“I’m sure you already know, Lupei. I want to speak with Lilly, and I want to meet my daughter. It is my understanding she has been in an accident.” There was a slight growl in Dillon’s voice as he answered Vasile.

  “How, may I ask, did you learn about Jacquelyn, or the accident for that matter?” Vasile asked, his voice laced with skepticism.

  “Pack members talk, Vasile. You know how it is. A group of wolves is worse than a beauty shop for gossip. Naturally, when I heard that there had been a challenge given to the strongest alpha’s pup, and that it had taken place in Lilly’s hometown, I checked into things. Imagine my shock when I found out I had a daughter.” Dillon didn’t think Vasile needed to know Logan had been following them for weeks.

  “We are on our way to the hospital now, Vasile. Please ask Lilly to meet me at the entrance. And I would ask, Vasile, you refrain from mentioning this to Jacque until I speak to her mother.”

  “I will let Lilly know. But I cannot guarantee she will see you.” Dillon began to speak but Vasile cut him off. “Jacque has been unconscious for a month. Lilly has been through hell. She is stressed and overwhelmed. Nevertheless, I will inform her. If you get here and she isn’t waiting in the lobby, then call me tomorrow, we will figure something out. I cannot imagine this is going to go as you expect.”

  “I have no expectations yet. I have five of my wolves with me—my beta and my first four. This is not a challenge to anyone, Vasile. I simply want to meet my daughter,” Dillon told him, his voice never betraying the subtle lie. Dillon knew, deep down, he didn’t just want to meet Jacque, he planned to take her home with him.

  “Understood,” Vasile answered. “I would ask that you and your wolves lie low and treat this as if it were my permanent territory. Lilly is a quasi-member of my pack now. Don’t give me a reason to regret allowing this visit.”

  “You can’t allow me to do anything, Vasile.”

  The words were met with a snarl. “You don’t want to take tact, Dillon, I promise you. I don’t lord my power over other alphas, but I will do what is necessary to safeguard those under my protection. You don’t want to test me in this.”

  Dillon bit back his words. Unfortunately, Vasile was right. The last thing Dillon wanted was a war with the Romanians. But Vasile would abide by pack law when Dillon invoked it. The Colorado alpha could count on that.

  “Understood?” Vasile asked.

  “Understood,” replied Dillon.

  “My beta, Decebel, will wait with Lilly. He is unbiased in this situation. Let me know how your meeting goes,” Vasile said in sarcastic amusement. “What is your ETA?”

  “My beta says we will arrive in ten minutes.”

  “Ten minutes? How courteous of you to give ample notice of your arrival.” Vasile hung up before Dillon could respond to the jab.

  “Did that go as you expected?” Logan asked him.

  “Pretty much. Vasile was calm until I challenged him. The calm ones are often the deadliest. They never betray their emotions, so one never knows their next move.”

  “Sounds like he would be a good poker player,” Logan said dryly.

  “We’re not here to play poker.”

  Dillon thought about the best way to keep Lilly calm enough to let him see Jacque before he dropped the whole ‘I’m here to take my daughter away’ bit. Unfortunately, there were no bright ideas that fell from the sky, nor had he come across a book called How to Appease the Lover you Scorned in Favor of your True Mate for Dummies.

  They pulled into the hospital parking lot. It was packed, so Logan had to park the rental a good way from the front entrance.

  “I’m going to go in and talk with Lilly. I want all of you to stay here. She is already upset about Jacque being unconscious for so long and my presence will only add insult to injury. I don’t want to freak her out more by having a pack of unknown wolves descend on her.” Dillon knew talking with Lilly would probably be harder than talking to Jacque. He had history with Lilly. The kind of history that leaves a wound on your heart that will never heal. It scabs over, often repeatedly, but when the scab comes off, the hurt is just as raw and painful as the day the wound was inflicted. Dillon was lucky, he had his mate, whose presence often held the scab in place. Who did Lilly have?

  The sound of Logan’s voice brought Dillon out of his thoughts. “At what point do you plan to claim the rights of an alpha regarding a minor?”

