ended the call. “Sorry for being a bitch.”

“Already forgotten. I need you to check the foreign scents at Amelia Sullivan’s to tell me if one of them is your mysterious wolf.” Mitch told her. “I’ve also got another Enforcer working his way south from San Francisco.”

“Jake,” Mimi pivoted to face him as she backed to her door.

“I’m in,” he told her, locking gazes with her. Running away from her—running away from the chance at her—was stupid.

“Are you sure?” She raised her eyebrows.

He understood the question. He’d been stupid earlier. “All the way.”

With a nod, she stepped inside and his phone buzzed. Two words stared up at him.

Do it.

His Alpha had given him his marching orders. Vacation was over, so he looked at Mitch. “How many are we dealing with?”

I
t took
her less than fifteen minutes to shower off the salt from the ocean then change into jeans, a t-shirt, and running shoes. Tracking took more than ability; it required a state of mind. If Mitch needed her assistance, they must be stumped. A stumped Enforcer did not bode well for their future.

She’d have helped regardless of whom was missing, but Amelia Sullivan belonged to Willow Bend. The human woman and her family had long been members of their pack. Amelia wasn’t the friendliest of people, but she was
pack
.

Willow Bend looked after their own.

Outside, she paused one step onto the deck. Like her, Jake had changed. Jeans hugged his lean physique and the deep blue t-shirt he sported clung to his muscles, highlighting his broad shoulders and chiseled abs. He’d even tamed his long, shaggy golden locks into a ponytail which emphasized the strength of his jaw and the hard planes of his cheeks.

Her stomach did a little flip flop. She’d spent most of the last week with Jake, and the wolf waiting for her alongside Mitch seemed a long way from the laidback, fun loving guy. In his place stood a fierce Hunter and protector. The transformation stunned and intrigued her in equal measures.

“You’re going with us.” It wasn’t a question.

“I got your back on this. Just tell me what you need.” Calm assurance rolled off him in waves, settling nerves she hadn’t even realized she experienced.

“Have you ever worked with a tracker before?” She started to lock the door, then grunted. “Dammit, the groceries…”

“Already put them away,” Mitch told her, then held up a bottle of water. “I made myself useful while you pair of Cinderellas made your changes.”

“Thanks, Mitch.”

“Anytime.”

Jake waited ‘til they were done before adding, “Not directly, no. We only have one or two in Hudson River and they weren’t usually assigned apprentices from the Hunters.”

“Most aren’t.” She locked the door then headed for the steps leading down with both wolves falling in with her. Mitch took lead, but Jake stayed right at her back. “I’ve only worked with one other tracker. I go in first, don’t let any of the scents get diluted by third-party contamination.”

“I already went inside, sweet stuff.” Mitch told her as he straddled the bike.

“I know your scent though,” she replied, unlocking her car and sliding into the driver’s seat. Jake joined her, climbing into the passenger side. No one wasted anymore time. Mitch pulled out first then Mimi followed him.

“Tell me how it works.” Though phrased as a statement, the request in his tone disputed any misconception of it being an order.

“It works because I can distinguish between all the scents present. It’s hard to muddy them when I can sort out and identify them all…or at least that’s the theory. My dad used to train me by hiding sweet treats in some successively worse places. The idea was to confuse me, but if I can scent it, I can find it and I can follow.”

“What if they left by vehicle?”

“It’s harder, but it’s still doable.” She waited for him to call bullshit. The rarity of true trackers even among wolves made their skills invaluable to a pack, but also made them doubt worthy.

“Cool.” Jake rubbed his jaw. “No wonder you like to cook. You really can identify what’s off in a recipe gone wrong or what you love in one gone right.”

Quiet joy erupted within her. “That’s part of it. It made me a terrifically picky eater when I was little. I thought learning could also help me soften my palate so I could enjoy a wider variety.”

“Don’t change,” he said, his attention focused on her. Though she kept an eye on traffic and staying right on Mitch’s tail, she could feel the weight of Jake’s regard. “Ever. And as for that question you asked me earlier…”

“We can’t do that now.” Truth be told, she didn’t want to. Not when it ran the risk of one or both of them in tears. “We should keep our minds on the job.”

“I can handle the job,” he said, then he put a hand on her thigh, the weight of it a warmth which infused her whole being. “I don’t really need to think to know that I’ll guard your back, follow your lead, and be there with you every step of the way.”

