Penelope sat back in the chair with the blueberry cider in one hand and her other resting on her now full stomach. Despite her initial objections, hunger had gotten the best of her and she’d dug into the best damned nachos she’d ever had in her life.

“I cannot believe I ate all of those,” she sighed, fighting the urge to unbutton her waistband or at least loosen her belt. She covered her mouth to smother the giggle that image conjured in her mind. How classy would that be?

“You only ate one thing.”

She stared down at the empty plates, her mind blown that Sawyer had devoured everything else. How did he keep that body with all that junk?

Stop it. Don’t go there.

How many times was she going to keep thinking about his broad shoulders or fantasize about his probable six pack abs? Or something else…

His little sexual innuendos all day had really gotten to her. To the point heat flared between her legs about every five minutes. He’d look at her and she’d get flustered. Or God forbid, he smiled at her. Rugged good looks were an understatement. The man oozed charisma just sitting there.

Crap, she really needed to stop thinking about him like that. Why couldn’t she picture him as the victim of a horrific fire? Someone who needed her to find justice for him?

Well, she did see that. And as she’d gotten to know him and his fierce loyalty to the people he considered his family, her already strong need to find the person responsible had grown.

“Earth to Penny. Are you still here?”

She nearly groaned. No one called her Penny. Yet halfway through their first drink he’d made it a point to declare it a fine nickname and had now call her that on more than one occasion and she liked it. Crap, crap, crap, she was doing it again. She needed to focus on something else right now.

“You’re very focused on food here,” she said.

He looked up from his beer, licking the foam from his lips. Her belly flipped. Of course it did. Her body had turned into a traitor right along with her mind.

“We’re sort of tourist focused here when we need to be so food and beverage becomes a priority. And of course during lean times, learning to grow and cook our own food makes life on the island a lot easier. It just so happens that people in this region take that whole farm to table sustainability thing pretty serious.”

She pursed her lips. “It serves you well. Even if it does come from necessity. Although, it’s not as if you can’t hop into town any time. The Pacific Northwest is a little heavy on the foodie types, which naturally means there are no shortage of good restaurants. Even on this side of the big bridge.”

He took another gulp of his beer before responding. “We like to keep to ourselves. And we definitely don’t want to be in the position of relying on outsiders. It’s better that way.”

His cryptic answers were getting them nowhere. “Why is that?” she asked. “Is it a religious thing? Or—” she hesitated, a little nervous about implying something more. “I don’t know.”

“We’re not a cult if that’s what you’re asking.”

“I didn’t say—“

“We’re likeminded,” he continued, stopping her from finishing. “We prefer a simple and quiet way of life. You just can’t get that in the city.”

Penelope thought of her way too expensive loft in downtown Seattle. She paid a lot of money for a tiny amount of square footage in a crowded city. It made her wonder what kind of place Sawyer had on the island. She’d noticed everything from big waterfront homes to tiny cottages tucked in the trees as they’d walked to the crime scene. Honestly, she couldn’t picture him in either of those options. Sawyer had a beefy, rugged build that gave her the impression he would be uncomfortable in anything other than an equally rugged home. Maybe he lived on a boat or something. That wasn’t out of the question in these parts.

Her gaze wandered out the large picture window next to their seats that gave them a view overlooking the small island across the bay as the sun sank below the horizon. It was tiny, but not exactly remote. But it obviously gave them the privacy they needed. But for what? What were they not telling her?

“Still with me?”

She shook off her thoughts and turned back to Sawyer. “Yeah, but I think I’m done for the day. I’ve got to report in.” And do a little more research. If he wasn’t going to tell her anything real, then she’d have to find out some other way. A fact she didn’t feel the need to share.

“Are you staying in town somewhere? Or are you heading back to headquarters?”

“I made a reservation at a local hotel just in case. I’ll stay there so we can meet up again in the morning?”

Sawyer grinned at her. “Not done with me yet?”

