“So what happened?” I demanded. There was anger in my tone, but it was impossible to fight. My wolf was furious that our mate had put herself in danger. Alone. At night. With Hollaroy most likely involved.
“I heard two men in there talking,” she said. “I got close enough to listen, and they were definitely talking about cooking meth.” She swallowed hard. “One of them was my dad. The other guy was threatening him. He said something like, ‘Figure it out. You’re alive because we need you.’”
Her jaw trembled.
I reached for her hand. “It’s going to be okay. I’m so glad you came to us.”
Her eyes were bright with unshed tears. “But my dad…” Her voice cracked, and the tears spilled.
“Sweetheart,” Holt said softly. He pulled her chair back and lifted her easily onto his lap. “We’ll sort it out. If someone’s threatening him, we’ll arrest them. Get them off your property and out of your life.”
“Our lives. Me and my dad’s. Right?” She was on Holt’s lap, but it was my gaze she locked on to, and the pleading in her eyes was more than I could take.
“We’ll take it from here,” I promised.
I didn’t want to tell her that her dad would remain unscathed. If he had a role in this, he’d have to answer for it, but I also needed her trust. I needed her to believe that coming to us was the right decision. The challenge was, she was coming to us as mere men. Not as lawmen. Not as shifters.
But we were those other things too. If her father broke the law, it was our job to see justice served. And if he was endangering our mate, then our wolves would ensure her safety no matter the cost, no matter the human laws.
“Ali, you have to promise us that you won’t put yourself in the middle of it again.”
“That’s my land. My job is to run that ranch. I can’t stay away,” she said, not soothing me at all. Unfortunately, it made sense.
“You have to stay away from that trailer and stick close to the house and stables, or at least be with others who work for your family.”
“Okay,” she agreed.
“What if your dad hadn’t been there, and whoever was cooking meth had caught you sneaking around?” I continued, ensuring she got the point. Her agreement wasn’t enough for me or my wolf.
Holt’s eyes glowed amber again. Yeah, his wolf was frantic too.
She shrugged. “I understand it could have been dangerous.”
Could have been?
“I had to know,” she continued, not understanding the depth of our concern and that our wolves were riled. “I wasn’t going to call you guys in if it was that crusty old rancher friend of my dad’s, watching baseball.”
That crusty old rancher friend was an asshole, and a thorn in Holt’s side. And he was a wolf hater on top of it.
“No, sweetheart,” I rumbled, standing up and swooping her into my arms, right off of Holt’s lap. I carried her in the direction of Holt’s—our—bedroom. “We need you to promise us. We will go apeshit if we think you’re in danger.”
“I can handle myself,” Ali said, but there was a lilt of amusement in her voice rather than the stubborn hardness she’d used a moment before.
“You may have traveled the world, but you’re no match when it comes to meth dealers. We’ll work our investigation and take care of the bad guys, whoever they are. Not you.” I finished my lecture and looked to Holt. “I think she needs to be tied up again. What do you think?”
“A little punishment is in order, for sure,” he said, following. It made my dick hard, getting her beneath us and watching her squirm from a little funishment, but I definitely wanted to exert my dominance over her. To make sure she knew we were in charge, especially when it came to her safety.
Still, I watched closely to make sure Ali was ready for the shift into pleasure, or if she needed more emotional support. There wasn’t anything we could do about Hollaroy or Jenkins tonight, but we could take care of our mate.
Her lips turned up at my suggestion, and she let out a soft chuckle.
“What kind of punishment, officers?” She gave me a coy look that made my dick hard.
Hallelujah. She was game.
Thank fuck, because I needed to taste her again like I needed to breathe.
I was gentle when I set her in the center of the bed. Holt crawled over her and pushed the hem of her tight t-shirt up to kiss her flat belly. “What kind would you like, sweetheart?” he asked.
“Um…” She blushed, and didn’t say anything.
“Gotta tell us,” he murmured, focused on her exposed skin. “Whatever you’re into, we’ll give it to you.”
She arched a brow, bit her lip, then said, “Maybe a little spanking?”