Going back home

ALLY STOOD CRADLED IN KADE’S ARMS AS THEY WATCHED GAVIN AND

his sentries drag Brian away. A small, vengeful part of her wished Kade had finished off the asshole who’d turned her life upside down and inside out, but a bigger, more loving part of her admired his restraint. No one would have blamed him for protecting his mate and pack mates, but he had chosen the high road, which only endeared him to her even more — if that was even possible.

“The RNC sentries will be here soon,” he murmured in her ear, sending chills of love and lust through her body. “Then you’ll never have to think about Brian Riverson again.”

Mason had explained that the RNC would, at the very least, sentence Brian to life in prison for all that he’d done. If more came out during the investigation, he might get off easy with the death penalty. That spiteful part of herself hoped he’d skate by with life, because knowing he was suffering every day for the rest of his life lifted her spirits—and she didn’t feel an ounce of guilt over it.

For the first time in nearly a decade, Ally could breathe again. A weight the size of the world had lifted from her shoulders and she felt something she’d never dared hoped

she would feel again—freedom! She could finally step out of the shadows and embrace the light. Her life would be full of happiness and sorrow, joy and loss, excitement and fear. In other words, a normal life.

With Kade.

Spinning in his arms, Ally buried her face in her mate’s bare chest and started sobbing. His scent changed from tired and satisfied to alert and confused. He pushed her to arm’s length and searched her face.

“You said you weren’t hurt. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, these are happy tears. I didn’t realize it was all bottled up so tightly, and now it’s coming out.”

He twisted her arms to check for injuries anyway, then let his gaze slide down the length of her naked body and back up before taking her right hand in his. Examining her scuffed knuckles from when she’d punched Brian, he raised her hand to his lips and pressed a gentle kiss on the bruises.

“I’ve never seen knuckles so busted up. You really must hit like a girl.”

“I’ll show you who hits like a girl!” Ally feigned outrage and lightly punched his arm, even though she could probably hit him with all her might and it would still feel like a fly to him.

“You do,” he said, laughing.

Apparently, Ghost Kitty didn’t get the joke. In a blur of gray, she went from sitting at Ally’s feet to hurtling toward Kade’s crotch, just as she had with Brian. Kade shouted and jumped away before Ghosty could dig her claws in.

“Hey!” he shouted, moving Ally between himself and the protective cat. “Not all dangly bits are cat toys, you little monster!”

“Ooh, my protector,” Ally teased as she kneeled to let Ghost Kitty jump into her arms for a cuddle. “Big scary wolf is afraid of an itty, bitty kitty.”

Several of the remaining sentries and a handful of other pack mates chuckled at the scene, including Mason. He stomped up the porch steps and slapped his brother on the back.

“Looks like you’re in a bit of trouble, little brother.”

Keeping one suspicious eye on Mason and the other on the sharp-clawed cat, Kade asked, “Why?”

Mason nodded to Ally. “They’ve bonded.” “So?”

“So, you are now the proud owner of Ghost Kitty and six kittens.”

“Wait just a min—”

“Who could be better protectors than a half-feral cat and her pack of mewling pussies?”

Kade mumbled something. “What was that?” Mason asked.”

“Glaring,” Kade spat out, looking defeated. “A group of cats is called a glaring.”

Ally laughed, then turned pleading, batting eyes on her mate.

Pleeease, she begged mentally.

Kade rolled his eyes and released a long, irritated growl. “Dammit.”

Mason roared with laughter as he joined his men again, leaving Ally to approach her mate, the last of her tears drying on her smiling cheeks.

“Come on, Kade. Having a house full of cats will be fun.” She raised one of Ghosty’s paws in the air and gave it a high-five. “See? She can even do tricks.”

Satisfied that Ally was no longer in immediate danger, and no doubt annoyed at being manhandled, the cat leaped down and sauntered away in search of her kittens. Once she’d rounded the corner, Kade pulled Ally into his arms again and kissed the tip of her nose.

“It’s a good thing for that damn cat that I love you so much and want to make you happy. Otherwise she and all her demon spawn would be right back out on the street.”

Ally grinned up at him and brushed a strand of hair away from his brow. “Know what else would make me happy?”

“I know what would make me happy right now,” he said quietly, waggling his eyebrows.

Ally smiled, then grew earnest. “No, seriously. I want to go to Alabama to see my family again. I hate that they’ve thought I’ve been dead all this time, but it was the only way I could come up with to protect them. If they’d known I was alive and, on the run, they wouldn’t have stopped searching for me. It might have drawn Brian’s attention. I can’t tell you how much I’ve missed—”

She broke off, biting back the renewed threat of tears.

Kade nodded. “I figured that would be high on your to-do list. We’ll go visit as soon as things calm down. And of course, once we have news to tell them.”

“You don’t think the news I’m alive is going to be enough?”

“Well, you’re okay and everything,” he teased, a glint of mischief in his eye. “But imagine how happy they’ll be when they find out they have a grandbaby on the way too?”

Ally blinked in surprise. “Wow, you move fast.”

“Always.” He kissed her cheek. “But try to tell me you don’t want it, a mini-you. Even better, a mini-me.”

She knew he was joking, but Ally didn’t laugh. “The world would be a much better place with more men like you in it. I love you so much, Kade.”

“So, is that a yes?”

“No, it’s a ‘Hell yes!’” Taking his hand, she led him down the steps and around the corner, toward their cabin. “In fact, let’s start trying right now.”

