“What’s your name?” the stranger asked her, once they were settled in the motel room and he’d bolted the locks.

“Autumn,” she said. Maybe she shouldn’t have given her name so freely, but the man had saved her ass. But why?

“Autumn. Like the season?”

“Yes, I was born in September on the first day of Autumn.”

He stole a glance at her and she thought she saw a hint of a smile. His dark brown hair was tousled and wet from the rain, which they’d ridden in for about five minutes before reaching the bed and breakfast on the outer edge of the city. He had to be in his early to mid-thirties. She couldn’t really tell. Except for the bruising, scarring, and tattoos that she could see, he had the most beautiful skin she’d ever seen on a man. To achieve his sun-kissed complexion, it looked as if he had ridden in the sun for hours on end on his motorcycle. He had wide shoulders, a strong neck and a defined jawline. His arms and hands were big. He was exceptionally tall, almost overbearing to the point of intimidation. Maybe about six feet, four inches. His eyes were hooded by a set of dark, thick lashes and his lips were full. He wore old worn jeans, heavy-duty working boots, and a leather jacket that was pulled tautly across his chest.

“If you don’t mind me asking, who do you work for?” she asked.

“I don’t mind,” he replied. “My brother is Alpha of the Aspen Valley Wolf Pack. You could say I work for him.”

“Aspen Valley? That’s not that far away from here. I might have been there once or twice when I was little.”

“It’s a small town and not as big as Cross City, but we have a big Pack. No hustle and bustle. Quiet. Everyone knows everyone else’s business.”

She smiled. “That’s the way it is here too, but maybe I just like to stay inside of my little bubble.”

“At the tavern?”

“Yeah.”

“How long have you worked there?”

“Hmmm,” she said. “My dad put me on the payroll officially when I was fourteen, but I had different side jobs to earn allowance when I was just a little girl, like changing out the menus and wrapping the silverware.”

“Family business?”

“Yeah. Besides your brother, have you got any other family or close friends?” she asked.

He didn’t seem like the type to stay put and judging from the lack of a wedding ring on his finger, she figured he wasn’t married. But that didn’t really mean anything for a shifter. Most of them mated and never married.

“I have three brothers. There’s Dane, Raoulf, and Brock. Dane’s the youngest, and our dad was the Alpha before he stepped up into the position.”

“So does that mean the Alpha position stays in the family like with the Cross City wolves,” she asked.

“Sort of, but not necessarily. Most Packs I know keep it in the family, but almost any other wolf can challenge for the position…if they dare.”

“What’s your position within it?”

“That’s pretty complicated. My duties come without rank and I prefer it that way. Before my brother became the Alpha and even when my father held the position, my brothers and I were considered wolf outlaws and we still are. That means we roam freely and work in conjunction with the Alpha.”

“Kind of like a lone wolf?”

“Sort of, but I still know where my loyalties lie.”

Thunder rumbled in the distance and lightning cracked just outside the door and she jumped to the side. Feeling a little foolish for acting so paranoid, she wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed her elbows. Her shirt was still wet from the rain, but she figured it could have been worse. Rain beat hard on the roof of the little bed and breakfast where they sought shelter.

“Oh…” She glanced down at her wristwatch. “And my bus just left.”

“Sorry.”

“That’s not your fault. All I was thinking about was getting away really,” she said.

“Where were you headed?”

He handed her some towels that he retrieved from the bathroom and she used it to dab at her wet face and shirt.

“Further out west,” she replied, intentionally leaving out the state.

He pulled off his leather jacket and tossed it aside. Her eyes dropped to his blood stained shirt.

“You’re bleeding,” she gasped.

“It’s fine. The cut ain’t that deep. Are you gonna tell me your story?” he asked.

“Depends. Are you gonna tell me yours?”

He peeled off his wet shirt and tossed it in the wastebasket by the door. Her focus waned back and forth from the two-inch slash across his tight abs to the rest of the hardcore muscles and tattoos on his chest. These marks were more intricately designed than the Pack symbols on his arms and wrists. One mark stood out noticeably from the rest. Maybe because it looked natural. Not ink, but almost like a branding or birthmark, but she couldn’t be sure. The impression was shaped like a clover, with four leaves. He had so many tattoos, and she almost wondered if the marks themselves represented his own story. Among the markings were dozens of scars and old wounds. This wasn’t surprising to her. Wolves fought all the time and she’d been around enough of them to know that they fought hella dirty. Just like Garrett had fought off Simon's men to help her escape.

