He returned to the front door where Sierra was still standing, arms folded across her chest, looking annoyed. Not at him, he didn’t think. But at the situation. He knew how she felt—violated. Her home probably didn’t feel safe any longer.

  “Everything’s clear.”

  “Okay, thanks.” She headed into the bedroom.

  “Did you need my help with anything?”

  “Why don’t you see if there’s anything in the fridge or freezer that we could have for dinner tomorrow night.”

  “Sure. I’ll do that.” He looked in her fridge and found more corn on the cob and hamburger in the freezer. “Hey, how does corn on the cob and hamburgers on the grill sound to you?”

  “Sounds like a winner,” she said from her master bedroom. “And in the bread box, I have hamburger buns.”

  “Okay, got them.”

  She joined him in the kitchen, hauling a suitcase. She’d changed into khaki shorts, a tank top, and sandals. He smiled. She looked like she was ready to take the boat out for a spin.

  “I know we were going to the wolf restaurant tonight, but why don’t we skip that and grill the hamburgers tonight.”

  “Yeah, sure, that works for me.”

  She glanced at her artwork that was all torn up.

  He hated seeing it like that and the upset in her expression. He came over and rubbed her shoulders. “What can I do for you?”

  She sighed. “When I have time, I’ll redo them. Nothing I can do right now. I packed a lot more than I’ll need. I feel more settled now that I have the security installed and I can return home.”

  He was thinking more like when she had no more trouble—when the guys they were after were in jail, or dead—then she could return home.

  “Hey,” Sierra said as she wheeled her suitcase out to her car. “I don’t want you to think anything of it but if…well, Josh says something about you not selling your boat anytime soon so you could take me out, ignore him.”

  Adam smiled at her. He loaded the groceries and her bag into her car.

  She shrugged. “We were just talking, not about you. But somehow, I mentioned boating, and well, just saying…”

  Adam chuckled. “Okay. Thanks for the heads-up. I’ll follow you over to the house.” He knew Josh was thinking Adam was making a play for Sierra.

  When they arrived at the house and parked in the garage, she hesitated to pull in too, but he’d made room for her. He motioned for her to pull her car in. That way, Dover’s men wouldn’t know it was there unless they had eyes on the place, and they couldn’t do anything to it again unless they alerted him and Sierra. Once she parked in the garage, he grabbed her bag for her, and she got the groceries. They went inside, and he locked the door.

  “I’ll take the hamburgers and corn on the cob out and grill them,” he said.

  “I’ll be out in a minute. I’m going to put my clothes away. You know how it is. Before you’re ready for it, you get called to go back into work. I don’t want to be trying to figure out where all my stuff is if I have to dress in a hurry.”

  “I don’t blame you. When I have to take trips, I like to unpack first thing too. Feel free to use my closet for your things, and I have a couple of spare drawers you can use.” He started cooking the corn first, and after she finished unpacking, she found a bottle of burgundy and poured them each a glass of wine.

  “I would have liked to run as a wolf tonight at Forest Park, if we hadn’t been shot at there before.” She offered him one of the glasses of wine.

  He took a sip and put the hamburgers on the grill. “We could drive out to Leidolf’s ranch and run there, or to Josh and his brother Maverick’s reindeer ranch.”

  She was watching Adam turn the corn on the cob on the grill and smiled. “Let’s run at Leidolf’s ranch. We’ll still be out at the ranch earlier tonight than if we had to wait until after ten to visit the park.”

  “Right.” He was glad she wanted to run as a wolf tonight. He had really enjoyed running with her the other night, despite the shooting incident. But he was afraid she might be a little spooked about it, just like he thought she was about staying in her home alone. He flipped the burgers on the grill.

  She took another sip of wine. “I asked Josh about them going with us boating on Sunday, and he said he had to clear it with Brooke first. I was under the impression they had already both said yes.”

  “I, um, I’ll check with them. I thought they were going too.”

  “I’m going to call my brother and make sure they’re going. I hope everyone isn’t canceling.”

  Adam had thought everyone wanted to go so Sierra wouldn’t feel like she was on a date, so he was surprised Josh was waffling about going now. Maybe he hadn’t okayed it with Brooke yet. Adam knew Josh loved to boat.

  “Hey, Brad. I’m putting this on speakerphone. I’m just checking with you and Janice. You’re going boating with Adam and me on Sunday, aren’t you?” Sierra asked.

  “Yeah, we’ll be there.”

  “What about your sister-in-law?”

  “Dorinda made some other plans.”

  “Okay, we’ll see you Sunday then.”

  “See you both then.”

  Sierra sighed, sounding relieved.

  “Are you afraid of going out with me alone?”

  Sierra laughed. “I was afraid everyone would drop out because they thought we should have alone time. But it will be fun having a bunch of our friends and family on the trip.”

  “I agree.” Then someone else could captain the boat and Adam could visit some with Sierra. Otherwise, he was the designated driver the whole time. He served up the hamburgers and corn on the cob, and they began adding condiments to their buns the way they liked them.

