“So what do you think?” Garrett asked Grayson after Dawn had pulled away and disappeared down the road back to town.

He rubbed his chest at the subtle ache that came at being separated from her but knew this was safer for everyone involved.

After all, whoever did this could still be around here, and he couldn’t talk about his suspicion that this was done by shifters with a human around.

“I’m not sure,” Grayson said. “I don’t want to freak out your mate, but maybe wolves.”

“Even I can scent it,” Hunter said, taking a seat in one of the camp chairs outside the trailer and looking genuinely stumped. “But it’s like it was masked by something. I’m not really sure.”

“The scent is really weak, though,” Grayson said. “So they probably aren’t around now.”

Garrett sat up abruptly. “You don’t think they’re in town, do you?”

“I didn’t sense any shifters in town,” Grayson said with a shrug. “I think it’s more likely they’re out there in the woods somewhere, remaining separate from humans.” He rubbed his hands over his jaw, looking thoughtful. “Shit, Garrett, if there’s a pack that thinks this land belongs in their territory, your mate is gonna have to move her house.”

“Perhaps it’s not that,” Garrett said. “Perhaps they were just hoping for some easy things to steal, and now they’re satisfied. They didn’t even really take anything, according to Dawn.”

Hunter shook his head. “You two didn’t really have a lot of time to look though, did you?” He folded his arms slowly. “The two of you were acting kind of weird as well. Did something happen?”

Garrett was glad his beard would hide his flush as he avoided looking into the eyes of his friends. Truthfully, he was still trying to process everything that had happened with Dawn the night before.

It was a little faster than he’d meant to move with her, but he hadn’t been able to say no. She’d kissed him and begged him, and his bear just hadn’t been able to hold on any longer.

“I… made progress, yes.”

Grayson threw back his head in a mini howl, and Hunter gave Garret a wide grin. “Thattaboy.”

“But we haven’t really figured anything out,” Garrett said. “She wants me, but I don’t know if it’s just for a fling or just physical.”

Hunter put his head in his hands, groaning before looking up at Garrett impatiently. “Dude, if she is open to you physically, that means she has already decided you’re fine in other ways. Women don’t just trust anyone like that.”

Grayson nodded sagely.

Garrett gaped at both of his friends for even trying to pretend they were experts on this subject. “So what’s the plan now?”

“You mean should you ask her out again or something?” Hunter asked.

“No,” Garrett said. “With the fact that the site isn’t safe. That her stuff was raided and ours might be, too.”

“Well, you obviously weren’t at the trailer last night,” Grayson said steadily. “So maybe that’s part of the problem. Maybe if you stay here, then no one will dare to come close.”

“That’s a good point,” Hunter said. “This is the first time you haven’t been here, and it’s the first time the site was invaded. Maybe you should stay here from now on.”

“But I have to win my mate over. I can’t do that in a dirty trailer.”

“So clean it,” Grayson said impatiently. “Plus, if she stays with you here, it will save her a drive to the job site every morning.”

“She has work to do,” Garrett said.

“You wouldn’t think so, not with how much she likes to hang out and watch you.” Hunter grinned. “I think the only one who’s maybe jumping more carelessly into this situation than you is her. I guess that’s kind of lucky, though, seeing as she’s your mate and all.”

Garrett frowned, not liking any even close to negative insinuations about his mate. “Hm.”

“Well, you have two choices,” Grayson said, leaning back in his camp chair and pinning Garrett with his steely gray gaze. “You can try and win her while keeping an eye on the site so she eventually lets you move in with her when the house is done… or you convince her to move because she won’t ever be safe here alone.”

Garrett let out a sigh of frustration and slumped slightly in his chair. “If they are wolves, what do they want from her?”

“Nothing initially,” Grayson said. “Probably. If it’s a pack, they probably sent a few scouts to see what they’re dealing with, if someone’s trespassing on their land.”

“I see,” Garrett said.

“But that doesn’t mean she’ll be safe later. Once they figure out there’s an unguarded woman here, things could go bad if it’s a rural pack that has a few more feral members.”

