His whole outlook brightened. “Yeah, sure.”

  Carmela came into the room then, and he was so glad to see her alive and well. Her arms were bandaged, and she was attached to an IV like he was. She was wearing a hospital gown featuring gray wolves on a snowy background like his also, except she was wearing a pair of matching pants too. Jake pulled a chair over for her so she could sit closer to the bed.

  When Carmela was seated, another woman entered the room without invitation. Everyone looked to see what she had to say, and Michael assumed she was a pack leader. “I’m Lelandi Silver, and my mate, Darien, and I run the pack. We want to personally thank you for saving our brand-new member, Carmela, from the wolves. She happens to be my distant cousin also.”

  That could be good news for him if it gave him an in to join the pack, or bad news if they wanted her to mate someone who was more important in the pack already. Though Carmela could already be interested in someone, he reminded himself.

  “Do you need me for anything else?” Peter asked Lelandi.

  Lelandi patted his shoulder. “Not here. Keep trying to find out what you can about the three men. We need to learn where the other wolf got off to and discover if we’re going to have any more trouble for the pack.”

  “I will.” Peter left the room then.

  “When you have a chance, you can decide where you want to stay, Michael, until you’re all healed up,” Lelandi said. “Of course, Darien and I would love to have you stay with us.”

  Michael glanced at Carmela, and she blushed. He smiled. Yeah, she was the one he’d like to stay with. He thought she must not be mated or some male wolf would have been coddling her about now. “I’d like that, Lelandi, thank you.” He might not be able to stay with Carmela, but he had the notion he’d visit with the pack for now, get to know the leaders better, and see if he could help learn what he could about the missing, injured, male wolf. Of course, he was all for providing protection for Carmela if they’d let him. And maybe he would remain with the pack if it looked like a good place to be.

  Lelandi said, “Okay, good. Doc Weber said he would release you in a couple of days, depending on how fast you heal. Your dressings will still need to be changed, and we have to make sure you don’t have any infections and fever resulting from the bite wounds too. Carmela, Doc said you could leave tomorrow, as long as you’re not having any fever.”

  “Okay, great,” Carmela said.

  “I’ll check in on you later.” Then Lelandi took Jake’s arm and led him out of the room.

  * * *

  Carmela thought Michael was a handsome wolf, his hair dark brown and army-regulation cut. He had a chiseled face, vivid blue eyes, a nice, warm smile, but his skin was pale, and he wore several bandages on his arms. Thankfully, the wolves had missed tearing at his legs. She hated to think how injured he was under the gown.

  “Hey, Michael.” She took his hand and held it. “Thank you for saving me.”

  “I should be thanking you.”

  “Without you, I couldn’t have done it. But I agree. We did it together. I remember seeing you briefly at Fort Sam Houston. You were leaving when I was arriving.” She remembered thinking he was hot for a human. Her interest had been piqued when she saw he was Special Forces and even more so when she’d realized he was a wolf. She hadn’t seen him in wolf form before, and she’d never seen him again, so her memory of his scent had faded over the years.

  “Yeah. I couldn’t believe you were a wolf, but I had to catch a flight out of there to my next assignment at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Man, I thought about you the whole way there, wishing I’d at least known your name.”

  She smiled. “You were a captain then. Congratulations on making LTC.”

  “Thanks. You were a captain too. Did you stay in?” he asked.

  “Yeah, and I retired at the same rank as you.”

  He smiled. “Congratulations are in order for you too.”

  “Thanks. So do you plan to stay with the pack for a while?”

  “I’m looking for a pack to join, actually.”

  She brightened. “Oh, well, good. I did the same thing when I was retired and wanted to check out another pack in Colorado, then had a flat tire near here, and…” She shrugged. “I found this pack, and they were so helpful and welcoming, I just stayed.” She explained the business about the men, her car, and why she was armed with a bow.

  “That’s great on the crossbow competitions. As to the man who got away, you’re going to need some extra protection,” Michael said. “Since the guy came after you and you physically injured him, I suspect he’ll be coming after you again.”