“There’s not much to tell.” He shrugged. “I’m looking for a Beta. You have information about where I can find this Beta.”

“Why didn’t you just let his men take me and follow along?”

“When I caught you stealing from that safe, I was serious about what I said.”

She placed her hands on her hips. “Let’s get this straight. I wasn’t stealing anything. What’s in that bag is mine. And before you get any ideas, there wasn’t any money in the safe.”

“Were you expecting money to be in the safe?” he asked.

She bit her lip, trying to process once again who else could have gotten into the safe beside her and her sister. They were the only ones with the key. The ledger and some of her dad’s documents were still there, but the bundle of cash was gone.

“You were, weren’t you?” he asked when she didn’t answer.

“It’s none of your business,” she said. “I appreciate what you’ve done for me, but if you think that I’m going to lead you to Simon, you’re wrong. I don’t ever want to see that bastard again.”

“Fair enough.”

He tossed his head toward her handbag lying on the bed. An unmade bed. A bed that, apparently, he’d been sleeping in. She could tell. The whole room smelled of him—almond and a strong underlying manly scent. Two pairs of work boots and one duffle bag lay on the floor beside the bed. Was he living out of a motel? Why did he bring her here?

“Are you aware of the things he’s being accused of doing?”

“I can only imagine. He destroys everything he touches, including our tavern—my family’s business. He’s a monster and a selfish pig.”

He grabbed his duffle bag and threw it on top of the bed and then grabbed a flask. He splashed what looked like whiskey onto the open wound, cleaned it with a towel, and then bandaged it up with a white t-shirt he tore in half.

“You need to get that dressed properly. It’s going to get infected.”

“The wound will heal once I shift.”

Uneasiness rose up in her chest. She’d seen Cross City Pack members in wolf form before, but she’d never actually seen them shift. “And when will that be?”

“Soon as night falls,” he said. “You look a little nervous. Don’t worry. I won’t do it here in front of you.”

“You’re lucky that healing a wound is that easy for you. I’m glad,” she said. “When the rain stops, you can give me a ride to the bus stop.”

“I can?”

“You will. Won’t you?”

“Depends…”

“Look, I need to get out of here. Simon will be after me,” she told him.

“Not if he can’t scent you. This storm will help with that.”

“Um…so let me see if I understand this correctly. You saved me from being kidnapped so you can hold me here,” she asked, and then crossed her arms over her chest. “Wait a minute. You’re not going to really use me as bait, are you?”

He laughed. Actually laughed out loud. A full, hearty laugh. Deep and smooth, just like his voice. But the joke was on her and she didn’t find it funny.

“I should’ve known not to trust you or anyone,” she said.

“Hold your horses, I’m not going to use you as bait, but I’m not going to release you either until I know you’re safe.”

“I didn’t ask for your safety. I just needed to get away from the tavern.”

“From what you’re telling me, you’ll need help getting out of here. You can’t do that if you don’t have any money.”

He was right. She had less than forty dollars in her pocket and that would only get her so far. At this point, she couldn’t even afford another bus ticket. But she wasn’t going to just ask a stranger for money outright.

“In a day or two, I’ll have the money to buy another bus ticket. It’s been tough for me for the past few weeks. Simon took over all the tavern’s accounts and I lost complete access to them a few days ago. I can’t even view the balance or pay our vendors. I was going to use my dad’s savings from the safe to get a lawyer, and now that’s gone too.”

“And now she talks…” he said. “What gives Simon the right to deny you access to your money?”

She looked away at any and everything besides him. “He and I…uh…we…”

Garrett arched an eyebrow. “I’m all ears.”

“He now owns the tavern and…I was promised to him.”

“Promised to him by who?”

“My dad.”

“And so you’re running from an arranged mating made by your own flesh and blood—your father?”

“Simon's dad and my dad were good friends. He did it to save our business and to keep us from losing our home. I never wanted my first marriage to be this way and I’ve been trying to save up the funds to buy my way out of the contract. Just enough to buy our business back and get Simon to cancel the deal. I just couldn’t save enough. The bills just rolled in way too fast. Sometimes I wonder how my dad even managed, but then I remember all of the risky deals he made, including this arranged mating.” She sighed. “What I did have was enough to send my sister to college. I wasn’t able to leave this stupid city, but she has a better chance.”

