Chapter 14

“You still working on your story?” Zak asked, gesturing to her laptop as he slowly sat down at the picnic table where she’d been parked for the last fifteen minutes enjoying the unseasonably mild day and the very pleasant view of Gage and his pack playing volleyball with their shirts off.

She was never going to get tired of that.

Mac dragged herself away from all that eye candy to turn her attention to her friend. Zak had been out of the hospital for a full ten days, and he still looked beat-up. The swelling around his eyes and mouth had gone down, but it would take time for the bruises on his face and body to heal completely, and he was going to have to baby those broken ribs of his for weeks. She just thanked God he was up and about. Judging by the pile of food on his plate, his appetite was finally coming back, too. That was a relief. He was tall and lanky at the best of times. She was pretty sure he’d lost at least ten or fifteen pounds since Hardy’s goons had beaten the crap out of him.

“Yeah,” she said in answer to his question. “But I’m having a hard time coming up with a story that won’t get Gage and his men into hot water—or me for that matter.”

Zak glanced up from cutting his burger into small pieces. “I can see why you might have a problem with that. It’s kind of hard explaining how the SWAT team came to your rescue on their own, killing Hardy and most of his men before the rest of the DPD even knew where they were.”

“And don’t forget the part about me shooting Patterson,” she added. “I’m pretty sure that little tidbit doesn’t even show up in the official police report.”

He laughed, then winced.

“Sorry,” she said.

He waved a hand at her until he could talk again. “Just a suggestion. I know how much it’d bother you to drop the whole thing and let people figure out for themselves what happened to Hardy, but I think this is a case where the world is better off not knowing the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”

Mac didn’t say anything. Actually, that same thought had been bouncing around in her head for the past few days. There’d be questions, but most people would assume the ruthless business mogul had gotten what he deserved. Would it be so awful if the world didn’t know the details?

“You know, you might be right about that,” she told Zak.

He did a double take before going back to cutting up his burger. “Well, damn. Getting engaged to Gage must be good for you. I never thought I’d hear you agree to drop a story, even if it’s for your own good.”

She grinned, glancing down at the beautiful diamond ring on her left hand. Funny how a piece of jewelry could change your perspective on a lot of things. “He’s taught me there are some things more important than the great and almighty journalistic search for truth.”

Zak nodded as he ate. Then he closed his eyes and groaned in appreciation. Mac couldn’t blame him. Apparently, SWAT held these cookouts at their compound at least once a month, and it turned out that they really knew what they were doing. Xander—the officer in charge of the grill at today’s cookout—had put out a spread worthy of that cute chef on the Food Network. She’d eaten more than her fair share of barbecue as proof.

She put her hands on the table behind her and leaned back, happy to sit there with Zak while she watched Gage run around playing in the sand. He was going to look like a sugar cookie by the time he was done. Not that she minded. She definitely enjoyed spending time with him in the shower getting squeaky clean.

Taking a shower was the first thing they’d done when they’d gotten back to her apartment after the rescue at the hangar that night. Then Gage took her to bed and made love to her until they were both exhausted. When they woke up, they did it all over again. The only time they got out of bed was to get something to eat. Well, that wasn’t quite true. Gage had insisted on leaving once so he could run some mysterious errand.

And when he’d come back, he’d taken her back to bed again, then slipped the diamond ring on her hand and asked her to be his One.

They’d made love, then spent the rest of the day talking about the future. Mac even convinced Gage into shifting into his wolf form again.

He’d looked stunned. “Right here?”

She’d nodded, refusing to let up until he did. Then she’d curled up against his big, furry body and fallen asleep while he’d rested his chin on his huge paws. It had been perfect.

Laughter coming from the volleyball court interrupted her daydreaming. Mac jerked out of her thoughts to see the game breaking up.

“Sure you don’t want to play in the next game?” Gage asked as he swept in and hugged her.

“Nah. My knee’s still a little sore. I’d rather watch anyway,” she said.

“Okay. But if you change your mind, there’s always room for you.” He leaned in to kiss her, groaning softly. “Mmm, you taste good enough to eat.”

“Said the Big Bad Wolf.” She laughed as he nuzzled her neck. “Down, big boy.”

“I’m right here,” Zak reminded them. “My face might be messed up, but I can hear just fine. And if you keep talking like that, I’m going to be ill.”

Mac laughed. She knew she should behave herself because Zak was still recovering, but she couldn’t resist teasing him. “Maybe we can slip off to the operations vehicle again,” she said to Gage. “You know I love all those cameras in there.”

“Okay.” Zak picked up his plate and got to his feet. “I’m going to find another place to eat that’s better for my digestion. See you two lovebirds later.”

Gage chuckled as Zak slowly walked over to join Xander by the grill.

“Keep an eye on Zak, Xander,” she said softly. “I don’t want him wearing himself out.”

Even though the grill was at least a hundred feet away, Xander gave her a nod. There was something to be said for extra-sensitive hearing. Becker, Cooper, and the two team medics—Trevino and Duncan—moved over to join them. Without a word, Cooper plunked down a folding chair, which Zak sank down into without complaint.

Gage climbed up behind her and pulled her back against his chest. “What are you smiling at?”

Mac pulled his arms around her middle and snuggled closer to all that muscle. He was covered in sand, but she didn’t care. “I was just thinking how nice it is being part of the Pack. I hope they don’t get tired of me hanging around all the time.”

“Not going to happen,” he assured her. “Like I told you, you’re one of the Pack now. You’re also a beautiful reminder that The One isn’t just an urban legend. There’s a reason for all the guys to believe they might find the woman who was meant for them—like I did.”

She tipped back her head and kissed him, only to pull away as a thought came to her.

“What is it?” Gage asked.

“I was just wondering if there might be a way for me to help each of the guys find their One.”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Unfortunately, I don’t think it works that way. They just have to keep looking until they stumble across the right woman. Besides, I don’t think my team would appreciate you getting involved in their love lives.”

Mac sighed. He was probably right. Then again, maybe not. She smiled up at Gage. “You sure about that?”

He looked across the yard to survey his pack, who’d all stopped what they were doing to give her their full attention. One by one, each werewolf grinned.

“For some reason, I don’t think your pack agrees,” she said.

Gage groaned. “Why do I think this has the potential to get really messy?”

Mac only laughed and kissed him again.

Order Paige Tyler's next book
in the X-Ops series

Her Wild Hero

On sale May 2015