Wolf Tracks - Bianca D'Arc Page 0,41

you. I owe you a life debt, which means if anybody messes with you, they mess with me.”

He put just enough of his wolf’s growl into his voice to make a man they were walking past jump a little. Jim dialed it back a bit.

“I didn’t realize…” Helen’s words trailed off, then she turned her head to meet his gaze. “Do you guys really take things so seriously?”

“Saving someone’s life is always a serious matter,” Jim replied solemnly. “And, I’ll admit, I’ve been concerned about how the Pack would treat you. I want to be sure they know that, if someone treats you badly, they’ll be answerable to me. Think of it as me extending my protection on your behalf.”

Helen cocked her head to the side, and a smile lifted one side of her luscious mouth. “That’s sort of sweet, but I don’t think I’ll have any trouble. Everyone here has been so great.”

“Yeah, they’ve been good, and you have the Alpha, Felicia and Miss Felicity on your side. That’s no small potatoes, but you never know. It’s a big Pack, and there are always some idiots in every large group,” he told her. At that moment, they passed a store he wanted to go into, and he paused. “Hey, do you mind if we duck in here for a moment?”

“No problem,” Helen replied easily.

She was such a good sport about everything. He found it easy to be around her, which was a unique experience. Most of the time, he found himself craving alone time when he was around people other than Arch. Jim feared he was in danger of becoming a truly lone wolf. If anything ever happened to Arch, it might just happen. Even his brother, Brock, Alpha of their Pack, wouldn’t be able to keep him in the Pack without that binding tie to Arch.

Somehow, over the years, it was Arch who had kept Jim coming back home. Not Brock. Not anybody else in the Pack. Just Arch. If not for his uncle, Jim probably would have faded away into a lone existence long before.

Helen had that same soothing quality about her. Being around her was different than being around Arch, but the same in that he felt a tug on his heart, a tie that was starting to bind him to her, similar but not exactly the same as the strong tie that bound him to his uncle.

He held the door for her as they entered the shop, and she went immediately toward a display that had a number of colorful pairs of sunglasses. It was a sporting goods store, and with any luck, they’d have what he was after—or something close to it.

Jim bellied up to the counter in the back where they kept the hunting knives and guns.

Chapter Ten

Helen tried not to notice what Jim purchased, but it was pretty hard to miss the giant Bowie knife and all its little friends that went into the shopping bag as she joined him at the checkout counter. She hadn’t found anything she wanted in this store, but they had lots of outdoorsy sorts of items on display.

“So…I hate to ask, but what are you going to do with all those sharp things?” she asked as they got back on the street. The sun was much lower now, on the horizon, and it was getting close to dinnertime.

“Hopefully nothing,” he replied, his expression sincere. “But, when you need a knife, you need a knife, and it’s best to be prepared. I lost a bit of my personal equipment in Virginia, so I replaced that and then some. Just in case. If they’d stocked any decent firearms, I’d have bought some of those, as well.” Helen shuddered. She couldn’t help herself. “I’m sorry if that bothers you, but you know I was a soldier. I’m well-trained in all sorts of weapons. That’s been part of my life for a long time, and that doesn’t really change now that I’m out on my own.”

“Guns don’t really bother me,” she said, a bit more forcefully than she’d intended. “My brothers all have rifles on the farm. Sometimes, you need them what with the animals and all. I just don’t have much personal experience with them because, you know, healer? I have a hard time with anything that can cause injury.”

Jim seemed to consider her words then nodded, just once. “That looks like our destination,” he said after a moment, pointing to a bustling entryway where two groups of people