  “Are…you offering to protect me? You need further medical attention.” She knew he was interested in courting her then. Not that she was surprised. There was a shortage of eligible she-wolves in the pack, and she was very eligible. They also had a common background with the military.

  “Yeah, I’m combat-trained and tested.”

  “You did great out there against the two wolves. Thanks for giving me a chance to run off, but I didn’t believe you’d be able to manage that many wolves at one time. I suspect Peter will have someone watching over me.”

  “He can be the outside guy.”

  She chuckled. “You are injured.”

  “Believe me, if any rogue wolf tries to get into your house, I’ll be there to take him down.”

  “I believe it. So you’re applying for the inside protection.”

  “Yeah.”

  “I have to warn you my house isn’t all the way set up. I just moved here. I’m a little way out in the woods so I can run as a wolf when I like. I’ve got the kitchen set up, but I still have a lot of boxes I haven’t unpacked yet. I haven’t hung up any pictures or made the bed up in the guestroom.”

  “I can help. I’m not an idle kind of guy.”

  She tilted her chin down. “You are injured,” she reminded him.

  “I heal fast.”

  She sighed. It wasn’t that she didn’t want him in her house. She would love to help him recover. And she would enjoy the company if her house wasn’t such a mess. She didn’t want him overdoing it if he chose to help her unpack a bit. She assumed he’d be doing way too much to prove to her he was all macho and he could handle a few bites.

  Still, she got on her phone and called Peter. “I assume you’re going to have someone watching my house when I’m there.”

  “Yeah, and someone will be following you around wherever you need to go to make sure you stay safe.”

  “I have a bodyguard staying at my house when he’s able to,” she told Peter, watching Michael smile to hear her words. Even if he couldn’t do much to protect her, she thought he would get better sooner if he was at her place, getting some tender loving care.

  “Don’t tell me you mean the Green Beret,” Peter said.

  “Yeah.”

  “He’s wounded.”

  As if she didn’t know that. “Yeah, but he’s a Green Beret.” She smiled at Michael. “I’ll help change his bandages for him.”

  “You know this is going to cause quite a stir,” Peter said.

  “You mean I might lose my job?”

  Peter laughed. “No. Just that if you begin courting him… Well, you know what I mean. And actually, this will help save us on guard duty. We were going to have to put someone on guard duty for him also. Deputy Sheriff Trevor Osgood will be watching over you on the first shift. A bunch of us will be taking turns—on outside duty, wishing we were on inside duty with you.”

  She chuckled. “Okay, thanks.” They ended the call.

  “Is it going to be a problem for me to stay with you?” Michael asked.

  “Nope. Would you mind if I stay in here with you overnight?”

  “No, I’d be glad for the company.”

  “Okay, good. You just stay there. I’ll be right back.” As if she really thought he was going anywhere. She left the room and got hold of Nurse Grey. “Is it okay if I move to a bed in Michael’s room?”

  Nurse Grey gave an exaggerated sigh. “You do know that many of our bachelor males were hopeful they had a chance with you.”

  Carmela smiled. “They may still have a chance.”

  “Somehow, I don’t think so. And yes, you can move into his room. Your clothes and crossbow and arrows are in the closet in your room. Oh, and don’t worry about your job. Lelandi said you have two weeks to heal up. If you want to return to work sooner, that’s fine, but there’s no need to. I overheard that Michael is going to be staying at your place. He might need your care for longer, so you’ll be all set.”

  “Okay, thanks. I’ll grab my stuff and move then.” Feeling better about this business as far as Michael staying with her, considering how badly he’d been hurt because of her issues when he hadn’t had anything to do with it, Carmela saw Tom was serving on guard duty here at the clinic. This was a decided advantage of living with a pack. Not that she’d ever thought she’d really have this kind of trouble.

  She soon joined Michael and put her clothes in the closet in there. She set her bow and arrows under her bed, then climbed under the covers of her bed.

