“She took your vehicle because she needed to get away from you.”
Okay, that didn’t help.
“You stay away from her.” Adam slammed Sebastian against the wall. His voice dropped to a growl. “She’s my mate.”
“Impossible!” Sebastian struggled free from Adam, shaking his head. “A jaguar and a wolf?” His eyes narrowed as he hissed, “Never.”
Adam launched himself at Sebastian, pinning him to the back of the door, and pressed his forearm against Sebastian’s throat. The jaguar socked him in the stomach, hard. Adam coughed and threw Sebastian to the ground, but before he could pounce on top of him I put myself between them.
“Enough.” Both men were out of breath. I looked at Sebastian first. “I think you should go. Thanks for the information. I appreciate it, whether you think you’re helping me or not.” Then I turned toward Adam and my heart sank. His face was hard; his dark green eyes were not brimming with love.
Sebastian got up, straightened his clothes and went to the door. “Don’t let her out of your sight, wolf, or you will never see her again.”
The door slammed behind him leaving me with a lot of explaining to do.
…
The longer I watched Adam walk back and forth across the length of my room, the less guilty I felt. What did I have to feel guilty about? Nothing.
He finally stood still and turned to make eye contact with me. “I want to know why he was here. Why did you take Chaney and pick him up?”
I stood my ground, tipping my chin up. “I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“Did I say you did?”
I shrugged. “Not exactly, but attacking my only Nero informant definitely implied it.”
He sat on the side of the bed and tugged me to sit beside him. He took a slow breath and met my eyes. “I love you, Lana. I trust you, but the wolf inside of me…” He shook his head. “Remember the donut guy who flirted with you? The territorial thing is new to me, and it’s going to take me a while to navigate.” He glanced at the door, then back at me. “I didn’t know why you took the Jeep, and then I saw him in your room…”
I stared down at my hands. I wanted to cling to my righteous anger, but my emotions were too intense and raw. I couldn’t even look him in the eyes.
“When I saw Luke was at your house, and saw his reaction when he caught my scent, I just needed some space. The only person in your family who knows about me hates me. And from what you’ve told me that’s how the whole Pack is going to feel, so why do we even bother?”
He lifted my chin to meet his eyes and a tear rolled down my cheek. “I wish I could bring you home and introduce you to everyone. I do. I wish I could tell you how my father was going to love you and how my Pack brothers and Aren would think I was the luckiest guy in the world.” He paused and kissed away my tear. “Because I am.”
I rolled my eyes. “You didn’t look like it a few minutes ago.”
“Well, I’ve been told a few times that I can be a hothead.” He took my hand. “The thing is, I’m not just one of the Pack. Remember when I told you my father is the Alpha of our Pack?”
I nodded.
Adam gave my hand a squeeze. “I’m his first-born son. By Pack law and tradition, I’m next in line to lead the Pack.”
“Oh, God.” I got up and went back to rubbing that huge knot on the back of my neck. “It just keeps getting worse.”
“Since I’m the Alpha’s heir, they all expect my mate to be…well, not a jaguar.” He reached out for my hand and kissed my knuckles. “That’s why we’re leaving Reno together. There’s no place for us with the Pack, and it’ll be a cold day in hell before I let Nero anywhere near you.”
My chest hurt. I couldn’t find the right words.
He waited, his eyes searching mine. Finally he added, “Just give me a little time, okay? I can get Luke ready to take over the stable, and Aren will make a much better Alpha for the Pack than I ever would.”
Hot tears tracked down my cheeks, and I found my voice. “No. You’ll resent me for making you leave. I can’t live with knowing I made you lose them.”
“And I can’t live without you.” He stood up, still holding my hand in his.
I sniffled as our eyes met, and my heart melted. No one had ever looked at me like I was the only person in the world that mattered. I ached inside I loved him so completely.
I loved him enough to leave him.
The full moon was coming in a few days. While Adam was in his wolf form, I would vanish. There was no other way. I didn’t want to go, but I had to.
Adam wrapped his arms around me, our lips fusing together in an urgent, hungry kiss. We made love, giving ourselves to each other until we had nothing left. When we were done, I rested against his chest, listening to his heart beating as he held me tight and kissed my hair. “I love you, Lana.”
I closed my eyes and let his words burn into my heart.
…
We woke to the sounds of Adam’s cell phone ringing. He lurched out of bed and fished it out of his pants pocket.
“Aren?” He paused, frowning. “What? Forget it, just come home.” He shook his head, and I could see the muscles across his shoulders and chest clench. “You’ve done all you can. Now get to the airport and get home, okay? Yeah.” He nodded. “See you then, bro. Be careful.”
He closed his phone and tossed it back on his pants. “Aren has been tailing the jaguar in San Antonio, but he lost her this morning.”
“Her name is Sasha. Sebastian has some sort of history with her. He was the one who bit her.”
Adam raised a brow. “Judging by how she greeted him in San Antonio, she wasn’t happy about being converted?”
“He didn’t exactly offer me the whole story. I just got bits and pieces. She was a police detective protecting a witness Nero was hired to eliminate.” I rolled over, propping my head up on my elbow. “I got the feeling Sebastian fell for her, but I guess it didn’t work out.”
“And now she’s tangled up with the Nero Organization.”
“Looks that way.”
“So why isn’t Sebastian helping her take you back?”
“I don’t really know.” I brushed my hair back from my face. “He made it clear he’s not really helping me, more like he doesn’t want Nero to get me. Something about them lying to him even though he has top security clearance. Until he knows why they’re lying and what their plans are for me, I think we can count on him as an ally.”
Adam frowned. “Sebastian is a killer, and he has his own game going. He’s not taking sides. He’s just looking out for his own interests. Until we know what those are, you shouldn’t be alone with him.”
“Nice try.” I chuckled. “You wouldn’t want me to be alone with him anyway.”
He leaned over and kissed me with a crooked smile. “If I had my way, no other man would ever be in your room but me.”
My heart fluttered a little, but I did my best to remind myself that I needed to move on soon. My heart didn’t give a damn. My heart was happy right here with Adam.
I cleared my throat, trying to shake off the emotion welling inside. With my luck it would pour out my eyes like a waterfall. “Is Aren coming back now?”
“Yes. He wanted to stay behind and look for her, but it’s too dangerous.”
“Your strength is working together as a Pack.” I could hear Sebastian’s words echo in my head.
Adam nodded. “So the sooner Aren is back, the better we can handle the Sasha situation if she turns up in Reno.” He finished dressing and looked over at me in the bed. “I wish we could just stay here.”
“Me too.”
“Get dressed. I’ll buy you some breakfast.”
“I wasn’t sure you wanted me to come with you.”
“I always want you with me, but we have to be careful.”