The innuendo in his question made her stomach flutter again. Still, she leaned forward and stared hard at those dark eyes of his. “I’m not sure why you’ve tried so hard to distract me from my job today, but it’s not going to work. I am the job. I won’t be dissuaded from searching for the truth by an overdose of flirting, no matter how charming it may seem.”

This time he didn’t smile or come back with some pithy comment. Instead, he leaned towards her until all she could focus on were his lips. She’d never thought this much about a man’s different body parts as she had today. His lips being no exception. They were full and wide with the lighter pink tinge of burn scars just reaching the right side. Just enough to pull at one corner, making his grin all the more devastating when he chose to use it. He looked positively wicked.

And did she mention kissable?

With that she stood, grabbed her slim wallet from the inside of her jacket draped across her seat and pulled out her cash.

“Your money’s not any good here,” he said.

“I have to. Allowing you to pay wouldn’t be appropriate.”

He shrugged. “Neither of us need to pay. Call it an island perk. Besides, I’m the one who ate everything.”

She looked up then to see him grinning down at her, his eyes holding that mischievous look all over again. It was impossible not to laugh. “You’re almost right about that. Although I did enough damage that I’ll have to spend an extra thirty on my run tonight.”

His smile faltered. “You like to run?”

She scoffed, the sound rougher than she’d intended. “I don’t think like has anything to do with it. I have weight and fitness standards to adhere to. Therefore, if I want to eat anything more than a salad at every meal, I run.”

He shook his head, his smile disappearing. “Your body is perfect just the way it is.”

“Now I know you’re full of it.”

“I’m serious. I’m not blind to the way hu—women torture themselves with what seem like ridiculous weight standards that seem to want women to all be the same size. If you ask me, that’s crazy. You are perfect the way you are.”

As if to emphasis his point he wrapped his big hand around her waist and halted her forward movement. They’d been walking from the pub to her car and were currently in an enclosed walkway hidden from everything around them.

Her heart rate increased and her breathing grew ragged. Whether her reaction came from his touch or the fact they were alone, leaving her possibly vulnerable she couldn’t tell. Although if she had to pick one…

He’d moved behind her and then stepped closer almost putting his front directly against her back. That move alone made her stomach jump, but when he swept a piece of her hair from her neck and grazed her bare flesh with his fingers her muscles alternately froze and went jelly on her.

“I really like that you don’t look fragile,” he whispered into her ear, his breath caressing her entire neck region. “Strength and beauty make an incredible combination in you, Penny. So much so that I’ve been dying to touch you since we met.” His fingers fanned out before tightening down in a firm grip. “You’re all soft and sweet on the outside with a layer of steel underneath.”

“I’m not that sweet,” she said, a little horrified by the breathy tone of her voice.

“I could kiss you and find out for sure.”

Her breath caught in her throat. The idea of this big, beautiful, scarred man pressed against her was too much to resist. By all rights she should be scared. Despite her training, he had her in a weak position if she needed to defend herself.

Except there was no fear inside her. Well, other than the fear of him not following through on his threat to kiss her.

He touched the side of her face, his fingers trailing from her brow to her chin, where he tightened his grip until she turned toward him and looked him in the eye.

“You should look at me now, Penelope.”

His use of her given first name instead of a nickname or her last name threw her off kilter once again. The intensity of his stare mesmerized her. He really did want this in a way she couldn’t explain.

“I am—” He didn’t let her finish. Instead, he simply leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. A thrill shot through her at the first touch, traveling from her head all the way to her toes, which curled in her sensible shoes.

A sudden hunger for more clawed at her insides. To the point she had to do something. She grasped his shirt and lifted it from the waistband of his jeans until her hands met skin and the rock-hard abs that she’d expected.

He groaned into her mouth and another thrill shot through to her core. This time from the satisfaction that she’d gotten to him in an unexpected way. She wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her fingers into the muscles of his back. She needed him closer. All the way close.

He must have gotten the message because the next thing she knew he too clawed at her clothes until his bare, big work- roughened hands were stroking up and down her back.

The kiss turned frantic as his tongue slid into her mouth. She moaned, heady with all the new sensations rioting through her, clamoring for her attention.

