He shook his head. “Finn’s son is the only one of us that was born.”
Her eyes went wide. “You can have children? With other werewolves? Or women?”
“You’re the only female werewolf in our pack,” he said, waiting for the waitress to serve their coffee before continuing. “There were five of us. Finn was infected first—”
“Who infected him?” She dropped the creamer packet on the table.
“His brother was an archeologist. There was an accident, Finn got stuck by a bone.” He shrugged. “It infected him. And he infected us.”
She frowned. “Why would he do that to you?”
“You sort of lose your head with the first change,” he explained.
“I’ll be on, like, a killing spree?” The question was whispered.
He leaned forward. “You’ll be fine, Olivia. I’ll make sure of that.” He hadn’t meant to take her hand again, but her fingers threaded with his. “We’ll be safe at the reserve.”
“Where is the reserve?” she echoed, still nervous.
“He has a few. Big one in Minnesota. Smaller one in Montana. Another in Wyoming. Finn’s loaded. He bought half of Minnesota and started a wolf refuge, a place where Hollis could search for a cure without drawing attention.”
“Makes sense.” She looked at their hands, twined together. “The reserve isn’t a reserve? It’s a cover?”
He shook his head. “There are wolves there.”
“Tell me about the pack. There were five?”
“Finn, the Alpha. Me. Hollis—he’s sort of the resident doctor and wolf expert. Dante and Anders.”
“And Finn’s son?” she asked, releasing his hand to sweeten her coffee.
“Oscar.” Mal nodded. “He was a baby. Finn’s mate was expecting.” He’d known Finn’s mate a few days before she’d been kidnapped by the Others. In that time, he’d felt the bond between Jessa and Finn. It had been amazing—and terrifying.
“So, they’ve been together for a while?” she asked. “That’s nice.”
He shook his head. “Oscar had a different mom. The Others killed her. Jessa was helping Finn take care of the baby when…when they became mates.”
Olivia arched a brow. “I’m assuming that’s different than your average human relationship?”
“Wolves mate for life.” He muttered the words, sat back, and drank his coffee.
“She’s a wolf?” she asked.
He shook his head. “Just his mate.”
“I’m confused.”
“Join the club,” he answered. “He didn’t turn her. At least, he hadn’t when I saw her last. They are the good guys. The Others are bad. Cyrus, their Alpha, is a twisted son of a bitch I can’t wait to rip to pieces.” He looked at her, eyes narrowed. Except now, ripping Cyrus to pieces was no longer his top priority. “Since being turned, life’s revolved around staying alive and protecting my pack. Which is you.”
She smiled. “And Finn and the rest of them.”
“We’ll see,” he said, not ready to let them back in yet.
“How long have you been gone?” she asked softly.
He shrugged. It could have been weeks or months. “Too fucking long.”
She took his hand again. “They must have been missing you.”