Jaylon closed the door and snapped on the light. Their room was empty, which meant Becca wasn’t back from her run to the store.

She refused to let him go, saying it didn’t take two people to pick out toothbrushes and deodorant.

He exhaled, scrubbing his face. At least she didn’t bolt after tonight’s revelations. That was something.

Why did Becca hire a matchmaker? Were her reasons the same as his? He told her about his issues with his pack, but he had no idea about her or her Leap or their motivations. However much his body craved Becca, however much her scent drove his wolf crazy, he needed to know.

She used the words political alliance. In what context, though? She didn’t elaborate when she went off on him about her one-night stand thing, and that was the perfect opening to shed light on her reasons.

Did her Leap need money or protection? Or maybe they needed both. If her Leap was so small, what did they have to offer if they were after some kind of pact? Jaylon shook his head. So much didn’t add up.

The door snicked open and Becca walked in carrying more than just a pharmacy bag.

“I wondered what took you so long. Now I see you decided to hit 5th Avenue.” He chuckled from his spot on the edge of the bed.

She put the bags on the desk and shrugged out of her jacket. “You ripped my underwear, so I needed to pick up a few essentials.” Opening one of the bags, she tossed him a package.

“Crew socks? What, no BVDs?” He grinned, turning the package over in his hand.

Lifting his jeans from the chair, she dangled them in front of her. “You liked it so much when I went commando, I figured what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”

Dropping the pack of socks on the bed, he swung his arm around her waist and pulled her down next to him. “What else did you buy?”

“Another skirt and cami for tomorrow,” she replied, tossing his jeans onto the chair again.

Her delicious scent filled his nose and that same word filled his mind. MINE. The certainty of it rocked him and all hesitation about motives vanished.

Jaylon’s wolf pushed. “Good, because this one’s going the same way as your underwear.” Fisting her lace neckline, he shredded her top with a fierce tug, freeing her breasts. He took one nipple in his mouth and swirled his tongue around the puckering flesh.

Becca sucked a breath through her teeth, but stiffened. “Jaylon—” She shook her head and then pushed him down onto the pillow, straddling his hips. “Ms. Wilder said we need to talk.”

He let go of her nipple with a soft pop. “How can I focus on anything when your luscious, half naked body is straddling my cock?” He cupped both breasts, grazing her nipples with his thumbs.

She smirked. “Now I see why your teens are such a handful. Their Alpha has a one-track mind.”

“Only around you.”

“Jaylon—”

Grinning, he tucked both arms behind his head. “Okay, okay. Talk. But maybe what we need is time. Talk and time. So why not stay?”

“Here?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Why not? We can stay in our own little bubble for a couple of days and get better acquainted.”

Becca laughed. “You’re already acquainted with every inch of my body.”

“Not every inch, but I’m working on it.” He nuzzled her.

She considered him, pursing her lips. “Time, huh? Maybe that’s not such a bad idea.”

“Of course, it’s not. I read somewhere the average couple goes on three dates before they hook up.”

“Well, we’re not average.”

He laughed. “No, we’re not.”

Becca chewed on her lip. “Well, we already had the prerequisite lunch date, so why not? Two more days.”

“Three.”

Becca rolled her eyes. “I will have to get back to the Pinelands at some point or my best friend will call out the National Guard, and don’t you have a pack to get back to in Montauk? You’re their Alpha, right?”

Jay snorted. “They can give me three measly days to find a mate.”

“Find?” She raised an eyebrow.

He pulled her down again and brushed her lips with his. “I meant get to know my mate.”

“Then we’d better do this date thing,” she said with a nod. “We might find out we’re incompatible.”

He slid his hands from her hips to her waist, heading for her breasts again. “I doubt that. My cock is like rock every time I look at you.”

She gritted her teeth, trying to keep a coherent thought in her head. “There’s more to compatibility than sex.”

“Right now, I can’t think of a damn thing.”

She climbed off his hips to shrug out of her ruined top, shimmying her skirt to her ankles as well.

His eyes skimmed her full figure. “You’re killing me, Smalls.”

She laughed. “Good. Serves you right. And I love that movie, too. The Sandlot is one of my favorites.”

“What’s your favorite line?”

She slipped under the covers and plopped down on the pillow next to him. “You’re not going to like it.”

Jaylon grinned. “Try me.”

One eyebrow hiked up and she smirked. “You know—if my dog was as ugly as you, I’d shave his butt and tell him to walk backwards.”

He groaned and Becca’s grin widened. “I warned you! Every cat in my Leap loves that line.”

