Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Quinn didn’t want to deal with another meeting.
He didn’t want to have to sit in a room with that wolf and her sweet scent.
His wolf practically purred like a goddamn cat when she was around, and that couldn’t be allowed to happen.
Instead of walking toward the meeting area, he’d rather go for a run and burn through every ounce of adrenaline currently flowing through his veins
That was a better idea than dealing with that blasted hybrid wolf.
He couldn’t seem to get her out of his mind or her scent off his skin. He hadn’t even touched her like his wolf wanted to, yet he could still sense her. Of all wolves, why did it have to be her? Why did he want this one?
He hadn’t been with a woman since Helena left.
It had been five long years since he’d let himself get close to someone else, and he knew it still wasn’t enough time.
Helena had broken him, shattered every ounce of the man he’d once been.
She’d stripped him of half his soul and broken their bond.
When it had first happened, he’d passed out from the agonizing pain.
The only reason he’d woken up was because he’d heard Jesse cry for him.
His little boy had been only a newborn yet had pulled himself from his own nightmare.
By the time he’d healed what he could within himself, he’d been focused on his son and not on the world around him. Gideon had let him remain in his position, and he’d had to fight off dominance challenges since people thought Helena had also damaged his wolf.
Too bad for them that they were wrong about that.
Helena had only strengthened his wolf. He’d had to keep everything sane and strong so he could survive.
He hadn’t had the time or inclination to find a female to scratch the itch for him.
Yeah, wolves needed touch and to release or they’d bottle up too much aggression, but he’d dealt with that.
He had his hand to take care of himself when the need arose, and he could run off the adrenaline if needed.
He’d dealt with it all because he was not given a choice. The only reason he hadn’t gone off the deep end was because Jesse needed him.
That little boy had saved his life, yet Quinn couldn’t do a thing to save him.
He closed his eyes and cursed. No, he would not think like that. Jesse would be fine. Once he grew older, he’d get stronger. That was just what would have to happen because the alternative couldn’t be in the realm of possibilities.
“Quinn?”
He stiffened at Gina’s voice and fisted his hands. Of all people, it had to be her. Why couldn’t anyone else come up on him and pull him out of his funk? No, it had to be the fucking witch. He couldn’t trust her or her powers, but his wolf sure as hell wanted to try.
What the hell was wrong with him?
Plus, why hadn’t he scented her coming up? Even when he was in his mind, he could always feel someone entering his space, yet he hadn’t with Gina. His wolf liked having her there, so he hadn’t warned him. Her scent was already in his pores, so he hadn’t noticed it coming back.
What the fuck?
God, he needed his head examined.
“What?” he growled then cursed. His problems with her had to stop.
He knew he was being an asshole, but something about her rubbed him the wrong way.
If he didn’t start acting better, he’d screw up this whole thing with the Talons and Redwoods.
Even though, for some reason, she put him on edge, he wasn’t going to let his Alpha down because of it.
“Sorry, I was just thinking. What’s going on?” he asked. There. That was civil.
She tilted her head and stared at him. There was something different about her today, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. He also didn’t know why he cared about that. He’d work with her because he had to then go back to the den and ignore her. It was the best way for both of them.
“My Alpha just called. He needs Parker for something right away, so he won’t be here, and Farah’s son got hurt on the playground because he was trying to climb high in the trees. So it will just be me in the meeting. Do you want to reschedule?”
He narrowed his eyes. “So the Redwoods are getting out of their responsibilities so quickly?”
Gina growled. “Fuck you, Quinn. Parker was needed by his Alpha. That trumps us. And hello...Farah’s pup is hurt. That trumps us as well. Get over it. I’m here.”
He immediately felt like an ass. “The pup okay?”
Her face softened marginally. “Yes. He broke his arm, so he’s going to shift to try to fix it.
Hannah will be there just in case. When they’re young, they don’t like using Healing all the time just in case shifting can help.
That way they learn to use their wolf rather than rely on outside sources. ”
“I know. My son is five, and we try to make him shift when he’s hurt.” He didn’t know why he mentioned Jesse, but it had just slipped out.
