Dylan smiled.

  Before he could entertain the thought of kissing her good night, he got a call and glanced at it. “Work.”

  “Night.” She smiled.

  He sighed, then answered the phone and headed down the hall to the bedroom closest to hers. “Yeah, I’m still on the case,” she heard him tell someone.

  Here Dylan thought he was going to finally get to kiss Roxie, but then his boss had to call him this late at night and ruin the moment.

  “I learned you were hospitalized—that one of the hunters nearly killed you.”

  “Uh, yeah.” Dylan hadn’t been about to call that in. Not when he knew his boss might take him off the case because it was damned personal now. “But I’m fine.”

  “I have another case for you. Some trapper is setting illegal leg traps out for wildlife near the San Isabel National Forest. Since you’re out in that area, see if you can catch anyone setting the traps. In the meantime, grab those traps.”

  “Yeah, sure, I will. I want to check out the cabin where Jim stays sometimes.”

  “The police are on this. It’s no longer a FWS mission.”

  “Yeah, it is. They killed an elk.” Dylan knew his boss would be shaking his head. Murder and attempted murder of human beings trumped the illegal killing of wildlife any day. “And he tried to kill me, and I’m a special agent for the FWS.”

  “Exactly, which is why I want you on the trapper case. Since you’re one of our special agents who is closest to the location, I want you on it. But only if you’re really all right. Otherwise, you’re off this case and on medical leave.”

  “Who told you that I had been injured?”

  “You should have! I had to learn it from the sheriff of Silver Town.”

  Hell.

  “He called me to verify who you were, since you had your badge on you when you nearly drowned in Timberline Ski Lodge’s swimming pool! Not to mention you work for me, and the sheriff wanted me to know that you’d been injured, and I might not hear from you for a bit. He needed to know if you’d been down there on a job to learn if it had anything to do with you being attacked. Also, if you had any family he could get in touch with. You know the drill. You get injured on the job, you go on medical leave until the doctor confirms you can return to work. I don’t want you driving back here to get the paperwork done. You can find the necessary forms online. Get the doctor who has already seen you to fill out the paperwork.”

  “Right. Thanks.”

  “Where are you staying now?”

  “At one of the lodge owners’ homes, along with the boy who witnessed the shooting.”

  “Okay, well, keep me posted on what’s happening—medical-wise—and with your case. Otherwise, take it easy. You don’t know how peeved I get when we have to fill out all the paperwork if one of our agents dies on the job.”

  Dylan smiled. “Right.” He knew his boss was more worried about keeping his agents alive.

  They said good night and Dylan took a shower, but he didn’t have a change of clothes here. He usually slept naked, so he just wrapped a towel around his waist and grabbed his dirty clothes, then carried them to the bedroom he was using.

  He set his dirty clothes on one chair and the damp towel on the back of another. Then he slipped under the covers, not closing the door so he could protect Luke and Roxie better if someone tried breaking into the house.

  He stretched out on the bed, hands locked behind his head. He hadn’t caught the hunters, but some good had come of the whole matter. They had found Luke, and he would have a good home to live in. He would have a family that would raise him. Any number of Silver Town pack members would drive him to Denver to be a witness to the murder at a trial—when they caught Jim and could put him on trial. But at least Luke wouldn’t be on his own or worried that a judge would put him in foster care.

  Dylan sighed. He needed to get with the doctor as soon as possible and fill out that paperwork to take medical leave. He was looking forward to spending more time here with Roxie, but he still planned to check out Jim’s grandfather’s cabin as soon as he could.

  The next morning, Roxie was so annoyed with herself for waking up as a wolf. Usually once she had run as a wolf at night, she wouldn’t have issues with shifting right away. But it was the height of the full moon, and that was when she had the least control over it.

  She heard Luke talking with Dylan downstairs in the kitchen, and she was glad that the two of them were getting along so well. They were laughing and talking about their adventures in the woods, while she was frustrated and stuck in her bedroom. Normally, she left her bedroom door ajar, but with Luke and Dylan staying here with her, she had shut it for more privacy.

