Before she knew where she was, she realized she was standing inside the guest room. Had Dimitri walked her all this way? She didn’t even remember getting out of the cab. Exhausted, she sat on her bed and put her face into her hands.
Dimitri was worried about the little wolf. She hadn’t spoken the entire way home. He couldn’t even imagine what it would be like for a human to transform into a wolf. Even if she lived with wolves, it didn’t make her one. Adapting to their lifestyle would not be easy. Listening to Logan reprimand her was difficult. But she’d needed to learn that she couldn’t openly challenge the Alpha, especially after everything that had transpired; Dana’s death, her own confession.
Observing her listless state, his suspicion that she was Logan’s mate grew stronger. Her wolf needed her mate, and he’d been with another woman. That alone would have driven her wolf berserk. But it was more than that; Logan had withdrawn after the scene at the club. For a minute, he thought he might have to hold Logan back from tearing Léopold apart limb by limb. Jealousy didn’t even begin to describe his Alpha’s behavior. He’d watched his Alpha possessively sweep Wynter off her feet. And she, and her wolf, ravenously attacked him in return despite her otherwise modest human nature. It was the hottest thing he’d witnessed in a long time. After seeing her in the pool earlier, Logan wasn’t the only one walking around today with an agonizing erection.
Dimitri wished she’d just come clean from the beginning. Protocol was one thing; endangering pack members was an entirely different story. But to be fair to her, he and Logan had taken her into their home knowing someone was still after her. She’d shared as much. The whole situation summed up to a clusterfuck of monstrous proportions. He sure as hell hoped that Logan and Léopold found some kind of clue soon before all-out war broke out in New Orleans, because if they didn’t, he was certain his Alpha would tear up the city to find Dana’s killer.
Dimitri watched Wynter slump onto her bed. He needed to do something to help her get through the night; something that did not include touching her too much. His Alpha may not have understood what the female meant to him yet, but Dimitri wasn’t fool enough to test his theory. When Logan came home, he’d go in search of her. Similar to Wynter’s current reaction from being separated from Logan, the pull to be with her would be too much to resist.
“Hey, Wyn. It’s going to be okay,” he reassured, sitting down next to her on the bed. “Come here.”
The bed depressed and Wynter felt a strong arm around her shoulder. And even though it wasn’t the man she wanted, she was oddly calmed by his touch and welcomed his presence. He was warm, and like Logan, his scent was appealing, safe. A sob wrenched from her chest, and she clung to him, seeking comfort.
“That’s it, cher.” Dimitri wrapped her all the way into his embrace. While he found her attractive, especially after watching her with his Alpha, he only sought to give her peace. There was nothing sexual about the situation for him. Oh no, a cryin’ woman was a libido killer, in his book. “It’s not your fault.”
“I should have told him sooner,” she cried. “But it wouldn’t have mattered. They want me. I may have to go back to them. They won’t stop.”
“No, don’t think so. You’re not going back. Do you think your Alpha would ever let that happen?”
“Jax or Logan. Who is my Alpha?” She pulled away; her eyes were swollen and red. “I don’t know who I am, Dimitri. Where I belong. Hell, I don’t even know what I am. How could they do this to me? Wasn’t it enough to drain me? To chew on me like rodents? And now, I’m just a freak.”
“You’re wolf, cher. And it’s going to be okay. It may not be easy but you’ll get through it. As for your Alpha, only you can make that choice.”
“I haven’t slept with him,” Wynter confessed.
“Logan?”
“Jax,” she stated.
“Okay, then.” Dimitri wasn’t sure if he was ready for this conversation but he steadied himself for what came next.
“We live together, making people wonder, leaving it ambiguous to everyone…well, except for his beta.”
“Now why would you do that?”
“My parents. They were murdered. I was fifteen,” she whispered. She kept her head down. “My Dad worked for him. He was his accountant. They were pretty close friends. Jax trusted Daddy with everything. One day I was in my parents’ loving home in Brooklyn and the next thing I knew I’d been moved into Jax’s Manhattan penthouse. I had no other family when they died.”
“I’m sorry,” Dimitri offered, and wrapped his arm around her once again. “It must’ve been really difficult. You were so young.”
“I hated Jax at first. He was overbearing. What else can you expect from an Alpha? But he cared about me….really cared about me. The first year, he never left my side. Seriously, pretty much wherever he went, he made sure I was with him,” she reminisced. “He filled my days with school, friends, horseback riding…all kinds of things to keep me busy and growing up right. He loves me.”
“Like a father?”
“Like an Alpha,” she responded quickly. “No, Jax is quite aware that I’m a woman, but if he’s ever wanted me that way, he never told me. We’re friends, but he’s Alpha. I know that, respect him.”
“So why the pretense?”
“He insisted on it. I didn’t mind. I mean, the wolves, he kept me from his pack for the most part. I don’t think he wanted me around the males. He kept telling me I’d grow up to find a human. It sounded reasonable. It didn’t really bother me.”
“But why not just tell Logan?” Dimitri persisted.
“I don’t know. He asked me if I belonged to Jax, and I do. I did. Or at least that’s how it felt before, but now everything is so confusing.” She rubbed her face with the back of her hand, trying to dry the tears. “But when I went to dance with Léopold…he frightened me. I saw his fangs, and he kept talking to me about Logan. And I don’t know…all I knew is that I wanted Logan and…”
“What?” Dimitri could hear the hesitation in her voice.
“I felt like he really was my Alpha,” she said with a shake of her head. “How crazy is that? I mean, I’ve known the guy for what? A day? Maybe a very long intense day. So to have that thought in my head…him being my Alpha. It’s insane, yet it felt so real.”
“Sometimes things in life don’t make sense, cher. Sometimes our feelings,” he put his hand on her chest above her heart, “our gut; that’s what you’ve got to trust. Now I know you’re some kind of a scientist and you like data, facts and all that business. But you know since you’ve been around Jax that that’s not how things work in the pack. Fate, she directs the life show. And you’ve got to trust your heart.”
Wynter listened intently. Maybe he was right but she was still ripe with confusion.
“Now look, you’ve made me all sappy,” Dimitri laughed, trying to lighten the mood. “Don’t tell Logan. I won’t live it down.”
“You’ve gone and spoiled that dangerous mystique of yours,” she smiled. “I’ll try to take your advice, and I promise I won’t tell Logan.”
“Oh cher, you don’t need to worry about that danger part. Let’s hope you don’t ever need to see it. Now come on, go get a shower. I’ll get you some tea and then you’re goin’ to bed.”
As Wynter emerged from the bathroom, she stared at herself in the long mirror. Dressed in a pink camisole and underwear, she noticed her naturally curly hair had now gone completely haywire, but her skin was smooth and flawless. Too flawless. Unnaturally so. It was physically impossible for a human to heal at this accelerated rate, she knew. Part of her was relieved that she actually looked better than she had prior to taking the job. The other part of her shivered in trepidation. Her molecular structure had changed and was still in flux. Would she shift? Would it hurt? What would it feel like to be an animal?