She scraped her nails along the warm skin of his back and he rocked his hips forward in response. The jolt of sensation when his hardness collided with her body in the perfect position made her gasp for breath. A sound he quickly took from her without breaking their contact.

Oh God. She wanted him. Right here. Right now. Consequences be damned.

Again, he practically read her mind when his fingers sought the clasp of her bra and easily worked it free. He shoved the material aside and swiped both of his thumbs across her aching nipples.

Her mind went blank with the new onslaught of sizzling sensations as heat flooded her body. She was lost to him and could think of nothing more than what her body craved from him in that moment.

Except…

A strange noise pulled her back. A rumbling sound that grew louder with each passing second. She tried to shut it out, but couldn’t because—was that?—

She wrenched free from the kiss and stared up at Sawyer looming over her, his eyes luminescent with the same desire she felt. He looked different. And he was the source of the noise.

“Uhm. Sawyer, are you growling?”

* * *

Sawyer could scent her arousal and it drove him crazy. So crazy he hadn’t realized how close to the surface his wolf had gotten. He pushed back at the beast, but he resisted. In a day’s time Penelope Bishop had wormed her way inside him and nature had taken over.

“I want you,” he confessed, unable to say anything more.

Her eyes widened at his words, but the sweet scent of her desire only grew. Of course, that teased the wolf to the point Sawyer could barely keep him contained. Now was not the time. No matter how much he desired her, there were rules in place for this kind of thing. And it wasn’t exactly mating season. How could he explain this?

So he pushed again, hoping against hope that he could keep things under control. His wolf snarled in his head, but reluctantly gave in.

For now.

The words were so strong in his head it was as if the beast snarled them. He found this sudden lack of total control disquieting. If he couldn’t control himself any better than a pup, he had a lot bigger problems than he thought.

Penelope had remained quiet after his declaration and that concerned him. She was a thinker. He could almost imagine her making a list of pros and cons or hear the dialogue in her head where she argued with herself over whether or not she could cross the proverbial line in the sand during the middle of an investigation.

“You don’t have to say anything,” he offered, using his right hand to reach up and brush her cheek at the same time. One way or another he had to touch her.

“It’s not that I don’t want to. I do. But there are rules for this kind of thing and I’ve already gone too far. I’m not sure we should make it worse.”

“But you want to. I can see it in your eyes.” And scent it on every inhale. Her desire reminded him of the cycle of a moonflower. Elusive and fleeting, but when it showed up late at night, it blossomed under the moonlight in a dazzling display of beauty and fragrance. Of course, come morning, it hid back away, unwilling to reveal itself again.

She lowered her head, averting her gaze. “It doesn’t matter what I want.” She reached for her shirt and began putting herself back together again. “It’s a matter of what’s right.”

He itched to grab her and show her all night long about right. But he sensed that would not be the way for his woman. That inner strength of hers had already taken over.

His.

He liked the sound of that.

“I think I should go. I-uh—I’ve got some work to do still tonight.” Her hands twisted at the bottom of her shirt and she licked her lips.

She was nervous. That fact made his chest puff up. She may not be ready to take the plunge with him yet, but she wanted to and that was a fantastic beginning as far as he was concerned. It was probably for the best anyway. Trying to make her move this fast felt like a mistake.

No. Penelope Bishop deserved more than a quick lay against the wall of a building. His cock grew harder at the thought. Okay, maybe it would have been fun. But this wasn’t like any of his past experiences. This woman meant everything.

“You go ahead and go. It’s getting late.”

“I can take you back,” she said.

He shook his head. “Nah. I can get a ride easy enough. Or walk and clear my head.”

She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. “This investigation is still ongoing. I’m going to have to come back tomorrow.”

It was his turn to smile. He cupped her chin and tilted her head until she met his gaze. “I’m counting on that.”

She bit back a smile. “I meant to continue the investigation.”

“Of course you did.”

Her shoulders sagged. “And this is exactly why us getting too friendly is a bad idea. This investigation is a serious matter. I intend to resolve it no matter what.”