  She paced, not wanting them to know she was having trouble with the shifting issue. But she didn’t want them to think she was sleeping in all day. She smelled bacon and eggs. She raised her brows, but she had told Dylan he could get anything he wanted. Since she couldn’t leave her bedroom, he was welcome to fix himself and Luke breakfast.

  She wondered what his boss had said about the case. Had he taken Dylan off it? Was Dylan leaving soon?

  She knew he would. Yet she hoped he wouldn’t.

  Aww, damn it. She couldn’t stay in her bedroom until she shifted back. She woofed.

  Luke and Dylan quit talking. She hesitated to woof again, but she figured they were waiting to see if she would woof to let them know she was stuck in her bedroom and wasn’t a royal wolf. That was one way to tell Dylan and the boy that she had shifting issues. She woofed again.

  Then she heard Dylan running up the stairs. She knew it wasn’t Luke, whose footfalls would be lighter.

  She waited, then sat on her rump. The doorknob twisted and the door opened. Dylan smiled at her. “You’re beautiful, you know.”

  She growled.

  He smiled. “Come on down and you can sit with us while we make breakfast.”

  She growled again but followed him down the hall.

  Then they went down the stairs to the kitchen. She was surprised to see Luke turning the bacon in the frying pan.

  “Dylan was showing me how to do this. You’re not a royal?” Luke asked.

  Wasn’t it obvious? She growled and sat down on the floor in the dining room and waited, trying to make herself shift. Then she realized if she did, she didn’t have any clothes down here!

  Someone called her phone, but it was upstairs.

  “I’ll get it.” Dylan raced off, running up the stairs and down the hall to her bedroom.

  “I’m a royal, but my mom had recently told me about wolf shifters who had more human genetics,” Luke said. “We were both really surprised when we heard a woof coming from your bedroom.” Luke served up the bacon and eggs on a couple of plates. “Do you want me to serve yours up on a plate and I can put it on the floor for you?”

  She growled and shook her head. Normally only her family might be around when she had trouble shifting or when they had the same trouble with it. So she wasn’t happy about having virtual strangers in the house who probably wouldn’t understand what it was like to have to cope with this.

  She heard Dylan on the phone as he hurried to descend the stairs.

  “Yeah, Roxie’s a wolf. Okay, I’ll tell her.” He set the phone down on the dining room table. “That was Gabrielle. She said Landon shifted too and Kayla and Blake are staying home in case they shift. Gabrielle told me Nate, Nicole, and she are all royals. She was headed to the vet clinic, and she said if you need anything, Nicole or Nate would take care of it.”

  Roxie loved her in-laws. They had all been so understanding about the siblings having shifting issues from time to time. She lay down on the floor next to the fire crackling in the fireplace, trying to chill. She was not going to eat off a plate on the floor. This never lasted that long anyway, and she’d shift back and eat then. Dylan or Luke had turned on the fireplace mantel lights, which lifted her spirits a bit.

  “I called the doctor this morning,” Dylan said. “I was going to run over to the lodge to get my bag for a change of clothes, but Nate did it so I could watch over Luke.”

  “And you too,” Luke said, waving a slice of crispy bacon in Roxie’s direction, then crunching on it.

  The bacon smelled so good, and she was starving.

  “Anyway,” Dylan said, “my boss told me I was on medical leave until the doctor says I am able to return to duty.”

  Roxie lifted her head and looked at him.

  “The sheriff told my boss I had almost drowned in the lodge’s pool. I don’t know if he told him I’d suffered a mild concussion, but I didn’t want to mention it. But you know how we are. We heal up faster than humans. Still, if the doc says so, I’m thinking I’ll need the whole week to recuperate. I’ll be able to go to the Valentine’s Day party then. If you don’t have a date, I would love to take you,” Dylan said.

  “Yes,” Luke said, sounding as though he thought this might mean he could stay with them if things worked out between Dylan and Roxie. “I want to go too. Can I go?”

  She grunted and nodded.

