Chapter 4
Cody switched off the engine and shook Jackson gently.
“Hey bro, wake up. We’re home.” Jackson slowly opened his eyes and blearily looked around.
He saw his twin, Logan and the rest of the pack members surrounding the truck.
He gave Logan a smile as he stepped out of the truck and was instantly embraced in his huge arms. Jackson could feel Logan’s concern for him so he patted his broad back and murmured, “Everything is okay.”
“Listen, I need a shower first and then something to eat. I promise I’ll tell you all everything after that. Can Dakota make me a steak? I haven’t eaten in over a day.”
“Sure,” Logan said, reluctant to let go of Jackson. “Are you sure everything is all right?”
“Yeah, it’s cool, man.”
Jackson headed to his bedroom and fatigue set in.
He stripped on the way to the shower, dropping the borrowed sweatpants in the hamper.
Turning on the hot water, his mind wandered back to his mate causing his dick to harden.
Shit, my wolf is unhappy that I didn’t claim Steel.
I have to talk to Mystia tomorrow to see what can be done.
So far, he had his wolf under control but for how long, he didn’t know.
Thumping his cock, he reminded himself to control his thoughts around his brothers.
If they smelled his arousal, they would wonder why, especially since they didn’t know he’d found his mate.
He knew if he told them, Zane, the youngest, would panic, thinking Jackson was going to leave, and the rest of the pack would also get nervous about any changes.
No, I’m going to keep that part of the story buried.
He’d just gotten everything in order, which is why he’d been on the road. Most important was his visit to the lawyer to sign the papers releasing all the money his Grandparents had put in a trust for him.
He now had enough funds to take care of everyone which meant one less worry about the well-being of the pack.
He wondered if Silver Point Pack would ever give up trying to locate them, but he snorted at the thought since he and his brothers still had rights to the Fox River land.
If he could only figure out what was so important about the land that made it worth killing for.
“Hey, food’s ready,” called Cody, through the bathroom door.
“I’ll be out in a minute.” Jackson stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel to dry off.
He picked out a t-shirt and some pajama pants because that bed would be calling to him as soon as he ate and talked to everyone.
I’ll make this short and sweet, focus on what I did with the lawyer and try to calm the pack down.
Best to divert the attention away from me. Yup, a good plan.
Jackson’s mouth watered and his stomach growled as he entered the kitchen. Hell, it might just be his wolf growling; it’d been far too long since he’d eaten. He sat down at the earth-toned, granite-topped island, smiling at his brother.
“Thanks, Dakota. I’m so hungry I could eat the whole cow. Everything looks great.” Cutting into his steak, he groaned with satisfaction—it was perfect, lightly cooked and still bloody, just the way his wolf loved it.
“So, what happened to you?” Logan asked impatiently, not willing to wait until Jackson had finished.
“We expected you home last night and when you weren’t here by morning, the whole pack was worried.
Cody and I kept bugging Jimmy hoping he’d heard from you but when there was no word by late afternoon, we decided to search for you. ”
Jackson finished his dinner before answering Logan.
He sat back before he spoke. “The good news is I saw the lawyer and was able to sign all the paperwork to release my trust fund along with yours. I opened a new bank account under a corporate name for my money and set it up so I can access the funds as we need to. I’ve set up a personal account for your money, Logan.
” Then he turned to the rest of his brothers.
“We’ll have to do the same for each of you when you reach the release date of your funds but for now, we won’t have to worry about meeting our needs. ”
Cody growled, “Well, that doesn’t explain why you showed up late and half naked.”
“I was just getting to that. On the way home, I took the short cut through the orange grove. That’s when I saw these two guys with their car parked on the side of the road with the hood up.”
“Jeez, you didn’t let your savior trait come out, did you?” Logan snarled. “Hells Bells, you know you always end up on the short end of the stick.”
“Cool it, Logan. Yeah, I stopped to help, but got knocked out and robbed instead. When I woke up, somebody stopped and gave me a lift to Jimmy’s.
” Jackson paused and looked at his brothers, before continuing on, “No matter what, I’ll always try to help anyone who looks like they’re in trouble.