Stripping out of his boxer briefs and t-shirt, he crawled under the covers with her. “So, how do we get past this cat and dog thing?” He turned on his pillow to face her.

“Depends.”

“On?” he pressed with a teasing grin.

“What secrets we keep.”

Jaylon scooted closer until they were nearly nose-to-nose. “And what secrets are those?”

She lifted one shoulder and let it drop.

“C’mon, Bec. How bad could your secrets be?”

“Depends,” she evaded again.

A deep chuckle rumbled in his chest. “I can see you’re going to be a handful when it comes to straight answers.”

She shook her head, letting her gaze rest on his. “My Leap is almost decimated, Jaylon. My father was our Prowl Leader and after he died, my brother took over.”

“As he should. What’s the big secret in that?”

“My brother died two years ago in a raid on our camp.” She took a breath. “We lost half our males in that fight, leaving me as the last of my line.”

“And?”

“My brother’s death made me our Prowl Leader. I’m the leader of my Leap, Jaylon. Same as you being the Alpha of yours.”

He blinked. “I see.”

She leaned on her elbow. “Do you?”

“It’s pretty transparent, Becca. A small, vulnerable Leap with a female leader needs an alliance with a strong clan. After all, you’re the one who made the political alliance comment. I’m assuming that’s why you sought help from Ms. Wilder.”

“In a nutshell, yes,” she bobbed her head. “Why did you contact Gerri?”

He shifted to look at her better. “I already told you.”

“I don’t think so.”

“Are we really playing this he said/she said again? You just mentioned my reason. The trouble with our teens.”

She shook her head, confused. “Why would you need Ms. Wilder to help you with pack teens? It makes no sense.”

“I told you. Role model. We’re a modern pack. Too much so, and our teens have no use for traditions or the old ways. My council thought if we held a traditional scenting ceremony and I mated a shifter woman in a time-honored rite, it would spark interest in our youth.”

“A scenting ritual?” She laughed. “My Leap is provincial compared to yours and we haven’t held one of those in—” she broke off, glancing down at the crumpled sheets between them.

“What?”

She shook her head. “Nothing. I’m trying to remember, that’s all. It’s been that long.”

Jaylon eyed her. “Secrets already, Becca?”

“It’s not a secret. Just an unhappy memory. The last time we held a scenting ceremony, my father died.”

“Bec—”

She shook her head again, cutting him off. “I don’t really want to talk about it, Jaylon. Not yet, anyway.” She put a hand on his cheek. “One step at a time. Okay?”

Not happy, he watched the emotions play on her face as a wall dropped. There was more to this than she let on. Her scent was tinged with a metallic trace that usually hinted at deception.

He shook his head. No. Not deception. More like fear. She was afraid of something and his gut told him it was from her past.

“Becca, if you want this to go anywhere other than us rolling around beneath the sheets, you’re going to have to trust me.”

She nodded. “I know. Trust is not something I do easily, Jaylon.”

He ran a hand over the curve of her hip to her breast. “But this is?”

Her eyes dropped and she shrugged. “Detached sex is one thing. It’s easy when it’s all scent and skin, passion and need. For the longest time, that’s all I let myself feel. When I contacted Ms. Wilder, I didn’t want any part of someone like you.”

His brows hiked up. “Like me? How?”

“An Alpha. Or a Prime. Or anyone who would want to take over. Rule me. Rule my Leap. I wanted someone who was willing enough in bed, but would also leave me alone.”

He exhaled. “I know what you mean. I didn’t want hell on wheels. I wanted a female who would fade into the wallpaper. Someone my council would accept yet was compliant. Someone who wouldn’t cramp my style or give me crap about the way I managed my life, let alone my pack.”

She chuckled softly. “Sounds to me like we both gave Mrs. Wilder the same tall order and she chose to serve us up instead.”

“Expectations.” He chuckled, remembering Gerri’s problem with the word.

“Exactly.” Becca looked at him. “So, what now?”

With a shrug, he cupped her breast again, playing with her nipple. “We face the music with our respective camps.”

“And until then?” She slid her fingers over his chest to his thick member.

“I think we can find a way to pass the time.” He let go of her breast to move his hand between her legs, his fingers spreading her already moistening folds. “No secrets here, right?”

She glided her hand behind his head and nipped his bottom lip. “Don’t be too sure.”

“You’re such a tease.” With a grin, he lifted her, plunging her onto his cock with one fluid move. “Think you can teach this dog new tricks?”

“Meow.”