Chapter 5
GARNER
The second the excavator’s arm swung when it should’ve been locked in place, I knew I wouldn’t be letting anyone else step foot on this site today.
I guided Elodie back toward my truck, positioning her where I could see her. Close enough to feel steady. And nothing else could reach her without going through me first.
My cougar paced under my skin, furious that danger had brushed too close to what was mine.
“You’re safe. I won’t let anything happen to you,” I promised, doing my best to keep my tone calm.
She nodded without question. That trust hit harder than the malfunction ever could.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and fired off a message to the crew scheduled to arrive within the hour.
Me
Site’s shut down for the day. Do not come in until you hear directly from me. No exceptions.
I watched the read receipts pop up one by one, my jaw tight.
Hydraulics didn’t fail like that on their own.
Whatever had caused that excavator to move hadn’t been weather or coincidence.
I wasn’t risking one of my guys finding out the cause the hard way or chancing an injury if anything else had been tampered with.
As I turned back toward the machine, my gaze flicked to Elodie again automatically.
She stood near my truck with her arms wrapped around her waist. She looked small against the sprawl of equipment and open land. Exposed.
Knowing she’d slept here alone last night made something hot and vicious course through my veins.
Never again.
I forced myself to breathe, to lock the fury down where it couldn’t bleed into my voice. It was too soon for her to see the predator beneath my skin. She needed the man who would protect her. And the only way to do that was to take care of business.
I strode back toward the excavator, cataloging every detail.
Someone had crossed a line. Now they had my full attention.
I climbed back onto the excavator with a grim sense of inevitability settling in my gut.
It didn’t take long to find the problem.
The hydraulic coupling near the base of the arm had been loosened just enough to bypass the safety lock.
Whoever had done it knew exactly how much give was enough to cause movement without making it immediately obvious.
I dropped back to the ground and moved toward the storage container at the edge of the site. The padlock hung crooked, snapped clean through. Inside, nothing obvious was missing, but that didn’t matter.
I crouched, pressing my fingers into the mud near the container. The rain had churned the ground into a mess of half-formed impressions.
I drew in a deep breath anyway, my cougar pushing forward, furious and frustrated. Nothing. The storm had scrubbed the scent clean. Whoever had been here last night had walked away untrackable.
Rage burned hot in my chest.
They’d done this while Elodie slept less than a hundred yards away in her car. She’d been alone and unprotected. Completely unaware of how close danger had come.
I pulled out my phone and made the call.
“Do you have any theories on who could be behind this?” my father asked after I explained what I’d found.
“The other bidder. Who was it?”
There was a pause. “Holt & Crane. They were furious. Offered more money, but the landowner refused to sell to them. He wanted someone who’d treat the land with the respect it deserved.”
I stared out across the site, my gaze drifting instinctively back toward where Elodie stood near my truck.
“My guess is they want payback.” I raked my fingers through my hair. “And another opportunity to get the property once we’re forced out.”
“Too many accidents, and our permits will be pulled,” my dad agreed.
“I gotta shut them down,” I growled. “And make damn sure no one gets hurt.”
Especially Elodie, but I wasn’t ready to share that I’d found my mate yet. Not until she was ready to find out who she was to me.
Dad’s answering chuckle held no humor. “Holt & Crane is run by humans. They have no fucking clue what they’ve just unleashed.”
“They’ll find out soon.”
I ended the call and slipped my phone back into my pocket.
Mentally running through permits, timelines, and who I needed to call next, I kept my attention on logistics, but my focus kept drifting back to Elodie.
She remained near my truck, her stormy blue gaze tracking my movements. She was small in a way that didn’t read as fragile, her build slight and compact. But there were soft, subtle curves there. She would fit under my hands perfectly.
I’d already cataloged the way her head would tuck beneath my chin, how easily she’d disappear against my chest if I pulled her close. Everything about her felt right—like the missing piece I hadn’t known I’d been circling for years.
My cougar watched her with a possessive awareness that bordered on reverence. And my body instinctively knew how to place itself between her and the world.
I didn’t like how she held herself with a guarded stillness, her shoulders squared and chin lifted just enough to signal she wouldn’t break. Although I appreciated her resilience, I worried about what had forced her to learn it.
She didn’t belong anywhere dangerous. Especially not sleeping in her car on the edge of a site someone was actively trying to sabotage. Or anywhere other than a comfortable bed.
I was done letting the world push this woman down. She was mine, and I vowed to smooth her way from now on.
Elodie shifted her weight, and our eyes met, just briefly. Something warm flickered across her face before she looked away, her cheeks filling with heat.
My cougar settled, satisfied that she was aware of me—even if she didn’t understand why yet.
When I finally made my way back to her, she tucked a lock of her dark hair behind her ear and whispered, “I’m sorry for getting in the way earlier.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” I said more sharply than I’d intended.
She flinched, and my anger immediately redirected to whoever had taught her she was a burden for simply being present.
“I mean it. None of this is on you.” I scrubbed my hand down my face. “I’m the one who brought you with me, expecting you to be safe as long as I had you in my sight, sweetheart.”
The nickname slipped out before I could catch it. As soon as it left my mouth, I froze.
Elodie’s head snapped up, her eyes wide and color blooming across her cheeks. She stared at me like she doubted what she’d just heard, unsure of what it meant.
Her plump lips parted, as though she’d forgotten what she’d meant to say. But she didn’t seem offended or scared. Just affected.
I could see it in the way her breath came a little too shallow, how her fingers curled into the sleeves of her jacket like she needed something to anchor her.
My cougar preened at the sight, but I shut him down hard before he took her reaction as a sign that she was ready to be claimed.
“We should head back.” I turned away before I did something worse than use a single endearment. “Weather’s shifting again, and I don’t want you out here any longer than necessary.”
She blinked, clearly shaken out of her thoughts. “Oh. Right. Okay.”
I started walking without waiting, trusting she’d follow. And she did.
The drive back to the cabins was quiet. Every part of me was hyperaware of her presence. Having her this close made something settle in my chest that had never known peace before.
When we reached my cabin, I unlocked the door and stepped aside, watching her cross the threshold. Taking satisfaction in having my mate in my space, her scent filling the air.
I lingered in the doorway a moment longer than necessary, scanning the tree line out of habit. Whatever threat was circling this project had come too close to her already.
The danger was real. And now it wasn’t just aimed at my land.
It had come too close to my mate. I wouldn’t let that stand.