  Michael was watching her. “Do you think we’ll have some trouble here?”

  “No. But you know it’s always a good idea to be prepared, just in case. Tom Silver is serving on guard duty for now. And if you didn’t hear what I was talking to Nurse Grey about, she said I’ve got a couple of weeks off from work. So once you feel better, you can help me hang pictures.”

  “I can certainly do that.” He closed his eyes then, and she knew he needed to sleep.

  She hoped her being in his room made him feel more comfortable. He wouldn’t be worrying about her being down the hall if they did have any trouble. Not that she expected him to leap out of bed to protect her. She was doing all the leaping to protect him if it came to it.

  Four

  The black wolf bit at Michael, and the other wolf came in for the attack. Michael groaned and woke himself from the nightmare he was having of fighting a couple of wolves and doing his best not to lose the battle. He glanced around the room and realized he was lying in the clinic bed. He remembered he’d been injured in a fight with the two wolves and was recovering from his injuries. He looked at the bed nearby where Carmela was sound asleep. He was glad she was here with him. He didn’t know what kind of shape he’d be in if he had to leave the bed to protect her, but he’d have done it. It appeared they hadn’t had any trouble during the night. A nurse had come in to check on them some hours earlier. Other than that, Michael had slept fairly well.

  Michael studied Carmela further and frowned. Her face appeared flushed. He was feeling better, but he was concerned she was running a fever. He pushed the call button to get the nurse’s attention.

  Nurse Grey was back on duty, and she hurried to see him. “Yes, are you okay?”

  “Yeah, but Carmela looks awfully flushed.”

  Nurse Grey brought out a thermometer and checked Carmela’s temperature. “Okay, thanks, Michael. She’s running a fever.”

  Carmela opened her pretty green eyes and groaned. “Don’t tell me I’ve got an infection from that bastard wolf’s bites.”

  “It appears that way. We’ll give you some stronger antibiotics until your body can deal with this. It’s Doctor Weber’s call, but I’d say you’ll be staying with us another day.”

  * * *

  When Carmela and Michael were finally released from the clinic the following day, she was glad she could go home and take Michael with her. Thankfully, he hadn’t incurred an infection, but since she had, they both were planning on taking it easy at her house. He had his Jeep, and she could use it for as long as she needed it until she could get a new car, he’d told her. But she didn’t want him to feel obligated, and as soon as she could settle with the insurance company, she was getting a new car. And she was thrilled that someone had gotten her bags out of her totaled car and put them in Michael’s Jeep.

  Trevor, one of the deputy sheriffs, was at the house, making sure it was secure. He tipped his hat to them in greeting and hurried to grab some bags out of Michael’s Jeep. She was so grateful for the way everyone was helping them out.

  Michael pulled two of his own bags out of the Jeep, but he groaned with the effort.

  “What did Doc say? No heavy lifting for you,” Carmela cautioned him.

  Trevor cast him a warning look that said he’d report any infraction of the doctor’s orders. “I’ll grab the rest of the bags. You can just get settled in the house.” He carried Carmela’s bow and arrows and one of her bags into the house for her. “We’ve had someone watching the place but haven’t seen anyone approach it while you’ve been in the clinic.”

  “If he returns. With any luck, he’ll have died from his wound, but I suspect if he was able to get someone to remove the arrow from his hip and take care of him, he’ll live.” Carmela dropped her carry-on bag on the floor and collapsed on her sofa, hating feeling so wiped out. Boxes she hadn’t unpacked were stacked around the living room and dining area, a few others opened where she’d pulled out some things and didn’t have time to put the rest of the stuff away. Her priority had been getting the kitchen and her bedroom in order. It made her tired just looking at them. “Even so, it might take him a while to return if he intends to. He might figure he’ll have some other wolves to deal with.”

  “I agree,” Trevor said.

  Michael set his medicines and Carmela’s on the kitchen counter. “Does anyone want some coffee?”

  “Black coffee would be great, Michael.” Carmela laid her head back against the couch.

