Chapter Nine
Jenny swallowed the last of her coffee, feeling quite full and content, even if she was a little nervous about leaving the office so soon. Even the scratching at her shoulder blade had lessened. Sarah had been nothing but friendly to her, giving her a good meal as well as a few clothes to keep her going.
“Thank you for everything,” Jenny murmured, as Sarah reached to take her empty dishes away. “I really appreciate this.”
Sarah smiled. “Of course. To be honest, I hope you’ll come back here when Davidson and his thugs have been sorted out. It’s been nice to have another female to keep me company!”
Jenny smiled back, finding herself wanting the same thing. “I’d love that,” she said truthfully. “Do you think Ross meant what he said?” Her eyes searched Sarah’s face, hoping that everything Ross had said about her joining the pack was true.
A quick laugh came from Sarah, as she began to wash the dishes. "Ross doesn't speak before thinking things through," she replied with a grin. "Everything he said about you being here, about being part of our pack now, was absolutely true. You're part of the White Fire pack if you choose to be."
“Choose?” Jenny asked, not sure what Sarah was getting at.
Sarah shrugged. “Well, sure. I mean no one is going to force you to stay with us, Jenny. Maybe you’ll find that the East River pack offers you more than we can, and maybe you’ll choose to stay with them.” She smiled again. “Of course, I’m really hoping you’ll stay with us, but it’s entirely your decision. No one forces anyone to do anything around here.”
“Oh.” Jenny frowned, glancing away from Sarah to the patterned wallpaper. She didn’t want to be apart from the White Fire pack, even if she had to stay with the East River shifters for a while. They had been the ones to save her from Davidson, and she felt she owed them her loyalty. On top of all that, there was the matter of Ross. No matter how much she ignored it, there was something about him that she was drawn to. Even more than that, her wolf was drawn to him too. The thought of leaving him and the White Fire pack brought a swift kick of pain to her chest, and her wolf growled quietly, letting her know exactly what it thought of that idea.
“No,” she said decisively. “I don’t think I want to join another pack. I feel like I’m tied here—in a good way. If I’m allowed to stay, then I want to be a part of the White Fire pack.”
Sarah grinned. “I’m really glad to hear you say that,” she said, wiping her wet hands on a cloth. “Did you say you had a house nearby?”
“Yes,” Jenny replied, giving her the address. “Although I don’t have my key any more. Davidson took everything.”
Shrugging, Sarah sat opposite her. “That won’t matter to Ash,” she said with a twinkle in her eye. “We’ll make sure that your house is ready for you with brand new locks.”
Not knowing how to express how grateful she was, Jenny gave Sarah another wobbly smile.
“Now don’t you start getting all teary now,” Sarah laughed, reaching across and patting Jenny’s hand. “You’ve been needing a pack for a while now, huh? We’re all here to look after each other.”
“That sounds about right,” said a low voice, as Ross walked into the room, pinning Jenny with his gaze. “Are you ready to go, Jenny? It’s already starting to get light out, and I’d like to have at least a couple of hours ahead before Davidson gets wind of things.”
Swallowing the lump in her throat, Jenny drew in a long breath, got to her feet, and tried to smile. “Yes, I think so. Sarah’s done a good job of looking after me.”
“I’m sure she did,” Ross replied with a quick grin at his sister-in-law. “You’re going to take good care of Thomas and Ash while I’m gone, right?”
“You know I will!” Sarah exclaimed, swiping at him. “And Jenny’s given me the address to her place. I’ve promised we’ll have it cleaned and ready for her, complete with new locks on all the windows and doors.”
“Sounds good,” he agreed, turning back to face Jenny. “I’m glad to hear you’re wanting to come back here, once Davidson’s taken care of.”
She smiled tentatively. “I want to stay a part of this pack, Ross. After everything you have done for me—and are going to do—my allegiance is here.”
For a long moment, he didn’t say anything, just looked at her steadily. Jenny didn’t know what to do, wondering if she’d said something wrong, but, finally, he stuck out his hand and shook hers fervently.
“Guess it’s official, then,” he grinned. “I’m sure Sarah is delighted to have another female around, she’s always complaining.”
Jenny tried to join in the laughter, ignoring the sparks that shot up her arm from where he’d shaken her hand. “I’ll see you again soon, Sarah.”
Sarah quickly threw her arms around Jenny, hugging her tightly for a minute. “Be careful,” she said softly. “And make sure Ross stays in touch for as long as you can, OK?”
“OK,” Jenny promised, not sure how she was going to do that but agreeing to it anyway. “Bye, Sarah.”
Following Ross out of the room, Jenny smiled at Ash and Thomas, who each patted her on the shoulder and told her not to worry. They were all really trying to make her feel better.
"We've got to move fast," Ross murmured, grasping her arm as they came to the front door. The light was off, and the corridor was lit only by the gray light coming in through the windows. "Anyone could be watching."
Listening hard, Jenny heard the sound of a car engine coming closer.
"Connor's driving the truck up to the front door," Ross said softly. "The minute he stops, we need to get out and get in. It'll only be a couple of steps to the truck door, but hopefully, that'll be enough cover. We don't want anyone to see you, even if they are watching. It doesn't matter about me, since the idea is that myself and Connor are going out to investigate."
“OK,” Jenny whispered back, understanding at once.
“When you get in the truck, lie down across the seats,” he said, lowering his head to whisper, as his hand grasped the front door handle. “I’ll tell you when it’s safe.”
Jenny glanced up at him, wondering if her nerves were the only reason her heart was picking up speed. He was so close to her to the point that she could barely breathe. Their eyes met, and even in the gloom she could make out touches of silver in his eyes. His breath fanned across her cheek as she realized he had now wrapped one arm around her shoulders. Pressing herself against him a little more, Jenny tried to look away, tried to break the connection, but found she couldn’t. There was a magnetism between them that practically forced them together.
“Ross,” she whispered, still unable to look away. “I—”
The sound of the car engine stopped, and Ross was the first to move.
“Now,” he whispered, pulling the door open and giving her a slight shove toward the door. “Go now. Hurry.”
The moment completely broken, Jenny rushed forward into the glooming morning air, seeing that the 4x4’s passenger door was already slightly ajar for her. With numb fingers, she pulled it open, slipped inside, and lay across the back seats, hearing Connor’s mumble of encouragement. A blanket was draped over her, followed by the sounds of doors slamming. The engine burst back into life, Ross muttered something to Connor, and the truck moved away.
Breathing heavily, Jenny tried not to think about how stupid she must have looked, staring into Ross’s eyes as though she were some silly teenager with a crush. Instead of focusing on what they were doing, on where they were going, she’d ended up losing herself in the connection she felt with him. Closing her eyes, Jenny winced inwardly as heat rushed into her cheeks. What must he think of her, acting like that? Giving herself a stern talking to, Jenny forced herself to consider exactly what it was they were doing. Now wasn’t the time to start exploring whatever feelings she had for the pack leader, especially since she’d only known him for a few hours! She had to just focus on what they were doing and where they were going. It wouldn’t do any of them any good for her to forget just how much danger they were in or that the hunters were after them. From now on, she was just going to ignore her attraction to Ross, no matter how much her stomach flipped over when he smiled at her. She’d was a member of the White Fire pack now, and that meant she needed to behave like one.