Now I’m going to bed because I’m exhausted. Everything else can wait for tomorrow.”
He wearily pushed his chair back, stood up and turned to Dakota.
“Just a heads up,” he said, “Jimmy said Mystia will be back in the morning and they’ll be visiting us.
Let me know if we need to do any shopping before they arrive.
” Then mumbling, “See you all in the morning,” Jackson shuffled off and headed for his big comfortable bed—it was calling his name.
Cody looked at his brothers. “He is not telling us something. Did any of you notice something different?”
Dakota, Carson, Zane, Colton, and Logan all looked at each other, shaking their heads. Zane spoke up, “What makes you think that? Was he acting strange when you picked him up? I’m just so damn happy he’s home and in one piece.”
Cody lowered his voice so Jackson wouldn’t hear him. “There was a faint odor of an unknown wolf on Jackson—not on his skin, but I think he got those sweatpants from whoever gave him a ride and either that person was a wolf or those pants had been in close contact with one.”
Panic crossed Zane’s face as he raised his voice. “Oh, my gods! Silver Point? Do you think it was Silver Point?”
“Shhhh, lower your voice,” Cody admonished. “No, it wasn’t Silver Point. It’s a scent I didn’t recognize.”
“So why didn’t Jackson tell us he met a wolf? Why would he hide that from us?” asked Colton.
“I don’t know, maybe it’s nothing and Jackson didn’t want to alarm us by saying he came across a wolf from another pack,” Cody said, getting up to clear the dishes.
“I know he’s exhausted so maybe he didn’t want to go into who the wolf and his pack are.
Let’s see what he says tomorrow, after he’s rested. ”
~/~/~/~/~
Jackson climbed into bed, pulling up an endless loop of images of him and his mate in the throes of mind-bending sex.
His cock rose to hardness bordering on painful, with pre-cum dripping onto his abs while he slowly stroked himself.
Jackson already missed Steel and he knew unless he claimed his mate soon, his wolf would take over; shifting to hunt for him.
What a fucking disaster that would be—jeez, his only hope was if Mystia could cast a spell that would break the mating pull. He’d have to get her alone tomorrow for a private conversation so his brothers never found out he met his fated mate.
He needed to jack off or he wouldn’t be sleeping tonight.
His cock demanded its mate. His mind was flooded with visions of Steel on his knees, beautiful brown eyes filled with lust, looking up at him, his mouth filled with Jackson’s cock.
Stroking faster, he felt the tingling begin.
Then his balls got rock-hard and drew up tight to his body.
He finally exploded, squirting gobs of cum all over his hand and stomach.
Slowly his breathing returned to normal.
Grabbing his t-shirt, he wiped his cum off before throwing the soggy shirt into the hamper, then, turning over, he fell asleep, dreaming of his mate.
~/~/~/~/~
In the morning, Jackson, half asleep, reached out for Steel, but when he found only an empty space, he sighed and woke up fully.
Sheesh, his dreams were so real, he could swear his mate was in bed with him.
And, of course, his morning wood was like a guided, heat-seeking missile with only one target in mind—his mate’s mouth.
His goal today was to talk to Mystia alone, hoping she could make the need for his mate abate.
Groaning, he got out of bed, headed to the shower, planning to rub one out.
The hot water relaxed Jackson’s muscles, helping get rid of the soreness from yesterday. Of course, if he shifted, his body would heal faster but he was worried his wolf would race off to find its mate.
He was confused by his wolf’s behavior since he was first-born and an Alpha, destined to submit to no one.
So why was his wolf so ready to submit to Steel?
Jackson was a timber wolf, the biggest wolf on earth; there were very few of his kind left, mostly up in Canada and Alaska, and he knew Steel wasn’t a timber wolf.
So, what kind of wolf was he to cause his wolf to turn belly up? Hmmmm. A puzzle to solve.
Quickly taking care of his needs, he turned off the water and stepped out.
Toweling himself off, he heard Cody yell he was taking Jackson’s clothes from the hamper to wash.