He held up his hands in surrender. “Don’t worry, Agent Bishop. I’m fully aware how serious this is. I’ll be here to help you however I can.” And to make sure she didn’t find out too much too soon. His future involvement with her would require kid gloves from here on out.

She shook her head, obvious frustration stamped across her face.

“I really don’t know how to take all of this.” She waved her hand around them. “You flirting. Me letting you. You say you want to help, but I get the feeling that isn’t your plan at all.” She sighed, letting her hands fall to her side. “You know what? Forget it. I’ve got to go.”

She turned away from him and he grabbed her arm to stop her. She stilled, but did not turn back to face him so he stepped closer until they were just inches apart.

“This isn’t just flirting, Ms. Bishop. I’ve told you what I want. If I have to wait for now, so be it. If I have to help you investigate an event I’d rather keep in my past. Then so be that too. What I won’t ever do, is forget it. Not the fire, not the seriousness of your agency, nor you.” He let go of her arm. “Never you.”

“But— “

“Go to your hotel, Penny. Get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She stood still for a moment more as an emotional wave radiated from her. His nostrils flared at the variations of her scent as she grappled with everything he’d said. There was anger, annoyance and impatience readily apparent. But when he filtered through all of that noise and got to the core of her, that’s where the reality of Penelope Bishop resided. She was curious, intrigued and still aroused.

Oh yeah.

She might not know it yet, but she belonged to him.

Something shifted inside him when she took the remaining steps to her car and climbed in. Both the wolf and the man did not want her to leave. She brought out the primal side in him and right now he wanted nothing more than to bend her over the porch railing and claim her. Thoughts of his fingers buried in her hair as he took her flooded his mind. He hated waiting. In fact…

He took a step off the deck when her car started. She didn’t have to leave. He could make her stay.

“Don’t worry she’ll be back.”

Sawyer’s body went still. He wasn’t surprised that Creed had spoken since he’d heard him coming well in advance. But he wasn’t sure how he felt about talking to him right now. He’d needed some time with his thoughts before he reported in.

“I know. She’s scheduled to return tomorrow to continue her investigation.”

“How much does she know?”

“Nothing more than we want her to. Although, she knows there’s more to the story.”

Creed came up beside him, tension rolling from him in thick waves.

“What did you say to her? I thought you were handling this?”

Sawyer barked with a twisted laugh. “Agent Bishop doesn’t care to be handled. She’s strong. And smart. I don’t think she’s going to make this easy for us. There’s a stubbornness about her. Something that is driving her to succeed on this case in particular.”

“Sounds like she told you quite a bit. Although, I’m not surprised. You have always had a way with the ladies. Nothing seems to change that.”

Sawyer bit back a frown. His best friend and pack mate meant no harm by referring to his injuries. Facts were facts and Creed liked to call them as he saw them. He didn’t hold back for the sake of pity. Something he’d counted on from his friend.

“What do you think she’s up to?” he asked.

There was a lot going on in his woman’s mind right about now, but he didn’t feel the need to share all of those details with Creed. He didn’t have to. While the scent of Penelope’s arousal had dissipated quite a bit since her departure, it still clung to the air like a thick sweet fog reminding him of what she meant to them.

“I think we have bigger problems than what Agent Bishop is up to with her investigation,” he admitted.

“What do you mean?”

Sawyer shoved his hands in his pockets and steeled himself for the storm.

“I think she’s my mate.”

Creed turned and glared at him. “Are you for real?”

He shrugged. “Well, I don’t have a lot of experience with this.”

His friend laughed. “Are you kidding me? I’ve never seen anyone get laid more than you. You’ve been buried in women for as long as I can remember. So what happened with this one? She turn you down and that throw you for a loop?”

Anger surged through Sawyer’s veins. “What the fuck, man? I tell you I’ve found my mate and you want to make jokes about my past?”

“What the hell am I supposed to think? You were given a simple but important job here. All you had to do was turn on the trademark charm and convince this chick there wasn’t anything new to be found out here. We just needed her to let it go.”

