“Are we taking your bike again?” Clementine accepted her sword from Bryce and he turned to lock the door.

“Truck today.” He glanced over his shoulder, his green eyes were bright in the early morning light. Although new shades sat in his shirt collar, he’d agreed to leave them off while it was just the two of them. “You need to be able to drive and get away should things go wrong today.”

Her nose bunched at the thought. There was no doubt in her mind that she could handle the exhole. But she had to protect more than herself now—she had to protect Bryce too. The thought of something going wrong no longer filled her mind with images of Grant hurting her—but of hurting her mate.

Mistaking her silence, he slipped his arm around her waist, his movements still a little hesitant but full of affection. “Let’s meet up with Rae at the Agency and then dispatch the exhole. After that, I’ll make it up to you and we’ll go shopping for your very own motorcycle.”

She bounced on her toes. “I want one that’s purple and sparkly.” Oh, she’d make that bike look good. And later, once she’d fully grown her ass back out, she’d make leather chaps look real, real fucking good.

Grinning to herself, she didn’t notice Bryce’s sudden tension until the slack in their arms tugged her back to his side.

“What’s wrong?” She asked, following his gaze around to the front yard. Bright coral feathers decorated the lawn. “Huh. Looks like someone killed Big Bird’s cousin. Shame, it’s such a pretty color. It reminds me of the robe I gave Teddy—”

Her heart stopped and she was dimly aware of Bryce slinging his arms under her shoulders to hold her up.

“Deep breaths, mate. Steady, now.”

“He’s got Teddy!” The shrill edge to her voice cut her vocal folds, but she pushed past the pain. “That fucking bastard took my dad!” She clutched at her sword, but even the weight of it couldn’t bring a feeling of power back. Grant had her daddy. He had one third of her entire world at his mercy and there wasn’t a fucking thing she could do to end the nightmare and wake up right then and there.

“Clementine.” Bryce tucked her up against his side and she let him hold her, let him support her while she reeled in pain. He lifted his phone to his ear, pinning in place with a shoulder before returning that hand to once again soothe along her back.

“Rae!” He barked. “Grant took Teddy—”

Her shifter hearing heard Rae’s response, but she was talking too fast and Clementine was too stunned to follow. It was Bryce who filled her in once he shoved his phone away and swiftly guided her up into the truck. He tucked her sword behind her seat and then buckled her in.

“Charlie is fine. Grant nabbed Teddy when he slipped out of the hotel to grab coffee. I take it he frequents the Black Bean café often?”

“Almost daily,” she replied in a voice still not quite her own.

“Any other case, I’d say Grant was going to use Teddy as ransom.” Even with her sitting in his truck, he was still taller than her and he filled her vision. The puckered pink marks of her bites teased at the edge of his shirt collar, bringing a bit of gravity to her body and pulling her back down from outer space. Her focus sharpened and dissolved the black at the edge of her consciousness. Bryce continued gruffly. “The feathers tell me that Grant’s trying to bait you and lure you out.”

“But why?”

“Well. Because he’s a dick, Clementine. You proved to him you could outwit him and escape his trap. So he has to one up you now and prove he can hurt you.”

“He’s not just a dick. He’s a prick. That’s the worst kind of dick.” She scrubbed her face, searching for the buzz of little sleep and great sex energy that she’d woken with. “What am I going to do?”

“You’re going to use that sword and kick his ass.”

Clementine laughed. His confidence in her pumped a fresh wave of adrenaline through her. She nodded firmly. “Okay.”

“And then you’re going to turn him over to the wolverines.”

“Wait, I’m going to do what now?”

Her question went unanswered for the short time it took for him to cross around the truck and climb into his seat. She stared at him expectantly.

“Instead of trying to track down the exhole, Rae brokered a deal with the wolverines last night. They get Grant and in exchange, they leave you the hell alone.” She started to protest but he held a finger up. “And they don’t care if you poke him a bit with the sword first.”

She pumped her fist. “Alright! So now we just need to find him.”

“Already done. The wolverines found him. They’re telling us where he is in exchange for getting a chance to watch you kick his ass.”

Clementine blinked. “I’m dreaming, aren’t I?”

Bryce chuckled and guided her hand to his mouth. He pressed a kiss to her palm and her insides melted through to the floorboards. “I’m going to get so turned on watching you and your sword. I hope that’s not a problem.”

“Oh, it’s a big problem. Huge. One that I will give my full attention to as soon as Teddy is safe.”

“You leave Teddy to me. You focus on Grant and Grant alone. Everyone else is my problem, okay?”

Instead of answering his question, she grinned out at the pink of dawn kissing the tops of the trees. “We make a great team.”

“We do.”

“We’re going to have some badass kids.”