“Okay.” He pulled on a worn pair of blue jeans, a white t-shirt that hugged his chest and his scruffy shit-kicking boots before heading down to breakfast.
At the bottom of the stairs, Jackson stopped; it felt good to be home.
Yeah, at home with his bros. They built this house after the massacre and made it a home.
Looking into the den he saw the comfortable wide, dark brown, distressed leather couches on which he and his brothers had spent hours watching sports and movies on their big, flat-screen TV.
The room had beautiful cream-colored walls, bold Southwestern Navajo rugs scattered throughout the large, airy space and plenty of wide club chairs, accented with pillows in every color of the rainbow. The overall feeling was warm and cozy.
Jackson’s heart tightened as he remembered how close he’d come to losing his brothers. Getting his emotions under control, he headed for the kitchen. Dakota handed him his coffee. “Breakfast will be ready in about 20 minutes. Logan and Cody are on the front porch, if you want to join them.”
Jackson took the mug, asking, “Do you need any help?”
“Nope, I’m good. And I’ll be even better if you get out of my way,” Dakota grinned.
Taking the hint, Jackson headed to the front porch.
Opening the door, he was greeted by a cloudless, deep blue sky and the smell of the pine forest which he loved.
They were so lucky Jimmy had offered this land to him.
He sat down on one of the large, dark green, rocking chairs and greeted his brothers.
Logan gave Jackson a smirk. “Have a good night’s sleep?
” Jackson first looked at Logan, and then, at Cody, where finding the same smirk, he got a bad feeling in his gut.
“I slept well, thanks for asking.” He knew there was more his brothers wanted to ask but he’d learned in the past never to assume to know what someone wants to say.
Cody spoke this time. “That’s good. Anything else you remember about what happened you want to share?”
The corners of Jackson’s lips tilted up. It seems they were doing a good cop, bad cop routine. “No, not really. We’ll have to talk about how to handle the theft of the car but I thought we’d wait until Jimmy gets here before making any decisions.”
Logan spoke up, “Who gave you a lift to Jimmy’s?”
“Just a guy who came along. Why?”
“Well, you came home smelling of wolf but you never mentioned meeting one. So, we were wondering how you picked up the scent,” Logan said quietly. “Was it the man who picked you up or was it, maybe, a wolf he had contact with?”
Shit! Fuck! And double crap! Jackson knew anything he said less than the truth, Logan, being his twin, would know.
But maybe he could get around it by just answering their questions and not volunteering additional information.
Chancy, but he hoped it would work. “The man who gave me a lift was a wolf but I didn’t recognize his scent; therefore, it’s unlikely he’s from around here.
He certainly wasn’t connected to Silver Point and that was my main concern.
I didn’t mention it because he drove off after he dropped me at Jimmy’s and I doubt we’ll see him again. ”
Cody asked, “Did he know you were a wolf?”
“No, I saw him surreptitiously sniff but he didn’t come up with a scent.
I think he thought I was human.” Unfortunately, all this talk of his mate caused his cock to harden and Jackson knew within a short time his brothers would start to smell his arousal.
Best make a hasty retreat. “I’m going in to see if I can help in any way to hurry breakfast along since I’m hungry. You guys coming?”
“We’ll be there in a minute,” said Logan, watching Jackson get up and head inside.
After the door closed, Logan turned to face Cody.
“I don’t think he lied to us but I just have the feeling there’s more to the story.
I know Jackson and considering our situation, there’s a reason he didn’t bring up the fact he met a wolf. Did you bag the sweatpants?”
After Cody nodded, Logan then added, “Good, I want Mystia to sniff them to see if she can tell us anything about this wolf. I hate to go behind Jackson’s back but I feel there’s more to the story than Jackson’s telling us.
And that’s exactly what worries me because Jackson has never kept anything from me. ”
“I know how it is,” agreed Cody. “Colton, Carson, and I are the same way. Triplets can’t keep secrets from one another.
I don’t know why but it’s always been that way with the three of us.
Let’s go in and have breakfast before Zane eats it all with the excuse, he’s a growing boy,” Cody said. He and Logan then broke into laughter.