The men clasped hands and exchanged a quick bro hug. “I look forward to it,” King told him, and then Clive surprised Marilee by giving her a hug.

  Shifters were generally huggers by nature, but she’d been the runt of the Pack, discarded and despised. She didn’t take such things for granted, and the fact that Clive would treat her as an equal—or at least, a shifter worth acknowledging with a friendly hug—meant the world to her. Her life was already changing for the better, and she hadn’t even reached Grizzly Cove yet.

  “Thank you for everything,” Marilee told Clive, meaning every word.

  King was there to make sure Marilee got into the car. She took the wheel for the first part of their journey, and when she got tired, they’d switch. It was straight through to the meeting place, now, just outside of Grizzly Cove. And then, if all went well, she’d be going into the town itself to meet up with Sabrina. Marilee could hardly wait.

  Of course, the end of her journey also meant the end of her time alone with King. That thought sent a pang through her heart, but she had to be strong. Based on the way he’d kissed her earlier, he might even want to continue their relationship after they got to Grizzly Cove. Stranger things had happened.

  Clive and King exchanged some final words, and then, King got into the passenger seat. “We’re ready to roll,” he told her. “I’ll play navigator, but we’re going to have an escort for the first part of this morning’s adventure. Clive is allowing us to drive straight through the hawks’ territory, which is a larger chunk of real estate than I had realized. While in their territory, we’ll be escorted both on the ground and, especially, from the air.”

  Marilee started her car and pulled out of the lay-by and onto the small road. Almost immediately, four big men on motorcycles joined them—two in front, and two behind.

  “They’re prompt,” she observed. “It’s not really even dawn, yet.” She hadn’t put her headlights on, because as a werewolf, she had excellent night vision, and they weren’t on public roads yet.

  “First light isn’t far off,” King commented, studying the muted light of his phone’s screen. “Ace is already on the road. He’s going to meet up with us as far out as possible, so we won’t have to go too far without some kind of backup.”

  Marilee noticed but didn’t comment about how he’d set up their driving schedule so that she was driving the first part, which sounded as if it was the safest on their agenda for the day. He looked after her in little ways, and each time he did something like that, it made her fall a bit more in love with him. She feared she was going to be very hurt when he left her, but she was basking in his attention while she had it. She’d never felt so cherished in her life.

  The first part of their journey progressed as expected. They made decent time over the somewhat rugged terrain and dusty roads through hawk territory. They were on private land, for the most part, so they didn’t see any other vehicles, except for the escort motorcycles.

  The sun came up behind them, painting the trees in orange and red. It was a glorious sunrise, and Marilee silently prayed it was a portent for a good day to come. As they drove along in the quiet of the early morning light, she prayed to the Mother of All that she would rest in Grizzly Cove that night, safe and sound. That what she was hauling behind her on that trailer would be deemed safe by the Alpha couple—or, if not, that they would know what to do with it to make it safe. She also prayed for King, and that he would stay safe if they did run into trouble. And, selfishly, she prayed that he would want to keep her for a little while, even after they reached their destination.

  “Penny for your thoughts,” King said softly at her side.

  She smiled and glanced at him. “Just asking our benevolent Goddess to watch over us today.”

  King nodded. “A little prayer is always a good thing, in my book.”

  She was surprised by his gentle words. She hadn’t really expected him to acknowledge her faith, but it was comforting that he hadn’t either dismissed it or made fun of her. She’d gotten both reactions a time or two from the wolves in Tobias’s Pack. She was only just beginning to realize how different her Pack mates were from the shifters she’d met so far out in the real world. It was like night and day. Nobody had once treated her as less because she wasn’t a dominant wolf.

  And King hadn’t belittled her for her shiny white fur that had always made it impossible for her to blend in. Far from it. He actually seemed to admire the way she looked in her fur, which was a first in her experience.

  “We’ll be leaving hawk territory soon and rejoining the public road network,” King warned her. “The escort will drop away. That’ll be your first clue that we’re on our own, again, out in the open.”

  She nodded. “I can’t say I’m looking forward to that, but I definitely want to get where we’re going, so I guess it’s unavoidable. The hawks were very gracious towards us.”

  “Yeah, they really went out of their way to help us,” King agreed. “I think we both made a friend there, in Clive. He’s a good leader.”

  Marilee agreed silently but didn’t comment as the motorcycles in front of them pulled off to the side of the road. “This must be the border of their territory,” she observed.

  She waved at the men on the bikes as she drove past them slowly. There was a bit of a bump, and then she was off the dirt road and onto pavement. They had rejoined the public road system.

  CHAPTER NINE

  King took over the driving duties about an hour later. He kept a close watch on the road ahead and behind them, as well as the view from side to side, but so far, he hadn’t seen any threats. They might actually have ditched their followers yesterday, which was a tremendous help to their progress, but he wasn’t going to be any less vigilant. The enemy was still out there. Still looking for them. He could feel it.

  He checked in with Ace every twenty minutes, and they were definitely drawing closer to each other. Clive called once with an update about his man who’d taken the trackers. He was approaching the lake in Tahoe and was about to dump the trackers in. Once that happened, the game would be over, and the enemy would know pretty quickly that they’d been had. King appreciated the heads-up.

