Chapter Seven
Jack just wanted to get his lumber and get back to his shop. Today had been a fucking nightmare. Somehow he woke up more exhausted than the day before. It was a level of exhaustion that caffeine had no effect on.
And it was all Grace Copeland’s fault. The woman would not leave his head. He spent half the night angry about the idiot sleeping outside her house. The rest of the night he was worried.
The other enforcers agreed with Jack that the increased activity from violent rogue wolves was something to be concerned with. They did not agree with the fact that Jack thought it was suspicious that a random wolf from another territory was willing to guard one of their women. Hell, Derek vouched for the guy. Apparently they knew each other and “That’s just the kind of guy Dane is.”
“You want me to have the boys load this wood up into your truck?” Elliott Johnson asked sending Jack back to the real world. The man was nearing his eighties but still ran his lumber mill with an iron fist. It wasn’t a large mill. It couldn’t compete with the corporate mills on the other side of the mountain but they bought local and kept their practices ethical. That made all the difference to Jack.
“Yes, sir. I’ll bring the truck around and help them.” Jack went outside and froze in his tracks. There, on the wind, was Grace’s scent. For a second he wondered how it had ever filled him with dread. It was one of the most appealing smells he had ever experiences. “Actually, Mr. Johnson, could the boys load this one? I’ve got to run an errand.”
Elliott snorted. “Pups and their ridiculous ideas about mating. Back in my day you met your mate and that…”
His voice faded as Jack rushed towards Main Street. Not once did it cross Jack’s mind that he was behaving like a maniac. He didn’t stop to think about the fact that he was the one to reject Grace. The only thing Jack was thinking was that Grace smelled good and that he had to see her.
Her trail picked up at the fabric store. She wasn’t there at the moment. Next, she’d gone to the hardware store. Jack caught her coming out of the bakery.
“Hello Jack, are you here to yell at me some more?” Her hands went to her hips.
Tiny wisps of blonde hair curled around her round face. The cold air turned her cheeks pink, drawing Jack’s eyes there only to have them dip to her plump lips. She wasn’t wearing any makeup leaving her lips a delicate, flirtatious pink.
“Jack,” Grace said impatiently, “what do you want?”
“You.” The word left his mouth before he could think, startling him. By Grace’s gasp it shocked her too. But that shock quickly morphed into anger. “I want you to forgive me.” Jack quickly added. It was a bullshit save.
“Yeah well, after that stunt you pulled last night it might take more than just a half assed apology in the street.” Grace shook her head.
Jack didn’t feel sorry for hounding Grace at Miller’s. He did feel sorry that Grace was wary around him now. He felt sorry that she had stopped smiling at him. He missed her smile. “I just want things to go back to the way they were. Forgive me.”
The fight went out of Grace. Her shoulder slumped as she sighed. “There’s nothing to forgive. You didn’t want a mate. You made that obvious from the start I just ignored it. It hurt,” she admitted, “but I’m actually really glad it happened.
“The last year had been one of the most humiliating experiences of my life. Having the whole town take your side really opened my eyes to who my friends are.” A sad, sweet smile curved her lips. “Give me a few weeks to get over it and I’ll probably thank you.”
Grace put her hand on Jack's shoulder before sliding past him. Jack watched her get into her car completely confused. What the hell did she mean by the whole town siding with him?
Walking back to his truck he dialed Paul’s number. That man was the most sociable person in town. People opened up to him when he smiled at them. He knew all of the town gossip. Paul would know what Grace had meant.
“What?” Paul barked.
Jack pulled the phone away from his ear and stared down at it. Paul never bit at people. “Who pissed in your cereal?”
Paul snarled through the phone. “Do you actually need something or are you just calling to be cute?”
Wow. Jack was not going to tempt fate by asking what Paul’s problem was. “Woah, yeah I wanted to know if the town got involved in this thing between me and Grace.”
Paul snorted. “You’re kidding me right? The ever so helpful citizens of Black Bird are the reason you’ve only run into Grace half a dozen times in over a year.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Come one,” Paul’s disbelief was obvious, “how did you not notice? You didn’t think that it was strange that you never saw a woman who was actively stalking you?”
“I was always one step ahead of Grace.” That’s what Jack figured.
