A few hours later, Nova let himself out Amara’s front door. She stood in the doorway behind him, her arm up over her head, leaning against the wooden frame. He had never seen someone look so amazing and sexy in his entire life.

She was going to be the death of him, he was sure. Ah, but what a way to die.

Grinning like a fool, he moved in to kiss her, lingering long enough to enjoy the sharp scents of sage, jasmine, and lavender from her lotions and shampoo. He didn’t want to leave. It was like the last ten years without ever speaking to her had melted away and he was once again that seventeen-year-old boy staring down at a beautiful girl he was dying to know.

But even then, life was complicated.

Amara wrapped her arms around him, pulling him in close to her. She pressed her lips to the crook of his neck, biting just enough to cause a pin prick of pain.

Nova groaned against her, burying his face in her hair. It was all he could do to keep from saying “responsibilities be damned,” and dragging her back inside with him. But he had to go. As much as he hated to admit it, he’d been away far too long. By now, Nemoy was bound to be looking for him.

Easing back from her, he kissed Amara lightly on the nose. “I really do need to go,” he told her, but even to his own ears, his voice lacked conviction. Suppressing a sigh, he forced himself to take another step toward the sidewalk. Then another. “I’ll swing by the bar soon, okay?”             

Amara’s smile was both shy and sexy at the same time. “I’m holding you to that, handsome.” On the street now, Nova winked back at her, grinning when she blew him a kiss before shutting the door.

He was in so much trouble. He was the Beta of the Mountain Clan Wolf Pack, and now here he was, walking away from the house of the human woman he had fallen head over heels in love with. What had he done?

“Fuck,” he muttered into the early morning air.

“My sentiments exactly.”

Turning on his heel, Nova watched, stunned, as his older brother—not to mention, his Alpha—materialized out of the shadows.

Nemoy stood before him, with his arms crossed, dressed in jeans and a heavy coat. He was glaring at him. “Explain yourself, brother.”

Shit. Nova had enough experience with his brother to recognize an order when he heard one. The problem was, he really didn’t have an explanation. Not even for himself.

“No.”

Nemoy raised a brow, his eyes betraying just the hint of surprise within their stony depths. “No? I’m sorry, I must not have heard you right. Did you just fucking say no?”

Nova could feel the tension rising between them, could feel his Alpha’s wolf form itching to take over and settle the matter per Pack Law. Nemoy was in charge. Every member of the pack knew it. To challenge him was almost certainly a death sentence. And still, Nova stood his ground. “I have no explanation for you, Nemoy. I never have.”

His brother glared at him. “She’s human.”

“I’m in love with her.”

Silence fell between them as they both absorbed the weight and reality of Nova’s words. The tension between the two brothers was palpable. Had they been home, or at least under the cover of trees, they would have been fighting already.

Nemoy grit his teeth. The vein on his forehead began to throb madly, a sure sign he was agitated. “She’s human.”

“I’ve never agreed with your prejudice against humans, Nemoy,” Nova said softly. It was essential he kept his temper under control right then. “You know that.”

“You’ve never violated our laws for a human before, either.”

“No, I hadn’t,” Nova agreed. He was starting to feel slightly ashamed of himself. It was true, he had never broken Pack Law before. He’d never even considered it. The Pack was his life and always had been. And now here he was, throwing away the rules he had followed for the last twenty-seven years; throwing away his family, his position, for a girl. But Amara wasn’t just any girl. She may not be a wolf, but she was the one he wanted, just the same. Nova shrugged off his brother’s arm. “Things change, Nemoy.”

“Nova, don’t do this.” Though Nemoy’s actions were hard and controlling, his tone was surprisingly tame. Almost pleading. “Being with a human, even that one, it’s against pack law. They can’t know about us, Nova.”

Nova frowned. He didn’t want to think about what would happen if the humans knew about the pack. It was common knowledge that they didn’t take to anything different with open arms, and shifters were anything but normal. But Amara hadn’t treated him any differently. In fact, she’d taken it all in stride. It had surprised the hell out of him, to tell the truth. Somehow, he doubted the rest of the town would take so kindly to them.

“Why are we so scared of humans, Nemoy?”

As he knew he would, his brother bristled. “We are not scared.”

“Sure, we are. We live in the woods on our acres of property, isolated from the rest of the population in the area. We don’t come into Strathford to socialize. We only go into town to protect them.” Nova shook his head, dispelling a wry laugh. “We don’t talk to them, Nemoy. We don’t bother to get to know them. They don’t bother to get to know us. There is a very clear divide between them and us, a divide that is going to be our downfall if they ever do find out that there are packs of supernatural people living out in the woods. It will get even more dangerous when they put two and two together and discover that those people shift into wolves. Wolves, I might add, that have been terrorizing this place for the last decade and a half. Don’t you think it would be smarter to quit alienating ourselves from the humans, Nemoy, and try to get to know them instead?”

Stunned, Nemoy just stared at him, his face unreadable. They only emotion Nova could even ascertain was the anger in his brother’s dark eyes. Whatever he thought of Nova’s little speech, he wasn’t prone to share any time soon.

Nemoy glared at him. “You can’t tell the girl, Nova.”

Nova smirked. “She already knows.”

Watching his brother process that one statement was like watching a volcano explode. “Damn it, Nova!” he shouted. Pushing away from him, he started to pace. “That is our number one rule. Don’t tell the fucking humans! What the hell were you thinking?”

Lifting his shoulders in a noncommittal shrug, Nova simply watched him. “I didn’t tell her.”

“What?”

“She figured it out. The other night, when Kal and his buddy went after her, I got hurt. She saw it. Last night,” Nova grinned at the memory, “she saw it again. She’s a smart woman, Nemoy. She can put two and two together.”

The two men glared at each other, neither one daring to make the first move. Finally, Nemoy huffed out a frustrated breath. He scrubbed a hand over his face, then shoved one pointed finger into Nova’s chest. “She doesn’t tell a damn soul, you got it?”

Surprised, Nova’s eyebrows shot into his hairline.

“This is important, Nova.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I got it. But to be honest, I don’t get it.”

Nemoy turned away from him and resumed his pacing. “Look, Nova, I’m not blind. I know you’ve been in love with that girl since you saved her.” Stopping, he turned to look at him, understanding written across his face. “Now that you have her, I can’t take her away. You’re my brother. Just…just make sure she doesn’t tell anyone.” He held out his hand. “Deal?”

Nova couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He just stared.

“Nova?”

Shaking his head, Nova fought to think clearly. Then he shook his brother’s hand, a grin sliding across his face. “Yeah. Uh, yeah. Deal.”