Page 3 of The Pack Next Door
It was just a narrow suburban street, so the cars parked on either side made it difficult for the van to pass through. Some of Mum’s neighbours were coming out of their houses, obviously wanting to make sure nothing happened to their vehicles. My teeth ground together as I heard my phone start to buzz. Mum was ringing, wondering where the hell I was, but right as I went to answer it, the van edged closer, then the neighbours started to shout and wave their arms at the driver. I shook my head, putting the car in park, then got out, ready to explain to the van driver that he’d need to reverse and ask the neighbours to move their cars if he wanted to get his vehicle up this road. But right as I reached the rear of the van, he pulled open the driver’s side door and dropped out.
Golden, that’s what I noticed first, the sun limning the ruffled strands of his blond hair. That wasn’t the only part of him that seemed to be made of gilt metal. The day was warm, but that didn’t seem to be an excuse for driving around in a truck shirtless, and yet here he was. Broad shoulders, muscles flexing as he dropped down out of the cab, his skin perfectly tan. He was big, strong, and perfect looking.
Alpha, that’s what my wolf said, right before she had me moving.
She stayed very quiet in the city. I’d only managed to shift three or four times, because she was not a powerful presence inside me. Some theorised that’s why I’d never found my alphas, that if she was bigger, stronger, fate would’ve deemed me worthy of mates. But right now, it was her paws that moved me forward, her whining that I could hear in my ears as we moved closer.
“You’re not getting that truck up here!” Old man Smith grumbled, stabbing his finger in the direction of the truck.
“If you back it up,” Mrs Dennis said in a far more polite tone, “I’ll get my husband to move our car for you.”
“I’d appreciate…”
His voice was deep and husky, producing a visceral reaction inside me as soon as I heard it. Like fingers stroking through my fur, finding that perfect spot behind my ear to scratch. That whole-body shiver? It had nothing on the way I felt when those bright blue eyes swung my way. I felt hot, then cold, then hot again as my cheeks burned bright red. The skin around his eyes crinkled a little as he grinned, a sparkle of mischief the only warning I got of what was to come. He pushed past the concerned neighbours, striding down the side of the truck and stopping when he came to me.
“Jace Whitlock,” he said, holding out his hand. “And who are you, beautiful?”
Chapter 2
Jace
“Have you got the truck parked out front of the house yet?” my brother Gideon said down the phone line. “We’re just picking up the keys from the real estate agent.”
“Need to turn the aircon on as soon as we get inside.” Mads, my other brother’s voice was somewhat muffled, obviously coming from somewhere deeper in the car. “It’s hot as balls.”
Didn’t I know it? Sweat ran down my spine, filling the cab of the truck with alpha funk. The van air conditioner whirred noisily, struggling to keep up with the summer heat.
“OK, I’ll meet you…” As I turned into what was supposed to be our new street, I saw I had a whole other problem to deal with. People had parked their cars on either side of the entrance to the street. Not up on the curb, nothing that would allow anything more than a small car to pass by. “Fuck!”
“What?” Gideon snapped, that bossy bullshit of his evident even down the phone line. “Jace, what?”
“Gotta go.”
I ended the call, noting that Gideon called me straight back, but I let it ring. I could either listen to his bullshit or deal withthe issue myself. As I turned the engine off, old ducks came out of their homes on either side of the street, frowning as they looked me, then my van, over. I plastered my best smile on my face, ready to charm the lot of them.
When I saw her.
A cute little hatchback pulled up behind me, making it impossible for me to go forward or backwards now. I was ready to have a little ‘chat’ with them, right as the driver got out of the car.
Omega, that’s what I thought as I saw her. Curves for days. Hair I wanted to wrap around my fist as I drew her closer. Eyes that narrowed now, her brows forming a cute little frown I wanted to smooth away with a thumb. Omegas were always sexy little things, but she… I wasn’t just feeling a tightness in my loins. My knot starting to swell in response to her. Fingers raked across my chest, feeling a strange ache there. My wolf scrambled to his feet, barking within me, as if I hadn’t already noticed her, right before he pushed me forward, forcing me to introduce myself.
“Briar Reynolds,” she replied, looking down at my hand, her own rising to take it. Yes, we wanted that very, very much. One touch from this girl and we’d be a complete mess, somehow I knew that. But she forced her hand back down, her frown deepening. “Any chance you can move that truck? My mother lives down this street and she’s wondering where the hell I am.”
“For you?” I placed my hand on my chest, pleased when her eyes followed it. She may or may not have looked a little closer at my pecs. Ditching the t-shirt now seemed like fate. I wanted her to measure my shoulders with her eyes, see every single one of the muscles I’d use to protect her from anyone or anything that might hurt her…
Shit, Briar was my mate.
“Anything,” I ended that sentence lamely. I wanted to be cool, smooth, but instead I was panting after her like a pup. “If you…” Gods, my voice was all low and growly, the wolf trying to push his way forward. Briar frowned, backing up slightly.Cool it!I barked at the other half of my soul.You’re scaring our omega.
Our omega. I was beginning to think we’d never find her, especially when all the omegas in our old place found other alphas. Which meant I couldn’t fuck this up.
“If you back up a bit, I’ll pull the van out and let you go past. Shit.” I reached for her keys, ready to take them off her and do the job myself. Why should my omega do anything when I was here? “I can move?—”
“It’s fine.” Her voice was clipped, her mouth a thin line, and I’d do just about anything to see the tension leave that full pout. “I can do it.”
As my hands went to my hips, I felt the prick of my claws against my skin. The wolf was not down with this plan, not one bit.Chill out,I told him.We’ll get out of her way and then track her to wherever she lives.That was enough to get him releasing his hold on me. As I climbed into the cab of the van, I looked into the rear-vision mirror, watching Briar park a small way up the adjoining street. I smiled when she looked my way, flicking my fingers up in a wave and then reversing the van.
“Is this van going to be going up and down our street?” the old bloke who’d come outside spluttered. “We don’t usually have big vehicles coming and going at all hours.”