“Please, that woman was meticulous. If not for the nosey neighbors of this town she would have caught you at every turn. Hell, they went out there to keep you two apart. When that huge storm blew through Grace had a few windows break. You were free but Robert Martin told her you were booked. Of course everyone else really was too busy so there was no one available to replace her windows. We only realized what had happened when Derek saw her trying to install new windows by herself two weeks later.”
Jack could not believe it. He had gone to Robert and specifically told him to let people know that Jack would help repair storm damages free of charge. He would have helped Grace no matter the personal shit between them.
“Then there’s Pearl Pierce,” Paul snarled. “She has been praying for an opportunity like this to come around for three decades.”
“What opportunity?” Jack knew what the guys said about Pearl. He could see the conniving side of her but she was sweet to Jack.
“An opportunity to screw over a Copeland. Grace’s mom was Pearl’s son’s fated mate but she threw him over for a human. And oh,” Paul sang, “that threw a wrench in Pearl’s plans for her son and the town. Getting the chance to deny Grace her mate was some kind of cosmic justice for Pearl.”
A pit formed in Jack’s stomach. He hated to but he had to ask. “What did she do?”
Paul chuckled softly, “The bitch got crafty. I’ll give her that. She planted misinformation that had Grace running around town. She got her minions to crow it from the town square when you took someone home from the bar.” Jack blushed at that as the horrible feeling in his gut grew. “And the general consensuses that she put dye in a laundromat dryer Grace was using. But no one can prove that one.”
“Where do you hear this shit?” He really hoped no one was telling tales about the few women he’d taken out since moving to town.
“Man, you would not believe the stuff you hear sitting in a kitchen. Those dishwashers gossip.”
“Why didn’t anyone say anything?” It infuriated Jack that the whole town had been trying to influence his personal life. He could not believe that none of the enforcers had given him a heads up.
“We figured you wouldn’t care. They were messing with Grace, not you and she’s used to the whole town fucking around with her.”
“Of course I care,” Jack yelled, “if someone is messing with Grace I want to know.” Just thinking about Peal deliberately making Grace’s life more difficult was getting him riled. He wanted to shift and chase that old bitch through the woods. He smiled at the thought.
“Ah,” Paul said in a tone that got in Jack’s last nerve, “I see how it is.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You want Grace. You’ve wanted her this whole time I bet but you’re scared.”
Jack felt the corner of his lip raise. “Stop it with the psychoanalyst bullshit. I do not want Grace.” But he did want her near. And he wanted her to go back to smiling at him.
Fuck, what the hell is wrong with me?
Saying no to Grace flipped a switch in him. He’s gone from actively avoiding her to obsessively thinking about her.
“Hey man, I know what you’re going through. Mates make you crazy.” Paul made a noise that sounded depressing. He’d never said it out loud before but all of their friends suspected that Betsy was his mate. No one knew why he was keeping it a secret but based on that noise there was a pretty good reason. “They unsettle you. It’s like for the first time in your life you and your animal aren’t in synch and that just adds to the problem.”
“I’ve never wanted a mate.” Jack admitted. I don’t want to become something I hate, but I can’t stop myself.” He didn’t want to become his parents. Grace didn’t deserve to live through the hell of his childhood. He couldn’t help himself though. Jack found himself chasing Grace, to hell with his good intentions.
“You don’t know jack shit about Grace Copeland if you think being with her could do anything but make you a better man. Just,” Paul hesitated, “just give it some thought.”
“Yeah,” Jack agreed quietly before hanging up.
He felt uncertain after talking to Paul. The man obviously knew more than Jack gave him credit for and that made Jack feel guilty. Paul was right. He didn’t know anything about Grace. Jack had been plowing forward stubbornly determined that there was only one road to choose. He’d been so determined to not have a mate that he’d made up his mind about Grace the instant their hands touched. God, he was such an ass.
Getting an idea Jack started the truck and drove home.
Grace felt drained and it was barely noon. Dane was back in South Creek for the day finishing another job. She had gotten up early to get a start on her list of things to do. She was planning on painting the front room today but after that baffling conversation with Jack outside of the bakery, she wasn’t sure if she had the energy.
Luckily, Grace had the foresight to tape off everything the night before. All she needed to do was pop the top on the paint and get to work.