The truck swerved a fraction over the centerline but only because Bryce was looking at her like she was the single most wonderful thing in the world. And wasn’t it delightful to know that for him? She totally was.

The exhole had little imagination when it came to secret hideouts. A private airstrip sat on the outskirt of town and couldn’t have been used in over a decade for its intended purpose. The asphalt was a shattered background for the jungle of weeds growing through every crack. The old airplane hangar stood like a toothless architectural zombie. Rust poured from its eaves, as red as blood and just as disturbingly macabre. Several metal sheets were missing and the gaping holes sat black and lifeless. So imaginative, no, but Clementine had to give him credit. It certainly had mood.

Bryce said something as they approached the gate, but Clementine couldn’t make it out. The giant monster truck in front of them made a stupid amount of noise as its big fat tires ate up the ground. She shot it another lusty look. If it hadn’t of been the big stinky wolverines driving it—and their predatory aversion to Bryce even with his shades back on—she’d have wanted to ride in it.

The padlocked gate was getting closer. The wolverines sped up and their truck blew through the fence like a breeze through a dandelion.

Clementine leaned towards Bryce and yelled. “So maybe we should have one of those trucks someday?”

He laughed. “Whatever you want, pretty girl.” His foot hit the gas, keeping pace with the monster truck as they cruised down the deserted strip before screeching to a lurching halt in front of the hangar.

Immediately wolverines from the monster truck and those who’d followed further back in ancient Broncos and old military Humvees swarmed around the outside of the building.

Clementine jumped out of Bryce’s truck and pulled her sword out, letting the sunshine kiss the blade. Bryce caught her hand and tugged her along. He held another sword in his other hand. Rae and Nico were already yanking one of the hangar’s oversized doors down the rusted slide.

One of the wolverines knocked his cinder block of a fist against the metal. “Listen up. Our beef is with Grant Halliday. If you are not Grant Halliday, walk away now and you leave unharmed. But once we enter this building, anyone and everyone is subject to the wrath of the wolverines.”

Clementine tugged Bryce down to whisper in his ear. “I like his style.”

Twenty men slowly shifted out of the shadows of the building, coming out onto the asphalt with their hands raised. Clementine gave a finger wave to Grant’s brothers and one flipped her the bird.

She snickered when a wolverine slammed his fist across his face. The rest of the squirrels parted like buckshot, taking off for the woods beyond the airfield.

Her laughter only lasted as long as it took to reach the threshold. The building’s shadowed interior swallowed her and she gripped her sword tightly on one side and Bryce’s hand on the other. They followed the silent wolverines who fanned out, creating a large circle.

At the center stood the exhole and at his feet lay a bound and gagged Teddy. His bedraggled appearance was alien—Teddy had never had a wrinkle in his life. Clementine’s fury festered, erupting in an evil grin. It was time for the exhole to pay for his crimes.

“Just like a woman to bring a bunch of men to hide behind.” Grant sneered at her. A gun dangled from his hand. At least he wasn’t stupid enough not to realize he was seriously outnumbered, even in the gloom surrounding them his brow glistened with a nervous sweat. But once again, he saw the other men as the threat—not her. She couldn’t wait to educate him on the truth of the matter.

Bryce left her side and approached Grant confidently, ignoring the gun tipped at his chest. “I’m just here for Teddy. And the wolverines? They’re going to collect their debt from you, but first, Clementine’s got something to settle with you.” He yanked the gun out of Grant’s hand and thrust it behind his belt before shoving the hilt of the sword in its place. “I’d say good luck, but not even luck could save you from her.” He scooped Teddy up into his arms and turned back.

Grant stared at the sword in his hand then looked at the wolverines surrounding them. “You’re joking, right? You want me to fence with her? She’s a klutz—she’s never come close to beating me before!”

Grant’s focus on the other males just pissed her off further. “Oh, yeah. That’s totally true. You did win.” She rolled her shoulders. “I had to let you or we both know your delicate ego would’ve collapsed under the strain.”

He tipped his sword and a haughty sneer at her. “I’m going to enjoy proving you wrong, little girl.”

Clementine was faintly aware of the wolverine’s cheering her name, but her sole focus was the exhole and the glint of his sword. In true Grant style, he attacked swiftly and with too much power and too little control. She clapped his sword to the side and his arm swung with it. She giggled under her breath when she whacked the blunt edge of her blade against his exposed ribcage.

Grant drew back. Rage boiled black in his eyes. And it was the rage that carried him towards her again. He pressed hard, driving his thrusts with a wild aggressiveness. Clementine calmly parried each move, using only what strength she absolutely had to. He stumbled over his own feet and paused, breathing heavily.

“Are you having fun yet?” She asked.

