Gideon and Quinn stared at me. One looked confused, the other looked ready to erupt. Luckily, Tanner finally appeared at my side. This gathering needed a distraction.

“Oh, Savvy.” He shook his head as he studied me. “Your legs. We need to get you cleaned up.”

I rubbed my temples. “I’ll be fine. I believe we have some matters to discuss.” I turned toward him, expecting we’d simply wander off together and leave those two to their own devices. Instead, I was hauled over Quinn’s shoulder.

“Come with me, Savvy. We’ll clean you up, and after you can talk business with Tanner.” Then he strode over to the door and carried me inside. Once there, he sat me on a stool at the counter. “Stay.”

My brows rose. “Oh, and when did I start taking orders from you?”

“Don’t fight me right now. We need to clean those scrapes before you heal with dirt in the wounds.” Quinn stormed into the bathroom and began rummaging around. “Where the hell do you keep your washcloths?”

“In the linen closet across the hall from the bathroom.” I bit my cheek to keep from laughing.

He peeked out the door and glanced at my face. “You think this is funny,” he grumbled.

“Well, it kinda is.” I shrugged. “You’re practically frantic, you’re annoyingly possessive, and you have no right to feel any of this.”

“No right?” His voice lowered. “I have no right to care for you, to look out for you, to protect you? Those are all my rights.” Quinn glared at me.

I bit my lower lip and shook my head. “Not if you don’t mate with me. Not if you don’t love me. Not if you don’t join the pack.” I might’ve said more, but the door flew open and Gideon entered carrying a first-aid kit.

“Thought you might need this.” He set it on the counter, opened it, and pulled out a small packet the size of an alcohol swab. “This will clean it.” Gideon tore it open, yanked the tiny cloth from the packet, unfurled it, and proceeded to wipe my leg in one fluid motion.

A second later, the door opened again, and Tanner stood there, arms crossed over his chest. “I’m just checking on you.”

When I glanced at Quinn, his hands were fisted at his sides. “I’m going to check on the construction,” he muttered.

Tanner stepped aside and let him pass. A few seconds later, Gideon had finished cleaning my wounds. “Thank you.” I hopped off the stool and stepped closer to Tanner.

“We need to get some work done,” I murmured by way of explanation.

“Right.” Gideon nodded. “And I’m here to check and make sure this is up to code. Shall I find you, if anything needs to be fixed?”

I blew out a breath. “Actually, why don’t you talk to Quinn, the guy who just left. He’s an architect. Maybe he can remedy any problems.” Glancing up at Tanner, I mouthed, ‘Let’s go.’ And we quickly disappeared.

As soon as we stepped outside, he whispered, “What’s all that about?”

“Shelby thinks Gideon is her mate. She’s mad because she thinks I’m standing in her way. She has decided I’m the reason he hasn’t noticed her.” I shook my head. “I’m not trying to get in the way.” I eyed Tanner, curious as to how he’d react.

He nodded as he tugged on his chin. “I know you aren’t, Alpha. It’s simply who you are.”

A twitch started under my left eye. “How’s that again?”

“You have a very commanding personality. It’s the reason you make a great leader. It’s also why so many males are instantly enthralled by you.” He chuckled as we neared his cottage. “Take Quinn for example…”

“Whoa. Let’s not take Quinn for anything, especially an example.” I froze in place. “No talk of Quinn. Quinn is a different story. He’s…well, he’s an asshole. There. I said it.”

“Why? Do I need to step in, Alpha?” Tanner’s face grew serious. “I’ll do whatever you wish.”

My head tilted. “Tempting, but no. I can handle Quinn all by myself.” I suddenly realized we were nearing his cottage, but I had a better idea. “Actually, let’s go to Dallas’ place instead. We should see if there’s any sign of him, or if we can figure out where he might go.”

We veered left and wandered over to the next cottage about fifteen feet away. When we arrived, we discovered it wasn’t locked, so we simply pushed the door open. Dallas had never mated. I guessed there was a story there, but I didn’t know it. I knew his mother had died a few years ago. I even attended her pyre service. So, given the circumstances, it was no surprise to discover the place was in a state of disarray.