  “I can stay at the lodge if you’d prefer me to. Or I can stay here and help you out while you’re having shifting issues this week,” Dylan said.

  “Me too,” Luke said.

  She appreciated both of them saying so, though she was still feeling growly about it because she couldn’t shift back.

  “I’ve got another job to do here, near the national forest. I need to discover who’s setting leg traps for animals. The boss doesn’t really want me to go after Jim because it’s a murder case now and because Jim attempted to murder me, so my boss feels it will be more personal. But I can do both while I’m searching for the trapper,” Dylan said. “And it’s not personal.”

  Roxie shook her head. She knew Dylan wasn’t going to give up searching for Jim so she was glad his boss gave him another job. She couldn’t believe someone would be setting up illegal wildlife traps. She hoped Peter and the other law-enforcement guys would help Dylan with both cases.

  Luke and Dylan finished breakfast and both of them cleaned up the dishes. Then they moved into the living room to join her. Dylan carried in a cup of coffee, while Luke had made himself a cup of hot cocoa.

  They were just watching the flames flicker in the fireplace when she finally felt the urge to shift, her muscles warming and stretching. Yes! Thrilled, she jumped up from the floor and tore up the stairs to her bedroom. Now she was ready to eat breakfast if the guys hadn’t eaten all the bacon!

  She was glad Dylan’s boss was putting him on leave until the doctor approved him going back to work. She did like the idea that Dylan could stay here with her to help her out. At least he was able to answer Gabrielle’s phone call. Luke was cute about it too, but she felt he should stay with a family who had some teens around his age so he could make some more friends, though he seemed to be really attached to Dylan. She knew how important that was too.

  Then again, Dylan wouldn’t be here for that long before he returned to work. So why did she want to make sure he stayed here in Silver Town with the rest of the pack?

  Chapter 8

  As soon as Roxie ran up the stairs, Dylan and Luke went into the kitchen and began making breakfast for her. “Do you think she’s going to let us stay here?” Luke asked, his voice low.

  “I’m not sure.” Dylan suspected Roxie might be okay with him staying with her, but as far as Luke went, he thought she might feel he should stay with a family. That was what he would suggest. Though the kid had been through a lot already with losing his parents and then witnessing a murder. Luke seemed happy to be with them, and that was a good thing. But Dylan thought he would feel just as good if he was able to settle in with a family that was permanently living here and could give him all the nurturing he needed.

  Then they heard Roxie coming down the stairs. “Boy, I hope you left some bacon for me,” she said, sounding cheerful now that she was back to her human self.

  He’d been amused that she’d been so growly as a wolf. He felt sympathetic for her but was glad he didn’t have issues like that. He was relieved that Luke didn’t have trouble with that either.

  “I made sure Luke didn’t cook them all up the first time.” Dylan smiled at her. “Would you like a cheese omelet?”

  “Yes, that sounds great. With bell peppers, mushrooms, and onions,” she said.

  “Coming right up.”

  “So what do you think about us staying with you?” Luke asked.

  “Let’s see if a family will take you in,” Roxie said. “Dylan won’t be here for long and—”

  “Oh, gotcha.” Luke poured her a glass of orange juice. “You two need to be alone.”

  Dylan glanced at her to see her reaction. She blushed.

  “I think you need to have a family to look after you,” she repeated. Then she got a call, and she answered it. “Hello, Peter. I’ll put you on speaker.”

  “Oh, good. I was going to call Dylan next if you were unable to answer the phone. Luke’s phone isn’t working. I suspect the phone company closed out the account when his parents died. Anyway, we have a family who’d love to take him in. Our pack leaders, Darien and Lelandi, have three fourteen-year-olds, two boys and a girl, and they want Luke to stay with them. If he doesn’t like the arrangement, he can stay with another family. We want him to feel comfortable with whomever he stays with,” Peter said.

  Luke sighed resignedly. “Sure, I’m fine with that.”

  “Good. I’ll be picking you up in a bit,” Peter said.

  “All right. I’ll go pack my bags.” Luke sounded less than enthused and headed to the guest room.