Before too long, Grace was forced to open all of the windows and doors to air out the smell. With her super sensitive nose the paint fumes were almost unbearable.
That’s why Grace didn’t smell them when they crept into her cabin. One second she was running a brush along the wall and the next teeth clamped down on her ankle, jerking her back. Grace’s head slammed against the wall before hitting the floor. The impact blackened her vision. The searing pain from her ankle kept Grace from going under.
Blinking rapidly, Grace saw a huge wolf dragging her across the floor by her ankle. She twisted and fought to get free, shredding her muscle under the wolf’s teeth. Her other foot shot out connecting with something hard. The teeth clamped down harder. Grace growled at the pain. She swung her leg and slammed her heel into the wolf’s nose. His mouth popped open.
Scrambling, Grace dragged herself up. Five wolves stood around the cabin. They were dirty with ragged fur. They smelled feral. Rogues.
Careful to not make a sudden move, Grace eased onto her hands. A quick glance at her foot told her she wasn’t running out of here. The wolves waited for her to make her move their bodies quivering in anticipation.
Grace felt time slow down as her heart pounded. She couldn’t fight this many wolves. She would get torn apart. She’d have to run but with her ankle torn apart her only hope was shifting and then somehow sprinting past them.
A black wolf standing right in front of her took a step forward. Thick, foamy ropes of spit dripped out of his open mouth hitting the wood floor. He took another step forward. Sensing their advantage, the other four wolves took a step towards Grace, shrinking the distance between them.
Grace pleaded with her wolf and pulled her animal forward with all of her strength. She felt her bones snap and fur burst through her skin faster than ever before. The change left Grace dizzy. Her body ached from the shift and her ankle was screaming at her.
The entire thing took two seconds. Swaying on her feet, the fur on the back of Grace’s neck stood up. She sensed the wolves tense, about to strike. Looking up, she saw the black wolf midair, launching at her. Ducking to the left, she felt his body pass by her, hitting the wall.
Grace didn’t wait. She burst forward knocking one wolf out of the way. It caught the rogues by surprise but not for long.
She cleared the front door before she heard them chase after her. Knowing Black Bird was too far away Grace sprinted for the woods. If she could keep a lead she might be able to lose them in the forest.
Excited howls called out, too close for comfort. Fear made Grace run faster. A branch smacked her across the fast but she kept moving.
The sound of pounding paws, labored breathing, and growls followed her as she dodged trees and wove through the woods. Her lungs burned.
A flash of fur caught in the corner of her eye. They were right on top of her. Her ankle ruined whatever head start she’d gained.
Two wolves jumped out of the bushes ahead of her. Grace slid to a stop just shy of their waiting jaws. The pair curled their lips into razor sharp smiles. Not taking her eyes off the wolves in front of her, Grace felt the other three circling her, blocking all escapes.
She was going to be torn apart by a Pack of rogue wolves right next to her family cabin. It pissed her off. This was supposed to be her new start, not the end.
The Pack as a group closed in. She bared her teeth feeling as feral as the rogues. If she was going out she was putting up one hell of a fight.
Whirling on the bastard who bit her, Grace threw her body against his. She tore into the flesh under his belly. He twisted, pulling her teeth from his flesh but not before Grace tasted blood. Someone latched onto Grace’s haunch making her yelp in pain. She turned to bite them but they jumped out of range. The instant her attention shifted something slammed into her from the side.
The world flipped as the rogues pounced. They tore into her belly. Grace tried to get up but their bodies were pressing in on her, making movement impossible. She fought and snapped at anything that came close desperate to gain some advantage but they shook out of her grasp.
The rogues were shredding her apart. Blood matted her fur getting into her eyes. She could scent it on the air. Her body was on fire.
Her back leg refused to move. She was trying desperately to get back on her feet. If she could get up she could have a better chance of defending herself. She didn’t want to die on her back.
The weight pressing Grace into the earth lifted for an instant and she sprang to her feet. The world tilted as she tried to stay upright. She spread her paws wide ready to defend.
The rogues weren’t attacking her. They were focused on a large light colored wolf who was shaking the black wolf like a ragdoll. Jack.