  “I will decide that after I meet with Lilly,” he replied.

  Without another word, Dillon opened his door and stepped into the warm Texas heat. Though the air was hot, it wasn’t what had him sweating. He shut the car door and turned to walk to the entrance of the hospital. At that moment, he truly couldn’t say what would be worse, facing the lover he had hurt or chewing on a mouthful of thumbtacks. When Dillon reached the entrance and opened the door, the first thing he saw was Lilly’s beautiful face. He knew then without a doubt he would much rather chew the thumbtacks than face the betrayal he saw in her eyes.

  OceanofPDF.com

  Chapter 6

  Sally waited in the hospital room as her two best friends were brought in on rolling beds. She stood, anxiously twisting her fingers together. The worry she had been feeling for the past month was etched on her tight lips and raised eyebrows.

  “Oh, come on, Sal. If you keep looking at me like I’m a sick puppy you found in a ditch, I’m going to smother you with a pillow in your sleep,” Jacque said.

  “Bloody hell, here I thought I was the reigning female dog in this posse.” Jen grinned at Sally.

  “Bloody hell? Female dog?” Jacque raised her eyebrows at her usually snarky friend.

  “I’m trying to clean up my potty mouth. You know how near-death experiences change how you live and what not.” Jen shrugged.

  “Jen, bloody hell is profanity. You know this, right?” asked Sally.

  Jen looked at Sally and rolled her eyes. “Only to the British so it doesn’t really count.”

  “I don’t even know how to respond to that,” Jacque said dryly.

  “I thought you two would never wake up,” Sally said. “Jen still looks like a mummy all wrapped up in bandages, and you look like a freshly cooked lobster.” Sally pulled a chair in between their beds.

  “I was just getting my beauty sleep.” Jacque looked over at Jen and grinned. “I don’t know why she refused to wake up.”

  “I had plenty of reasons to stay unconscious. But, Jacque, your innocent little mind wouldn’t be able to handle the dreams that kept me from returning to reality.” Jen yawned and patted her mouth.

  “You don’t know, maybe my subconscious is more adventurous than my conscious.”

  “Well, in that case, as a favor to Fane, we will knock your ass out the night of your bonding ceremony,” Sally said dryly.

  Jen laughed, but it came out more like a strangled cough. “Don’t make me laugh, my lungs are charbroiled. I feel like a Burger King hamburger, always cooked over an open flame.”

  “Your way, right away, baby,” Jacque added.

  “There are so many better ways to use that comment than on a stupid hamburger commercial,” Jen said.

  “And she’s back,” Sally teased.

  “I need to say thank you. You guys saved my life. I want you to know I love you both, and I will be forever grateful,” Jacque told them as she wiped a tear from her cheek.

  “You would have done the same for either of us, Jac,” Sally replied.

  “Well, now that you are forever in my debt, I will have to think of ways to put your gratitude to good use,” Jen teased.

  Sally and Jacque both laughed and rolled their eyes at their forever obstinate friend.

  Jen looked around the room, appearing to realize it was just the three of them. “So, where is the wolf entourage?”

  “They all left just before they wheeled you two in. Vasile took a phone call out in the hall and when he came back, he called everyone out. But he told me to wait here for ya’ll,” Sally explained. “I figure it must be important if it got Fane away from his woman. He has refused to leave the hospital for even a minute since she was brought out of the operating room.”

  “I can’t say I’m surprised her Hottie McWolfman is glued to her side. She was nearly freaking killed,” Jen said.

  “You did not fare any better.” A gruff voice caused their heads to turn toward the door, and they saw Decebel in the opening. Sally saw Fane push around him to come to Jacque’s side. She also noticed Decebel staring at Jen as if she had grown an extra appendage on her head.

  Jen glanced at Jacque and then at Sally, searching for some sort of clue as to what to say. But neither could throw her any bones. They knew about as much as she did about Decebel, and it added up to zero, zilch, and nada.

  “Ooookay, and you would be here why?” Jen asked him with obvious confusion.