  “Thanks. Black coffee works for me. I’ll get the rest of your bags. Be back in a minute.” Trevor soon brought in the rest of the bags and set them on the floor in the living room. “Did you want me to take any of these back to the bedrooms?” Trevor motioned to the black bags and the purple ones.

  “The purple ones can go to my bedroom, please, and thanks,” Carmela said. “My bedroom is the last room down the hall on the left. Michael’s black bags can go in the first spare bedroom on the right.”

  Once Trevor had moved all the bags into the bedrooms, he rejoined them in the living room. “Is there anything else you need me to do for you before I begin my guard watch?”

  Michael handed him and Carmela cups of coffee.

  “I think we’ll be okay. We’ll call Doc Weber if we begin feeling poorly or Lelandi if we need anything else.” Carmela knew that Lelandi would organize any help they might need.

  “I’m good, thanks, Trevor,” Michael said.

  “All right. Well, I’ll be outside until my shift ends.”

  “Thanks, Trevor, for everything,” Carmela said.

  Trevor finished his coffee and put the cup on the kitchen counter. “Sure thing.” He headed outside.

  Michael locked the door and joined Carmela on the couch. “Maybe we should have stayed another day at the clinic. You look as wiped out as I feel.”

  “Thanks.”

  He smiled and drank some of his coffee.

  “Okay, I should have thought this through a bit further.” She sipped some of her coffee, then motioned to all the boxes. “Somewhere in one of those boxes are more linens. I don’t think either of us is ready to tackle a bunch of boxes, searching for them.”

  “I can look for them.”

  “You could. I can, but I think it would be better if we just rest.” She finished the remainder of her coffee and set the mug on her coffee table. “We both need to lie down. Doctor’s orders. And we know that’s the best way for us to recover faster.” She rose to her feet, and he finished his coffee, setting his mug near hers, and stood.

  “Are you sure you don’t want me to look for the sheets? I can manage,” Michael said.

  She smiled and took his hand. “Tomorrow.” Or the next day or whenever she had more energy. She led him to her bedroom and began stripping off her clothes.

  “You want me to sleep in here?”

  “If it doesn’t bother you. Some wolves don’t like to sleep with others if they’re used to sleeping alone, but it’s the only bed that’s made up, and the sheets are fresh. I changed them before I left for Germany.”

  “That works for me.” He began stripping out of his clothes, but though he was trying not to wince or groan, he did both, and she knew the only place for them was in bed, resting.

  She pulled a nightshirt out of her drawer and slipped it over her head.

  He left his boxer briefs on and joined her. “I had hoped you weren’t mated and we might court if the pack allowed me to stay. I never thought I’d be in bed with you this fast.”

  She laughed. “Only because of the circumstances we’re in. Courting, eh?”

  “Yeah. But I’ll also help you hang pictures and unpack your boxes.”

  She reached over and took hold of his hand, squeezed it, and released it. “That works for me.”

  “We’re courting?”

  “Yeah, except we might need to get our strength back first.”

  He chuckled, leaned over, and kissed her cheek, then lay back down on the mattress. He was smiling, looking at the ceiling, and she thought he was one sexy Green Beret, covered in battle wounds and bandages, all because he’d come to a mystery woman’s defense. Yeah, she was dating him. A she-wolf couldn’t ask for more. And in the end, he might even be the wolf for her.

  * * *

  In the middle of the night, Carmela hit Michael, waking him from a dead sleep, and he found her sound asleep, flailing her arms, fighting an enemy, he suspected. He leaned over and held her arms. “It’s okay, Carmela. You’re safe.” When she’d socked him, he’d thought he was under attack at first. Luckily, she hit his chest where he hadn’t been bitten.

  Then she calmed and rolled onto her side, her blond hair falling over her shoulder in a silky caress, just beautiful. He lay back down and fell asleep again. When she rolled over again later that morning, she woke him, and he glanced at her. She opened her eyes and smiled at him, but she appeared flushed again.