3. Thorne

For the fourth time today, my ears prick as a car rumbles by on the road.

Why the hell are you waiting for her?

I feel like an idiot.

I have no idea why I invited Iris here a week ago.

I have no idea why I followed her on her hike that day. I was on my normal patrol when I smelled her, and I had just… followed.

I have no idea why I kept the bear from her.

And I have no idea why I texted her my address yesterday, inviting her to come see the ‘wolf' from a week ago.

The door to my office slams open, and Evander walks in. "Hey, there's some problem with the fences…" his voice trails off. "Thorne. Are you okay?"

"Yes. I'm fine. Why?"

Evander's eyebrows pinch together, and he sits in the chair in front of my desk, so he's facing me. "Why are you so jumpy?"

"I'm not jumpy."

He leans forward, his elbows on the opposite side of my desk. "You literally flinched when I opened the door."

"I was moving at the same time as you entered."

"You flinched."

"I didn't…"

We both hear the car on the gravel road leading up to the compound at the same time.

Evander's eyes widen. "Are we expecting someone?"

"Shit."

"Thorne…"

"Shift into a wolf."

He blinks at me. "What?"

"Shift into a wolf and get into the feral cage."

"Are you fucking…"

"Shift, I'll tell you all about it later."

Evander's nostrils flare. But there's a pop of magic, and Evander's sandy brown wolf appears in front of me.

"Cage. Now," I hiss.

He snaps at me but trots off to the cage.

I scramble out the front door. At the last minute, I compose myself, taking a deep breath.

I have no idea why I'm so bent out of shape about this human.

Get it together, Thorne.

Opening the front door, I watch as a beat-up Toyota 4Runner pulls into the drive. The dust pools around it, and when the engine cuts off, I notice a raspy whine that could be a timing belt.

Could be something else. I'd have to look under the hood to…

Stop mentally fixing her car.

The door opens before I have a chance to further chastise myself. Iris steps out, shading her eyes against the bright glare of the sun.

"Thorne?" she asks.

Her voice rings like bells in the air.

A week ago, when I found her with the bear, she'd scolded me for intimidating it. She, a human who could be consumed by said bear in one bite, had told me to let the sow pass.

It must have been her melodic voice that convinced me to do so, because its having a similar effect on me now.

"Hi. Yes. Iris," I say, stumbling through my words.

Damn. I'm not usually this…

Tongue tied.

"I'm here."

I nod. "You want to see the wolf?"

"Yes."

"Come with me."

I walk back to the cage that we keep for wolves who need a little time apart from the pack. Sometimes people… lose themselves and need a minute in the cage.

Sometimes we need to just put someone in it, like a drunk tank.

I can feel Iris at my back as we get close. I let out a huff of relief as I see Evander in there, laying on his side.

His blue eyes are narrowed in irritation at me.

"See," I gesture, waving to the cage. "Good as new."

She blinks. "That's not the same wolf."

Ah. Fuck. "No. That one was all good. Released him a few days ago."

"And now you have another one?"

"Yeah. Um. Ranchers brought this one in. Last night."

"What's wrong with him?"

"Broken rib," I say loudly.

On cue, Evander wheezes.

Iris steps forward. This close, I can smell the light scent of rain and pine that drifts off of her.

I shut my eyes.

She smells amazing.

"Well. I see why your wolves keep getting out," she says with a snort.

"Um…"

She snaps the lock to the cage shut.

Evander's eyes glimmer at me. Idiot, they seem to say.

He's not wrong.

"Thanks," I say. "He's not going anywhere fast, so I wasn't worried about it."

"Are you always so… easygoing with your animals?"

"No," I say, eyeing Evander. "This one is just really docile."

She sighs. "Listen, I don't know how to tell you this, but it's kind of rehab 101 that wild animals are going to behave like wild animals."

"I know."

"Do you? Because…"

"Why don't you get dinner with me, and we can talk about animals?" I say.

The words just fall off of my tongue. I don't really even know why I'm saying them.

However, now that they're out in the world, it's not like I can take them back.

She blinks. "You're asking me to dinner?"

"Yes. To talk about wildlife rehab stuff," I add lamely.

She stares at me. "Seriously?"

"Really." I can't go back now. I can feel Evander burning with questions behind my back, but I can't back out.

Plus, I think I would really like to have dinner with her.

"You're not… messing with me?"

I blink with genuine surprise. "No."

"Oh. Okay."

"Okay?"

"I'll have dinner with you," she says.

The words are almost shy.

"Okay. Cool. Oakwood Café. Meet you there at six," I growl.

"See you then," she says. Biting her lip, I can tell that she's a little unsure.

I watch her walk back to her car. The 4Runner starts up with a whine, and she's driving away.

"The fuck was that?" Evander's voice behind me makes me jump.

"What?"

"You just asked a human out on a date. A human that you need to stay as far away from as possible," Evander snarls.

I turn. He's naked, but he's mostly just furious.

"Yeah," I say, folding my arms. "So?"

"So. You can't be fucking around with humans, Thorne. Not this close to your thirtieth birthday."

I grit my teeth. "Mind your own fucking business, Evander."

He shakes his head. "No, Thorne. You need to find a mate. Soon. Because if you don't, we're all fucked."

My nostrils flare. "I know."

Shifters who don't find their mate by their thirtieth birthday lose their ability to shift. For some, it's welcome. Others, they're still part of the community.

For me?

It would be devastating.

The whole pack relies on me. I can't lose the ability to shift.

"You can't mate with a human, Thorne."

"Stop telling me this shit," I bark. "I know."

Evander glares at me. "So. Don't fuck around."

"Go figure out what's wrong with the fences up on the north border," I growl at him.

He opens his mouth like he's going to say something but shuts it.

Shifting, Evander lopes away.

I rub my neck as I watch him go. I know he's right. Shifters can't mate with humans. The mating bond that keeps our magic preserved doesn't work if we mate with them. We also can't reproduce with humans, not if we're still shifters.

If we lose our magic, we can.

If we can transform… nope.

And it's not an option for me to go without young. I'm the alpha, and I'll pass on that title to my son.

Someday.

However, I also haven't felt drawn to mate with any of the females in our pack. I like to have fun, as most young wolves my age do.

But I've never felt compelled for more.

The clock is ticking, though. I need to find a mate.

I didn't need to ask Iris out on a date.

However, I already did. As with most things when it comes to Iris, it seems that I just can't help myself.

I know I need to find a proper mate soon.

But whatever it is about Iris…

I clearly have to get out of my system first.

That's all. A sense of relief washes over me, because that makes sense. I can't deny Iris is attractive. I can't resist her, apparently.

So, this will be it. One last fling, one last little bit of fun, before I settle down.

Before I find my real mate.

I'll have Iris.