  “What do you think will happen once they realize?” Marilee asked, her tone concerned when he discussed Clive’s call with her.

  “They’ll probably start backtracking to figure out where they lost us,” he told her. “The first place they’ll check is the highway, if they’re not already having that watched, but we’re not on the highway, so that’ll keep them guessing for a bit. If they know where we’re heading—and we have to assume they do because it was well-known in your last home that you and Sabrina were best friends and that you were packing up her stuff—then they might just be watching all the ways in and out of Grizzly Cove, but we have help there, and it would take a rather large and specialized army to take them down.”

  “So, you think we’re okay?” She still sounded a little nervous, which he didn’t like.

  “I wouldn’t say we’re home free, but we have a solid plan and lots of help. I think we’ll be all right.” He wanted to allay her fears, but he also would never lie to her. He looked for a change of topic that might help. “Ace is going to wait for us at a backcountry roadhouse that he’s heard of, not too far away. The place is run by shifters and caters mostly to shifters, though they do get the odd human passing through. It should be safe enough for us to at least meet up and continue on our way. If he gets there first, he’s going to order some roast beef sandwiches we can eat while we drive.”

  “That sounds good,” she said, brightening a bit.

  “We’re really not that far away from the roadhouse. We should be there within a half hour or so.” He reached over, unable to stop himself from taking her hand. “Try not to stress, honey. I think we’ll be okay, but if not, we’ll handle it.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “If I didn’t tell you already, the way you handled that mage was damned impressive.”

  “I didn’t actually do anything,” she told him, her tone holding a tiny bit of frustration. “I just stood there, trying to figure out what was going on, when he opened fire. Not my finest hour.”

  “Are you kidding?” He squeezed her hand gently before releasing it so he could put both hands on the wheel for a tricky turn. “Most shifters would’ve at least crumpled a little under that sort of barrage. Most werewolves would’ve been singed or badly burned by what he was throwing at you. Bears? Well, I would’ve fared a bit better, but still…” He searched for words to tell her just how special she was. “Whatever it is about you—the white fur or something else that makes you unique—it seems that you’re pretty impervious to magical attack. I guess you don’t know how rare that is.”

  “Is it?” She made a face, seeming to consider his words. At least she didn’t seem scared anymore. Instead, he’d say she was thoughtful at the moment, which was a vast improvement, to his mind. “I guess it’s just never come up before. I didn’t realize I could do that until it happened, to be honest.”

  “Well, it’s a really good talent to have in our present circumstances. Heck, under any circumstances. There are a lot of wicked things in this world, and you seem to have a natural defense. That’s pretty awesome.”

  They talked more as he drove along. The back roads were challenging, but there was no sign of pursuit, which was gratifying. He actually enjoyed talking with her, learning more about her and the way she thought about things. He told her anecdotes about his brothers, and eventually, she opened up and talked to him about her friendship with Sabrina and what Pack life had been like for her, both before Sabrina arrived in town and after.

  King got the impression that Sabrina was more than just a friend. She had been a lifeline to a woman who’d never really found acceptance among her own kind. Sabrina had helped plant the seed of rebellion that now, was in full bloom in Marilee’s soul. King started to realize just how much of an influence Sabrina’d had on Marilee’s decision to leave Canada. He was going to have to find a way to thank his new sister-in-law for inspiring Marilee to find her backbone and make the decision to leave.

  Because, if Marilee had never taken this journey, they might never have met. Now, that would have been the ultimate tragedy. Now that he knew her—that he’d made love to her—he really couldn’t imagine his life without her in it any longer. He’d have to finesse her into returning his feelings, but he figured, given enough time and opportunities to be together, he might be able to bring her around.

  King was both thrilled and a bit saddened when he pulled into the parking lot of the roadhouse his brother had described. Ace was waiting there, a big brown bag that was probably full of the promised roast beef sandwiches in one hand. He was leaning against the seat of his Harley, sipping out of a water bottle. He remained relaxed as he watched King maneuver the SUV into the parking lot, so King figured they were secure. He parked, and Ace walked up to the driver’s side window as King rolled it down.

  “Hey Marilee, good to see you again,” Ace said, first acknowledging the woman seated beside King.

  “Hi, Ace. Good to be seen,” she quipped. “Is it safe to use the facilities in there?”

  Ace nodded. “I’ve been here a while. Checked the place out. No one but shifters inside and only a few, at that. Should be safe enough.”

  She opened her door and was getting out, but King didn’t want to let her go in there alone. He trusted his brother, of course, but this was Marilee’s safety they were talking about. His inner bear would not allow him to skimp on reconnaissance. He had to check the place out personally.

  “Wait,” he said, opening his own door and shoving his brother aside in the process. “I’ll go in with you. I can get us some drinks for the road.”

  It was a flimsy excuse, at best. They still had that cooler of drinks that Clive had supplied, in the back seat. Ace was looking at him funny too, but King couldn’t help himself. He jogged to catch up with Marilee and made sure he opened the door for her, glancing in to scan the room before he would let her enter.