  She slathered mayonnaise on her bun, and he added a light coating on his. They both dabbed a bit of mustard and ketchup on their buns and a couple of pickle slices on top of their burgers.

  “Cheese?” he asked, forgetting that others liked cheese on their burgers.

  “No, I’m good, thanks.”

  They took their plates to the chairs on the patio and sat down to eat.

  She smiled and took a bite of her burger. “Hmm, this is really great. I never would have thought I would be having dinner on the grill after work. Except for party functions, of course, I don’t get to have grilled fare very often.”

  “It’s been a lot of fun for me too.” And a way to show off he could grill meals, especially since she seemed to enjoy them.

  “This is going to be fun boating in the summer.”

  He was thrilled she was thinking of continuing to date him.

  “Maybe in the fall we could plan to take the boat out,” she said.

  “Yeah, anytime we’re off and you want to take the boat out, I’m game.” Now that was what he liked to hear.

  “Good.” She took a bite of her corn and smiled. “Hmm, this is so good.” She sighed.

  “Man, I sure am glad I still have my boat.” Adam felt he was winning the competition.

  She laughed. “Did you tell Leidolf we’re going down there to run as wolves tonight?”

  “Uh, no, I’ll do that.” He texted Leidolf to tell him they were coming for a run in about an hour. They didn’t have to give him a heads-up, but they did if they could, just to let him know when anyone was going to the ranch so they would be prepared.

  Every once in a while, people would come onto the ranch wanting to photograph it or the surrounding scenery or wildlife. Or hunters wanting to hunt. Once, someone even asked to buy the ranch and all its acreage. No way. Not with all the wolves that called it home. So they had to be watchful that uninvited people didn’t show up there and see the pack members running as wolves.

  Leidolf texted back: Sounds like you’re making progress. Good show.

  Adam smiled and texted: I’m working on it.

  And then he set his phone on the table.

  Sierra took another sip of her wine. “So did you tell him we’re dating?”

  “That I’m working on it.”

  She chuckled. “We’re way beyond working on it.”

  Chapter 17

  Sierra thought Adam was sexy and fun to be with, and she was glad she was dating him.

  At least their wolf run would be safe tonight. She was looking forward to it and having nothing but fun, instead of trying to escape from shooters as fast as they could run.

  After they enjoyed their meal, they drove down to Leidolf and Cassie’s ranch. Sierra saw Adam glance at his rearview mirror and side-view mirror on the way there, and she finally asked, “Is anyone following us?”

  “Maybe, maybe not. I keep thinking someone is but then they turn off on another road. If someone is tailing us, if they think to follow us onto the ranch, they’ll have a welcome committee.” Adam gave Leidolf a call on Bluetooth. “Hey, it’s Adam. We’re on our way to the ranch. We’ll be there in about fifteen minutes. If anyone’s following us, give them a welcoming that will make them wish they hadn’t entered the private ranch.”

  “I’ll be sure to arrange it.”

  “Oh, and arrest them, because if they are part of Dover’s gang, we need to take them in.”

  Leidolf laughed. “That’s supposed to be your job, Detective. See you in a few minutes with men at the ready.”

  “I’ll sketch a picture of the bad guys if I get a good look at them and they get away.” Sierra loved the pack. The packmates were always there for each other whenever they needed them to be.

  Leidolf said, “That’s what I love about the wolves on the police force. Always there to help take down the bad guys.”

  They ended the call, and it didn’t take long for Adam and Sierra to arrive at the ranch. Two pickup trucks were sitting on either side of the gate with two men apiece carrying rifles, waiting for trouble. Two vehicles following Adam’s Hummer on the road continued on past the ranch entrance.

  Sierra shook her head. “You know, we could have driven onto the ranch, and then if someone was tailing us, they could have tried following us and we could have nabbed them then.”

  “True, though I suspect they might have looked for another less obvious approach since ‘No Trespassing’ and ‘Private Property’ signs are posted all over the place. Leidolf also has security cameras hanging up all over. Though there’s so much acreage, they could still slip by unnoticed if they tried to sneak in someplace else. If they see the firepower at the gate, they’ll know we’re protected at least. I really want to run with you without feeling threatened by Dover and his cohorts tonight.”

  “I agree.”

  Adam rolled down his window and waved at the men. “Thanks for helping out.”

  “You got it!” one of the men said, the others agreeing.

  Adam drove up to the main ranch house while the men remained at the gate as guards, probably until Adam and Sierra returned home.

  Several homes were also located at the top of the mesa that overlooked the forested and pasture lands as far as the eye could see. The homes up there were for pack-member families that lived and worked on the ranch. A bunkhouse housed bachelor males who worked on the ranch.

  Brad and his mate, Janice, came out to greet them, and to Sierra’s surprise, her mom and dad, Kirk and Rhonda Redding, were there too. Sierra couldn’t believe they had come from San Antonio for a visit and hadn’t told her. Brad hadn’t either.

  Her parents both gave her a hug. And then so did Brad and Janice. Sierra and Brad’s parents were just as blond and blue-eyed as Brad was, and she was glad to see them.