“How will we find anything in this mess?” Tanner shook his head. “I’m so glad Lennie and I connected with each other.”

My eyes narrowed. “So, she can clean up after you?”

He frowned. “No, so I have a reason to keep our place neat. I want her to be happy with me. This,” he gestured around the room, “this is what happens when you have no one to love and no one to care about.” Tanner shook his head. “It’s sad, really.”

I relaxed some. Ever since he’d found his mate, Tanner had been a completely different person. “I’m really excited for you two.” Honestly, I was, but for some reason my eyes began to water.

Apparently, Tanner noticed. He came over and laid a hand on my back. “It’ll be okay, Savvy. You’ll find your mate.”

Sniffling, I nodded. “But what if he doesn’t want me?” I studied the room. Maybe this was what had happened to Dallas. Maybe I’d end up like this. I swallowed hard and vowed I’d never let my home look like it had been ransacked. “And what happened to ‘Alpha’? I was rather enjoying that.” I offered him a half smile.

“I’m trying to balance being your future brother-in-law with being a pack mate. How’d I do?”

I shook my head and giggled.

Tanner sighed. “More importantly, how could anyone not want you, Alpha?”

“Because I’m the Alpha. Because unlike the normal situation where the female joins the male’s pack, this time he’d have to join ours. Or maybe because he’s not the pack type. Maybe he hates taking orders. Maybe…” My voice trailed off. I’d shared enough of my fears already. My head tilted. “I mean, these are all examples.”

His brow furrowed, and he studied me with a strange look in his eye. “If you say so. I just can’t imagine denying my mate.”

“Well, you did it for a while before you figured it out. So maybe there’s hope.” I sighed. Tanner opened his mouth, and I realized my mistake. “You know, when I meet him. There will be hope.” I turned and started down the hall.

“Hey, where are you going?”

“I’ll begin searching at one end, you work at the other. We’ll get done faster that way.” Then I strode down the hall in an effort to appear calm and confident once more when all I could think about was Quinn.

Needless to say, I worked on auto pilot as I searched the bedroom. I started in the closet, but all the shoe boxes held shoes. Lots of shoes. Most of them never worn. Must be Dallas was a planner. Then I checked out his bed, feeling deep beneath the mattress. There wasn’t so much as a dirty magazine under it. Feeling discouraged, I sat down on the edge and opened his nightstand. A small wooden box was the only item inside. I lifted it and stared a moment. My father had one just like it. Then I opened it. The lid had initials carved in it. “MS loves AS.” My hand shook. This was my father’s box. Malcolm Silver loves Alexia Silver. He had made it for their fifth wedding anniversary. I was too young to remember, even though I was there, but I’d seen the pictures.

There was no way my father had given this to him. Now curious, I inspected the contents, a half dozen small screw top jars. Each of them filled with raw gemstones. I recognized rubies, sapphires, emeralds, topaz, amethyst, and moonstones. Without hesitation, I stuffed the entire box into my bag. My heart was heavy. How great was the treachery? How low had Dallas gone to gain some wealth?

The rest of the bedroom was clean, not another noteworthy item. I moved on to the bathroom. There were meds in his cabinet, but nothing out of the ordinary. Under the sink were the usual cleaners. I opened the linen closet and my jaw dropped. There were at least four huge boxes I recognized because of the branding on the outside. This was all my aunt’s spray. Did she sell it to him? Did he steal it? I sighed heavily.

Naturally, the search would lead to more questions than answers. I hauled the boxes out of the closet and prepared to confiscate them. Suddenly, Tanner was in the doorway. “I’ll carry them for you, Alpha. Where to?”

I frowned. “My car, please. I’m going to ask Aunt Jo about them.”

“What would he be doing with all this?” Tanner shook his head. “Oh, and that’s not all. Look what I found in his desk. This belongs to you.” He passed me an old jelly jar filled with gold nuggets.

“He shouldn’t have these. All gold was supposed to go to my father and get exchanged for cash so no one would ever find out about the mine.” I inhaled sharply. “This whole situation reeks.” I stuffed the jar in my satchel and we walked in a contemplative silence all the way back to my car.