Page 82 of Stealthy as a Wolf

I cleared my throat, my emotions getting the best of me, then I stiffened when the men all turned toward me, like what I had to say mattered. This was so different from how I was normally treated by males that it left me flustered. Not wanting to confess my thoughts, I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind. “Did you enjoy your run?”

Grady didn’t buy it for a second but had the grace not to call me out on it. “The area around the cabin was clear, only small animal tracks.”

Before I could embarrass myself further, I quickly shoveled food into my mouth. I didn’t know how to react around my mates. I’d had sex with two of the men, lusted after the other two, but the guys didn’t seem to mind that I couldn’t choose between them. They just seemed genuinely happy to be included in my affections.

As if knowing the direction of my thoughts, Boone shot me a wink. Desperate to distract him, I took another bite and gave a hum of appreciation. “This meal is great! While I’m a proficient cook, my food has never tasted anything like this.”

Grady bowed his head in acknowledgment, pleasure deepening his blue eyes until they twinkled. “I can’t take all the credit. Matty did help. But if you want to learn, it would be my pleasure to teach you.”

“I would like that.” My insides turned to goo at his offer and the chance to spend more time with the sexy alpha. Even though it’d only been a couple of hours since I’d been in his arms, I missed him. “How did you learn?”

His smile faded, but he didn’t look away. “After my first mate passed, I couldn’t stand for another woman to be in the house. I learned from necessity—it was either learn how to feed two starving wolf children, or the monsters would’ve turned on me. Cooking became a refuge, time that I could spend with the hellions.” He chuckled at the memory, flashing me a self-deprecating grin.

Maybe I should have been jealous, but after his explanation this morning, I was just grateful he had someone to take care of him. An alpha wasn’t meant to be alone. It was actually a relief that at least one person in our group knew what it meant to be a mate and could guide us.

The men discussed plans for the next few days, working out contingencies and fine-tuning details. I only partially listened. Nothing worked out as planned in my life, and trying to do it now would just be tempting fate.

No, what caught my attention was that, despite how involved they were in the discussion, Burke kept topping off my drink, while Grady and Boone constantly kept my plate filled. They did it unconsciously, their need to take care of me encoded in their DNA. Matty held my hand under the table and rubbed the back of it absently, like he couldn’t be near and not touch.

It was only when they finished and we were clearing off the table that a thump from outside caught my attention. I froze, while Grady and the twins instantly went into warrior mode, stepping forward to investigate the noise. Matty ignored the others and came right toward me, pulling me away from the potential danger.

Every alpha instinct demanded that I fight with the others, but I was afraid I’d just be a distraction. So I bit my lip and didn’t interfere, determined to watch their backs.

Grady stood guard at the front door, while the twins lingered near the windows on both sides. They remained out of sight, using the curtains to stay hidden as they peered into the dark forest beyond.

With the cabin lit, we were sitting ducks, so I quickly sidestepped toward the lights and killed them, plunging the room into darkness. There was a sudden crash, then Boone was chuckling. He turned toward me, flashing me a wink. “Looks like trash pandas are enjoying their own supper.

“Racoons?” I grinned and sagged in relief, feeling foolish for being so jumpy.

They had taken no more than a step away from the door when the porch practically thundered with the heavy, menacing thud of boots. A snarl filled the air seconds before the front door slammed open and two bodies charged through. Before I had time to even flinch, the four windows around the house shattered and more dark shapes hurtled into the room, along with thousands of shards of flying glass.

Then there was no more thinking as snarls echoed through the cabin, and the sounds of flesh pounding against flesh filled the room. Chaos reigned for a moment, and I went back-to-back with Matty, cursing when I lost count after a dozen men.

It was an ambush.

A cacophony of pained grunts and growls filled the cabin, and my wolf pressed against the underside of my skin, wanting to shift and defend my men. I was barely able to hold her back, but I knew we were too new to our animal form to be anything but a liability.

When one of the attackers got too close to me, Matty didn’t hesitate to throw himself at the man, and it was only then that I realized they were all wolves.

They’d found me.

I went cold, paralyzing fear creeping through my veins as my nightmares came to life before my very eyes. I’d thought I buried those horrors years ago, but the terror threatening to consume me told me I’d only been fooling myself.

If they captured me, my life before would look like a paradise. They would do more than just imprison and torture me this time. I would become nothing but a broodmare, available to anyone who wanted a go at me.

Then that fear morphed into pure, unadulterated rage when I realized that the wolves were trying to go through my mates to get to me.

Worse, they were succeeding.

There were just too many of them to stop.

The guys were being overwhelmed.

If I did nothing, they would die, and I refused to allow that to happen.

“Kneel!” I infused every ounce of my alpha power into my voice, directing the command at the intruders. For the first time since my reveal, my voice failed me.

Not one wolf bowed.

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