Chapter 18

Nova lay with his arms tucked in around her, Amara curled gently against his chest. He could still feel the heavy thudding of her heart, and knew that his own was still racing with her. “That was amazing,” he whispered, pressing a kiss into her hair. He was pleased when her only response was a blissful, “mmm,” and her steady breathing.

How had he gotten so lucky? Amara was fantastic. Funny, smart, sexy as hell. Dynamite in bed. He wasn’t actually sure she could cook—they always ordered takeout—but she made a mean whiskey sour. She was tough, and that was an attribute he could appreciate. Yet she was still gentle, which he could respect. She hadn’t let any of her past tragedies break her, and that he could admire.

The only thing keeping them apart was the Pack.

Nova thought for a moment. Screw it. The Pack be damned.

“Amara.” She nuzzled up against him in her half-sleeping state. He tried again. “Amara.”

“Hmm.” She burrowed deeper, hitching the soft, warm comforter up to her chin.

“Amara,” he said a third time, trailing kisses down her throat. He latched his teeth to her shoulder and squeezed.

“Hmm?”

Right as she stirred, turning to face him, howls rent the air. Every muscle in his body went tight. Those weren’t howls he recognized. Jumping out of bed, Nova rushed to the window, leaving Amara clutching the sheets to her chest in alarm. He brushed the curtains away and peered outside.

Three Valley wolves stood at the edge of the woods surrounding Amara’s house.

Fuck. That wasn’t good.

“What is it?” Amara wanted to know. She’d crept over to the edge of the bed.

Nova shook his head. “Kal sent his lackeys. I’ll take care of them.” He caught Amara’s gaze in the reflection on the window. She nodded, but her face was pale. He pursed his lips.

He had just reached the front door when Amara called out. “Be careful,” she pleaded.

Nova looked back at her one last time. “Lock the door.”

The moment he was alone on the porch, Nova shed his human form. His entire body contorted as his wolf-self took over. His smooth skin was replaced by lush, thick, black and silver fur. Immediately, his senses strengthened. He could see the blades of grass in Amara’s lawn. He could hear her worried breathing from behind the stone walls. And he could smell the Valley wolves from one-hundred yards away.

Keeping close to the shadows, Nova moved silently towards them, stalking his prey. He crept around through the woods, grateful that he knew those trees like the back of his hand. This was his territory. His woman. They were trespassing. And he was going to make them pay.

Twigs crunched as the closest wolf shifted his weight, still staring at the house. It was too easy. None of them expected him to come at them from behind. Amateurs. These were the idiots Kal sent to finish him off? If he’d been in human form, he would have scoffed. These three were young, inexperienced. Little more than novices, really. And against him? It was like swatting flies. So, then what was Kal’s angle? Why wasn’t he there himself?

One of the Valley wolves fidgeted nervously. Turning, he spotted Nova. His tawny gold eyes widened in surprise.

Nova didn’t give him time to signal the others. Without hesitation, he lunged, latching his jaws around his throat. Hot, thick blood flowed out around his teeth. The air filled with the scent of copper. The wolf fell to the ground.

The other two wolves finally took notice and charged at Nova from either side. The battle was brutal but quick. When it was over, Nova stood, the lone wolf, covered in the intruder’s blood.

He let out a low growl of frustration. It didn’t make sense. He knew Kal hated him, that he was after Amara, but why send those three? Why let another do his dirty work? Something didn’t feel right.

Shaking his head, Nova padded back toward the house. He needed a shower.

“Take your gun. And your knife. Maybe both your knives,” Nova ordered, throwing a bunch of her clothes in a bag. “Just in case.”

Amara sat on the bed, frowning. Nova had come in twenty minutes ago, covered in blood, and ordered her to get dressed before locking himself in the bathroom. It was only moments before she heard the shower. When he’d come out, she was dressed and waiting for him.

“It’s not safe here anymore,” he told her, throwing on his clothes. “We need to get you packed. We’re leaving in ten minutes.”

Amara raised a brow. “Leaving? For where?”