He dropped the black wolf diving at one of the two wolves biting his side. Seeing an opening, he wrapped his jaw around one of their bared necks biting down with a deafening crunch.
Needing to do something, Grace slid under Jack’s throat baring her teeth. Half dead, her wolf still sang at the contact. This felt right. Fighting alongside your mate was how it was supposed to be.
A russet colored wolf dove into the melee trying to tear into Jack’s stomach. Filled with renewed energy, Grace snapped at him catching the wolf on the cheek. Yipping, the wolf flinched back leaving fur and skin behind. Grace pushed his retreat, biting down on his ear. The wolf cried out, desperate to get free. Grace shook back and forth as the wolf struggled against her grip. Something landed on Grace’s injured ankle making her cry out in pain and let go of the red wolf. He took his chance and ran for the woods.
Grace whipped around to defend Jack but he was standing alone, panting. At his feet was a dead rogue. As Grace watched he shifted. His body was covered in bite marks and scratches. Under his right arm was a patch of bloody flesh. The blood dripped down his side. His face was granite as he stared down at Grace.
“Shift,” the word was barely human. It grated against her ears. There was so much command behind it that Grace’s body responded before she registered what was happening.
The transformation was agonizingly slow this time. Her bones ground together. She could tell a few ribs were broken. When it was finished she was left covered in sweat on her side. She closed her eyes trying to keep from throwing up. She had nothing left.
Jack stepped next to her. With her eyes closed Grace could feel the fury and lingering violence coming off of him in waves. Grace’s human brain was still playing catch up but in the presence of that much anger her wolf knew what to do. She flopped over and showed Jack her belly.
“Fuck,” he hissed, “what happened to you?” Jack bent down and picked Grace up. She growled softly when her wounds pinched and pulled. “Shh,” Jack cooed, “it’ll be alright.”
Unable to do much, Grace laid limp as Jack carried her back to the cabin. She was drowning in pain but she couldn’t ignore the fact that Jack had saved her life. A few more minutes and Grace would have died.
“Jack, thank you. I would have…”
“Grace, shut up. I am so mad right now I can barely keep my skin. I’m not sure if I want to wring your neck or fuck you senseless and if you open your mouth right now, I will not be responsible for my actions.”
Grace’s mouth hung open. Shutting it with a clip, she nodded settling back into his arms. The rest of the hike was silent. The tension vibrating through Jack never eased.
Jack’s skin was overheated. It felt good. Exhausted, Grace closed her eyes and relaxed into the steady gait of Jack’s path through the woods. Her body wanted to let go of consciousness but she forced her eyes open.
Jack didn’t say a word as he marched up the stairs. He paused at the sight of the entryway. The room was wrecked. A lamp lay broken in a pool of white paint. Grace didn’t remember the lamp breaking or the paint getting knocked over. Splattered across the floor, mottled with the white puddle was Grace’s blood. It was easy to see where the rogue had dragged her across the floor. Jack growled his body expanding, ready to explode into action. Grace opened her mouth to say something but he beat her to the punch.
“Not a word, Grace. Not yet.” He whispered in perfectly clipped words.
Avoiding the broken glass, paint, and blood Jack set Grace on the ratty old couch. His eyes flashed yellow when he saw her ankle. He put a pillow on the coffee table and gently lifted her leg to rest on it. Just as gently, Jack draped a blanket across her body. With a lot less care Jack stomped back out.
Grace slumped against the couch. Any lingering adrenaline left her body. She was empty. Every ounce of strength had gone to running away from the rogues and fighting. She had nothing left.
Without the adrenaline the bites and bruises that covered her body were making themselves painfully known. She tried to get settled into a more comfortable position but groaned when her ribs pulled. Yup, they were definitely broken.
Her ankle bone was still intact but the muscles surrounding it were a mess of red. She would not be walking on that for a day.
Jack walked back into the cabin wearing pants, his phone tucked under his ear. He hadn’t bothered to clean his wounds. Blood caked his chest and abs. Grace wasn’t in so much pain that she couldn’t admire Jack’s toned body.
She’d seen him without clothing a lot over the last year. It would have been hard not to since there were monthly Pack runs but she went out of her way to not stare. Blame it on the fact that her entire body was a throbbing sore, but she was staring now.