Gina looked as though he’d slapped her, and she swayed on her feet. He quickly reached out and gripped her elbow. He sucked in a breath at the heat of her skin. His wolf rubbed along their touch, panting for more.
“What’s wrong?”
She shook her head then moved from his touch. His wolf whimpered. “I…I didn’t know you were mated.”
He frowned at her reaction, but he understood her unasked question.
Wolves couldn’t have children unless they created a mating bond.
Sometimes, if people married and loved each other enough, over time, a bond would form with the humans first and the wolves would eventually follow.
That was the only way for them to have children.
“I’m not mated.” His words were clipped, and he didn’t elaborate.
Confusion covered her face, but she didn’t ask why. She’d think that Helena had died, and, in every sense of the word, she had for him. If Gina hadn’t heard the story of Helena’s betrayal, he wasn’t going to enlighten her.
Gina licked her lips then shook her head. “What do you want to do about the meeting?”
Glad she had changed the subject, he took out his phone. “I’ll tell Lorenzo and Kimberly not to come. The two of us are early, so they probably haven’t left yet.”
She nodded but didn’t leave his side as he messaged the others.
“When do you want the next meeting?” he asked. He needed to get out of her presence or he’d do something horrific, like let his wolf have what it wanted.
“In a couple days should work, but let me get back to you on that.”
He nodded then had started to turn away when she gripped his arm. He held back his snarl and looked down at her pale hand on his darker skin.
“What?”
“Since we’re both here, how about we start on the cooperation for the Pack?”
He frowned and pulled from her touch. “What do you mean?”
She shifted from foot to foot, and he frowned. The two other times he’d met her she’d been self-assured and not so fidgety. Something had happened between the last time and now, but he had no idea what. Nor was he sure he wanted to know in the first place.
“How about you and I go on a perimeter run and then end up at the Talon den?”
He widened his eyes. “Seriously?”
She nodded. “Yes. Those two things were on top of our list to begin with, and since we’re the leaders of the council, it makes sense that we’d do a trial run.
I’m not saying we become friends and have me stay the night or anything.
” She blushed, and he blinked. Wherever her thoughts had gone, she hadn’t meant for them to.
He knew he should say no and wait to do something along those lines later, but for some reason, he didn’t want to.
It was a damned good idea, and he had a feeling that if they’d had the meeting today, they’d have ended up doing this exact thing anyway.
He and Gina had to be the first people to try out cooperating.
They were in the leadership roles, and if they couldn’t get along with one another, they weren’t doing their jobs.
The fact that he knew he’d been an asshole with her didn’t sit well with him, but he needed to keep acting like one. If he didn’t, he’d let his wolf have control and do something stupid—like pull her closer so he could inhale her sweet scent.
He didn’t trust her, he told himself.
She was a witch. Those powers had shattered his soul and had almost killed him and his son. He would never trust her, even if his wolf wanted to—and the Pack needed him to.
Instead of listening to that, though, he nodded. “Fine. We’ll run as wolves so we have better senses. You got a problem with that?”
She shook her head. “That’s what I wanted to do anyway. I have a backpack my uncle Josh made that fits me in my wolf form. I can get in and out of it without human hands. I’ll put our clothes in it. That way we don’t have to leave them here to pick up later.”
He nodded and held back a frown. He’d wanted them to run as wolves without the preliminaries so he wouldn’t have to speak to her and get to know her.
He needed the space between them. But now he knew he’d see her without her clothes.
Probably not the best move for a man who wanted to get a woman out of his head.
He followed her to the side of the building where she’d stashed her bag.
“Strip down and give me your clothes. I’ll pack them up and then shift.”
He raised a brow at her tone and watched her ears redden. Wolves weren’t supposed to care about nudity since they had to shift naked. It was supposed to be casual. They wore clothes inside the den common areas for the children, but usually, they weren’t modest.
The fact that the both of them were reacting to each other’s presence didn’t bode well.