“You sound like the three D’s. You kissing up to them now?”

It wasn’t his intention to be an asshole to his best friend, but fuck, of all people he had hoped for a little serious support.

“Damien, Diego and Dante are our alphas. You forget that already? This chick really must have you all twisted up.”

“Fuck you, dude. I thought you’d understand. You have a mate and she’s human too.”

“Yeah, but she ain’t the FBI chick who’s come sniffing around our island. Do you know how much trouble this could cause?”

Some of the wind blew out of Sawyer’s outrage. While Creed’s disapproval sucked, it wasn’t exactly misplaced. Getting involved with an FBI agent during an active investigation, or hell, any time really did have trouble written all over it. Eventually, he’d have to tell her the truth and that would put the entire pack at risk. More than that, it could risk their entire species.

Although realistically, how long could they keep their secret. Forever? He internally scoffed. Not friggin likely. Especially with those hunters always butting in their business. The holier than though zealots were getting worse. Some of them seemed downright unhinged. That didn’t bode well for anyone.

“This really is the worst timing,” Creed said. “The Deception Falls ambassador arrived today.”

Sawyer looked up. “Ambassador? What the hell? Since when do those backwoods bears start using fucking titles?”

Creed bent double with laughter. “Right?! That’s exactly what I said. About got myself in hot water since I’m pretty sure that big brute overheard me.”

“Oh shit!” Sawyer grabbed his stomach he was laughing so hard.

A few moments later their laughter died and they both sobered.

Creed looked him in the eye. “This mating with an FBI agent isn’t going to fly right now. We’ve got to catch these hunters and we can’t do that until we get the Feds off the island. And now the bears are getting involved.”

“Yeah, why are they here?” If there was one thing Sawyer understood above all else, it was that their pack liked to keep to themselves. Getting involved with other shifters was a sure-fire way of drawing way too much attention.

“This faction of hunters is growing more than we thought. They’re more organized than ever and they’ve got groups all over the state. The ambassador says that a couple of their bears have gone missing and are presumed dead. It’s getting ugly. So they’re here to help us handle our situation in the hopes that if or when they need us, we’ll reciprocate.”

“And our alphas are okay with this?”

Creed shrugged. “It remains to be seen. Although Diego encouraged our visitor to return home and keep watch over his family, I think there is some concern.”

“We need to take these asshole hunters down. They’ve come too close. And they’ve caused a lot of damage.”

“Preaching to the choir, brother. I’m ready. But if the Feds are here then our hands are tied. We can’t have witnesses like that.”

Of course Creed was right. Having Penelope here poking her cute nose into pack business in the middle of a war was a recipe for disaster. Hunters had been coming after them for as long as he could remember, but never in these numbers or on this scale of success. The destruction of Club Diablo had left them shocked. But they needed to strike back before the hunters struck again.

“You think the increased activity has anything to do with Alison and Brody?” Ever since Brody, a former hunter, had been bitten and Alison, his sister, sent here to find him things had escalated. The fact they’d both since become part of their pack had not gone unnoticed.

“Probably. Losing family, even family you no longer wanted, is a powerful motivator.”

“Bastards should have learned by now not to mess with us. I think it’s time to send them another message.” He’d been barely holding onto his sanity since the explosion when it came to hunting down those responsible. Diego and Dante had kept him on a short leash until the time was right. Well, the time was never going to be right. Something else would always come up.

“I know what you’re thinking.”

Sawyer turned to Creed. “Maybe you do. Doesn’t change anything.”

“It does if you think that Fed is your mate. That sure as hell changes everything. A mate is always the priority. So don’t let that need for revenge cloud your judgement. You’ve spent a lot of time focused on making the hunters pay, but when fate steps in she steps in. I just hope you’re damned sure about this. She could be dangerous.”

Sawyer stared out in the direction Penelope had disappeared into the night. He didn’t think he was wrong. But having clung to the idea of payback for so long, he wasn’t sure he could walk away from that either. His pain he could live with. What they did to his parents not so much. He had a lot to think about.

Time to come up with a plan.