“What do you mean feral?” Hunter asked.

“Just that some of the packs in these remote areas have had a hard time adjusting to humans coming into their spaces. Some of them are more wolf than human and don’t shift unless absolutely necessary. We call those ferals, and they don’t really conform to human laws well.”

“How would that affect Dawn?” Garrett asked.

Grayson’s gaze was dark. “They wouldn’t think anything of kidnapping a human if they thought it could serve their purposes, most likely. A lot of the packs are struggling with a dearth of females.”

“They’d commit rape?” Hunter asked, aghast. “If that’s the case, they have to be stopped.”

“No,” Grayson said. “I mean, there are shifters out there watching some of the more dangerous packs. But I meant they are more likely to kidnap a woman and try to forcibly win her over for a matter of weeks, wearing her down.”

“That sucks,” Hunter said angrily. “How are we supposed to work on a house for Dawn, knowing she would never be safe here?”

Garrett stood, trying to ignore the rush of adrenaline that came from someone even mentioning the possibility of someone taking or harming his mate. “She’ll be safe here because I’m here. No one’s going to hurt my mate.”

“I know,” Hunter said. “But what about the pack?”

“Do you want me to look into it? I can track as much as possible,” Grayson said.

“Okay,” Garrett agreed. “Be quick about it. And Hunter, you go check if they got into any of our stuff. Would be good to know, maybe another clue to things.”

Hunter nodded, and both he and Grayson walked off in the direction of the house.

Garrett stayed back, thinking about what his next move should be. The bear in him wanted to take Dawn away from all of this, not let her take even the chance of not being safe in her new home.

But as he looked at the house he’d built for her, a wistful feeling moved through him. He’d wanted to make this the best place for her. He’d been able to envision a life here…

So hopefully Grayson came back with some good news.

Garrett had gotten breakfast ready by the time Grayson and Hunter returned, and he handed them eggs on a paper plate as he waited for the report.

Hunter had his hands on his hips, looking disgruntled. “Not much missing, but they did take some tools. Not even very expensive ones. I’m baffled.”

Grayson looked similarly frustrated. He pointed to the lot. “They came in from there, and their scent disappears over there on the other side of the site. So it’s probably just a band of roving rogues, but until we know, it’s better to be safe than sorry.” He wrinkled his nose. “Still, it’s odd their scent just… stops like that. I’m really not sure what we’re dealing with.”

Garrett grunted, hating that they couldn’t go forward with any kind of certainty. But at the same time, they had a job to do.

He didn’t want to see anyone slow down the work they were doing to give his mate the best home possible.

So he decided this had to be a fluke. A one-time thing. They would keep an eye on the campsite, and yes, he would stay there from now on.

But he’d also have to keep working to get closer to Dawn, because the sooner she let him in completely, the sooner she knew all his secrets, the safer she would be.

* * *

“So did you find anything?” Dawn asked, clutching her cup of coffee and looking concerned.

Garrett leaned back in his chair, wishing he had better news for her. “No. Grayson thinks it was just some punks passing through. I don’t think we have to worry about it for now.”

“Really?”

“I mean, I might feel more comfortable with you here than at the work site, just until we see if they show up again.”

She nodded. “That’s fine. I mean, I need to catch up on some work anyway. I think I’ve finally found a place with good enough internet.”

“That’s good,” he replied.

She had met him in the cafe for dinner, and her pretty red hair was pulled back in a half ponytail, the gorgeous shade catching the light, looking almost pink in the sunset glow.

God, his mate was beautiful.

Already, his body was tingling with awareness of being around her. He didn’t think he could wait much longer for her to know what he was.

How long did humans usually date before knowing they were meant for each other?

But despite the drama at the campsite, he told himself things could wait. Dawn deserved a proper courtship, to feel comfortable with him, and when he sat across the table from her, looking into her warm, trusting eyes, he couldn’t bring himself to rush her.

Couldn’t imagine telling her he was a fucking bear.

For the first time in his life, he wished he could have been born human.