  But Dylan figured he couldn’t stay with Roxie when she was on her own, and maybe Luke wouldn’t want to after Dylan left. “Hey, Peter, I have another case to work on too.”

  “Yeah?” Peter said.

  Dylan explained the situation to him.

  Peter didn’t hesitate to offer assistance. “We’ll help you with that too.”

  Dylan had never figured he would have regular law enforcement helping him with his job, but finding the trapper and his traps benefited all their kind who could step into one of those traps.

  Dylan didn’t say anything to Roxie about it, assuming they would talk after Luke left. Dylan dished up the hash browns, a cheese omelet, and bacon for Roxie.

  “Wow,” she said. “Thanks so much.”

  “Thank you for allowing us to stay here.”

  It didn’t take long for Peter to arrive at Roxie’s house just as she finished eating her breakfast. She gave Luke a hug. “We’ll have you over for a meal again. You’re still part of my family and of the pack as a whole.”

  Luke gave her a hug back. “Thanks, Roxie.”

  Dylan shook Luke’s hand. “I’ll be sure to see you before I leave.”

  Luke nodded and swallowed a lump in his throat, then headed out to the sheriff’s car. “He’ll be in good hands,” Peter assured them.

  “Right,” Roxie said.

  But Dylan was thinking Luke might not like being with a family that had younger teens, even if being with the pack leaders’ family elevated his position. Dylan figured Darien wanted to take him in to make sure the teen was protected in case the hunters showed up in Silver Town.

  When they left, Roxie said to Dylan, “I felt a little badly that he had to go. I think he did too.”

  “Lelandi came and spoke with me about how I was feeling when I was at the clinic. She told me she is a psychologist. If Luke needs one to talk to, she will be perfect for the job—being a wolf and all,” Dylan said.

  “Oh, good. That’s so true. Thanks for breakfast. It was first class.”

  “You’re welcome. I don’t want to put you out, but if you’d like me to stay here and help you while you’re dealing with shifting issues…”

  “Yeah, sure, and thanks. I didn’t want to say anything until Luke was going to a family’s home because then he might have felt left out. But that would be fine with me. So what are you going to do? Sit still and stay here?”

  Despite doctor’s orders or his boss saying he needed to take time off, he didn’t want to sit around Roxie’s house.

  “You mentioned the hunter’s grandfather’s cabin,” Roxie said.

  “Yeah.” He had to check it out. Though he figured other law enforcement officials would too. But they wouldn’t be wolves. They wouldn’t know if Jim’s, Fennel’s, or Xander’s scents were there or if they were recent, like the wolves would.

  “You can’t go alone.” Roxie was serious about it. She realized he was used to working on his own, but it was too dangerous for him after being injured and considering the danger these men represented since one tried to kill him. “You said it was near the national forest. Darien’s cousin Eric Silver is a forest ranger there. He can meet you there. And others of the pack would go with you. They’ll be eager to arrest the hunter setting traps too. But you can go only if you have the doctor’s permission.”

  He smiled at her. “Sure thing.”

  “I know how you guys are. My brothers are the same way. They have a mission to accomplish, and they do it even if they’re sick or injured.”

  “Yeah, I guess we’re all kind of like that. What about the Valentine’s Day party?”

  Roxie smiled as they cleaned up the kitchen. “Yes, you can ‘take’ me though I’ll already be there because we’re throwing the party for the pack at our ski lodge.”

  “I’ll escort you from your house then.”

  She glanced at him. “It’s a deal. It is a black-tie affair, by the way.”

  “You don’t think I own a tux?”

  She laughed. “You very well might. But while you’ve been running out here? Chasing down bad guys? I doubt you have it packed in your bag, just in case you had the chance to take a she-wolf to a black-tie Valentine’s Day party.”

  He chuckled as he finished scrubbing the frying pan he had used for the omelets. “Okay, in truth I don’t own one. Do they have a store in town that sells them?”

  “You’re in luck. We have all kinds of celebrations here—Victorian Days, even. A couple of shops carry whatever we need for whatever event is going on.”