Irvine Baird, you’ve found yourself a mate.

Rolf Wulfric regarded me from across the clearing, his canine smile revealing a row of sharp white teeth. The air between us crackled with tension. We were meeting to discuss the terms of our alliance, and in true Wulfric fashion, Rolf insisted on us both being in our wolf forms. I stepped into the clearing and sat down on my haunches, straightening my back and greeting Rolf as an equal.

His statement didn’t surprise me. Wolves had a sharp sense of smell, and even though the kiss happened two days ago, Willow’s scent still lingered on my skin. If Rolf’s nose was particularly keen, he might even be able to sense the connection between Willow and I, the connection that still sizzled in my veins.

If Caleb had noticed it, he hadn’t mentioned anything, but he was so absorbed in preparations for “the big reveal” that I doubt he even noticed if he was wearing pants. The only reason he remembered to eat was because his fiancée, Rosa, brought him food twice a day.

His distraction was a good thing. I still hadn’t told Caleb about how Willow ken I was a shifter. It was my duty to give him this information, but I held it back. I didn’t ken why.

No, that was a lie. I kept Willow’s secret because her touch still burned in my veins. The memory of her body tight against mine. Her lips wet and hungry. Her dark eyes fierce with desire.

I wanted more of her. Even though she ran away, I hoped there was a chance for us … but there wouldn’t be if Caleb started hounding her. She was clearly terrified of shifters already.

Which was why I didn’t want Rolf to make a big deal about her smell.

It is complicated, I growled at him through the call – the psychic connection that allowed us to talk with each other inside our heads. And I’d appreciate if you kept this news to yourself.

Anything for an old friend. But don’t come crying to me if your pack figures it out on their own. You’re not exactly being discreet. You reek of her, whoever she is. He sniffed again. She might even be your fated mate.

Urgh. I really didn’t need that coming out. Enough about my love life. We need to move to business. Let’s nail this thing out.

Rolf pawed the ground in front of him. I never thought I’d be doing business with Irvine Baird again. Rolf was here in Crookshollow to nail out an alliance with the Lowe pack. Caleb had asked me to deal with it since Rolf and I had a longstanding relationship. Before I’d gotten out of the business, our two packs had controlled much of the drug trade flowing between England and Germany. Now, the few members of the Baird pack who could work had jobs in forestry – we weren’t as rich and powerful as we’d once been, but at least we were no longer responsible for putting more drugs on the streets.

Things are changing, I replied. This is just the beginning. When we go public with this, things will nae be the same again.

You’re telling me. If we decide to publicly stand with you, we’re going to have to clean up our act, or the minute this breaks, they’ll just toss us all in das Gefängnis.

Are your alphas prepared to do that? I asked. The Wulfric pack was enormous – hundreds of shifters spread across Germany and Eastern Europe. They had an extremely sophisticated hierarchy system – with the entire pack split into smaller bands, each ruled as an independent entity by an alpha who claimed a seat on a pack council. It was this council who decided major issues and dispensed justice within the pack. The Wulfrics were evidence that shifter society could benefit from structure and laws and regulations, and it was one of the key reasons Caleb was so keen to have them on board. Unfortunately, since the Wulfrics had earned their vast fortune through largely illegal means, they would need to make some serious changes or they’d become a target for human opposition.

Rolf grinned, showing a row of sharp teeth. The Council have all sorts of plans. With shifters in the limelight, there’s more money to be had by legitimate means. The rich will pay a pretty penny to employ our wolves as bodyguards, and that’s just the beginning.

Despite myself, I felt a grin tugging at the corners of my own mouth. This was almost too easy. If we had the Wulfrics behind us, other influential packs would soon follow. This thing could actually happen. I could actually keep my promise.

So we have an accord?

Not quite yet.

Damn, I ken it was too easy.

We’re behind you, and we’re prepared to back you with as many wolves as you need when you make your assault on your Parliament. Rolf’s eyes glinted. I must admit, I am excited at the prospect of storming the House of Lords.

Trust a German to get excited about storming the fortress.

But? I pushed him.

But the alphas want to make sure our interests are represented. If we scratch behind your ears, you have to scratch ours.

What exactly did you have in mind?

It is simple. If we help you, you in turn will help us negotiate with the German government. And possibly the European Union. We can’t have you getting distracted with what’s going on here in England. You need to commit the wolf power to our cause, or we won’t commit to yours.

Caleb and I had predicted this. As the respective alphas of our packs, it was exactly the demand we both would have made. I gave Rolf our prepared answer. Provided our power is secure in England, we will commit a force of two hundred shifters from across the Lowe pack and their allies, including the Bairds.

We didn’t actually have two hundred allies yet, but Rolf didn’t need to know that. Besides, if we had the Wulfrics on board, I ken at least two other packs that would sign on.

That’s good, but it's not enough. We want to use the ring.

Shite. I hadn’t expected that. The Benedict Ring, which we also didn’t have yet, possessed untold power. We ken very little about it except that it had been used for hundreds of years to persuade governments and people in power to alter the course of history. Until we found it, we wouldn’t understand what it could do, or how it could help us. I didn’t ken if we should be handing out the ring for everyone to wield, especially not a pack that was several times our size.

And by that, Rolf added, I mean the real ring, not that fake one Caleb’s been flashing around.

Double shite. Caleb wore a fake copy of the ring around his neck, and he’d spread the word that we had the ancient power behind us. Caleb’s mother and I were the only people outside Caleb’s pack who ken it wasn’t real.

How did you—

Easy. I followed Robbie to the library the first day I got here. He was looking up old records, and I figured out what he was looking for. I thought to myself, now why would the Lowes still be looking for the ring if they already had it in their possession? Rolf gave me a smug look, kenning he’d pulled out a trump card. If we backed out of the deal, he could tell any of the other packs the ring was fake, and the whole thing would be over.