  As his brother had said, no threat immediately made itself known to him. Still, he couldn’t help but remain vigilant. His inner bear would brook no argument when it came to Marilee’s safety. She smiled as she passed him and went into the restroom. He would do the same, but only when he was sure she was safe in Ace’s company. His brother would come in handy for that purpose, at least.

  King figured he’d have some questions to answer for Ace after his display, but none of that mattered right now. Marilee was King’s focus, and it was his honor to look out for her. He would never shirk that duty.

  “You want to tell me what the fuck is going on?” Ace asked, appearing at his side.

  King was shocked Ace would leave the vehicles unattended, but then he noticed his brother’s position allowed him to see clearly out of the big front windows. Both the SUV with its trailer and Ace’s bike were clearly visible.

  “No,” King replied, standing and heading for the restroom. He knew Ace would keep watch while he took care of business. When he returned a few minutes later, Ace was where he’d left him, and Marilee was still in the ladies’ room.

  “Now, do you want to tell me what’s happening?” Ace insisted, returning to his earlier question as if no time had passed.

  “What do you mean?” King prevaricated, not wanting to have this conversation just yet.

  “I mean, why are you acting so weird about Marilee?”

  King didn’t answer. Instead, he got the bartender’s attention and ordered a couple of iced tea bottles to go. They didn’t have any iced tea in the cooler.

  “Did you fucking sleep with her?” Ace hissed, his tone angry as the bartender departed.

  King rounded on his brother. “That is none of your damned business.”

  “Holy shit. You did. You slept with Sabrina’s best friend.” Ace threw his hands up in the air, clearly angry now. “What the fuck were you thinking? Wait. Don’t answer. Because you obviously weren’t. Couldn’t you keep it zipped for one stinking night?”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about, so I suggest you shut the fuck up, asshole.” King flipped his brother the bird. So far, this reunion wasn’t going so great.

  “I know we asked you to take care of Marilee. Not take care of Marilee. Big difference! One involves looking out for her safety. The other involves being a selfish dick. Guess which one you qualify for?” Ace’s loud words were getting attention from the few denizens of the roadhouse. Heads turned to watch the brothers argue. It was probably the most entertainment they’d had in here in a long time.

  “Could you keep it to a low roar? I don’t think the people in the far booth heard you.” King turned to survey the room and caught sight of Marilee’s wide eyes as she stood by the door to the ladies’ room. Shit. She must’ve heard at least some of that. “Now look what you’ve done, asshole,” King grumbled as Marilee made a beeline for the door of the roadhouse.

  “Fuck,” Ace said softly, finally realizing how much of a jerk he’d just been. “I’ll apologize to her.”

  “And make it worse?” King rounded on his brother. “No thanks. Just get my iced teas when the bartender comes back and then meet us outside. The less said by you, the better.”

  “Just tell me one thing,” Ace demanded, grabbing King’s sleeve as he tried to walk past. “Why?”

  King ground his teeth together, rather than throw a punch. He was outraged that Ace would interfere. That he would make Marilee feel the slightest moment of embarrassment. His inner bear wanted to brawl, but he knew he couldn’t spare the time. Marilee was hurting, and it was his fault in a roundabout way. He had to fix it. He had to go to her.

  “This is really none of your business, and I wanted to talk to her first, but if you insist on unintentionally humiliating her, then you should know this. I believe she’s my mate. So back the fuck off, big brother. I won’t warn you again.” The growl in his voice said he meant business.

  Ace lifted his hand away from King’s sleeve and held both hands up, palms outward in a show of peace. “Crap. I’m sorry, King. If that’s what this is, then good luck.”

  The look of contrition on his older brother’s face helped King settle his bear. A bit. He stalked out of the roadhouse and headed for the SUV. Marilee had climbed inside, reclaiming the wheel. It looked like she wanted to drive, and he wasn’t about to argue.

  She was busying herself combing through the cooler for an unnecessarily long time. There were only a few drink bottles left back there. It shouldn’t be so hard to choose. But King understood. She was taking a few minutes to compose herself before facing him again.

  Whatever she’d heard of Ace’s complaints had been enough to embarrass her, King was certain. He’d have to work to restore the easy companionship of the earlier part of their journey this morning. Fucking Ace. Couldn’t keep his big fucking mouth shut.

  King figured the best way to handle this was with honesty. He opened the passenger side door of the SUV and sat down. He didn’t speak right away. He gave her time to settle before he opened his trap. He wasn’t sure what to say, besides apologize profusely, but he’d find the right words. Somehow.

  “Ace is an ass,” he began, not really realizing he was going to start the way until it came out of his mouth. “I told you he’s always Mother Henning us. Well apparently, you are now part of his flock because of your friendship with Sabrina. He means well, but sometimes, he sticks his big nose in where he shouldn’t. If it’s any consolation, he feels really bad right now.”

  “He thinks of me as part of his flock?” Of all the parts of his speech for her to pick up on, that one surprised him most.

  “I think so, sorry to say.”

  “Don’t be. I think…” She seemed to hesitate. “Well, it’s kind of nice. I’ve never had a big brother.”

  King chuckled. “If you’re around him long enough, you’ll be glad you never had to deal with it.”