“Fuck you.” Grant spat at the floor and lifted his rapier again.

“Yeah, me neither. This isn’t half as much fun as I’d imagine it would be. Mostly because you’re a sloppy mess.” In the distance, Bryce’s low laugh rumbled and the hair at the back of her neck stood on end. She searched him out, her heart melting at the sight of him still holding Teddy. She wasn’t just going to buy a purple sparkly motorcycle with him as soon as this was all over, she was going to spend the rest of her life with that man. She looked back at Grant and for the life of her, she couldn’t remember why she was dragging this out.

“Okay. I’m done. He’s all yours wolverine friends!” Clementine turned back towards her mate. Bryce would let her teach him how to fence. And he wouldn’t hold back or need her to play down her skills.

Something disturbed the air behind her and Bryce shouted a warning, but she was already mid spin, sword at the ready, blocking the downward thrust of Grant’s blade. Her arms screamed in agony, echoing the shrill scrape of metal on metal.

Grant snarled, elbows bent out as he forced his height over her, seeking any advantage he could.

“That was a low blow even for you, exhole.”

“Bitch.”

“Oh, it’s like that, is it?” Clementine drew a tight, fast circle with her blade, wrenching Grant’s from his hands. It clattered across the old concrete pad and she smiled at the sudden spark of well-placed fear in his eyes. “Finally,” she sighed, then drew back and punched him, sending him sprawling at the feet of a waiting Wolverine.

Clementine turned back towards her family. Now that it was safe, Nico and Rae were leading a frantic Charlie in. He rushed to Bryce and Teddy, wrapping them both up in a hug. Her mate shuffled on his feet, but held steady, holding Teddy up for Charlie to inspect and fuss over. And then her dads seemed to notice at the same time that Bryce had two claiming marks. And then they fussed over Bryce, beaming with paternal pride.

From rogue wolf to mate and son in one night. She couldn’t imagine how the drastic change must feel to him, but when Clementine looked at him, all she saw was a man who’d finally found his home. She saw a rogue wolf discovering his true tribe.

She saw her future.

Bryce tore his eyes away from Teddy and Charlie long enough to look for Clementine. He found her watching him, her eyes glowing with an emotion that made his throat grow tight. She started to jog towards him and his pulse sped up, keeping a painful pace.

A large bodied wolverine stepped in front of her, blocking her path. Fear tingled up the back of his neck and he forced his wolf back down, keeping the animal from shredding out and attacking the other predator. Clementine still had her sword and if that wolverine was stupid enough to come at her while she was armed then he deserved whatever he had coming.

But the wolverine held out a piece of paper and Bryce watched in stunned silence as Clementine gave him an autograph. Then she handed him her sword and he flexed it in the air. She stepped under his other arm and smiled in a camera another shifter held up. Two more wanted autographs and a dozen others wanted pictures. Clementine was gracious towards them all, her smile genuine and interested.

“Our girl has never looked happier,” Teddy said. Bryce tipped his chin down to look at the man still in his arms. “And two bites? She’s so dramatic.”

Charlie chuckled. “Says the man being carried around like a diva.”

Teddy shushed his husband and curled his arms tighter around Bryce’s neck. “Welcome to the family, son. Give me a kiss then go to your mate.”

Even after an adventurous night with Clementine, physical affection wasn’t something second nature to Bryce. But he knew deep down that this was the family he’d been born for. They were all perfect together because they were all a little bit squirrelly and Bryce wouldn’t have changed anything for the world. So he kissed Teddy’s forehead before easing him to his feet, then accepted Charlie’s brief, tight hug.

He moved towards Clementine and his heart swelled when she matched him step for step, meeting him in the middle, her arms already open wide for him. With very little effort, he swept her up against him and kissed her. Maybe it wasn’t second nature, but it sure as fuck was damn good.

“Did you see me hit him?”

“Mm-hmm. How’d that feel?”

“Remember when I smashed your glasses?” She wiggled his nosepiece with a finger.

“Ah, yes. Good riddance to bad rubbish. Annihilation and adrenaline.” His blood pumped a little harder remembering her wicked delight. “You’re amazing.”

“The rest of the world looks at me and sees a crazy harpy. You look at me and I get goosebumps on my heart.” She wound her arms around his neck and he picked her up until her feet dangled. “Don’t ever change Bryce McCabe. I want this wolf just as he is. Forever and ever.”

“We’ll make a deal. I’ll always be me. You’ll always be you.” His throat tightened but he forged on in a husky timbre. “And we’ll always love each other. Agreed?”

Her lips parted and a happy sound fell from her lips. “Agreed.”

Bryce kissed his mate. He kissed her slowly and thoroughly.

And then he loved her for the rest of their lives.