“Jake…”

“No,” he said, giving her thigh a gentle squeeze as though to emphasize his statement. “You talked earlier, then you demanded an answer. It’s my turn now. I get to talk. Understood?”

The command in his deep bass resonated within her until her wolf rose, almost quivering and on point. She shot him a look. Nothing playful inhabited his expression. He was dead serious. “Okay,” she said the syllables carefully. “Understood.”

The corner of his mouth kicked upwards a fraction. “Thank you.”

Mollified somewhat by the gratitude, she softened her grip on the steering wheel. The last thing she wanted to do was break it. “You’re welcome.”

He gave her thigh another stroke. “As I was saying, you asked me why I went from wanting you in my bed to pushing you aside.”

She hadn’t used that exact language, but it about covered it. Biting her tongue, she settled for a single nod.

“I still want you in my bed…more I want in
your
bed. Your kitchen. Your home. Your life.” With each bullet point, her heart hammered harder. “Your heart.”

“You can’t know that,” she stuttered part of the statement, but the sentiment remained.

“I can’t know a lot of things. This isn’t one of them.” With his thumb he drew a circle against her leg. “I approached you on the beach because I was curious. I asked you out for coffee because I liked you. I followed you because I wanted to know you. I want to be the wolf you pick for you…and to be yours, because I love you.”

If she hadn’t already stopped at the traffic light with Mitch idling in front of her, she might have run off the road. “What?”

The faint smile on his face didn’t diminish the sobriety reflected in his eyes or the gentleness in his expression. “I love you.”

“You…love me?” It was her turn to falter.

“Yep. And Mimi?” He leaned closer, his breath brushing her ear.

Heart in her throat, she turned to meet his gaze, lips parting. “Yeah?”

“The light’s green.” He tapped her nose then leaned back in his seat.

“Mother…” She swallowed the rest of her oath and jerked her attention back to the road. Not only had the light changed, but Mitch pulled away from them. Determination vied with shock. Unfortunately for her, shock seemed to be winning. Still she managed to close the gap between them and the Enforcer. “I can’t believe you just announced that you love me.”

“Need me to say it again?”

“No.” She sliced a hand through the air. “I need to focus. We have a job to do. We could be going after Russian wolves or something else. Bad wolves are out there, and I have a packmate missing, and you just blithely announce you love me.”

“It wasn’t blithely, and why not tell you I love you? It’s true.” How did he manage to sound so blasé about it?

“And you did it again. Stop that.”

“No.”

“No?” Her voice trebled. “What do you mean, no?”

Mitch took a right, and they angled toward the beach. Apparently, Amelia had gone for beachfront property, too. Though she was some distance from Mimi’s place, she was more than close enough to have reached out. Thinking about the human woman who called Willow Bend home helped distract her from the madness that was Jake.

“Just what I said. I love you, and I’m not going to not tell you. I
love
you Mimi and loving you, winning you? Having the chance to spend our lives together? That’s worth way more to me than a casual fuck.”

Her whole body tightened on the last. No way he missed the scent of her desire…and his deep inhale confirmed it a moment later.

“So, yes, that’s why the one-eighty. I talked to Brett a short while back and…I’ve been running on my own enough. It’s time to go home.”

Oh God…

Mitch led them down a winding road, past expensive homes then angled away from the beach to a shabbier area. Though, from the look of the vehicles, maybe it was more a shabby as chic than inexpensive. “Maybe going back to Hudson River will be good for you.” Even saying the words aloud made her heart sink. Hudson River wasn’t that far from Willow Bend, not really. Owen and Gillian were there, a lot. They traveled home periodically, but until Hudson River’s healer was trained, they would be doing that consistently.

“But I want you to go with me.”

Ice clutched at her heart and she had never been more grateful to get to a possible crime scene than she was when Mitch waved them toward a driveway of a small, plain little townhouse. It resembled nearly every other townhouse on the strip, all cookie cutter carbon copies.

Putting the vehicle in park, she spared a look at Jake and shook her head. “I can’t.”

“We can talk about this later. I know you have a job to do, and I’m going to shut up with distracting you, but you needed to know. I love you, and I’m here. I want
you,
Mimi Chase…”

Heart in her throat, she pressed her fingers to his lips. “No, Jake.”

His brows drew together in a deep frown, but she didn’t release her grip over his mouth.

“I can’t go to Hudson River.” Then because she needed to exert control over her choices she added, “I won’t. I’m here to study cooking, art, yoga…and to have some freedom, but Willow Bend is my home and Mason is my Alpha. They’re my pack and I’m their wolf. I won’t leave them, not for anyone.”

