It was Molly’s light touch on my arm that kept the wolf from coming out. It would have been so easy. I saw what she couldn’t see. Zeke Redmond would hurt her. Angry lust poured through him as he looked at her, licking his lips. He wanted to control her, make her submit to him in the most degrading ways to punish her for standing up to him. My fingers trembled with the need to draw blood. My entire body emitted a low vibration as I stood between them.

Mercy. He would beg for it. I would show him none. But, Zeke got smart at the last second, knowing full well what I was. That was a different problem.

“I’m ready,” Molly said. She stepped in my line of sight as Zeke’s tires squealed and he drove away. She held a cardboard box in her arms, the sides bowed out from the weight of it. I took it from her.

“I brought my own truck this time,” I said. She gave me a wide-eyed look.

“It’s Keara’s dad’s,” I said. “Or was. He passed away a couple of years ago. We don’t use it much, but I figured it would be less conspicuous than me hauling you off over my shoulder.”

A glimmer of desire made her eyes shine. It acted on me just like a drug. Lust poured through me and my cock was already hard just standing this close to her. I had to get a lid on it, fast. The Chief Pack was everywhere tonight. I’d passed two patrol cars on my way in. One of them slowed and gave me a curious look, but they didn’t stop me. Word was, they were focusing on the Langley tragedy. If we were very lucky, they would think the trouble stopped with Brady.

God, my heart tore in two thinking about that poor kid.

“Did you see him?” Molly asked as she slid into the passenger seat. She was already getting so good at picking up my moods. She couldn’t read my thoughts. Someday, if I ever marked her, she would. But pain sparked in her eyes that mirrored my own. Yes, I’d seen what they did to Brady, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell her about it yet.

I’d parked the old Ford pickup one street over. I leaned forward and locked her seatbelt. She gave me a wry smile.

“Sorry,” I said. “I just want to make sure you’re safe.”

She leaned in and gave me a chaste kiss on the lips. Well, I think she meant it that way at any rate. Just that light touch stirred my wolf. We had only just begun the other night. I had so many more things I wanted to do to her if we ever got the chance.

“I’m safe,” she said. “For now.”

I started to drive out of town, happy to put some distance between us and the clinic. It had gotten so I could barely stand pavement beneath my feet or walls surrounding me. I needed the open air and the woods. I knew what that could mean. With each passing day, more of my wildness took root. It was like that for all of us. Well, some of us. Molly kept me tethered to the tamer parts of my nature. Keara did the same for Jagger. For Mac, Gunnar, and Payne, I worried the most. The more feral we went, the easier it would be for the Pack to track us down.

“What was that back there?” She knew I’d evaded her question about Brady and let it go for now. Now it was her turn to be evasive.

“It was nothing,” she said. “Nothing I couldn’t handle, anyway.”

I turned off the highway. In another mile, we’d reach the edge of the woods and would have to go the rest of the way on foot. I had a plan to conceal the truck beneath some fallen branches.

“Molly, it’s no good. You’ve got to be straight with me. I’ll be able to tell if you’re not.”

Her heartbeat quickened. I put a hand over hers to calm her. Then, I drew her palm to my lips and kissed her. I loved how just that little touch sent gooseflesh straight up her arm.

“Bess knows,” she sighed. “I don’t know how deep her knowledge goes, but she knows. She’s got family in local government.”

I dropped Molly’s hand in my lap. Keeping my eyes on the road, I nodded. The Chief Pack had Shadow Springs on lock. It had been that way for over fifty years. The mayor himself was one of the Alpha’s strongest enforcers. He wasn’t in charge though. We’d been trying to root out his top general for months. Jagger had a theory that if we took him out, we might punch a dent into the Pack’s hold on Shadow Springs. He hadn’t yet told Keara about the plan. Evading the Pack and stockpiling supplies was one thing. Going on the offensive was something altogether different.

“Then I don’t want you going back there. I’m serious, Molly. We can’t trust anyone.”

She tapped her fingers against the dashboard. “Normally, I’d agree with you. I don’t know though. She let me leave with the meds, Liam. She didn’t have to. Hell, she could have called the police then and there. She knows it’s her neck in the noose if anyone figures out what I stole.”

I parked the car down a shallow embankment right before the woods got deep. Stepping out, I came around and helped Molly down. It took ten seconds to camouflage the car, then I took her hand and led her toward the cave entrance. Each step of the way, I stalled for time. I didn’t like the risk she’d taken one bit. Bess Kennedy was weak. She couldn’t be trusted. If I had my way, Molly would never leave the caves again. Though I knew that wasn’t fair. There was also no way Jagger and the others would allow it. Not yet.

Once we’d made it through the steepest of the passageways but before branching off to the encampment, I turned to her. I found a lantern we kept near the wall and flicked it on. Molly’s face glowed in the dim light. Her beautiful, brown eyes searched my face. I had to touch her. I had to have the feel of her skin against mine. How I’d made it more than a day without seeing her I don’t know.

“I know what you want to ask me,” she said, giving me a soulful smile.