  “When were you going to tell me you were coming here?” Sierra was thinking maybe she and Adam should have gone to the reindeer ranch where they would have had more privacy for a wolf date. Though they also had a lot more security with all the pack members living here.

  But she was really glad to see her parents too.

  “We need to celebrate that you’re working full-time for the bureau now, Sierra,” her mother said, hugging her again.

  But her father frowned and folded his arms across his chest. “Brad told us you were having trouble with the man you put behind bars.”

  Sierra gave her brother a disgruntled look. He wasn’t supposed to worry their parents over it. That was why they had come? What were they going to do about it?

  Leidolf and Cassie came out too. Cassie gave Sierra a hug. “The two of you go on and run and have a good time. We’re going to have some wolves and some men go with you, but not close by where they’ll be intrusive.”

  “I’m going,” Brad said.

  That was a given.

  “We just want to make sure that no one comes onto the property with the intent to hurt you,” Leidolf said.

  “We’ll be so far from the main road, we shouldn’t have any issues,” Adam said, “but we appreciate the backup. And if anyone sees these men trespassing, have our security take them into custody and turn them over to the police.”

  Wouldn’t that be a great way to wrap this all up? Then Sierra could return home unafraid that anyone would trouble her again, though she had to admit she was enjoying Adam’s company—dinners and working with him. The situation had rapidly changed between them now that she was free to date him.

  But with her parents here visiting, she needed to spend some time with them too. Her parents were eyeing Adam. She sighed. Okay, so they wanted to know what was up with him too, she figured.

  “We’re going to the waterfall,” Adam said, which was his way of telling the others that he was dating her. That was a romantic spot for courting wolves. For kids to play in too, and families to go to, but when it was a single couple, it was a dating spot.

  Sierra enjoyed being around Adam during work and during wolf gatherings—though she was always teasing Josh about one thing or another and not Adam so much. She felt like a sister to Josh and his brother, Maverick, but to Adam?

  She hadn’t ever felt sisterly toward him.

  “You can change at our house,” Janice said.

  “Thanks.” Sierra headed for the house and Adam followed her lead.

  When they were inside, she went into one of the guest rooms. Adam waited for her to leave the room as a wolf, and then he went into the room and stripped and shifted. Even though everyone was still outside, he must have felt the need to give her some privacy.

  She waited for him, and as soon as he left the room, she wagged her tail and licked his face. He nuzzled her face with his, and then they ran out through the wolf door, her first, him following.

  “Wait for me,” Brad said and headed back inside the house to strip and shift.

  Her parents were still talking with Janice and Leidolf and Cassie.

  Sierra wouldn’t think of running off without her brother and the other men watching their backs. Not that she thought they really needed it this time. But it didn’t hurt to be sure.

  Before long, a couple of men armed with rifles climbed into a black four-wheel-drive Jeep Gladiator and headed out. Then the wolves spread out and Sierra and Adam took off for the falls.

  She was feeling much more carefree again and enjoying the run. If anyone had followed them from Adam’s house to the ranch, they weren’t going to be able to see them after sunset at nine tonight unless they were carrying flashlights, and then the wolves could easily see them. At least that was what she hoped. Unless the men had infrared goggles, but she suspected they weren’t that well equipped.

  Then again, how did they see them in the park last night?

  She tried to put the possibility of the shooters following them here out of her mind and just enjoy the time she was spending with Adam. Every once in a while, she caught a glimpse of her brother in the woods running as a wolf, and she saw another wolf farther off on the opposite side of them.

  She hadn’t been to the waterfall before this. She guessed it was because she didn’t think it would be fun coming on her own or with random wolves. But now, running with Adam, she was eager to see what it was like.

  They finally reached the pool of water, which was surrounded by a rocky beach on three sides and had large stones in the middle with ferns surrounding the falls. She wanted to come here during the day too. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t come before this to see the beauty of the falls, despite who she might have gone with or if she had come here on her own. They were just gorgeous. The sound of the water rushing over the cliff and cascading down into the clear water made her feel relaxed and happy. But being here with Adam made it even better.

  He was sitting on the bank of the pond and watching her reaction to seeing the waterfall. She closed her gaping mouth and smiled, showing off all her wicked wolf teeth. She woofed at him, telling him she was glad he brought her here. He howled.

  She would have laughed but instead bounded into the cold pond, sending water flying everywhere, and headed straight for the waterfall. She didn’t hear Adam joining her, and when she reached the waterfall, she looked back at him.

  He was still sitting there on the rocky bank, watching her as if he took delight in seeing her explore the pond and waterfall first.

  A fish jumped into the water next to her, and she pounced on it—a natural reaction to do so while wearing her wolf coat. She immediately released it when she realized what she’d done, not wanting to take a fish home between her teeth. Glancing at Adam, she smiled to see him still watching her, looking amused in his wolf way.

  She suspected if the roles were reversed, he would have done the same thing. As soon as she moved closer to the waterfall, a fine spray cloaked her in mist, and she dashed through the waterfall to the other side of it. When she turned, she saw Adam swimming in the deeper part of the pond to reach her. She woofed, thrilled he was joining her.