Then again, if he had, Dawn might not have been destined to be his. But he liked to think that, given the way their hearts just seemed to fit together, maybe she would have been.

She slid a hand over to rub his, cocking her head in concern. “What’s going on over there? You look like you’re lost in your mind.”

“I…” He ran a hand through his hair, wondering if his stress was that apparent. “I’m sorry. I should be paying attention to you.”

“It’s okay,” she said, sipping her coffee and nudging his mug toward him. “I mean, you’re just usually so cheery that it’s a little weird to see you off.” She frowned nervously, running her tongue over her pink lower lip. “It’s not because of last night, is it? Because I promise I don’t have any expectations.”

That made him sit up in his chair just as the waitress came over to deliver their meals. His steak suddenly didn’t hold much interest for him. Not until he figured out what his mate had on her mind.

“What do you mean no expectations?”

She picked up her fork and poked at her green beans, resting her cheek on her hand. “I mean, what we had last night was amazing, and I really enjoyed it. I know you did, too. But if you’re all stressed wondering if I’m like… expecting you to stay or something or going to fire you if you don’t want to date me, you’re wrong.”

His jaw dropped, and he felt anger at whoever had made her think that was even a possibility for what he could be feeling. “I’m not stressed about that at all.”

She looked up at him in surprise, her soft, light-gray eyes blinking with long, reddish lashes. “Oh. Good. I mean, because I’m not. So it’s good you believe me.”

“So what?” he said, sitting back on his chair and folding his arms. “You expect me to just go home after this? You think I just did that out of lust and hoped we would go back to just being client and contractor?”

She shrugged. “It was a heated moment. I didn’t really have plans for after.”

“You’re attracted to me.”

She nodded. “Obviously.” She stabbed a green bean and ate it, staring out at the road. “I’m sure most women are.”

He didn’t care about most women. He cared about her. “But… what do you want me from me, then?”

Of all the things he’d expected from her, this casualness wasn’t one of them.

He wasn’t the kind of man who could pick up and leave someone, and she wasn’t the kind of woman he could imagine anyone would leave.

So what was wrong here?

She wrapped both hands around her mug, as if enjoying the heat there, and then raised it to her lips and took a sip. “I just wanted to have some fun. That’s all.”

He felt something harden inside him. Perhaps his mate didn’t want him at all. Perhaps he wasn’t enough for her to take seriously. Just a laborer. Perhaps she took up with other fancy computer people like—

“I mean, I’m the one who chose to move out here in the middle of nowhere. I’m glad you came out to work with me, and I’m going to try to enjoy every bit of our time together, but I know it’d be crazy to think you would just give up your job and put down stakes with a woman you only just met just because you’ve had sex with her.”

She smiled at him pleasantly, and he felt a rock form in the pit of his stomach.

She was wrong. The only reason he’d had sex with her was because he did care and did want to stay with her. But apparently he couldn’t say that without sounding crazy and wrong.

But at the same time, he couldn’t just go on with this without letting her know at least a few of his intentions.

He couldn’t allow her to think he was just being casual, even if it was just until he told her the truth.

He just wasn’t that kind of man.

He reached out and took both her hands in his, insistently. “Dawn, I’m not playing around with you. I really want to see where this goes.”

“I do, too,” she said. “At least until the house is done. And then I know you’ll be back to traveling around and building things, and that’s fine.” She smiled weakly. “I’m trying to be realistic is all.”

A small flicker of hope lit inside him. So was his mate saying she would want more from him but she was afraid to hope and be disappointed?

“If you weren’t being realistic, what would you want?” he asked.

She looked into his eyes for one wistful moment, then released his hands to pick her up coffee cup and take another sip, looking out the window into the slowly falling dark. She sipped again, then sighed.

“So many things. My grandpa back. For his family not to have made his funeral into a circus, fighting over things that never meant much to him. To have had a family that I could talk to, rather than one I couldn’t trust.” Her eyes met his. “And you know, to have a man I could be with where I could have his back and he would have mine.”

“I see,” he said. His heart ached for the things he couldn’t give her but soared for the one thing he could.