  “I’m here to guard you. I mean guard all of you. Not just you, but each one of you at the same time, not alone—”

  “Yeah, I got it,” Jen interrupted. “No need to hurt your poor struggling little brain any further.”

  Decebel’s head jerked up to look her in the eyes. Sally watched the exchange and saw what she could only describe as hurt in the large man’s eyes. Had Jen’s words hurt him? Jen swallowed thickly but said nothing else. After several seconds, he turned and looked at Fane. “I will be downstairs for a few minutes. The alpha will stand guard with Alina.” Without another word or glance back, he strode out of the room.

  All three girls let out a deep breath none of them had realized they’d been holding.

  “Would one of you yahoos like to explain to me what has his tail in a twist?” Jen asked, looking from person to person, waiting for some plausible explanation.

  “Okay, one,” Sally said holding a finger up, “we have no clue. He has just been like that since we got to the hospital a month ago. And two, did you just say his tail was in a twist?” Sally asked, repressing laughter.

  “If I did, it’s only because half my body has been deep fried, and I feel like someone beat me with a sledgehammer. I may not exactly be firing on all eight cylinders. So, that said, I am allowed some dumbass remarks. Lay off me, Polly Perfect, or I’ll have M&M’s personalized with your phone number on one side and for a good time on the other,” Jen threatened irritably.

  “And she’s back again.” Sally grinned.

  “That’s a bit much to put on a tiny piece of candy,” Jacque said.

  Jen flipped them both off.

  * * *

  Yep, Jacque thought, we’re going to be okay. Jen’s being a female dog, as she put it, Sally is egging her on, and I’m in the corner staying out of the line of fire laughing my butt off. Things will be back to normal in no time. Jacque looked up at Fane as he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead.

  “What was that for?” she asked him.

  “For every smile I see on your face, I will kiss you,” he told her lovingly.

  “What do I get for a laugh?” she asked, her voice thick with suggestion.

  Fane grinned at her, flashing those amazing dimples. “I don’t think now is the appropriate time to demonstrate that, love.”

  Jacque thrust out her bottom lip, attempting to pout, which only made Fane grin bigger.

  “So, what was so interesting in the hall?” she asked.

  Fane hesitated just long enough for Jacque to wonder if he was being totally honest. He had his thoughts closed from her, which also made her wonder what was up.

  “It’s nothing big. My father got a call from a pack that is driving through the area, and he likes to make us aware when another pack is about.”

  Something in Fane’s forced, nonchalant tone confirmed to Jacque that Fane was hiding something. She chose not to get angry. She was simply too exhausted, and she knew his only goal was to protect her, even if it was just from a fly wielding a toothpick as a sword. Fane would never leave her unprotected again. She had a feeling the number of fights they were going to have in their long lives had just increased exponentially.

  “So, Jen, how’d it go with your parents once you woke up?” Sally asked. “They were here constantly while you were checked out.”

  “Oh, it went fine, but I can’t handle my mom being all emotional and hovering. You both know I don’t do hovering.” Jen rolled her eyes.

  “Ah, yes, the hovering. Your mom does tend to hover when she is upset,” Jacque agreed.

  “I wouldn’t call it hovering, actually,” Sally said thoughtfully. “It’s more like full blown nosediving. You almost have to duck for cover when Jen’s mom comes at you if she’s worried.”

  “Hence, why she is no longer here,” Jen acknowledged. “It took some convincing, but with a little help from Alina, we got her and my dad to think it would be better for them to let me get some rest and, unless something is wrong, they will come up tomorrow night.”

  Jen looked at Fane thoughtfully before asking, “Does your mom have some sort of ability to make people do what she wants?”

  Fane chuckled. “My mother has always been able to get people to see things from her point of view. My father says it’s an art the way she can work people around her. I don’t know, you will just have to ask her.”

  Fane squeezed Jacque’s hand. “How are you, Luna?”

  “Considering I’ve been burned to a crisp, my leg crushed like it was run through a blender, and glass sprinkled in my skin like I was a cupcake, I’m pretty stinking good,” she told him with her lips turned up in a smile that nearly melted his heart.