“Yeah? How’s that?” We had just these few stolen moments before the others would come. I promised the others I wouldn’t try to mark her. I wouldn’t put the others at risk or her. But, now that I had her close to me again and her gaze met mine, I knew I was a fool. Jagger was right. This was too damn hard.

“How much time do we have?” she whispered. My little Molly was too smart by half.

“Not long. Keara convinced them to let us have the night. In the morning, some decisions have to be made.”

“About me?” she took a step back, her eyes filled with despair.

“About a lot of things.”

“Liam.” My name ripped from her throat. She came to me, sliding her hands up my chest. “For now I just want to be where you are. It...hurts when I’m not.”

My heart split in two. It seemed I was destined to live that way the moment I set eyes on this woman. “I don’t want to hurt you. I want to keep you safe. We just have to figure out the best way to do that.”

Molly pulled away. Smiling, she ran a hand through her hair. “And it sounds like the others have decided that’s all going to happen by a committee vote, I take it. I’m not sure how I feel about that.”

“Come on,” I said. “The committee can wait. I want to hear more about what happened with Bess.”

Trusting, she took my hand. I led her down the smooth passageways, deeper underground. Her steps were surer this time. Though she’d only been down to the caves a couple of times now, she was starting to find her way by instinct.

We reached the cavern where I slept most nights. Molly went inside hugging her arms. She blew a hair out of her face and looked up.

“We’re below my trailer, aren’t we?”

I stayed against the wall by the mouth of the cavern, watching her. “How did you know?”

“I could feel it. I could feel you. But Liam, I don’t understand it. You came here before you even met me.”

“I know.” It was really the only answer I could give her. It wasn’t enough. I just knew what I felt.

“Fate. That word Keara keeps using. And the mark on her neck. I wanted you to bite me. Liam, I wanted it so badly. I still want it now.”

She wasn’t asking me. Not yet. But God, just the mention of the mark. I didn’t know if I could be strong enough to deny her.

“I can’t,” I said, hating myself for it. “We can’t. Not now. Molly, if I mark you, it’s forever. At least as long as we’re both alive. It would bind you to me in a way that would make you a target. If the Chief Pack figured it out, they could use you against me.”

“I would never betray you!” Molly’s eyes flashed with fury.

I went to her. I put gentle arms around her. “Of course you wouldn’t. But they’d hurt you knowing I could feel it. Knowing I’d come for you no matter what. And if it came to a choice…” I couldn’t complete the thought. Molly did it for me.

“If it came to a choice, you’d choose me over the others. If you thought you could end whatever suffering the Pack put me through, you’d do it.”

I swallowed hard, letting the look in my eyes be her answer. She reached up and ran her fingers over my cheekbone.

“Then, we can’t,” she said. “No matter how hard it is, you can’t mark me.”

My wolf raged to the surface. Molly saw it in my eyes. I couldn’t take it. I went to the wall and punched it. Blood flowed between my knuckles. It took the edge off the anger welling inside of me.

Molly stayed stock still against the opposite wall, waiting for my temper to ease. Then, she came to me. “But we can...we can be together like we were the other night. Can’t we? Because Liam, I don’t think I can bear not to.”

“Come here,” I said. I took her by the hand and led her to the pallet I kept on the ledge on the far side of the cave. She deserved so much more. She deserved satin sheets with roses on them, champagne and bubble baths. She deserved all the things I couldn’t give her.

“I just want you,” she said, again, proving how connected we already were to each other’s moods. It thrilled me and scared me all at once. I hadn’t told her the whole truth. No, I hadn’t fully marked or claimed her. But, the bond we already shared might be too strong for either of us to turn away from.

“Tell me your dreams, Molly,” I said. “You already know mine.”

“Do I?”

I leaned back and pulled her against me. She fit perfectly in the hollow beneath my shoulder. I smoothed her hair back as she looked up at me.

“I want to find a way to get out from under the Chief Pack once and for all. I want us to live freely. Far from here if we have to.”

“Is there a place? I mean, if you were able to get far enough away?”

I shrugged. “We’d be hunted forever. If we were betas, maybe. We’d pose no threat to other packs in other territories. I think I told you that. But, I think maybe I’d like to try. I think maybe I have a good enough reason to take the risk. There are packs in the north near the Canadian border and through the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. They might be willing to help us. If we could find a way to get there.”

“Would you take me with you?” I looked at her. From the expression on her face, I couldn’t tell if she were asking for herself or just to know my plans. Before I could ask her, she changed the subject.

“Is there a way to defeat him?” she asked. “The Alpha. Keara said he’s older than any Alpha anyone’s ever known. She said she thinks the secret is what he draws from the Pack members he controls.”

“I think that’s true. But no one except his most trusted generals can get close to him. He’s surrounded by lethal Pack soldiers all the time. He keeps them feral. Makes them kill for him. They’ve been in their wolves so long, I don’t even know if they have any trace of their human selves left.”

“God, that sounds awful. They must be in agony. I wish there were some way to help them.”

My Molly. Sweet Molly. Of course she would think of mercy when I could only think of death. Because to live like that would be hell. The only release I could think of was to kill them before they hurt someone I cared about.

Her face darkened as she turned my words over in her mind. “Liam,” she asked. “Isn’t there some way to at least weaken their hold on the Pack? I mean, you keep talking about these generals. What happens if you take one of them out?”