In work clothes Jack’s chest stretched the fabric impressively before tucking into narrow hips.
Shirtless, the man was a god. There wasn’t an ounce of fat on him. His tanned skin accented the peaks and valleys on his lean body. His pecs flexed as he reached out to touch something on the wall. The play of muscles drew Grace’s eyes down his flat stomach. Her mouth watered seeing the deeply carved muscles directing her gaze towards the waistband of his jeans.
She gasped seeing his cock push against the denim. Heat rushed to her core. Her wolf gave an appreciative groan.
“Grace,” Jack growled softly. Her cheeks heated knowing he had just caught her staring at his package. There was a playful heat simmer behind his blue eyes. He raised an eyebrow in a “come on” gesture. “As much as I love smelling you getting turned on, now isn’t the time.”
Embarrassed, Grace tried to shrug nonchalantly, “Human Grace isn’t driving right now, sorry.”
Jack opened his mouth to say something but Ben picked up on the other line, “Yeah?”
The playfulness burned away into rage. “Grace was attacked by a group of rogues.”
Ben cursed. “Is she alright?”
“No, she’s not fucking alright. If I had hit one more red light she would be dead.” Ice shot through Grace’s heart at Jack’s description. He said it so casually.
“I’m calling Dr. Jensen. We’ll be there in ten. Did you catch any of the rogues?”
Jack stopped in front of a splash of white paw prints. He bent down to get a closer look. “None that can talk. Four turned tail and ran for the mountains.” Jack clenched his fist.
Ben made an angry noise over the phone. “Ask Grace if she recognized any of them.”
Jack’s body froze. His hand perched over one the rogue’s footprint. The muscles along his jaw tightened until they quivered. His head turned slowly until he was staring right at Grace. Crouched low, he was at eye level with her. If he was angry before, he was furious now.
“Why would Grace recognize them?” Jack asked Ben but the question was directed at Grace. She got the impression, by his challenging tone, that the question was rhetorical.
Ben wasn’t in the room to interpret the physical aspect of the conversation. All he heard over the phone was Jack’s aggressively defiant tone. In reality he was daring Grace to lie but what Ben interpreted as insubordination. “Remember who you’re speaking to, wolf. I am you Alpha and I don’t care how pissed you are. I do not tolerate challenges from my own enforcers. If you’ve got a problem with how I run my Pack then fight me for it. Otherwise, answer the fucking question.”
Jack looked like he wanted to take Ben up on his offer. Claws lengthened from his fingers. He pulled his lip back in a silent snarl before opening his mouth to say something colossally stupid.
“No,” Grace rushed to say before Jack dug himself a bigger hole. “I didn’t recognize any of them. They haven’t been here before.” Not that she had smelled the wolf who had been watching her house the last few nights.
“Did Dane recognize them?” Ben asked, by passing Jack entirely. Jack who looked ready to split his skin at the mention of Dane.
“He’s back in South Creek today.”
“Fucking convenient,” Jack snorted.
Grace ignored him. “I think they were watching the house. Waiting for me to be alone.”
“That might be the case. I’m almost there Grace. We’ll have Dr. Jensen look you over while the enforcers and I check things out.”
“Alright,” Grace agrees as if she had a choice.
Ben hung up leaving Grace to face Jack alone. He rose from where he’d been examining the rogue’s prints. He ignored the evidence that only two minutes ago he had been studying. Jack bore down on Grace with a singular focus. She sank into the couch feeling hunted.
“Want to tell me why you would recognize a Pack of rogue wolves?” He planted his hands on either side of her head and leaned into her space. His body heated the air making Grace hyper aware that he surrounded her. Her wolf wanted her to lean forward and rest her cheek on Jack’s naked chest.
“Pl-please move,” Grace stammered her voice barely audible.
Jack shook his head. “I don’t think so, Grace. It seems to me that the second I leave you alone you manage to find yourself in a heap of trouble.” He bent closer. Forcing Grace to sink further into the sagging couch just to avoid touching him. “The way I see it, you and I are about to get real close.”
Grace melted at the thought even as she rebelled against the idea. “Why?” She hated how breathless she sounded but having Jack pull the dominance card was doing terrible things to her body.
“Because until this is sorted out, I am not letting you out of my sight.”