Not even a beautiful surfer dude who exuded a deep sensuality and raw power she found enchanting. More, not even for the same wolf who said her he loved her and turned in her insides to mush. After pulling her hand away, she turned off the engine and left the car, nearly as desperate to abandon the too-confined space as she was the conversation ripping apart her soul.

Jake was just a wolf she liked. She’d liked plenty before.

But will I like any others the way I love him?
Gagging the internal voice, she looked at Mitch.

“Do you two need a minute?” The Enforcer looked from her to Jake then back again.

“No.” She said, at the same time Jake said, “Yes.”

“Okay, as long as we’re clear.” Mitch’s dark eyes held no amusement, though.

“We don’t have time for any of it,” Mimi said, glancing at Jake trying to convey with her eyes what her mind—and wolf, for that matter—railed against. “We have a missing Amelia to find. You two should stay out here. It will be easier if I sort the scents without any distractions.”

“You’re not going in there alone.” Jake scowled. “And you’ve been living with my scent for a week.”

“Yes, I could use a break from it, too.” She didn’t mean it, no honesty could possibly be reflected in her tone, yet the words seemed to wound him. “Just—stay here with Mitch, scout the area, and let me do my damn job.”

Angrier at herself than him, she stormed toward the townhouse door. Though they were all cookie cutter, she detected Mitch’s scent on the steps, and—different wolf scents.

Three others.

And Amelia…closing her eyes with her hand on the door, she took a deep breath Yes, she could smell Amelia. All the Sullivans wore very little or no perfume, but the family always smelled like home baked biscuits to her. Maybe it was their mother or that most of them worked as cleaners or maybe it was simply that the family smelled of home and home was fresh-baked biscuits, cookies and other sweet treats.

Behind her, Mitch said something low to Jake and, whether he answered or not, she forced herself to not listen. She wasn’t here to sort out her love life or lack thereof. The last thing she needed to concentrate on was their romantic woes—or whatever they endured at the moment.

The interior of the townhouse was all clean lines, pale colors, and almost pristine. Bleach comprised the first layer of scents, as did paint. The townhouse had been recently redecorated. The lack of personal ornamentation and decoration could simply be due to Amelia’s relatively recent arrival.

A faint thread of
other
permeated the entryway. The door wasn’t damaged. So either they broke in and waited for Amelia or Amelia let them in. Compartmenting the information, she tested the strength of the scent and closed her eyes, letting her nose tell her where to go.

Eyes could be deceived, though, as she’d tried to explain to Jake, and so could a nose. For now, she had to rely on what her nose told her. Sorting through the scents, she picked up tells of two…no, three scents that did not belong. Amelia’s was everywhere, but she had been living in the townhouse. The glue in the carpet, the freshness of the tile, and the grout—even the newness of the paint couldn’t diminish the presence of the woman who’d moved in.

A hint of sadness scraped along the bottom of Amelia’s scent. Or maybe Mimi simply ascribed her own sense of worry to it. She and Amelia might not be more than passing acquaintances, but they didn’t need to be. The kitchen…no, the foreigners never went there.

Tracking through the townhouse, she followed the wolves, not Amelia. They’d entered through the front, ascended the stairs and—

Opening her eyes, she stared at the destruction in the bedroom. The copper tinge of blood decorated the shattered glass of the mirror. Amelia’s blood, yes, but blood also coated one long shard and soaked the carpet around it.

Taking a knee next to it, she was careful not to get the blood on her. The blood belonged to a female wolf. Not the same one who approached Mimi but related.
Go, Amelia.
The human had done some damage of her own, but not enough. Whomever had been bleeding still managed to walk away.

Staying focused, she tracked through the destroyed bedroom to the window. The broken glass lay scattered on the deck off the second floor. Beyond the deck was a hilly area, grass covered with a handful of scrub trees. And on the other side, a road.

After descending to the second floor, she went out on the deck. Once she checked to make sure no one observed, she made the leap down. The easy drop barely sent a shock through her thighs and back.

“Pretty sure they exited here, too.” Mitch said as he and Jake joined her.

“Access. Simple drop. If I had an unconscious victim, there’s good cover, and a short run to a vehicle.” Tracking the scents, she headed for the woods. The blood made it effortless.
Hell yeah…
Whether she did it to defend herself or because she trusted her pack would find her, the human woman made the job straightforward for her.