“You’re going to come stay with me for a while.”

“You? With the pack? But…but I’m not allowed.”

Nova shook his head. “You can’t stay here. Nemoy will just have to make an exception.”

He’d then spent the next ten minutes getting her packed. Finished, Nova beckoned her forward. “Load up.”

Obedient, she followed him out to his truck and climbed into the passenger’s seat. She wasn’t sure how she felt. On the one hand, she was going to Nova’s. For the first time, she was going to get to see his house, the place that he called home. She was going to get to meet his family. His mother. The illusive Pack.

On the other hand, she was leaving her own home behind because the same wolf who had terrorized her town for the last decade had apparently put out a hit on her. And to keep from being killed, she was heading into the heart of yet another pack of wolves.

How could this possibly be her life?

Nervous, she toyed with the hem of her sweater. “Are you sure this is a good idea?” She glanced sideways at him, almost afraid to see his expression.

He chuckled. “I’m not going to lie, they’re not going to be pleased. Nemoy is convinced the rules are there for a reason. He isn’t going to appreciate the fact that I’m bringing you back with me, even if it is for your protection.” Deep lines furrowed his brow. “He’s just going to have to get over it.”

“And your mother?” Amara asked, her voice small. “What will she think about you shacking up with a human?”

Nova frowned. Her heart sank. “Well, that’s a tricky one. I’d like to tell you that she’s my mother, and all she wants to do is see me happy, that she would approve of me bringing you back because it’s the right thing to do. But to be honest with you, I don’t actually know how she’ll react. My mother is one of a kind. There is no reading her.”
“Oh.” As if she hadn’t been terrified before. Now she was on the borderline of having a panic attack.

Nova read her signals and put his hand on her thigh. “It’s going to be all right,” he assured her. “We’ll protect you.”

The road to the compound was long and windy. She supposed it didn’t help that she kept imagining every awful thing that could happen, either. What the hell was she thinking, getting involved with a shifter? It wasn’t like she could ever become one of them. Nova said wolves were bred not bitten. So, what? Was she just going to play the weak human for the rest of her life while he got to be the macho man protector?

No. That wasn’t how it was going to work. They would get through this, together. As partners. The rest of it, they would just have to figure out.

“We’re here.” Nova turned the truck down an old gravel road that disappeared into the underbrush. After a few twists and turns, they followed the road to the gate. It was bordered on both sides by a fence and two guard stations. Both of them were empty.

Nova frowned. “This isn’t right,” he muttered, throwing the truck into neutral. He put on the emergency brake and climbed from the cab. “I’ll be right back,” he told her.

Amara watched him walk down the road to the gate. He examined something she couldn’t see on the far side of the fence, before peering into both tiny buildings. Reaching in, he pressed a button and the gate began to open.

Nova’s face was grave when he returned to the truck. He put it back in drive and started easing forward. Amara waited. “Something’s wrong,” he told her, scowling at the empty guard stations as they passed.

“Maybe they just went on break.”

He shook his head. “No. That’s not how it works. If the guards on the morning patrol aren’t at their posts, something more important is going on. They wouldn’t just up and leave.”
She huffed out a frustrated breath. “How do you know?”

“Because I trained them myself.”

The road leading from the gate to the living area of the compound was completely deserted. Nova turned down a long side street filled with quaint little cottage houses. Amara was suddenly struck by what it would be like to be part of it. To be with Nova, to live there with him, to maybe one day raise children with him among the pack and the community. To learn what it was to be Wolf.

Except now, the place was eerily quiet. Not a single soul showed their faces. No sound came from within the walls. There was just silence.

Nova parked the truck and the two of them got out. With one shared, worried glance, they split up and began to peer in windows, searching for his pack members. Amara saw cute little flowerbeds and tidy living rooms; one house even had dinner on the table. But while the furniture and such appeared to be in place, none of the houses contained people.

“Find anyone?” Nova hollered from four houses down.

Amara shook her head. “No. You?”

“Nothing.”

And then someone screamed.