I cannae agree to let you use the ring. I dinnae have that authority. I’d have to speak to Caleb.

You do that. Our agreement is contingent upon being able to wield the ring. And I want a title.

Aye?

A title, he repeated. You know, some kind of official government thing. I’d like to be a Lord. Or a Duke. The Duke of Wulfric has a nice ring to it.

I dinnae ken if you can be a Lord without actually being English.

Rules are made to be broken, Baird. Rolf bared his teeth even wider.

I barked. Rolf was crazy, but he’d make an excellent ally. We touched our paws to each other, sealing our terms.

Once I get Caleb’s answer, it will take us a few days to iron out the agreement, I responded. Will you remain in Crookshollow?

I’m planning to stay indefinitely, Rolf replied. My pack wants me to remain here to ensure our needs are represented. I’ll be working directly with you on all matters concerning the big reveal. Since Caleb has said I’ll be staying at The Prim, I’ll begin by helping that moronic halfwit you have in charge of locating the Benedict Ring.

Dinnae speak about Robbie like that, I growled.

Rolf continued as though he hadn’t heard me. Did you see the latest news? That crazy Werewolf Watch lady is doing another article on the Daily Post about Robbie’s idiotic stunt at the wedding. Rolf shook his head. That guy is a complete fool. He nearly destroyed our chance to do this thing right.

I tried not to think of anything loud enough for Rolf to hear. Secretly, I agreed with him. Robbie didn’t seem to be the ideal choice for the task of locating the ring. Both he and his brothers had a similar upbringing to me, which meant he wouldn’t have had much, if any, schooling.

But Caleb had given Robbie the job. The Lowes were my allies and I couldn’t badmouth another alpha’s choices, especially not in front of such a vital ally. That wasn’t the way to create a new world for all shifters. Some things were more important than what I thought of some of Caleb’s decisions.

Besides, the lady who ran the Werewolf Watch site was nuts. No one took her seriously, even if she did stumble upon the truth on occasion.

Rolf grinned again. Fine, don’t engage. Your silence confirms your agreement. Robbie is an idiot. I don’t know how he ended up mated to that firebomb, Bianca.

Wow, Rolf had got that wrong. They’re nae mated. Their marriage is fake. Some old relative of Bianca’s died and left her The Prim on the condition she married a man, and Robbie volunteered.

Open your eyes, Baird. For a fake marriage, they sure did take their wedding night seriously. You’re not the only one around here getting your piece of tail.

Interesting. Rolf seemed to be saying that Bianca and Robbie were together. Good. Robbie had wanted Bianca for so long, and it was hard to watch your mate shag her way through Crookshollow, oblivious to your connection.

I ken a little of what that felt like.

Shit, there went my mind, straight back to the night of the wedding. Willow’s lips pressed against mine, dark curls spilling over her shoulders. Her hands clutching the back of my head, her eyes begging for more—

Nice. Rolf’s voice thundered through my ears, destroying the image. She’s damn fine.

Stay out of my head, I growled.

Make me, Baird.

Rolf and I parted ways, agreeing to meet the following night after I’d discussed his terms with Caleb. He headed back toward his car, and I circled back through the forest toward my cabin, a whirlwind of thoughts churning in my head.

Overrunning the House of Lords. Backing up the Wulfrics in the German government. Petitioning the EU. Press conferences. Campaigning for shifter rights … the gravity of what we were attempting weighed heavily on me. For the past five years, I’d been caught up in the idea of a better future for shifters. But now that it was actually upon us, I hadn’t given much thought to what it would take to build that future. We were so close, but there was so much work left to do, and only a few of us had the vision to see this through.

The fact that the Wulfrics were willing to give up their entire operation to make this happen showed me how vital our goal was – not just for me, not just because of my own selfish reasons, but for every shifter. Every one of us had a story like mine; a reason why going public about our existence would bring us new opportunities, and save the lives of countless shifters and humans.

As my paws padded against the soft earth, my father’s face flashed in front of my eyes – his fur matted with blood, one paw dangling in the air. His eyes, usually narrowed with malice, were wide and glassy as he stared unseeing at the cold moon.

The vision changed, and now it wasn’t my father, but Willow who stared up at me with those cold, glassy eyes. Her body lay in the dirt, twisted at a horrible angle. A deep slash from an animal’s claw marred her beautiful face.

As long as shifters live in secret, I am putting Willow in danger.

Something she said at the wedding came back to me. “I’m not going to reveal your secret. I know more than anyone how important it is that you wolves stay hidden.” I didn’t understand why she thought that. Surely she’d want the world to ken the injustice that had been done to her?

But I didn’t ken, because I didn’t ken Willow. She was still a mystery. A delicious, beautiful, wonderful mystery.

Now that I’d found Willow, I wanted nothing more than to drop everything and go to her. I wanted to spend a week in bed with her, learning every inch of her gorgeous body. I wanted to ken her mind, to hold her heart, to ravish her body until she begged for more.

But if I did that, I’d be giving up on what we were doing here. I’d be turning my back on my pack, on Caleb and his pack, on every shifter across the world who’d been forced to become the monster. We were so close, but I had to give everything I had if we were going to make this happen.

But I couldn’t. Not when my mind was on those sweet lips and that gorgeous ass.

Here I was, talking shite about Robbie being a liability, when I was the biggest liability of all.

Even today, when I was with Rolf, my mind wasn’t on the game. I’d slipped so bad that he’d seen Willow in my mind. What if he wasn’t an ally? What if he was one of the shifters opposing the reveal? My distraction would not only jeopardise the entire operation, it would put Willow in danger.

I can’t afford any distractions. The shifters have to be more important.

It was the right thing to do.

Now I just had to get Willow Summers out of my head.