  “I love you,” he whispered.

  “What’s not to love?” she teased.

  “Indeed,” Fane muttered under his breath.

  * * *

  Decebel stepped back into the room and, without looking at anyone, walked to Jen’s bed. “Are you all right?” The words revealed some sort of emotion, but Jen couldn’t tell what because his tone of voice was just as gruff as ever.

  Jen was getting frustrated with his odd aloofness toward her. Just like earlier, she handled his coldness with what she did best—flirting.

  “I could be better,” she told him with a slight pout. Out of the corner of her eye, she winked at Sally, who was giving her a questioning look.

  “What does that mean?” he asked even more gruffly, if that were even stinking possible.

  “It just means that my circumstances could be improved, which would make me feel better,” she told him innocently.

  Jacque was in her bed with her hand over her mouth, trying to muffle her laughter as she watched her friend work her magic. It was clear Decebel had never met anyone like Jen. He appeared at a loss as to what to do. Jacque had a feeling uncertainty was not an emotion Decebel often felt.

  When he didn’t respond, Jen crooked her finger at him, indicating she wanted him to move closer. When he leaned down, Jen grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him forward until he had to put his hands on the bed to support himself. She yanked his head down so his ear was next to her mouth. She whispered something, and Decebel’s body tensed, his muscles rigid with statuesque grace. After a moment, he stood up, took one last look at Jen, and, without a word, turned and walked out of the room.

  Jen burst out laughing as soon as the door clicked. “Man, that was rich.”

  “Would you like to share, my wicked little friend? What you did to poor Decebel?” Sally raised an eyebrow at Jen.

  “A lady never kisses and tells.” Jen grinned and winked at Sally.

  “There are two obvious problems with that statement,” Jacque started.

  “Yah, yah. I’m not a lady, and I didn’t kiss him, blah blah. Details, details, my dear Watson,” Jen said sarcastically.

  She grinned to herself. Jen couldn’t believe the boldness of the words she had whispered to Decebel. But it served him right for being such a butthead to her. She was just messing with him. After all, it meant nothing, so what was the harm? Meanwhile, she tried to ignore the nagging little voice in her mind that was attempting to contradict her thoughts.

  “He’s on his way here, as in now?” Lilly asked Vasile. Her voice was frantic.

  “Apparently. Dillon said he would be here in ten minutes,” the alpha replied.

  “Did he say what he wanted?” She forced the panic down and steeled her voice.

  “He said he wanted to talk with you and meet Jacque.”

  “Yes, but we both know there must be more to it than that, Vasile. He could have just called. Dillon has to have an ulterior motive to travel all this way. I have no doubt he wants to meet Jacque, but that’s not the only reason he has come,” Lilly said.

  “Decebel is going to go down with you to meet him. I don’t think Dillon would hurt you or allow harm to come to you, but I want Decebel there to get a feel for things. I have called Sorin, Skender, and Boian and asked them to scout the hospital to see if they can get a look at Dillon’s men,” Vasile explained.

  “I’m ready when you are, Lilly,” Decebel said. The statement caught her off guard because she wasn’t sure if the large man had ever spoken to her before. First time for everything.

  She drew in a large breath and let it out slowly. “Ok,” she said after a moment. “Let’s do this.” She rolled her shoulders as if she were getting ready for a fight.

  “She has worn off on you, too,” Decebel said as the pair stepped into the elevator.

  “Who has worn off on me?” Lilly asked.

  “Jennifer. She always says strange things at inappropriate times. I notice you do it, too. She’s like a virus … that won’t stop spreading,” He muttered the last part to himself.

  “Maybe. But if Jen is a virus, then she is the only one of her kind in existence. And she’s worth all the pain she causes.” Lilly glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

  Decebel growled something indiscernible but said nothing else. As the elevator doors opened, he put a hand in front of Lilly so she couldn’t exit. He stepped out first and looked around, then motioned for her to emerge.