“You gave your sister the money intended to free you from the contract?” he asked, confusion setting in on his face.

She nodded. “I didn’t even think twice about it. She’s my baby sister. Now, it’s too late for me. Ever since the Alpha’s death, Simon has been adamant about us sealing the deal right away. All of a sudden, he’s taken control of everything, leaving us with nothing.”

“Except for the Pack,” Garrett said.

“Excuse me?”

“Simon seems to be running around in circles trying to secure a very lucrative position within the Cross City Wolf Pack.”

“Oh, I know it. And he wants to get me involved in a hurry as part of some family ritual. I should have stopped this long before he got so powerful.”

“Has he marked you?” Garrett asked, suspiciously.

“Marked?”

“Have you fucked him?”

“Seriously?”

He waited as if asking a stranger about their sex life was the most natural thing in the world for him.

“No,” she said, shaking the vile image from her mind.

“Has he bitten you? Marked you in any way?”

She shrank back. “Of course not. Have you listened to a word I’ve said? I don’t want anything to do with him. I wouldn’t let him touch me that way.”

“If you ever let him bite or fuck you, you will carry his essence. And while the essence is there, he’ll be able to track you down just about anywhere.”

“That’s just ridiculous,” she said. “I’m not a shifter. I’m a human. I can’t carry a wolf’s essence, whatever that means.”

“If he claims you by biting you, you will. Essence transfers quite easily actually. That’s how most wolves claim others in the absence of a true mating if the natural imprinting hasn’t happened or won’t happen. If he physically claims you, all in his Pack will know that you’re his. Lack of a signature on a piece of paper won’t matter to wolves. Not even the law or the police will be able to help you. He’ll always be able to find you as long as his essence remains with you.”

She shook her head. “I won’t let him do that.”

“If he hasn’t already bitten you, he probably won’t. And it probably means that he’s not anxious to mark you just yet. I hate to say this, but I think he knows that you’d rather not leave that tavern behind. He knows you’re not going anywhere anytime soon,” he said.

Autumn knew it; it was the truth. She would do anything to protect her family name and keep the tavern, but things had gotten out of hand over the past couple weeks. She’d risk her life, but she couldn’t risk her sister’s life in the process.

“I won’t be used and I don’t want anything taken from me either,” she said, firmly. “The ownership of the tavern should have never been transferred completely to him. Before I knew he’d started the process, it was too late. He had the original agreement and the lawyers and courts did what was allowed by law.”

“Then my suggestion for you is to stay far away from him.”

“I’m trying to do that, hence why I tried to get out of this town,” she said. “It’s not that easy, though. He’s taken something away from me. The tavern doesn’t belong to him. Do you know how many years it took us to build and grow that tavern?”

“I understand that you don’t want to let something like that go, but if you choose to stay here and fight for the tavern, Simon must be out of the picture.”

She swallowed and a shred of hope filled her heart. “Are you saying there’s a way to get Simon out of the picture?”

“You asked me for my story,” he replied. “I’m looking for Simon, the Cross City Beta. And when I see him again face to face, it won’t be good news for him.”

There was a knock at the door. The sound of it startled Autumn more than the treacherous thunderstorms outside.

Garrett turned toward the door and then looked down at his phone.

“Who’s that?”

“My partner. I’m gonna step out and have a word with him.”

“In the storm?” She glanced at the windows, which were covered with curtains. Rain pounded consistently at the glass panes.

“Won’t be my first. I’ll be right back. You think you can hang?”

Autumn looked around the room. “I’d rather stay here than risk getting struck by lightning. Question is, will you be okay out in that storm?”

“The wounds aren’t healing quick enough.” He pointed to his midsection. “Would you rather me shift inside?”

“Do what you’ve gotta do. I’ll be here. And when you get back, we can talk more about this plan of yours to take down Simon and how it can help me too,” she said.

He grinned. “Are you always this demanding?”

She smiled. “Only with strangers.”

He paused for a moment to study her but didn’t say a word. In fact, he didn’t make any moves to leave until his partner knocked a second time. He then stuffed his cell phone down into his back pocket and slipped outside, leaving her alone to thank God that she was still alive and out of Simon's grasp.