She read the answer in my face. Her breath hitched. “That’s what Keara’s really planning for, isn’t it? There might come a day when you can never go topside.”

I smoothed the hair from her face. “We take it one day at a time. What about you, my love?” I said. She stiffened at the word, then settled back against me. “I asked you to tell me your dreams.”

She smiled up at me. “Well, they’ve changed a bit over the last few weeks. But, I’d like to be able to go back to school. I was saving up to get my D.V.M. Bess even hinted at helping me with that before...before all this. She said she wanted me to be her partner. Now, I just wonder…”

“Wonder what?”

A crease formed between Molly’s eyes. I recognized it now as one of her tells. She was having a stubborn thought. “What the Alpha’s doing to that pack. It’s not natural. If you hadn’t told me that yourself, I can sense it now. Those firefighters at the Langleys, they were...odd...like they weren’t thinking for themselves. They couldn’t make a move without getting some sort of telepathic order. I’d love to study one of them. You know, like in a lab.”

Molly’s mind was a marvel as well as her body. She was my fated mate, but I would have fallen in love with her anyway. And so I told her.

“I love you,” I said. “It’s selfish of me to say it considering what we’re up against. But there it is.”

Molly wrinkled her nose and smiled. The blush I was growing to love so much colored her cheeks. “I was kind of thinking that too. You know...that you love me.”

Laughing, I reached for her and pinched her ass. Not hard enough to cause her pain, but hard enough that she squealed. The sound of it worked on me like a drug, waking my wolf. God, would I ever be able to be near this woman without wanting to fuck her? Part of me hoped not.

“When?” she gasped.

“What do you mean?”

“When does the committee meet?”

“Baby, it’s not really a committee.”

Molly snorted. “I know that. But you’re not a pack. I don’t know what else to call you.”

“Fair point. And I’m not sure. We have some time.”

The heat poured off of her. A fuse ignited inside of me as Molly moved away from me. She stood and slowly lifted the hem of her shirt. Kicking off her shoes, she wriggled out of her scrub bottoms. She was only wearing a bra and panties underneath. She cast a nervous glance over her shoulder.

“We’re alone,” I said, barely able to get the words out. My wolf raged. I was rock hard already. Molly reached back and unsnapped her bra. Her little striptease damn near ended me and she knew it. She flashed me a devilish smile as she dragged her panties down.

I made a move toward her and she put a hand up to stop me. “I’ve been wanting to do this for a while,” she whispered. She unzipped my jeans and dragged them down. My cock sprung out huge and hard.

Tilting her head to the side, she gathered her hair and pushed it behind her shoulder. With her eyes fixed on mine, she slid her lips over the tip, swirling her tongue up and down the shaft of my cock.

“Oh, God,” I gasped, throwing my head back. I loved her all over again.

Molly circled her fingers around the base of my cock, stroking me there while she worked her magic with her mouth. When she used her free hand to massage my balls I damn near lost my mind.

The other night, I had been the one to draw her to the edge and bring her back. Now, Molly took control. I gripped the stone ledge, feeling strong enough to crumble it to powder. Molly worked quickly, skillfully, bringing me to the edge, then drawing back. She was perfect. Gorgeous. Mine.

When she increased her pace, I couldn’t hold back. It became clear she didn’t want me to. Growling loud enough to echo through the cave, I came. Molly redoubled her efforts, working her jaw to keep up with me. I spilled my seed inside of her and she took in every drop.

When I was spent, I couldn’t feel my legs anymore. But, it only lasted a second. When Molly rose, my hands went up. I traced her curves, loving the way her supple flesh twitched beneath my fingertips. I caught her nipples between my thumbs and forefingers and gently rolled them. Molly threw her head back, swaying on the balls of her feet. I sat up, sliding my hands between her thighs. I made her part them for me.

“Liam,” she gasped. “I can’t.”

“Oh, yes, you can, baby,” I said, my voice a wicked whisper.

With two fingers I spread open her velvety folds. One quick dart of my tongue over her sensitive little bud made her scream with pleasure. I used one hand to hold her up. Her knees quivered so much I thought she might lose her balance. But, once I settled my mouth on the task at hand, Molly threw her head back and undulated with me.

She tasted like the sweetest honey. Her juices flowed and her tiny clit grew rock hard as I sucked her there. I fucked her with my tongue and she couldn’t hold on a second longer. I didn’t want her to.

“Liam!” she cried out. I knew the others were close enough to hear her, of course, but they kept their distance.

Molly carved her fingers through my hair, drawing me down on her even deeper. She spread open for me, each wave of her orgasm twitching against my tongue. I drank her all in. It was just the beginning. I wanted to do so much more. I wished we had all the time in the world. I would cherish her in ways she’d never dreamt before. But this would have to be enough.

As Molly crested down, I showed her mercy, releasing the suction. She let out a sigh and sank into me, boneless. I carried her down. Curving her body against mine, Molly let me hold her in my lap. I placed sweet kisses on each of her breasts.

“I love you too,” she said, her eyes wet with tears. “God help us both, Liam. I love you too.”