He would make sure she never went without anything. Never felt scared or alone. He’d fill in all those holes where her dreams had been, help her fly higher than ever before.

She set down her cup with a frown. “But you know there are a lot of men in this town. A lot more than women, so I’m sure I’ll be able to find someone.”

He slammed his fist down on the table, a little harder than he’d meant to. “Dammit, Dawn. Why not me?”

Her eyes raised to his. “Because I would be afraid to even hope for that with you. I mean, it would be too much. I wouldn’t want you to give your life up for me. Not when we barely know each other. No, it would be better for me to find someone here.”

“But you expect me to date you in the meantime, do things to and with you, when you don’t even know if you’ll be mine.”

She cocked her head, flushing deeply. “You have the oddest way of saying things sometimes. I’ve just been thinking about this since we slept together. And as much as it’s the hottest thing that’s ever happened to me and I want it again very much, I think it would be best if we kept emotion out of it, don’t you? That way no one gets hurt.”

His eye was twitching and his jaw was ticking in confusion. “Well, too bad.”

“What do you mean?” She straightened slightly, looking shocked, probably by his less-than-pleasant tone.

Goddammit, he couldn’t be all smiley when his mate had such low expectations of him.

“Dawn Henderson, you aren’t getting any action from me without going on a date. And I’m not dating you unless you at least leave your mind open to the future.”

She gaped at him. “Seriously? You’re mad about that?”

“I’m mad as hell about that,” he said, pushing his chair back. “You’ve spent time with me, at the job site, on our date, and in bed. You can’t honestly think I’d be the type of man who’d be okay with what you just suggested?”

“I was just saying we should protect our feelings.”

“Too damn late.” He narrowed his eyes on her and felt her squirm with awareness. Did she like when he was a little more… firm?

Well, that worked for him because he’d tell his mate as many times as she needed it. He wasn’t there to play and walk away.

“I’m serious about this, Dawn.” He stood and took out his wallet, putting down money for the check. “If you go out with me, do it because you can see a future with me. Not for any other reason, or I can’t ask you out.”

She bit her lip nervously. “You’re being silly. You know that? It’s only been—”

He slammed his hand on the table again. “I don’t care how long it’s been. I like you and you like me, and we don’t have time to waste anymore. We can get to the specifics later. I just need to know if you’re willing to go all in, right now.”

She laughed then, shaking her head and swiping her hand to wipe away tears of mirth. “I just… I’m seeing such a different side of you right now. And it’s hot, but… it just reinforces that I barely know you at all.” She composed herself, meeting his eyes honestly. “But it’s like, just as with everything else, I can’t put the brakes on when I’m with you. So fine, I agree to your terms.”

Her words were tepid, but her tone said she was amused, so Garrett let himself feel at least a little bit of relief that they were on the same page now.

He sat down and pulled his plate in front of him, sure he was burning bright red. He stabbed into his steak and ate it with vigor, pretending each piece was one of the idiots who’d violated Dawn’s van.

When he’d finished eating, he saw her smiling at him, her hand over her mouth as if she were trying not to laugh.

What he’d said that was so funny he didn’t know. “Is something wrong?”

She shook her head. “No.”

“Can I walk you home, then?”

She wiggled her eyebrows. “Are you going to come in with me? Give me another taste like last night?”

He gave her a stern glare. “Did we have a date? I think not.”

She laughed again but took his offered hand as he led the way from the restaurant.

“What’s so funny?” he asked finally, when he couldn’t stand it anymore.

“Oh, nothing,” she said, beaming up at him. “It’s just nice to see another piece of who you are.”

“Oh.” He didn’t know what to say to that, so he just kept his hand protectively around hers as they made their way home.

She was quiet, but he could sense her happiness, so he supposed whatever she had seen from him, it couldn’t be too bad.

When they reached her door, he found he was reluctant to leave her. He’d have to go back tonight, but he wasn’t looking forward to his cold trailer.

“Well, maybe just a movie would work,” he said.

She smiled and just led the way in.