“It doesn’t make sense that your mate would be human?” Colton supplied the hard edge to his voice, a warning.
“Not your mate.” I glanced at Marina who gave me a smile. She knew what I was getting at. Colton was protective of his mate and their bond.
“Mine. I’m alpha. Things are different for me. You left, brother, for fourteen years. Boyd left for twelve. You’re just getting a sense for what’s going on around here. I’ve been the only Wolf on the ranch for a fucking long time.”
Colton sighed, ran his hand through his short hair. I wasn’t blaming him for going off and living his life. Mine though, was being alpha of this pack. I belonged here and only here. The needs of the pack came before mine.
“It shouldn’t make a difference,” he said.
“No, but it does. Am I making sense now? You heard about Nathan at the meeting. There’s been undercurrents of that shit for years.”
“Fate’s a bitch, we all know that. But only when you fight her.” He glanced down at my untouched food. “Eat your fucking pastries,” he warned, like he was going to kick my ass if I offended his mate.
I picked up the warm croissant from my plate not because I was hungry but because I didn’t want to be a dick and took a bite.
“Oh fuck, that’s good,” I exclaimed. The flaky croissant was filled with chocolate that melted in my mouth. “Wow.”
“Right?” Colton said, grinning.
“You can take some to Natalie,” Marina offered. “You know, as a peace offering.”
Peace offering.
Fuck.
I had been a jealous dick the night before. I just couldn’t figure out why a smart woman like her couldn’t see Markle’s true colors. Audrey had after one date with him. Maybe my perception was skewed by my wolf’s need to mark her.
I should definitely stop by her place and apologize. I didn’t know if bringing croissants was really my style, but my style seemed to have gotten me in the doghouse.
I could stop by her place after checking the fences.
And just like that, my appetite returned. I could grovel and so could my wolf in order to make things right. I’d told Natalie I was going to fuck things up. I had. She’d had warning, but it didn’t make it right. She just needed to be prepared to forgive me. Often.
I shoved the other two pastries down my throat and downed my coffee, the anticipation of seeing Natalie again already changing my mood.
17
WILLOW
I adjusted my camera’s telescopic lens to get a closer view of the activity on Markle’s property. From where I stood at the window of the master bedroom, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I snapped some photos, just to document.
My search of Markle’s barn and stable the night before had produced nothing. Nothing, which totally pissed me off. If he had more of the crates that had been loaded onto that cattle hauler, they were somewhere else.
Maybe the latest shipment had yet to arrive. I didn’t know how the drugs arrived from South America to Markle’s place. Catching that drop off would be huge.
When I’d done as much as I could from my location, I put on a pair of jogging shorts and runners. No one questioned a jogger running back and forth on their property. Besides, I needed a good run. I’d run cross country in high school, specializing in the longest distances until my foster parents made me quit because it took too much time away from my ranch chores. For some reason, I’d always had the endurance for running. Hell, I’d always needed it to stay sane.
After Rob stomped off last night, pissed, I’d been itchy and restless. He’d pretty much caught me red handed, and I didn’t blame him for being mad. I wasn’t a two-timer, but I’d certainly given him every indication I was one. It had been cruel. If I’d thought he’d been with another woman, I’d have ripped his throat out.
I knew it was for the best—I should let things fizzle out. That didn’t stop me from planning to jog by Rob’s place, too. If we accidentally bumped into each other and he was over being mad, I definitely wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to explain as best I could without giving everything away. I wanted to spend more time with him, in or out of bed. I really liked the guy—it went beyond carnal attraction and good sex. He was definitely one of the good ones, as they said.
I put some sunscreen on my face and shoulders and stepped outside, breathing in the cool Montana air. It was a beautiful morning—not too hot yet. The smell of wild grass and pine cheered and relaxed me at once.
I put my earbuds in, the music setting a steady beat to follow and started jogging along the telephone line trail, then cut west down another path to check out Natalie’s property line. As the current homeowner, it was up to me to see if any of her fences needed mending although it sounded like Rob and his brothers had been taking care of things like that. I didn’t see a broken section, but I hadn’t covered the entire perimeter of the property.