Page 63 of Step Alpha

I put on my shoes and go out to the Jeep. I’m utterly devastated about what I did to the back fender, but Wilde won’t let me stop and examine it.

“I’m taking care of that,” he says firmly as he takes me by the elbow and pulls me to the driver’s seat. He lifts me into it, buckles me in and shuts the door.

I let out a little scoff. Except I’m not finding much outrage at his controlling behavior. It’s based more in pleasure this time. Now that I understand it better, I’m starting to love Wilde’s obsession with me.

That doesn’t change my PTSD around driving, though. My hands shake when I start up the Jeep, the crunch of metal still fresh in my ears.

“You got this. Just drive, Rayne.”

I back up and get on the road.

“We’re going to Tempe?” I’m nervous. Highway driving in traffic intimidates me.

“Actually, let me make a phone call.”

Wilde pulls out his phone and dials a number. “Garrett? Wilde Woodward. Yeah, I’m sorry I didn’t make it down yesterday. I had to get home to look after my stepsister.” He shoots me a look that’s more devious than mean, and it makes my pulse race. “Anyway, I was wondering if there’s any chance we could drive down now? Yeah? Cool. Okay, I’ll meet you there. Thank you.”

Wilde ends the call and looks at me. “We’re going to Tucson.”

“Um…” I don’t want to say no because I realize the meeting’s important. If he doesn’t solve his legal problems, he’ll be banned from the pack. But Tucson is two and a half hours away, and then we’d be driving back at night.

Wilde seems to read my thoughts. “You got this, Ru–jellybean. I’ll drive home.”

I suck in a long, slow breath. “Okay, but I don’t know where to go.”

“I’ll navigate. You just relax and drive. This will be good practice for you.”

I nod, but my shoulders are up to my ears with tension. Even if I don’t wreck again, I’m going to exhaust my nervous system with all the flight or fight hormones dumping into my system.

But then Wilde drops his big paw on my nape and squeezes. “Rayne,” he murmurs. “You got this.”

* * *

Wilde

The runt (I shouldn’t call her that anymore) does a decent job driving. She’s nervous and a little jumpy about lane changes and navigating in heavy traffic, but she settles in.

We meet Garrett and Amber at Club Eclipse, Garrett’s nightclub on Congress Street in downtown Tucson. I’ve never been in it before.

I shake Garrett’s hand. “Garrett. Do you know Rayne?”

“No.” He extends a hand, taking her in. He seems to actually see her. There’s none of the dismissiveness the pack in Wolf Ridge has for her. His nostrils flare as he takes in her scent. “You’re in my father’s pack?”

“Um, yeah. Sort of.” Rayne shrugs dismissively, her eyes dropping away.

Garrett makes a huh or hmm sound in his throat that sounds like he understands what that means and doesn’t necessarily approve. Of course, he and his father don’t see eye to eye on many things. Pack leadership may be one of them.

“This is my mate, Amber.”

We shake hands with the human. Amber is a slender female. She’s not tiny like Rayne but definitely strikes me as fragile. I don’t know how Garrett can live knowing his mate is human and might die at any moment in any number of horrible ways.

Rayne may be small, but she has shifter blood. She has a wolf inside her that makes her powerful. A she-wolf I intend to bring out.

Because I have to know if she’s mine.

We sit down at the bar and Amber asks exactly what happened at my arrest.

I give her my paperwork and the short and dirty version. “There was a party in my hotel room, and the drugs were out. My roommate went out for beer. My wolf got prickly, so I looked out the window and saw two cop cars outside. I told everyone to leave. The cops showed up as the last people were walking out. They saw the drugs and put me in cuffs. I said nothing at the time and pleaded not guilty the next day. That’s it.”

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