Complete confusion swirled around him. “Gem? You lost me. I just meant that—I mean, all I wanted to say, is that I love you.”
“I love you too, but…” She sighed, an aching, lonely sound, enough to break his heart.
Shaun scratched his head. “There seem to be whole gaps missing from this conversation. I’m not making any decisions. I’m telling you I’m willing to move south. Check it out for a while. Shit, maybe I’ll learn how to windsurf in your ocean. And I’ll take ballroom-dance lessons, or whatever the hell else you do for fun down south.”
Gem stared at him.
The entire bar seemed to hold their breath. The music faded, the flap flap flap of the overhead fans loud in his ears.
She tilted her head to the side. “You…want to move south?”
Shaun caught her hands in his. “I want to be with you, wherever you want to be. If that’s back in Georgia, I’m not that old a dog. I can learn new tricks.”
She swallowed hard, her lower lip trembling. “You mean it?”
He nodded. “Of all the things in life I’m willing to give up, you’re not one of them. I need you, Gem.”
Gem threw her arms around his neck and squeezed him tight. “I don’t know what to say. Really? You would give up your life here to be with me…?”
Her voice tightened, the words dying away.
He kissed her cheek gently. “Really. Why is that so hard to believe?”
“Because you love the north.”
Moving wouldn’t be easy, but it would work. He’d make it work.
“I love you more,” he vowed.
She melted, her expression of complete adoration making his heart pound.
“I need time to settle details with Tad, and the business end of things. But other than that, I’m good.”
“That’s a fine young man you’ve got there.” Mr. Jacobs’ voice interrupted them, the swirl of others discussing his confession filling the air.
Gem turned to face her father, tucking herself against Shaun’s side in her usual position. “Daddy?”
Jacobs lifted his glass at Shaun. “Nice to see that not all you young’uns are hoodlums and miscreants. Love to show you the place. You play golf?”
Oh boy. Chasing around a little white ball that had never done him any harm and beating it with a club. Exactly how he wanted to spend his days. Not. He took in a deep breath, and Gem’s scent filled his head.
That’s why he was doing this.
He smiled politely at her father. “No, sir, I don’t, but I’m game for poker.”
The colonel’s brow rose. “We’ll see about introducing you down at the club, but I doubt we’ll have time to do it all while you’re visiting. I can’t imagine it’ll take Gem that long to pack.”
Pack?
Gem tugged him. “Oh dear, look at the time. We need to go—”
“Pack?” Shaun tilted his head at his father-in-law, wolf-style. “Why does Gem need to pack?”
The old man grumbled for a moment. “To get her things together to move up here to be with you. Since she told me that’s what she’s going to do.”
Gem stopped pulling. Shaun’s grin grew wider by the second.
“Oh, that reason for packing. How could I forget? Yes, we’ll only be down south for… How long did you say, love?”
He turned and batted his lashes at Gem. She answered sheepishly. “Three weeks. Isn’t that what we had talked about?”
“Of course. Silly me.” He nodded at Mr. Jacobs. This conversation was finishing elsewhere. “Excuse us, sir, things to organize.”
“No problem, I’ll be here with the boys. We’re going to a cancan show later.”
Shaun tugged Gem by the arm and ducked into Evan’s office. Privacy, now, was required. He let his happiness show as he leered at her.
“I’m not even going to mention the fact you made plans without me.”
She lowered her chin, but maintained eye contact. “Tell me you’re disappointed I want to live in the north. Go on, tell me, so I can call you a liar.”
His heart pumped like a jackrabbit in the midst of pursuit. “I can’t support you the same way that you’d be living at home. I’m willing to make some changes in career, so I’m not off flying as often—but once you’ve got your degree, I bet you can get a position with any of the environment groups here in the north. They’d love to have someone with your enthusiasm and background.”
Gem nodded. “I’m not too worried about finding work, Shaun. My hesitation has been trying to figure out where I belong. I like being with you, and I like trying new things. I loved running in my wolf, and I don’t ever want to give that up.”
Thank God. “I’m serious though, we can go south if you want to.”
Gem smacked him on the chest. “What part of ‘I like the north’ did you not understand? There’s a lot here for me to experience. I’m sorry I pulled a fast one on you with my father, but I decided it was easier to simply let him know what I wanted.”
She snuck into his arms, and he held on tight. “Don’t think I’m going to be too upset about you going around me, not when it means I get to keep the two things I love the most.”
Shaun lifted her chin and kissed her again, the deep layers of having a mate settling around him and filling him with contentment. She was there for him, she encouraged him. Didn’t seem to mind his rough edges.
Enjoyed spending time with him in the outdoors—he was in wolf heaven.
The kissing got a little rougher as she grabbed him by the jean pockets and tugged him closer. Just as it got real interesting, there was a knock on the door.
“Go away,” Gem growled.
Shaun laughed. “Gem, this is Evan’s office.”
She rested her forehead on his chest. “Shoot. Forgot about that part.”
He opened the door to discover Evan leaning against the doorpost. “May I come in?”
Shaun gestured to him magnanimously.
Gem had smoothed her skirt and stood politely to the side of the couch. “Sorry, Evan. I was a little distracted.”
The Alpha shrugged. “Changes in circumstances can do that to you. Congrats, I heard you’re planning on making the move permanent?”
She nodded. “If that’s okay with you.”
Evan dropped into his recliner. “Maybe.”
Shaun kicked Evan’s foot. “Maybe? What kind of bullshit answer is that?”
There was a pause as Evan tilted his chair back. “I just want to make sure I’ve got the whole situation in the right light. You moving to Whitehorse permanently means you’re either in my territory and pack, or you’re in the Miles Canyon pack. Shaun is strong enough to be Alpha if he wanted to. Am I looking at needing to fight the two of you in the next couple years?”
Shaun couldn’t believe the turn in this conversation. “Why the hell would I want to take over the pack?”
“Because once you see something that needs to be done, with Gem chatting you up, you’re going to find that you’re doing the right thing all the time and suddenly it’ll be work, work, work for me to keep control of you.”
Gem laughed. “You’re pulling our leg. You don’t really think we’re going to take over the Takhini pack, do you?”
Evan smiled broadly. “Actually, I was kind of hoping you’d become Betas for the pack. Saves us fighting and all that.”
It was like a curtain lifted. Somehow Shaun had known this was coming. “Betas? For Takhini?”
Evan shook his head. “You have this issue of repeating everything I say. I’m using small words, Shaun. You want to help lead or not?”