Hot Blooded (Wolf Springs Chronicles) - By Nancy Holder Page 0,95
disloyalty to Lucy and his alpha.” His voice was tense, hard.
Frightened, she raised her head, not exactly sure what he meant. “But . . . you’re not going to?”
He shook his head. “Because then one of them might kill you and I don’t think you deserve that.”
“Thank you.” Her throat closed up and she worked to clear it. “Thank you, Doug.”
He clicked his teeth. “I want to tell you, Kat, that Justin Fenner’s been good to Lucy all these years. You’ve seen him. He’s exactly the kind of guy women fall all over. Looker, biker, cowboy. Bad boy.” He grinned lopsidedly. “Recipe for infidelity. I know there’s gossip, but I know that good ol’ boy. He has not strayed one single time. Until you.”
She caught her lower lip between her teeth, feeling guilty for just . . . being. But thrilled, too. She couldn’t help it. She was special to him, not just some random conquest. He’d been telling her the truth.
“Love is a tricky thing, trickier by far when you add all this mess of wolf hormones into the equation,” Doug continued. “Then trying to figure out your place, you need all the help you can get.”
“Regan hates me,” she reminded him, wincing even as she did so. If he had an angle he was playing, she wanted to know now before things got messier.
“Regan is unbelievably self-centered,” he said bluntly, and then he chuckled. “I love her, though. I’d die for her. I’d kill for her, though I surely pray it never comes to that.”
Lee Fenner, she realized. He’s talking about the alpha.
“I don’t want Lee to mate me off to someone,” she said. “Justin said I’ll be given some time to adjust.”
He made a face. “Not so sure of that, Kat. Your lupine instincts will kick in better if you’re in a relationship. That’s how wolves are. Focus on the group, and you’ll worry less about yourself.”
She felt a twinge of desperation. “Doug, there’s a guy, a normal guy—”
He lifted a hand to cut her off. “A few years ago before his . . . condition . . . you might have been able to talk to Lee about this guy, but not now. Regan and I were lucky. Every once in a while someone gets bit in to the family, to bring fresh blood, widen the gene pool. It’s a practical thing but still a very rare thing. Right now, something like that would be forbidden. Lee’s our alpha — and that business with . . . you know . . . has meant he can’t afford to be seen to back down from any decision.”
“Not even one that concerns his own daughter?” she asked. “Her safety? If he’s her alpha, isn’t she his responsibility?”
“That’s why he banished her. So that she wouldn’t be his responsibility,” Doug replied. “So he could avoid putting her to death.”
“But he could choose not to. He’s the alpha.”
“We live by forcing her. So, if you value both your lives, keep your mouth shut. And I will, too.”
She nodded. She was grateful for Doug’s understanding —and for his discretion. But he was a member of the pack, loyal to Lee and married to Regan. How much of an ally could he be? And if Lee’s own daughter, high-ranking Cordelia, wasn’t going to be allowed back into her family, into her pack, what choices did she have?
She cast a sidelong glance his way. He seemed to be a good man. Al, too, who was married to Arial. How did two such nasty women end up with decent guys? It was a mystery.
After a while he spoke again. “The clearing’s just ahead.” He peered up at the sky, which was almost dark. “We should get a move on.”
He broke into a run and she raced with him. Even though it was shadowy and dim beneath the trees, she could still see the way. It felt good to stretch out her legs and to let loose, running so fast she marveled at the feeling of the speed.
Birds scattered as she and he burst into a clearing and came to a stop. The rest of the pack had gathered. They were wearing underwear, T-shirts, and tank tops, and she averted her gaze, embarrassed. Someone chuckled.
Clad only in track shorts, Justin was standing next to Mr. Fenner, who had on a bathrobe. Doug touched her elbow almost imperceptibly and then walked over to Regan. Lucy was holding hands with Jesse, and Arial and Albert were talking