E P I L O G U E

HEAT SHIMMERED OFF THE WHITE SAND AS GAVIN TRUDGED ACROSS

the beach, slacks rolled up, dress shoes in hand and his suit jacket slung over his shoulder. He’d sweated through his shirt the second he stepped out of the air-conditioned o ces of the National Ruling Circle, he didn’t want to ruin his jacket too.

Peering through the rolling waves, he could just make out the back of Mason’s head at water’s edge. That meant the blondish blob had to be Lucy and the brownish one was Ally. Kade was probably in the water. Gavin tried not to feel bitter that they’d been having a lovely beach vacation, while he’d been stuck indoors all damn day. His only consolation was that the beach offered a fantastic view—of the ocean and of scantily clad ladies frolicking in the waves.

“How was the meeting?” Mason asked when Gavin dropped to the towel next to a sunbathing Lucy.

“As if you don’t already know,” Gavin shot back

Mason offered a half-hearted shrug. He’d obviously planned the mini-vacay the minute he’d learned the NRC wanted Gavin to travel to Ft. Lauderdale for a meeting. Gavin had

tried to get it out of his brother what they wanted, but Mason had feigned ignorance. Maybe he’d been ordered to stay quiet, or maybe he just liked tormenting his youngest brother.

Gavin huffed and glared out at the placid ocean. Under different circumstances, he might have enjoyed a trip to the beach, but his meeting with the National Alpha, Beta and Enforcer had soured his mood.

“I still don’t understand why you all had to tag along,” he grumbled.

Lucy rolled onto her side and lowered her sunglasses a smidge. “And miss out on a vacation in Florida? Yeah, no. I can’t afford to pass up some fun in the sun. I’m going to start showing soon, and after the pup comes…”

She rubbed her belly, where the future of the Blackwood rested.

“What’s your excuse?” he asked Ally as Kade jogged up, dripping in seawater.

She glanced up at her mate and raised a questioning eyebrow. He smiled, then shook his head like a dog, spraying them all with water. The women squealed, and Gavin glared. He’d been trying to not get his one and only suit too dirty.

“What was that look?” Lucy asked, excitement lighting her face.

Ally blushed. “Nothing’s certain yet, but Mathilda said she sensed something growing in me.”

Lucy squealed again and pulled her friend into a tight hug. Kade flopped down next to his mate and laid a protective hand on her stomach.

“I keep telling her it could be some crazy alien that’s going to eventually eat its way out—”

“Enough!” Ally scolded, though it held little weight since she was grinning at the same time. “You will not talk about our child that way.”

“Sorry, my love.” He leaned forward and kissed the tip of her nose, then turned his attention to Gavin. “So, what’d I miss? What was the meeting about?”

Gavin frowned. “Roman wants me to head up the relocation process for the rest of the Riverson pack, if you can call it that.”

“I thought they all bolted as soon as they’d heard Brian had been caught,” Kade said.

“Apparently not. I guess Brian’s Beta, some guy named Paul Gibson, managed to escape with some other higher-ups before the NRC sentries caught up with the pack. They took a handful of the worst wolves into custody, and it sounds as if they’re pretty keen to spill their guts.”

“No kidding?” Ally asked as she rubbed sunscreen on her arms.

“One of them was Brian’s enforcer. He got pretty chatty once they offered him a deal to release him from prison sometime in his late sixties. Guess he thought that sounded better than dying in a cage. They’ve already caught a couple of the fugitives thanks to his blabbing, and they’re hoping for even more.”

“And so, ends the saga of the Riverson pack,” Lucy said, lying down and putting her shades back in place.

“Not really,” Gavin said. “It’s really only half the battle. Unfortunately, a good number of otherwise normal wolves wound up members of the pack, too. Brian’s enforcer told Dane, the NRC Enforcer, they’d been running a sort of racket of false promises to grow the pack. Once they were in…”

“They couldn’t get out,” Ally finished for him, nodding sadly.

“Exactly,” Gavin said. “Now they don’t even have the promise of a pack.”

“I’ve already agreed to take on anyone who wants to join us,” Mason said.

“That’s what Roman said. He also said I was the perfect choice to process all those wolves and find alternate packs for those who don’t want to join us.”

“Why wouldn’t they want to join us?” Lucy asked. “We’re awesome!”

“Agreed,” Kade said.

Ally veered the conversation back on topic. “Where are they all now?”

“Tessa’s house in Pepper,” Lucy answered. “It’s not much, but it’s better than wandering around the woods, lost and afraid.”

Ally whistled, worry etching her brow. “Crap, even if the pack hasn’t grown since I escaped, that’s still a lot of people to be living in such a cramped space. They’re already under a ton of stress, I can’t imagine they’re going to have much fun packed in there like sardines.”

Gavin scrubbed a hand over his face. “Yeah, it’s going to be a big job.”

“Sounds like you’ve got a lot of work ahead of you, little brother,” Kade said.

Mason popped a beer and took a sip before letting out a refreshed sigh. “Well, what are you waiting for? Better get started.”

He jerked his head back toward the hotel. Gavin balked as he watched a beautiful young woman jog by in a bikini top and a thong.

“You’ve got to be kidding me! You ride my coattails to get a vacation and then you’re not even going to let me enjoy the beach bunnies for an afternoon?”

Mason smirked. “Them’s the breaks. Now get to work.”