Chapter 2
TWO
RIVEN
I knew something wasn’t right when I met Antonia’s panicked eyes.
The lodge had been preparing to receive a wolf shifter witness who'd helped the feds bring down a corrupt Alpha. Instead, I caught the scent of sunshine and fresh mint, and my wolf was on high alert.
He’s human. He was begging me to let him out, but I refused.
I’m aware.
And he’s our mate.
Yes.
One heartbeat coupled with one whiff of his scent and my life would never be the same. But whether I’d be beyond happy or suffering with a sadness I’d never shake off, I couldn’t say.
“Riven Morris.” I forced my voice to remain calm, though my heart was trying out for the Olympics 100-meter dash while I resisted burying my nose at the base of his throat.
After explaining my role, I could almost see the wheels turning in his head. Not that they were headed in the right direction, which was that he was my one and only.
The walk to the cabin, one I’d done hundreds of times, involved me tamping down the urge to wrap my arms around him. Our elbows bumped once and my wolf got excited, thinking we were about to mate. We’d never mated, but my wolf and I both understood what would happen if we met our fated.
But with Indigo being human, I wasn’t prepared for how we got from A to B, let alone A to Z.
He was shivering when we reached the cabin, but the fire I’d lit earlier was blazing, and I started dinner.
As I prepared the food and we ate, Indigo told me about his life in the city and his job.
He skirted around the details of what led him here, but there was no need for concern. No human would get past our security.
But a human did get through. It was Indigo himself. My beast was pointing out the failure of our system.
Yes, but he wasn’t intent on hurting anyone. This is where he’s meant to be.
“So.” Indigo shoved aside his empty plate. “What happens now?”
His question brought me back to the present because I’d been lost in thought, musing over the conversion I had to have with Antonia and the pack elders regarding how Indigo ended up here.
“Now?” I repeated, buying time.
“Yeah. Is there a routine to follow? Do I check in every hour with you? Will you teach me self-defense?”
He punched the air, and I hid my grin behind my hand. He was adorable, and he wouldn’t win a fist fight with a toddler.
“Or do I hang out in this gorgeous cabin until my boss's trial?”
Ahhh, he’d given a hint about the reason for escaping the city. I guessed he had to testify about his boss. The lodge did occasionally serve as a safe house, though shifters in trouble were our usual clients.
“It's more easygoing than that.” I had to choose my words carefully. “The location is secure, it’s not on the regular tourist trail. We’re more exclusive.
And we have regular patrols.” I didn't mention these patrols were conducted by wolves.
“Everyone who works at the lodge is trained in security protocols.” Again, I left out that our beasts would be providing that security.
“Oh.” He stabbed a tiny piece of pancetta on his plate.
I explained that he did have a responsibility and that was to sleep, enjoy the fresh air, go on hikes, visit the lodge library, and eat good food.
He asked for my story, wondering how I got my job as a quasi security guy. Not that he used that word, but he waved his hand around and skipped over an adjective to describe my job.
“I was born on this land. It belonged to my grandfather, and now as well as paying guests, it’s a place where the community can come together.”
“Have you always lived here?”
I rambled on about going to college and hot-footing it back once I got my degree. “I missed the mountains.”
“It must be nice having roots and a whole-ass community.” He added that he’d moved many times, mainly for work. He frowned. Perhaps he was thinking he’d have to move again when all this was over.
I couldn’t imagine not having a link to the land and the pack.
“Do you have any family?”
He shrugged. “My mom died when I was young, and my dad remarried and moved away. We don’t see one another much, but we talk a few times a year.”
Indigo inquired about my family, and I stumbled over the words.
“Ummm, yeah, a big extended family.” The pack was everything, though it was complicated with so many different personalities.
But we were enmeshed in one another’s lives, and until I met Indigo, they were the most important thing in it.
“Holidays must be interesting.”
“You have no idea.” Full-moon runs, where everyone talked at once before and after shifting, and festivals when we celebrated our ancestors were as important as human holidays, but I avoided mentioning that.
Indigo wandered to the window and inspected the falling snow. “It’s so peaceful here. I’m used to blaring horns and neighbors shouting.”
My wolf urged me to move beside Indigo. The hairs on my arms stood up, and my body tingled being so close to him.
“This is my favorite time of year.” The snow blanketed not just the world but our problems until the spring, or that was how I imagined it.
“I’ve always preferred summer, but who knows, after spending a few weeks here, I might change my mind.”
There was movement through the trees. Taylor was checking the perimeter. If Antonia hadn’t already alerted the entire pack, Taylor would scent me and Indigo and report to everyone.
Indigo yawned and said he was ready to turn in. He picked up his bag and headed to one of two doors.
“Oh, there’s only one bedroom.” He swiveled around. “Do you sleep in the lodge?”
I couldn’t read his expression. Was he disappointed or pleased we might not be under the same roof? But I tossed the cushions off the sofa and pulled out the bed. “Ta-da. This is for me.”
“Is that comfortable?”
“It’s fine. I’ve slept here many times before.” This cabin was often empty, and I sometimes crashed here, though I always used the sofa rather than the bed, as I wasn’t a guest.
Lines appeared between his brow. “Oh, you’ve done this before.”
“Not like this.”
He said good night and went into the bedroom, only to reappear a minute later and walk into the bathroom. Once he was in bed and his slow breathing told me he was asleep, I shrugged on my coat and stepped onto the porch with my phone.
Antonia answered on the first ring. “I know, I know.”
“How did this happen? That’s not the shifter witness.” I wasn’t responsible for arranging the bookings, but it was a huge F-up. But considering Indigo was my mate, it was a good mess.
“Oh no, I hadn’t noticed.” She was trying to make light of it.
“We were supposed to get a guy who’s testifying against his pack Alpha.”
“It’s a huge mistake, but the FBI agent who was supposed to call us didn’t.”
Antonia had just had a very apologetic Agent Fairbanks on the phone. He was known to us and was a wolf shifter, so he was aware of the services we provided.
“Nothing to do with me, but has anyone checked up on the shifter?” I hoped he wasn’t wandering around in the snow, though if he shifted, his wolf would keep him warm.
“We’ve taken care of him and he’s isolated. Doesn’t want to be disturbed during his time here.”
Okay, I didn’t need to think of that again. But I had to tell her about Indigo because she’d see us together and me acting like a lovesick pup. Better to do it now.
“He’s my mate.”
“What?” I’d anticipated her reaction and held the phone away from my ear. “No.”
“Yes.” There was nothing else to say, and she knew as well as I did that there was no mistake. Even if I didn’t recognize him, my wolf would have.
“Damn. That complicates things.”
“You think? My human mate assumes I’m a federal security contractor.”
“Well, you do provide security for shifters in trouble. It’s not so different.” She sighed. “The council's going to have a field day with this.”
Not wanting to think about it, I ended the call.
I spent a sleepless night because Indigo was in the other room, unaware he was my soul mate. Waking before dawn, I was disoriented until Indigo's scent hit me, and the previous day's events came rushing back.
Slipping outside, I breathed in the crisp air and did a perimeter run. I didn’t shift, though there was no chance Indigo would stumble out of the cabin and see me. But just in case, I stayed in my skin. There’d be a pack inquisition later, but for now, the world was as it should be.
But how was I going to handle this? The council would have strong opinions about a human mate for the future Alpha. Some would see it as weakening the pack. Others would worry about security risks.
And none of that addressed the immediate concern, which was Indigo himself. What would he think when he discovered the truth? That shifters existed and that I was one of them? And that he and I were destined for each other?